287: Gambling Match: [Death Macaron]
"Since you want to replace Yumemite Yumemi and gamble with me, the gambling game will not change just because the player has. Is that okay with you?"
"Of course."
Following behind Warakubami Sumika, and with the assistance of the Disciplinary and Beautification Committees, they finally arrived at a quiet classroom.
Hikigaya Hachiman asked curiously, "But normally the gambling games are confirmed by the neutral Election Committee, right? Would they approve a game designed by you?"
"It's already been filed. That Committee Chair personally approved it. She said this gamble might be unexpectedly fun and will come host it herself."
"Ah..." Hikigaya held his forehead helplessly.
As they opened the door, a familiar figure in a bunny hoodie was already waiting inside.
"Yahallo~"
"It's me, Yomozuki Runa again~"
Warakubami nodded slightly, and looked back at Hikigaya. "But before the gamble starts, I need to verify your identity. You said you're the composer of Yumemi's songs—do you have any proof?"
"Proof, huh... Hang on, let me find it."
Hikigaya Hachiman pulled out his phone and opened a digital document containing lyrics and musical scores he had written earlier.
"Here, it's all in here. Though it's just a portion of it, it should be enough to convince you."
Warakubami, looking skeptical, took the phone and carefully read through it.
The more she read, the more astonished she became.
She was a superstar in film, TV, and music, but her weakest point was in songwriting—she lacked signature hits.
Although her singing voice, vocal control, and stage presence were flawless, what she truly lacked were original songs that matched her style.
But the songs shown here—each one gave her the illusion that this is how the song was meant to be.
"What are these two songs called?"
She couldn't help but ask.
"'Amazing Grace' and 'Call of Silence.'"
Warakubami Sumika nodded and continued looking down the scores.
She unconsciously began to hum them, and for a moment, her beautiful voice filled the room.
Yomizuki Runa listened with closed eyes, swaying her head in bliss, lost in the melody.
Even Hikigaya squinted his eyes slightly in appreciation—her singing skill was unquestionably on another level compared to Yumemi.
Eventually, Runa's mischievous side resurfaced.
As much as she enjoyed good singing, she was far more eager to watch the gamble unfold!
"Ahem, alright, enough of that. Since the stakes have been confirmed as genuine, let me now introduce the gamble!"
"The gamble is called: 'Acting Showdown!'"
"But because the opponent has changed from Yumemi to Hikigaya Hachiman, I've made a few minor adjustments to the original game. That okay, Sumika-chan?"
"No problem."
[This round of gambling features one and only one game: Death Macaron.]
Runa clapped her hands, and a member of the Election Committee came in holding a tray.
On the tray were six macarons of various colors and designs, arranged symmetrically along a center line.
[The two players will each eat three macarons in turn.]
[In each row, one macaron is coated with "death chili sauce," which is far spicier than any normal person can endure.]
[The task is simple:]
[Each player must guess which macaron the opponent ate was the spicy one, while also suppressing their own facial reactions to prevent their opponent from guessing correctly.]
"What do you think? Simple rules, right?"
"Death chili sauce? Just how spicy is it?"
Hikigaya's heart sank.
This wasn't so much gambling as it was an acting competition.
What does this have to do with gambling? Sure, gamblers need to read micro-expressions under pressure, but this... This is a purely physical reaction pushing one's body into involuntary betrayal.
As for Hikigaya's own acting skills... he wasn't sure.
His bedroom acting had been praised by many women before, but whether it could fool a superstar like her... that was doubtful.
"It's really, really spicy. Usually something used by Ikishima-chan to punish delinquent students," Runa explained with a stiff expression, clearly lacking the guts to try it herself.
"What if we both correctly guess the spicy one the other ate?"
"If that happens..." Runa gave a devilish grin. "Then of course you keep eating~"
She clapped again, and more Election Committee members entered, each carrying trays of macarons, all brightly colored and neatly arranged.
Hikigaya's mouth twitched slightly at the sight.
"So in other words, if we keep tying, the gamble becomes a test of physiological endurance due to the increasing levels of spiciness."
"Before declaring surrender or forfeiting, you can't drink water or eat anything. You must rely on your own body to withstand it. Understood?" Runa said.
Warakubami gave Runa a sideways glance.
'What a sadistic woman.'
In her original version of the game, a tie would've meant moving on to the next game.
But under Runa's modification, the players were locked into a deathmatch in the arena of bodily endurance.
No dragging it out. It has to end quickly.
Warakubami Sumika made up her mind—if this dragged on, she would choose to forfeit first.
Unlike Hikigaya, she was a superstar.
She had to protect her public image and her voice.
If she damaged her throat with all that spice, it could be a career-ending injury.
Her voice... was her second life!
On the other hand, Hikigaya also felt a heavy pressure.
He had never tested his limits when it came to this kind of physical punishment.
Sure, he liked spicy food, but just as a casual fan.
He used to watch spicy food challenge videos and chuckle at the contestants' pain.
But he had never expected to be in their shoes.
No mistakes allowed. Find her tells before she finds mine.
Hikigaya had steeled his resolve.
Their eyes locked in midair, clashing silently.
Runa shrank back a little, feeling an unexpected chill in the air—but thankfully it wasn't aimed at her.
"Well then, since neither of you has any objections, let the gamble begin!"
"3, 2, 1... Start eating!"
Chapter 288: Hikigaya's Self-Hypnosis
The two moved simultaneously, each picking up the first macaron from the tray. Hikigaya Hachiman stared blankly at the woman in front of him, lifted the macaron to his mouth, and took a deep breath. He had already steeled himself.
When consuming spicy food, people generally have two types of responses: reflex and reaction. A sudden, unexpected sensation triggers a reflex.
A reaction, on the other hand, is a controlled response after processing by the brain.
The better an actor, the more they can blur the lines between reflex and reaction—until the two are indistinguishable.
Just like in bed. When facing an insatiable partner, whether one can rise to the occasion becomes a matter of disguising response or reflex.
As for how much he could endure spice-wise, even Hikigaya wasn't sure.
Put simply, to win this gamble, you had to:
Act unfazed when eating a spicy macaron. Act like you're barely enduring it when eating a non-spicy one.
"This one's spicy. This one's spicy. This one's spicy..." Hikigaya kept hypnotizing himself internally as he opened his mouth and took a bite.
Spicy. Incredibly spicy. Unbearably spicy. So spicy it was nearly intolerable.
The terrifying spiciness attacked his consciousness through the nerves on his tongue.
The moment the taste buds transmitted the signal to his brain's cortex, Hikigaya mentally dove into his memory palace—recalling his happiest memories to withstand the maddening sensation.
Spiciness is a form of pain.
It overstimulates the taste nerves.
Without the option to neutralize it with food or drink, his only option was to use joyful memories to stimulate adrenaline secretion to counter the pain.
'Adrenaline—charge!!!' He shouted within himself, like a protagonist in an anime powering up in the penultimate episode to fight the boss.
He exhibited complete self-control. While enduring the spicy pain, his eyes coldly observed Warakubami Sumika, recording her every microexpression.
Observation goes both ways. Warakubami Sumika was also observing Hikigaya.
Her eyes showed slight doubt as she took in every bit of Hikigaya's reaction.
'Excellent acting…' 'But…' 'The moment the food touched your mouth, your pupils involuntarily contracted. That's a reflex you can't control.'
'With professional acting training, maybe you could be on my level. But for now, you're not there yet.'
Warakubami chewed the macaron—also covered with the death chili paste—expressionless.
'Indeed… very spicy. So spicy a normal person couldn't handle it.' 'But I'm different. I acted in a film as a character with 21 personalities at the age of sixteen and won Best Actress.' 'I can perfectly control my facial expressions.'
What is perfect control? Using the wings of her nose as the dividing line, she could cry on one side of her face while smiling on the other. That is, she could force two conflicting emotions onto one face.
She controlled every facial muscle to act out dual personalities.
She was confident that she could deceive Hikigaya Hachiman.
"Wow~ Amazing!" Yomizuki Runa clapped her hands over her mouth in amazement: "If it's that spicy, just eating one is already incredible. But judging by your reactions, I guess neither of you had the spicy one yet. Time to move on to the next!"
Upon hearing this, Hikigaya immediately grabbed the second macaron and shoved it into his mouth.
But across from him, Warakubami frowned. 'What's going on?' 'Why is his reaction the same as last round? He had the same pupil contraction.'
Confident in herself, Warakubami immediately suspected something: Could there be more than one spicy macaron?
She asked: "Yomozuki, are you sure there's only one death-chili-covered macaron among the three?"
"Eh? Eh? Sumika-chan, what are you saying? Are you doubting my absolute neutrality? Of course there's only one 'bug bomb'~ Don't worry! Hikigaya-kun already ate his—your turn!"
"No... That can't be right." "If there's only one, then why did he have reflex reactions two times in a row?"
Pupil contraction is one of the hardest bodily responses to control…
Thinking that, Warakubami deliberately made her pupil contract the moment the second macaron entered her mouth. The change was subtle, but if anyone would notice—it'd be Hikigaya Hachiman.
This was bait.
'Forget your suspicious reactions for now, Hikigaya.' 'You're desperate to find my tells, right? Well, I've given you a lifeline—take it!'
Warakubami Sumika had always been a proud woman.
She debuted as a child star, went to Hollywood, and became the youngest actress to win Best Actress.
She had the credentials to be arrogant.
She enjoyed watching her opponents reveal helplessness, defeat, or shame while acting opposite her. That overwhelming domination in acting thrilled her.
She suddenly remembered— Back in kindergarten, when the younger members of the clan were still toddlers, she once secretly hid another child's favorite toy.
And when questioned, she relied on her acting to escape blame and pinned it on a lower-ranked family member.
Perhaps it was then that the devil within Warakubami Sumika awakened.
'With acting, I can obtain anything I want, break any rule, and avoid all punishment.'
Because of this pride, she loved tossing out malicious lifelines after utterly crushing an opponent.
'Take it, weakling~ With my pity, fall into hell!'
Though malice brimmed within her like crimson blood ready to overflow, on the surface, Warakubami still maintained her star-quality demeanor.
No matter the situation—image comes first.
"Wow~ you both ate the second macaron. Still no clear reaction~" Yomozuki Runa pouted in disappointment but was inwardly elated.
No one knew better than she which one was the real death macaron. Her words were simply meant to confuse the two and test their endurance limits.
"Alright, only one macaron left. I've got a feeling… this game's going to end in the first round~"