Chapter 616: The Fool Card and an Excited Yumeko
Momobami Kirari stared intently at the neatly wrapped square of candy resting inside the hollowed-out orange. She let out a soft, elegant sigh, a hint of helpless amusement coloring her features. "I yield. I am not guessing anymore."
"Are you absolutely sure?" Ren asked, his tone laced with dry amusement.
"It is already candy," Kirari murmured, resting her chin on her hand. "What else could possibly be left to deduce?"
Ren tilted his head, a faint smile playing on his lips. "If you refuse to guess, it counts as a forfeit."
"I accept my defeat. Let the others try." Kirari gestured gracefully toward the rest of the room. "Yumeko?"
Jabami Yumeko blinked, momentarily taken aback by the sudden spotlight, before shaking her head. "I will have to pass as well. We have already reached the center... Besides, this is merely a little parlor game, isn't it?"
"Is everyone entirely sure?" Ren's gaze swept across the room.
A collective shaking of heads answered him. Even Lucifer and the others looked thoroughly unconvinced that there was any mystery left. The translucent wrapper was already partially peeled back, clearly revealing the sweet inside. What else was there to uncover?
"Kirari," Ren said softly, his eyes locking onto hers. "You really should trust your own instincts a little more."
Kirari froze. Before she could process his words, Ren reached out and deftly flicked the wrapper open. Lying quietly against the plastic was a perfect, square piece of freeze-dried strawberry, delicately edged with a thin layer of creamy milk candy.
A soft breath escaped Kirari's lips. Yumeko leaned in, her polite curiosity suddenly sharpening into intense scrutiny. "What exactly were you two betting on?"
"This," Ren replied smoothly, "is the Fool card."
The moment those words left his mouth, Yumeko flinched as if struck by a live wire. Her pupils constricted to pinpricks. The polite, soft-spoken girl vanished in an instant, replaced by a predator. A manic, breathless smile stretched across her face, and to Erina and the others watching in stunned silence, Yumeko's dark eyes seemed to ignite with a terrifying, glowing crimson light.
Kirari merely sighed, a fond, defeated smile touching her lips. "It never fails. I can read anyone else in the world and win, yet I always lose when it comes to you."
"That is because I understand you," Ren replied simply.
Kirari's smile deepened, and she chose not to reply, letting the comfortable silence linger.
But the silence was shattered by a breathless giggle. "Mr. Ren!" Yumeko leaned over the table, her chest heaving slightly, her voice dripping with intoxicating thrill. "You are truly magnificent! Mr. Ren, please—let us play a game too!"
Ren met her glowing eyes without a flinch. "What did you have in mind?"
Without missing a beat, Kirari reached into her blazer pocket and smoothly produced a pristine deck of playing cards, sliding them across the table. A collective sweatdrop formed on the onlookers. Carrying a sealed deck of cards to a dinner party—truly, the Student Council President of Hyakkaou Private Academy never rested.
Yumeko clapped her hands together, her manic energy barely contained. "Let us keep it simple! Excluding the Jokers, we will play 'High Card'. Aces count as one, numbering up to the King, which is the highest. For the suits, we will reverse the standard order: Diamonds will be the absolute highest, followed by Clubs, Hearts, and Spades. We each draw two cards to determine the ultimate winner. How does that sound?"
Ren nodded, entirely unbothered by the sudden shift in atmosphere. "That works for me. Though, considering this deck looks fresh out of the cellophane, I imagine you have been planning to drag me into a game for a while?"
"Guilty as charged!" Yumeko giggled, her cheeks flushed with adrenaline. "So... Runa! I will leave the shuffling in your capable hands! This is strictly for fun—no formal wagers, no penalties, and no rewards!"
"Ok, ok! Leave it to me!" Runa Yomozuki hopped up, grabbing the deck with a mischievous grin.
Kirari watched the unfolding spectacle with serene interest, while Igarashi Sayaka stood rigidly behind her, eyeing Yumeko with a fearless, protective glare. The rest of the room leaned in, completely captivated by the sudden tension.
Runa cracked her knuckles and went to work. The cards became an absolute blur in her small hands—cascading waterfalls, complex bridges, and rapid-fire cuts that made the onlookers dizzy just trying to follow the motion. Finally, with a sharp snap, she slammed the perfectly squared deck onto the center of the table. "Alright! All done!"
Yumeko reached out, her fingers trembling slightly with anticipation, but Ren smoothly stepped back and gestured toward the deck. "Ladies first."
A deep flush spread across Yumeko's cheeks, her smile turning dangerously sweet. "Oh my... how wonderfully thoughtful of you. Then I shall..." She elegantly slid the top card off the deck, peeking at the corner. "My, my. It seems the first card favors me."
She drew her second card, her breath hitching in pure ecstasy. "Oh, Mr. Ren... you are in terrible danger."
Ren remained entirely silent. He didn't even bother to scrutinize the deck. With a casual, almost lazy motion, he reached out and plucked two cards from the middle of the stack.
"Then I shall reveal mine first!" Yumeko declared, slamming her cards face-up onto the table. "The Queen of Diamonds, and the King of Hearts!"
A murmur rippled through the room. It was an incredibly strong hand. To beat a King of Hearts in this reversed-suit format, Ren would need to draw the King of Clubs or the King of Diamonds. The odds were astronomically low.
Ren glanced at her hand, a faint smirk tugging at his lips. "Well, Yumeko. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but you lost."
With a flick of his wrist, Ren flipped his two cards over.
The King of Diamonds. The King of Clubs.
The room fell dead silent. Yumeko stared at the two highest cards in the entire deck, her glowing red eyes widening in pure, unadulterated shock. "Wow! Mr. Ren, your luck is absolutely monstrous!"
"Luck has nothing to do with it," Ren corrected mildly. "I just have rather good eyesight."
Yumeko froze. Her mind raced, replaying Runa's blindingly fast, chaotic shuffle. He hadn't just gotten lucky. He had tracked the exact position of the two highest cards through the entire blur of motion. The realization hit her, and she threw her head back, bursting into a peal of delighted, breathless laughter.
"What a terrifying man!" she gasped, wiping a tear from her eye. "Mr. Ren, you are truly beyond amazing!"
Ren chuckled, shaking his head. "Since you enjoyed that, Yumeko, would you care to see a magic trick?"
"Yes! I am looking forward to it immensely!"
"Then do not take your eyes off my hands for a single second."
Ren reached down and picked up the two Kings from the table, holding them up between his index and middle fingers. "These are the Kings, correct?"
He slowly, deliberately opened his hand.
The King of Diamonds and the King of Clubs were gone. In their place rested two brightly colored Jokers.
Yumeko gasped, her gaze snapping down to the table. Lying right where they had been moments ago were the original two Kings. Runa's jaw dropped, her lollipop nearly falling from her mouth.
"Just a little sleight of hand," Ren said, tossing the Jokers back onto the table. "Did everyone enjoy the show?"
"How in the world did you do that?" Runa demanded, leaning over the table to inspect his sleeves.
"A magician never reveals his secrets," Ren teased. "Even a fake one. Now then, the Buddha Jumps Over the Wall is finally ready. Give me just a moment."
Kirari leaned back in her chair, a thoroughly satisfied smile gracing her lips. "You see, Yumeko? My beloved truly is quite extraordinary."
Before Runa could demand another magic trick, the heavy wooden doors to the kitchen swung open. Ren emerged pushing a large, silver dining cart. Atop it sat a massive, ornate clay jar, surrounded by a neat stack of porcelain bowls.
Instantly, every single pair of eyes in the room locked onto the cart. The playful tension of the card game evaporated, replaced by a heavy, primal anticipation.
Ren stopped the cart and let out a dry laugh. "Please don't stare at me like a pack of starving wolves. It stresses me out."
Ichihara Yuko and Lucifer slammed their hands on the table in perfect unison. "Hurry up and serve it!"
Under the burning gazes of goddesses, demons, and gamblers alike, Ren reached out and slowly lifted the heavy clay lid.
In that single instant, the dining room was completely overwhelmed. An intoxicating, impossibly rich aroma exploded from the jar, sweeping through the air like a tidal wave. The deep, savory essence of slow-simmered abalone, sea cucumber, scallops, and aged Shaoxing wine layered together into a fragrance so dense it felt heavy in the lungs. Even someone as refined as Yumeko visibly swallowed hard, her composure cracking under the sheer culinary weight of the scent.
"Don't panic, there is more than enough for everyone," Ren said, picking up a ladle. "First, to the one who actually requested it..."
He paused, blinking in surprise. Yuko was already standing directly in front of the cart, holding her empty porcelain bowl out with both hands, her crimson eyes wide with desperate hunger.
Ren let out a helpless laugh. "Why do I suddenly feel like a cafeteria worker serving middle schoolers?"
Yuko scowled, though she didn't lower her bowl an inch. "What kind of middle school cafeteria serves authentic Buddha Jumps Over the Wall? Less talking, more scooping! I am starving to death over here!"
"Didn't you eat the most during lunch?"
"That was hours ago! My stomach has already reset. Just give me the soup!"
Riven stood off to the side, her stoic face betraying a rare look of deep confusion. She didn't understand the cultural significance of the dish, but her warrior's instincts told her that whatever was inside that jar was worth fighting a war over.
"Wow! What is that smell?!" a bright, energetic voice echoed from the staircase. "It smells absolutely incredible! Is that the Buddha Jumps Over the Wall?!"
Ren glanced up to see a familiar flash of orange hair bounding down the steps. "Nami! Your timing is impeccable. Grab a bowl and get in line."
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