Friends? He had only met him once, how were they friends already?
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka paused for a moment, then saw Kuroki Ya frantically winking at him.
Although Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was doubtful, he didn't say anything directly, only hummed in acknowledgment.
The other party was very enthusiastic, revealing all his personal history upon their first meeting.
"Because I liked anime, my appearance was always unpopular, so I was completely unpopular in high school.
After graduating from middle school, my dad forced me to come to this school. I was really worried at first about whether I'd get bullied, but I never expected to make friends like you, Kuroki! It's really great!"
Well, this guy was an otaku.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka only briefly mentioned a few anime series, and his eyes lit up as he talked animatedly, as if he couldn't wait to treat Ayanokoji Kiyotaka as his soulmate.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka was a bit unaccustomed to his enthusiasm. Kuroki seemed to notice this and gave the other two a look. They nodded in understanding and skillfully steered the conversation elsewhere, freeing Ayanokoji.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka and Kuroki Ya moved a little further away from the three. Ayanokoji glanced at Tanaka: "…Kuroki, is he the 'sucker' you mentioned?"
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka had heard Kuroki say before that he and a few classmates had found a "sucker" and scammed a lot of money from him.
Could this be the one?
"That's right, it's him." Kuroki Ya wasn't at all surprised that Ayanokoji Kiyotaka could tell, and nodded with a smile.
"He's the son of a well-known trading company's CEO. His family is extremely wealthy, and he's very generous."
No wonder… Ayanokoji understood.
In their earlier conversation, Tanaka had mentioned that he had a house dedicated to storing his anime figures, and his words subtly revealed his affluent background.
If a normal person had his financial conditions, they would have been arrogant long ago.
However, because he had been a recluse and obsessed with anime during middle school, he hadn't revealed his family's financial status. He thought his unpopularity was due to his appearance, and he was quite insecure.
But as soon as he arrived at this high school, several classmates immediately approached him with "enthusiasm," so he thought this school was great and the students were very friendly, which rekindled his self-confidence.
However, he had no idea that these people were after his money.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka scanned the room.
No matter how he looked at it, Kuroki Ya and the other two looked more like young masters than this true scion, Tanaka, yet they were all circling around the chubby Tanaka.
Indeed, you can't judge a book by its cover…
Kuroki Ya noticed Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's gaze and, without a care, smiled and revealed the truth about the three of them.
"Don't look at them, they're just like me, all dressed up, but in reality, we're all from commoner backgrounds. We just got lucky and got into this academy because our grades were slightly better.
When we first came to this academy, we were all country bumpkins. This is the result of us studying desperately for a long time."
Kuroki Ya smiled and clinked glasses with Ayanokoji Kiyotaka.
Although Ayanokoji Kiyotaka felt a little sorry for Tanaka, he didn't say anything extra.
Trading money for friends, perhaps for him, it was a worthwhile transaction.
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka and his friends arrived relatively early. After they chatted for a while, the rest of the people arrived one after another.
The piano music on the stage stopped. The girl in the evening gown left, and a pink-haired girl wearing a butterfly eye mask jumped onto the stage.
She held a microphone and shouted energetically.
"Hello everyone who's single! Did you cry yourself to sleep and soak your pillow again last night? But from today onwards, you don't have to worry anymore! Welcome to the Private Hyakkaou Academy, Student Council-sponsored Matchmaking Party!"
"The Matchmaking Party is always well-received. This is the 50th session, and the previous 49 sessions have had over 5,000 participants. Many alumni who met and married at this party are also here."
"So, everyone, make sure to find your ideal match!"
"To deepen everyone's feelings, we will be holding a gamble during this event. This gamble is…"
The host on stage said, then suddenly raised a hand. All the lights in the hall suddenly went out, leaving only a PPT projected on the large screen on the stage—it was a Cupid shooting an arrow.
"This gamble is a game where girls confess to their crushes, and boys choose their crushes, to divine whether both parties can successfully match—[Matchmaking Gamble]!"
Hearing this, Ayanokoji Kiyotaka looked at Kuroki Ya and said, utterly speechless, "You said it was a mixer, that's why I came. Why is it still a gamble…?"
"Cheer up, don't treat this as a gamble. Just treat it as a party game to liven up the atmosphere."
Kuroki didn't care at all. Instead, he chuckled, "Besides, this gamble is very exciting, you'll definitely like it."
The host on stage was still introducing.
"This Matchmaking Gamble is simple. It's played in groups, divided into five-person boys' groups and girls' groups. After group confirmation, the list will be submitted to the staff, and the staff will randomly decide, and the boys' groups and girls' groups will sit facing each other…"
The host said a lot. In simple terms, 120 people participated in this game, meaning a total of twelve male and female groups.
After the groups are divided, the twelve male and female groups will be randomly matched. The matched pairs will sit facing each other, and then start chatting.
When the atmosphere feels right, they can start this Matchmaking Gamble.
First, the female designates a confession target among the boys opposite. Next, the boys' group chooses whether to accept the confession.
After the confession and selection are over, the female announces her confession target. After she finishes, the next female confesses. Following this order, if the female's confession target and the male's selection target match, congratulations, the pair is successful. If they don't match, the pair is unsuccessful.
If a pair is successful, it's a victory for the popular male, and the female pays the male the gambling money. Conversely, if the pair is unsuccessful, the male pays the female the gambling money.
This game is very simple, like a two-way selection in a dating show, easy to understand, just with the added element of gambling money.
"Of course, the so-called confession, selection, and successful pairing in the gamble are just part of the game and have nothing to do with reality.
However, there are countless cases where this gamble served as an opportunity to develop into real relationships, so everyone can look forward to that!"
The host's voice was as vibrant as an idol's: "There are still twenty minutes before the official gamble begins. Everyone can go find like-minded partners to form teams! Everyone, see you later!"
After she finished speaking, she energetically waved to the audience and ran backstage.
At this moment, all the lights turned on again.
The female pianist walked onto the stage again and played the piano music. The entire banquet hall returned to its previous atmosphere, and became even livelier.
"This game is quite interesting…" Ayanokoji indeed became interested: "How much is the gambling money? Is it agreed upon by everyone after discussion, or is it a fixed amount?"
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