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The Girl Who Embodies the Hope of the Future – Part 04

La Guardia tightly gripped the golden coin she had taken out. “Heads or tails!”

She tossed the coin up high. Everyone in the hall looked up at the ceiling, transfixed. Kazuya strained to look while holding Victorique up.

The coin glinted as it soared through the air.

With a jubilant lilt in her voice, La Guardia exclaimed, “Heads!”

Simultaneously, Victorique’s eyes widened as she shouted, “T-Tails!”

Not one person uttered a single word. The glittering coin descended. Kazuya swallowed hard.

“Victory is mine!” La Guardia proclaimed triumphantly. “Now die! Anyone who crosses me meets a mysterious demise! Perish! Arrogant young immigrant!”

Glittering…

“I’ve never lost a bet! Drop dead! Rot in hell! You will dance with Death in the dark of night!”

Glittering…

“A-Are you really sure about this, Victorique?” Kazuya muttered under his breath. “She seems so sure of her victory.” He eyed La Guardia’s gun, ready to shield Victorique at any moment.

Victorique, teetering on her feet, said, “Actually…”

“Yeah?”

“This match…”

“I get it. There’s a twist, right?”

Victorique’s lips parted like a doll’s. “No, there’s none,” she confessed awkwardly.

“…What?”

Standing in front of her, Kazuya looked over his shoulder. His eyes were bulging out of their sockets.

“N-None? Seriously? You were so bold and confident, I thought you had a reason to believe you’d win. You know, with your Wellspring of Wisdom.”

Victorique pouted stubbornly. “It’s not certain that I will lose. The odds are fifty-fifty.”

“O-Okay? So you’re saying there’s a fifty percent chance you’ll lose to La Guardia and get shot? You have the same odds as countless challengers before? Th-Th-That’s not good! Stay behind me. Try to hide better! You’re sticking out quite a bit. Darn it! Quit moving around, or you’ll get hit.”

“Yes, the odds are fifty-fifty. But Kujou, as you pointed out, La Guardia believes she can win a hundred percent.”

“Uh-huh… Um, why?” Kazuya asked, genuinely puzzled.

Victorique sniffed audibly. “Flipping a coin is a classic magic trick, Kujou.”

“Huh, really?!”

Victorique nodded emphatically. “The mechanism is simple: you slightly weigh down one side of the coin, so it lands with that side down when tossed.”

“So the coin that La Guardia uses has the same trick to it? The tail side is heavier? Is that why she’s so confi—”

“No, the coin itself weigh the same on both sides,” Victorique interrupted. “Needless to say, if she chose heads every time she tossed the coin, the trick would be exposed. La Guardia did something different. When she flipped the coin at the beginning of the party, I picked it up and studied it.”

“Uh-huh, go on.”

“She had attached a thin, transparent cover to one side to make it heavier. She likely swaps it between sides before each toss.”

“I see!” Kazuya said, feeling a little relieved. “So, when you picked up the coin, you noticed and switched the transparent cover to the heads side, right?” He nodded vigorously.

Victorique gazed up at Kazuya, wearing a very curious look. She shook her head.

“No.”

“…No?!”

“Of course, I intended to do that, but someone took the coin from me.”

“Huh?”

“The cover is right here.”

Victorique extended her pudgy hand to show Kazuya something. Kazuya’s blazing eyes locked onto it. There sat a transparent, round cover.

“You have it with you?! So, that coin…”

“It’s just a regular coin with no tricks. Hahaha. Are you entertained?”

“So there’s a fifty percent chance you’ll lose?”

“Yes. And I will get shot.”

“Yes, and I will get shot. How could you say that so casually? You idiot. Why accept such a risky challenge? You’re so bold and confident about it too. You’re the biggest idiot on this entire continent!”

“Her attitude really got on my nerves.”

“You’re such a… stupid idiot! Ugh!”

“And the pipe looks stylish. I really wanted it.”

“Pipe?! The lizard-shaped one from Egypt? I’ll get you as many pipes as you want once I find a job. Seriously, we’ll continue this later. Just stick close to me and stay hidden!”

Victorique tilted her head, mimicking a dog’s bark. Her silver hair swayed gracefully.

Everyone watched the round, golden object spinning through the air. A draft from the broken window caressed it. The gleaming coin descended, slowly.

And then, it landed on the floor with a clatter, rolling away. Guests quickly moved away from its path. The coin wandered among them, as if wondering where to stop. All held their breath.

It stopped with a soft clunk next to Bon Vivant. He was crouched down on the floor, holding Coup de Grâce in his arms. He had not stopped crying.

A hush fell.

“Victory is mine!” La Guardia’s eerie laughter filled the hall. “Die, you penniless immigrant!” She held up the gun.

In a dazed state, Bon Vivant reached out to pick up the coin… and gasped. He cast La Guardia and Victorique a hesitant look.

The guests waited with bated breath. Kazuya shielded Victorique anxiously, sweat beading on his forehead.

Then, Bon Vivant’s voice broke the silence. “It’s tails.”

Silence.

Bon Vivant quickly stashed the coin into his left pocket to hide it. Then, with a puzzled look, he fumbled in his pocket.

“Tails?”

“T-Tails…?”

The guests breathed a collective sigh.

Kazuya exhaled in relief. Victorique remained stoic, but her feet staggered slightly.

“What did you say?” La Guardia asked, bewildered. “It can’t be. That can’t be true, Bon!”

“Have I ever lied to you?”

“No, you wouldn’t deceive me. So, does that mean…” La Guardia spread her gnarled arms wide. “I-I lost?”

The silence stretched on.

Everyone exchanged looks of disbelief. An unprecedented event. La Guardia lost a coin flip, and the one who defeated the queen was a tiny, beautiful, yet mysterious individual.

Game over!

A moment later, guests erupted in cheers.

“See, I told you!” chirped the young ones, while the elders, witnessing La Guardia’s unprecedented defeat, stood in stunned silence. Soon, the excitement rippled through the crowd.

On this night, in the heart of New York, a new hero emerged, defeating the Queen of Money. Atop the world’s tallest tower, this unexpected savior took the form of a petite, beautiful girl, accompanied by her loyal and courageous companion. They resembled a mysterious champion of justice and their faithful sidekick from comic books.

A girl of tomorrow, whose arrival the youth had long dreamed of.

What was her name again? Wonder Girl!

“Wonder Girl!”

“Wonder Girl!”

“Wonder… Girl!”

“Wonder Girl!”

“Wonder Girl!”

Victorique stood amidst the jubilant cheers. She staggered, overcome with dizziness. Kazuya rushed to her side, offering support.

Meanwhile, La Guardia stood aghast nearby. A moment later, she sank to the floor in defeat. Bon Vivant gently set aside Coup de Grâce’s remains, then approached his grandmother and embraced her, the formidable—once formidable—monarch of the New World. She seemed to shrink beneath her Statue of Liberty costume. Her blue eyes lost their eerie gleam, and her arms and legs began to wither.

La Guardia hung her head. “I can’t believe it… to be defeated… It’s utterly impossible,” she said, shaking her head repeatedly.

“I’m sorry, Granny,” Bon Vivant murmured somberly. He put more strength in his arms.

Victorique walked up towards La Guardia. Something indiscernible, neither wholly good nor entirely evil, seemed to envelop her. A sinister and terrifying force, a dark kind of Wonder Power, brimming inside.

Kazuya observed her closely. He could feel the frightening essence that defined Victorique—a dark light—resurfacing once more. A legendary beast prowling in the darkness of night, fierce and bloodthirsty, seeking its prey.

The gray cloth slipped away, trailing across the floor, revealing a vibrant blue satin dress. One by one, Victorique arrested the attention of the guests.

Her delicate, doll-like features exuded a breathtaking and unsettling beauty. Her silver hair, tinged with golden hues, cascaded like the tail of an ancient dragon. The blue ruffles that covered her petite frame, just under 150 centimeters tall, billowed with each step she took. Crimson ribbons adorning her sleeves and waist gleamed brightly, while white laces undulated like waves in the sea. The luxurious red mini hat atop her head swayed like a passionate flame.

The gray fabric fell to the floor, and Victorique emerged completely like a caterpillar metamorphosing into a mysterious blue butterfly. A collective gasp of awe swept through the hall at the sight of her dazzling appearance.

La Guardia looked up at her like a frightened child. Victorique quietly extended a hand. Fearing death, La Guardia shrank back, trembling. Then, she brandished the gun and aimed it squarely at Victorique’s forehead. She widened her eyes in an attempt to intimidate her.

“N-No…”

She put her finger on the trigger, a warning for Victorique not to come any closer. Kazuya swiftly placed himself between the two.

Victorique spoke calmly, unfazed by the gun pointed at her. “You won’t shoot. Something is bound to intervene.”

“I-I will! I’ll… I’ll kill you! You insolent… insolent… I’m the queen! For sixty-five years, I have never, ever lost in the New World.”

Victorique drew closer, extending her hand. She pursed her glossy cherry lips as she hounded the old lady without uttering a word.

La Guardia put pressure on her finger.

“N-No…”

Her attempts to speak were choked by a lump in her throat.

And with that, her spirit completely broke, and she resigned herself to her fate. Shoulders sagging, she hurled the mask across the floor. Then, she offered the golden lizard-shaped pipe. Her frail arms shook with frustration.

Victorique accepted it with an oddly pleased expression.

Kazuya, watching curiously, whispered, “Did you really want that pipe so badly? What a strange design. You’re just as strange, I guess.”

Visibly annoyed, Victorique silently dug her heels into Kazuya’s foot, twisting it around. Kazuya jumped and hopped around in pain.

The black skull mask, swept by the wind from the window, disappeared from sight.

Victorique leisurely lit the pipe and took a puff. Her green eyes narrowed into a smile. Satisfied, she nodded emphatically.

The hall was wrapped in silence. All eyes were fixed on Victorique and her loyal attendant.

Tonight, the throne had been passed! Here, in the heart of New York, at the summit of the world’s tallest tower, a new, mysterious queen had ascended. And by her side stood a brave and kind young man from the East.

For a while, Victorique remained impassive as she smoked her pipe, but eventually, she narrowed her eyes discontentedly and glanced to her side.

In her usual manner, she grumbled, “I’m hungry.”

Kazuya gave a start. “What? You just devoured a chocolate brownie the size of a window, didn’t you?”

Victorique puffed up her cheeks and chased after Kazuya with the pipe, attempting to hit him.

“Shut up! It’s time to feed your precious watchdog. Bring macarons, chocolate bonbons, or cupcakes to the doorstep of your ramshackle house right away. Or else, or else…”

“Or else what? What will happen to me?”

“…I will bite your butt!”

“My butt?!”

Kazuya instinctively glanced at his own behind.