"Tsk..." Kurume clicked her tongue in annoyance and sat down.
The second person to confess was Togakushi Yukimi, unexpectedly, she confessed to Tanaka Yuzuna, the chubby young master.
"Huh!? So Togakushi, you actually like me!?" Tanaka was utterly flustered, seemingly being confessed to for the first time, his face flushed.
How could she possibly like him?
All nine people present, no, ten people including Mikura, had already figured it out.
Togakushi Yukimi's was a "tactical confession," aimed at getting money from him.
Tanaka Yuzuna had a crush on Hanatemari Kazura; anyone with eyes could see it.
Although he wasn't good-looking, confessing to him was the easiest way to get that one million yen in gambling money.
The third person was Hanatemari Kazura; her confession was directed at Kuroki Ya.
The fourth person was Saotome Meari; her confession was directed at Ochi Ren.
Hearing that she confessed to him, Ochi Ren couldn't help but clench his fists, trying hard to control his excited feelings.
If a girl used her privilege, even if she won, she could only get 330,000 per round, and she had to treat them to a big meal.
But with Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's guarantee, he could get the full one million yen.
Kuonji Mamoru and Kuroki Ya both cast envious glances at him.
The last person was Inui Chitose; her confession was directed at Kuonji Mamoru.
This proved one thing.
The girls had already discussed it: each person would confess to a different individual, maximizing the use of the rules, trying their best to prevent a match from forming, and maximizing their earnings.
Their five individual confessions were an action to maximize profit.
The confessions were over, so next... it was time for verification.
Saotome Meari and the others waited nervously for the results.
Mikura took out her phone and reported the end of confessions at Table 3 in their staff group chat.
Soon, the host stood on the stage again.
"Everyone, thank you for your hard work. The confession time for all tables has ended. All that's left is to announce the results! Everyone must be very nervous, but this heart-pounding sensation is also one of the joys of love!"
"Regardless of whether the person you confessed to is to your liking, or whether they accept, the outcome has already been produced. Since that's the case, let's happily accept it!"
It was time to announce.
Mikura held a stack of cards, holding the girls' cards in her left hand and the boys' cards in her right.
Before starting, she specifically asked: "Do you have any requests for the order of announcement?"
Inui Chitose quickly raised her hand: "Just follow the order of confession; I can be last!"
Kurume Laiwei had been waiting for a long time; she stared at Ayanokoji Kiyotaka and said impatiently: "Hurry up and start, I can't wait any longer!"
"Alright, then first is Kurume Laiwei. Your confession was to Ayanokoji Kiyotaka. The result is... [Match Formed]."
"Huh, it really formed!?" Kurume Laiwei herself found it a bit unbelievable and stood up in surprise.
After she saw Ayanokoji Kiyotaka nod, confirming the successful match, she was not at all disheartened by the 330,000 she lost; instead, she smiled happily: "Hehe... The person you just said you liked was me, right? Why are you still shy!"
Ayanokoji Kiyotaka's expression was very calm: "No, don't overthink it. I just chose this way simply to win."
Kurume Laiwei, with a smiling face, was about to say something else when Mikura interrupted her again: "Second is Togakushi Yukimi. Your confession was to Tanaka Yuzuna. The result is... [Match Formed]."
"Huh?"
This time, not only Togakushi Yukimi, but also the other girls were stunned.
Togakushi Yukimi did not accept this result; she angrily slammed the table: "How is that possible? How could he choose me! He clearly likes Hanatemari...!"
Tanaka Yuzuna chuckled: "Togakushi, you said you like literature when we were chatting, right? Actually, I also have some research in literature. We have similar interests. I'll book a luxurious restaurant, and we can have a good chat then."
"No... impossible."
Every girl's face looked a little grim.
Although a chance match is possible, two consecutive matches, what kind of probability is that?
They all realized one thing—this result was definitely problematic.
The next person was Hanatemari Kazura; she nervously looked at Saotome, noticing that although Saotome's face was also not good, she seemed to have actually breathed a sigh of relief.
Saotome gave Hanatemari an encouraging smile, but the next moment, her expression froze.
"Next, Hanatemari Kazura, [Match Formed]."
As if not wanting to give Saotome a chance to react, Mikura continued: "Next, Saotome Meari, [Match Formed]."
"Last one, Inui Chitose... [Match Formed]."
Mikura announced all the results of this game.
"A total of five matches formed. Congratulations, everyone. That's all."
Mikura's work was over, but the girls at Table 3 were in deadly silence.
All five of them successfully confessed; this could no longer be explained by mere coincidence.
"Kuonji Mamoru, you actually chose me, that's great!" Inui Chitose's face flushed, and she clapped her hands happily: "Should we just start dating like this?"
"So that's how it is..." Kurume Laiwei showed a playful smile, "Interesting, truly interesting..."
The two of them had accepted this result, but Saotome Meari had not.
"What a joke, I absolutely do not accept this result..."
She stood up with a gloomy face, looking angrily at Mikura: "Mikura, you cheated, didn't you!?"
"You say I cheated?" As if hearing a joke, Mikura looked up in surprise.
"You definitely cheated!"
Saotome Meari angrily said: "How could five pairs successfully match by chance!? Even if someone among us tipped off the boys, Hanatemari and I secretly swapped confession targets. If you weren't cheating, such a result would absolutely be impossible!"
Saotome Meari refused to acknowledge the result; she tried hard to find evidence of Mikura cheating.
"Ultimately, you've had precedents before. You definitely agreed with the boys to help them!"
Mikura frowned: "Saotome, don't intentionally cause trouble. You need evidence to speak. If you don't believe me, you can look at these cards."
Mikura threw all the cards in her hand in front of Saotome.
Saotome, not believing it, lowered her head to inspect the boys' cards.
Each person's handwriting was different; these were not simple letters, and they didn't look like they had been replaced.
She inspected them for a while and had to admit that these cards seemed to be fine.
"Even if the cards are fine, you must have tipped them off using other methods...!" Saotome still wanted to find some evidence, but her words soon trailed off.
Because she saw that Mikura wasn't angry; instead, her eyes were filled with pity, as if she were looking at an utterly foolish idiot.