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Nanana’s Buried Treasure Volume 7 Chapter 4.2

「First, decide the order of turns with rock-paper-scissors」, directed President Yuiga, who is the banker overseeing the 《forced acquisition game》. And so the three of us engaged in rock-paper-scissors.

The result was: I go first, Haruto second, and Ikusaba-san third.

With the preparations complete, President Yuiga declared, 「Now then, the forced acquisition game 《match pickup》 begins.」

Let’s consider the way to win this 《match pickup》 game.

There are 30 matches and two of three players are in cahoots. Also it doesn’t matter whether I or my accomplice wins. In this case, the easiest way to ensure victory is to make sure Ikusaba-san does not win.

The player before Ikusaba-san (the coordinator) must pick up matches until 5 are remaining.

Doing so will make Ikusaba-san lose no matter what. Reversing the situation, with 5, 10, 15… Well, candidly speaking, with 30 matches to start, as soon as Haruto picks up the first one, victory is assured. However, since Haruto’s turn as the adjuster is second, this is impossible. Therefore, by aiming for 25 matches, this pattern of victory can be established the fastest.

With that in mind and as the first player, I pick up a match and declare.

Me: 「30」

Haruto: 「29」

Ikusaba-san: 「28, 27」

Me: 「26」

Haruto: 「25, there.」

Yes, the moment Haruto takes the match at 25, our victory is sealed.

No matter how many matches Ikusaba-san picks up, Haruto and I can adjust. By always picking up 5 matches every round, Ikusaba-san’s win is out of the question.

Ikusaba-san: 「24」

Me: 「23, 22」

Haruto: 「21, 20, there.」

Ikusaba-san: 「19, 18, 17」

Me: 「16」

Haruto: 「15, there.」

Ikusaba-san suddenly stops at this point, his gaze shifting back and forth between me and Haruto.

「I’m surprised, have you guys been… or maybe during my bathroom break. This is a shock.」

It appears he’s caught on to the fact that Haruto and I are in league. Normally, one wouldn’t realize this here unless they were thinking like him. He’s not someone to be underestimated.

But by then, it was already too late.

「Let’s wrap this up quickly, Ikusaba-san.」

The bait is thrown out with confidence, but Ikusaba-san just smirks back.

Ikusaba-san: 「9, 8, 7」

Then it’s just a matter of me declaring 「6」, and our victory would be set in stone.

Thump, thump, thump.

Ikusaba-san tapped the table with his finger at that moment.

What now?

「You should take two sticks here, Juugo-kun」, Ikusaba-san grins slyly, with his skull ring ominously shining.

What the hell is he talking about?

Then it’s my turn.

Me: 「6, 5」

「Hey, what are you doing, Juugo?」

「Huh? What do you mean?」

Why does Haruto look so terrified, glaring at me?

「It’s your turn next, military boy.」

Urged on by Ikusaba-san, a visibly angry Haruto picks up the matches roughly.

Haruto: 「4!」

「Huh, what?!」

I blurt out without thinking. I mean, why wouldn’t I? Because now Ikusaba-san will win.

When had our sure-win strategy fallen apart?

「Wait, did I just…?」

Then it’s Ikusaba-san’s turn.

Ikusaba-san: 「Then, 3, 2, 1… and I win.」

The buzzer sounds and the banker, President Yuiga declares, 「The winner of this 《forced acquisition game》 is the thief from the Great Detective Team.」

Haruto and I both swear under our breath, unable to understand what had just transpired. Meanwhile Ikusaba-san just laughs mischievously at us.

「That was fun. Let’s do it again.」

With those words, Ikusaba-san departs from the robbery room alone.

After standing bewildered for a moment, Haruto and I say goodbye to President Yuiga and leave by proceeding through the corridor back toward the great hall.

「So, care to explain, Haruto?」

I glared at him fiercely as we walked.

「Tell me, Haruto. Why did you pick up two matches at that moment?」

「How would I know!」

「…What do you think, Juugo?」

He gazes at me with a serious look, and with a sigh Haruto responds.

「We have been completely outplayed by that so-called thief.」

「Right.」

「It’s pathetic. Two real thieves brought down by a fake.」

Aptly said.

「But well, we did get something.」

3

「So, how about I ask you to explain how you lost so miserably, Servant A?」

Before the fuming Lady Ageha, who has taken a seat at our base, I sit in seiza (kneeling posture). It’s only basic courtesy.

On the other hand, Tetsu-kun has a serious look, unlike the angry Lady Ageha. He asks,「I was sure you had it until the end… what happened, Juugo?」

「No clue, it was supposed to be a perfect plan.」

「But you lost, right?」

「Yes, my lady. Quite so.」

Tetsu-kun, standing next to me, murmurs while looking at the base for the Great Detective Team.

「So in other words, it ended up exactly as Ikusaba-san said, right?」

「Or wait, this sort of thing seems familiar.」

It reminds me of that battle in the South Red Mall when I faced off against Ikusaba-san. After the endgame announcement where Ikusaba-san declared he would stand down, I lunged at him in a rage and what followed was extraordinary.

Just from one of his words one of my lungs collapsing and my arm being crushed. Seriously. It really did hurt at that moment. It was a close brush with death. I’m not joking. However, there were mysteriously no injuries whatsoever when I got an examination at the hospital the next day.

Tetsu-kun listens to my story and furrows his brow in thought.

「Then could it be tied to Ikusaba-san’s Nanana’s collection?」

「Even if that’s plausible, Ikusaba-san’s Nanana’s collection should be those boots」, I wonder aloud. I was referring to the distinct boots Ikusaba-san consistently wears. Even when dressed as a thief, those boots never change. They are undoubtedly the Nanana’s collection known as the 《shadow swimming flippers》.

「Their ability was definitely to dive into shadows」, I recall.

I have briefed both Tetsu-kun, during our exchange of information during the first stage, and Lady Ageha earlier in the waiting room about this ability.

「But it’s ability is not just to hide in shadows, that can’t be the complete picture.」

「What if those boots have more than just that ability?」

「Multiple abilities in one Nanana’s collection? Considering the case with the 《sword of Nanana》, I can’t deny the possibility…」

「It doesn’t seem very likely, does it?」

Lady Ageha seems to agree with me.

In that case…

*******************************************************

「A different Nanana’s collection?」

「That’s what it is」, she states.

Meanwhile, this was revealed at the Sakura Team’s base.

Upon hearing Haruto’s report, Yukihime confidently asserts.

「Let me confirm once more, are you saying he genuinely didn’t understand why he picked up two matches at that moment, Haruto?」

「It seems so. But wasn’t his Nanana’s collection supposed to be those boots?」

As Haruto mentioned, that’s what Yukihime thought because Hiiyo Ikusaba, who is allied with 《Matsuri》 , always wore those boots.

「However, that preconception becomes a disadvantage for those who know him.」

「And what do you mean by that?」

「Actually, Ikusaba is currently in possession of two Nanana collections.」

「Two? But the rules state you can’t have more than one, right?」

「Do you remember the ruckus caused by the large man on the streetcar? Ikusaba challenged that man early in the first stage and acquired his Nanana collection after winning.」

「That’s allowed?」

「I’ve always been skeptical about how readily that brashly brazen man accepted defeat and handed over his collection to Ikusaba.」

With that, Haruto’s thoughts begin to race.

「So that reduces the likelihood of Ikusaba’s Collection being those boots even more.」

Yukihime nodded.

「Those boots are a decoy. The power of the Nanana collection that Ikusaba brought allows him to force others to obey his will. That explains how he managed to gather so many coins in the first stage.」

「It appears to be a very powerful Nanana collection.」

「Rather, it’s a troublesome Nanana collection that we should be wary of.」

These two characterizations may seem similar but infer entirely different implications.

「The key thing here is Ikusaba’s words. Commands, suggestions… directions. And those targeted by his collection become compelled to obey.」

「That is the essence of Ikusaba’s Nanana collection.」

「And the biggest issue is…」

「We don’t know what the actual Nanana collection is.」

*********************************************************************

Meanwhile, at the Great Detective Team’s base.

「How was my performance?」

「I would like to say ‘brilliant’, but was it really wise to reveal your hand in this opening act? This second stage is fundamentally different from the first stage, where we battled one person at a time. The other teams are starting to suspect the power of your Nanana collection. They’re becoming aware of the capability of that ring, the 《whisper of the grim reaper》.」

Yes, the Nanana collection that Ikusaba brought to this 《game》 was the ring that fits on his right hand, known as the 《whisper of the grim reaper》.

And the boots he has been wearing are actually intricate replicas of the Nanana collection he owns, 《shadow swimming flippers》.

Ikusaba’s true intention for this ruse aligns with Yukihime’s speculation. A misinformation campaign utilizing the preconception that his boots are the Nanana collection. He set a trap by making others believe this was the case.

He may have shown his hand, indeed. However, the specifics of the power he used have not been exposed. In fact, it’s more convenient for him if others believe they could be forced to obey commands. It makes navigating the competition easier.

Ikusaba considers the power of the 《whisper of the grim reaper》 to be not very great. On a personal scale he’d assign to Nanana collections, he’d rate it about a three out of ten. After all, it can only place suggestions. It can’t enact any real change in actual events.

Even so, the reason Ikusaba chose this ring for this important 《game》 lies in its ease of use. It can adapt to any situation, offering considerable flexibility. The biggest reason is that in a one-on-one contest, defeat becomes improbable.