If You Take the Enemy Prince as Your Knight Chapter 63

The sisters continued to analyze the game situation while looking at the board.

 

“It seems like numbers 5 and 6 have slowed down a bit.”

 

“They might have suffered minor injuries…”

 

“So, the top three are still okay?”

 

Marquis Osbond interrupted the princesses’ attempts to find even a sliver of positivity. “The game must get harder to keep things interesting. The closer you get to the finish line, the more intense the ambushes and gatekeepers will be.”

 

“Thank you so much for letting us know.”

 

“You’re most welcome, Princess Amethyst.” With a sly, snake-like grin on his face, Marquis Osbond spun the roulette. “We’ll now begin the second game. Currently, the personal knights Princess Silver Bird and Princess Blue Wave have been revealed. If the roulette points to either of you, the princess closest in the clockwise direction will be chosen instead.”

 

The roulette’s metal ball stopped in Nanaen’s section.

 

“Sir Kilieon, the personal knight of Princess Golden Deer, which horse number is he at? Place your bets, excluding numbers 2 and 3. Like before, you have one minute to decide before betting begins.”

 

The time to think passed quickly.

 

“The odds are 1 in 5 anyway. I’ll bet on my lucky number.”

 

After Nanaen, it was my turn. Silently, I pushed 10 chips onto the same number, 7.

 

“I have no idea. I’ll go with number 1.”

 

“I’ll bet on number 5.”

 

“Oh my, Sister Gwen. Did you just bet on number 4? On the injured knight?”

 

“Huh? I-I just picked it because nobody else did…”

 

One turn passed, and everyone had finished placing their bets. Once again, none of the princesses wanted to wager additional chips.

 

“The correct answer is number 7. The chips will be divided among Princess Golden Deer, Princess Silver Bird, and Princess Safflower.”

 

Each of us received 44, 43, and 43 chips respectively. It was far more than what should have actually been given. Sister Orlette quickly pointed that out.

 

“Marquis Osbond, are you bad at math?”

 

“It seemed that Your Highnesses weren’t fully enjoying the game, so I wanted to give a bonus. I’ll add an amount equal to the number of chips bet multiplied by the number of game rounds.”

 

“So you’re saying we should raise the stakes.”

 

“Yes. Gambling gets more fun when the stakes are higher.”

 

No one particularly agreed. After all, none of us princesses were fond of gambling.

 

It was time for sponsorships. Nanaen sponsored a sword, Lilliana sponsored both a sword and a potion like I had earlier, and I sponsored a potion.

 

“Sasha is on a winning streak.”

 

“She’s lucky.”

 

Unfortunately, there was someone at this table who couldn’t stand hearing good things about me.

 

“Do you think a potion will be enough?” Gwendellin, unable to control herself, blurted out her inner thoughts with a sneer and was startled by her own words.

 

I didn’t let it slide. “If you’re going to be so kind as to give me a hint, why don’t you also tell me what poison you used?”

 

“…”

 

“Gwendellin. Don’t look away. I’m talking to you, Sister.”

 

“D-Don’t accuse an innocent person.”

 

“…”

 

“…”

 

I glared as Gwendellin stared at the floor as if she were trying to dig a hole with her gaze. Even Sister Orlette didn’t try to mediate.

 

Meanwhile, the game board shifted as the broadcast time resumed. Shumel forced a cheerful voice.

 

“L-Look, Sisters! The knight number 4 is moving! He must have recovered. What a relief. I don’t know whose knight it is, but Shushu was really worried.”

 

“…”

 

“B-B-But the knight number 5 seems to have slowed down. He might be injured, so we should keep an eye on him.”

 

“…”

 

“Si-Sisters…”

 

Seeing Shumel’s effort, I decided to break the silence first. “Like Shushu said, the master of knight number 5 should be on edge. If she doesn’t hurry and provide some medicine, it could be a disaster.”

 

As if waiting for the moment, Marquis Osbond spun the roulette. “It’s time for the third game. This time, the one chosen by the roulette is… Princess New Moon. Please bet on which horse number is Sir Heinz.”

 

There were four numbers left on the betting line. A 25% chance.

 

“Betting time begins.”

 

Gwendellin, who had been nervously biting at her hangnail the entire time, placed a bet of 10 chips.

 

“Number 5? Why do you think that?”

 

“Just… a feeling…”

 

The turn moved clockwise. When it was my turn, I pushed my chip stack forward and placed the same bet on number 5 as Gwendellin.

 

Gwendellin reacted immediately. “What the? Why are you copying me?”

 

“That’s a misunderstanding.”

 

“You copied me!”

 

“Do I really need to explain this? Sister, you just happened to take the earlier turn by chance. Betting chips, being born—it’s all just a coincidence.”

 

Gwendellin glared at me. Her chest heaving, but somehow she managed to calm herself.

 

“Rosasia, you’re always like this. Pretending to not care about others while subtly picking fights and getting under their skin.”

 

“…”

 

“But just so you know, today will be the last day you get to act so obnoxiously. You’re going to lose eventually.”

 

Well, we’ll see about that. At least in this game, the one who dies won’t be me—it’ll be Gwendellin.

 

“The betting is ov—”

 

“Raise.”

 

I interrupted Marquis Osbond and announced the start of the second round. Currently, I have 83 chips left in front of me. I pushed 70 of them into the fifth section. Naturally, the sisters erupted in chaos.

 

“What the hell, Sasha? I only have 70 chips, and you bet that exact amount?”

 

“Shushu has the same amount. This is tyranny!”

 

“I only have 23 chips left because I sponsored Sir Yulis.”

 

“I have 4 chips left. Even if I lose this round, I can still play one more.”

 

“Of all of us, Sasha has the most chips, so this is how it ends up.”

 

“Ha! So you’re basically saying you’re going to force everyone except Nanaen to go all-in!”

 

I calmly asked Lilliana, who was fuming and huffing in frustration. “Is it really something to get so angry about? If you don’t call the raise, you can just forfeit the 10 chips you’ve already bet, and that’s the end of it.”

 

“That’s correct, Princess Safflower. In fact, while other princesses would have to bet 70 more chips, Your Highness only needs to bet 23 more, so you could even say it’s advantageous.”

 

There was actually a time when Marquis Osbond said something in my favor. I must really be playing the villainess role right now. Not that it matters what anyone else thinks.

 

“Make your choice. Raise or fold.”

 

✦

Gwendellin was agonizing over her decision. She had always been prone to anxiety, but the moment she heard the news that horse number 5 might be injured, she felt her nerves spike to an extreme. Trusting her instincts, she had placed her bet on the number 5. But then Sasha, as if stealing Gwendellin’s intuition, bet on the exact same number and even raised the bet by precisely the amount of chips Gwendellin had left. Now, Gwendellin was left with only two options. Should she forfeit the 10 chips she’d already bet, or respond to Sasha’s provocation and go all-in?

 

If her instincts were correct, there would be no problem. Only Gwendellin and Sasha had bet on the number 5. Half of the chips on the table would belong to Gwendellin. She could even afford to sponsor a potion for the injured Heinz.

 

But what if her instincts were wrong? Gwendellin would lose the pot along with Sasha. And with no chips left, Gwendellin would be completely eliminated from the game, losing all opportunities.

 

Should she trust her instincts despite the devastating consequences of failure? Could she really risk everything on nothing but a gut feeling?

 

“I’ll fold.”

 

“Fold.”

 

“I fold too.”

 

Orlette, Vivian, and Lilliana, who were seated clockwise from Sasha, all gave up on additional betting one after another. It was Gwendellin’s turn to make a decision again.

 

What to do? What to do?

 

As she fidgeted nervously, Sasha spoke to her. “Go on bet.”

 

“…”

 

“We’re both betting on number 5. If we lose, we both go down together.”

 

“…!”

 

That provocation swayed Gwendellin’s heart.

 

“Don’t be ridiculous! You’re just trying to get me killed alone! You still have chips left to keep playing, but if I bet 70, I’ll be completely broke!”

 

“Princess New Moon, please calm d—”

 

“Fold!”