“Wow——oh.”
I gazed down at the gacha machine with a blank expression.
A.
Seeing the A-rank appear on the first try, I couldn’t hide my sense of disillusionment. This… came out this easily? Really?
[Congratulations, customer! You’ve drawn an A-rank! Congratulations on your promotion!!]
Whether aware of my feelings or not, the girl’s face that appeared on the screen above simply congratulated me.
I never imagined I’d draw the rank I aimed for this easily, and honestly, I should be happy about it. No matter how much money you have, it’s precious, and being able to save like this isn’t a bad thing, right?
“…Mika, is it usually this easy to get an A-rank?”
“It can’t be…”
Nagi, who had pointed out that even if they were fiddling with the probabilities, we wouldn’t really know, asked with a dubious expression before clearing her throat after hearing my answer.
…No, I didn’t expect to get it in one go either.
Is this what they call, “Sorry for the inconvenience, but I drew it all at once”?
“It’s a good thing, but if this happens—”
“Stop right there. Our goal was an A-rank. You’re not seriously considering trying for more, are you?”
“Well, that’s not exactly what I mean. Um…”
What can I say? It’s more like I felt a bit let down that it popped out so quickly, decreasing my dopamine rush.
Usually, the thrill of a gacha is multiplied by the tension of overcoming a low probability, but instead, the first thing that popped out was a winner, leaving me a bit dazed.
…Could it be that I felt that way because my expectations were too low?
“I feel a bit unsatisfied…”
After saying that while gauging the atmosphere, I glance at Nagi.
“No way. Don’t even dream about it.”
Immediately, I got a response telling me to wake up, but honestly, I wasn’t planning to try again here anyway. Yeah, that’s what I mean.
“Nagi-chan, how about giving it just one more try?”
“…Huh? Me? But after drawing what we aimed for, I think trying for more is unnecessary waste.”
“This is purely for the thrill of drawing! Come on, just once? Please?”
“…I still don’t want to.”
“If you try just once, I promise I won’t touch gambling or gacha for the rest of my life…”
“…”
Nagi fell into thought. This was an opportunity to possibly secure my lifetime happiness with just a single pull of that lever. To be honest, not trying at this point felt weirder.
“Just once… this one time.”
“Yahoo☆”
You know, gacha is fun for both pulling it yourself and watching others draw. Usually, it’s most enjoyable to see someone fail spectacularly, but I wanted to see Nagi get something good.
Clink! Ding ding ding!
But this world was not that easy.
D.
“…”
Nagi’s brow furrowed as she drew the lowest rank, naturally placing her hand back on the lever with a displeased look.
D.
Crunch.
As if out of spite, Nagi pulled the lever again,
D.
Snap.
With her spirit clearly dampened, Nagi continued to pull down the lever.
D.
D.
D.
D.
“…This is definitely rigged. My luck can’t be this bad.”
As the sequence of D’s continued, Nagi muttered helplessly.
“But if I drew an A just earlier, wouldn’t that mean it’s not rigged?”
“No, that’s precisely the problem.”
“Huh?”
“In a gacha machine where probabilities aren’t disclosed, it’d be more advantageous to set incredibly low probabilities than to require a minimum number of attempts to draw a high rank. Clearly, that would yield greater profits.”
“Hueung… So, you’re saying this machine might dish out low ranks for dozens… maybe hundreds or even thousands of attempts? Is that the story?”
“I’m not 100% sure, but if it were me designing this machine, I would definitely impose such restrictions.”
That made a certain sense. It reminded me of a theory I heard about similar algorithms existing in casino slot machines.
You know, how people line up in front of slot machines that haven’t hit a jackpot in a long time.
It’s like a kind of ceiling system, right…?
But this only applies to ‘jackpots.’ In this gacha machine, the jackpot equivalent would be the S-rank.
If it means having superhuman authority aboard this Golden Fleece, I could understand that such a system would apply to S-ranks, but would it also be the case for the lower A-rank…?
Considering that even Koyuki, who squandered money in Millennium, couldn’t draw an S-rank, this might just be pure luck.
“Well, I guess it doesn’t hold much meaning to try more, but testing this hypothesis a few more times might not be a bad idea.”
Clink. Ding ding ding!
“…Hey, Nagi-chan. That’s just an excuse; you want to keep trying, right?”
“It couldn’t be!”
I totally heard her pause there, Nagi-chan.
This feels like a situation where I should be the one stopping Nagi rather than the other way around…
Why is that?
Honestly, I really like Nagi when she’s focused on something. It’s like turning her into a painting.
This is something I often see when she’s playing chess; it creates such a stunning image. Just being next to her while she’s absorbed in it feels joyful.
Just like right now.
Nagi’s side profile, completely engulfed in concentration, was so captivating I could hardly pull my gaze away.
But the fact it’s in a gacha setting makes it a little… I find it regrettable to see this in such a place.
After that, Nagi continued to draw, and the results were… so dismal it felt wrong even to mention.
An endless parade of D-ranks. After dozens of attempts, Nagi finally managed to draw a C-rank and sighed.
“I think I might have used up all my luck for life.”
“Huh? Where?”
“…Where else could be luck as great as meeting you?”
Gasp.
I felt a lump in my throat for a moment but snapped back, noticing a slip-up in her words.
Putting aside everything else, isn’t it a bit odd to say something that could be mistaken for a gamble in a place resembling a casino…?
“I’ll stop here. Continuing any further may lead me to lose my self-control, and honestly… I found it enlightening to understand why people get enticed by something as harmful as gambling.”
“Ahahaha… It’s definitely harmful. Gambling, alcohol, cigarettes, drugs… they all trade future for immediate pleasure.”
…But if you think about it, doesn’t sex ultimately fall into the same category? This one’s not exactly harmful, so maybe it’s different.
Anyway, just when I was worried that an absurd situation where I might have to stop her would occur, Nagi remarkably managed to pull herself out of the pit of desires. Her astonishing self-control was truly admirable.
Just as Nagi was about to stand up from in front of the gacha machine, I felt a strange sense. Perhaps it was something akin to destiny.
“…Wait a second.”
“Yes?”
Nagi turned around at my sudden call, and I gently covered her from behind. I placed my hand over hers and slid it onto the lever.
“Hey, I’m saying I’m done…”
“Nagi-chan, you trust me, right?”
“…”
Nagi fell silent in surprise, but I patiently waited for her response. No matter what, I just wanted to share this moment completely with her.
“Yes… I trust you. Perhaps even more than I trust myself.”
“…Eek, that kind of trust feels a little heavy to handle.”
With my fingers intertwined with hers on the lever, I closed my eyes. I didn’t know how it was happening, but I could feel the world’s luck crashing over me.
Could it be that the good fortune I’d been wearing courtesy of Asuna was transferring here?
I swallowed hard, slowly pulling the lever down with all my might.
Clunk.
Ding ding ding ding…
…
In that instant, all sound ceased. The bustling sounds of the play lounge disappeared from my ears.
At this moment, all I could hear was Nagi’s comfortable breathing and the rhythm of her being. And…
Bam bam ba da bam bam bam!!!
A loud congratulatory sound plunged the play lounge into silence, even if just for that brief moment.
[Congratulations, A-rank customer! You have drawn an S-rank! Please contact the lounge guide to exchange prizes!]
“…Wow——oh☆”
“How, how is this…?”
An astonished Nagi muttered, but honestly, I was just as shocked.
While it felt like I had a hunch I’d get something great, that it would actually happen was beyond all beliefs…
“My goodness, did I actually draw an S?”
“Wow… isn’t this something that’s happened less than five times in the history of the Golden Fleece?”
“I heard you can exchange an S-rank for a [VIP pass] that lets you ignore all the rules on this ship… I’m jealous.”
“Wait a second. Isn’t that Misono Mika over there? We should get an autograph first…!”
As I blankly listened to the whispers around me, I quietly buried my face in Nagi’s neck.
I didn’t know where this luck had come from, nor if Asuna’s good fortune had reached me, but in my eyes, the greatest luck wasn’t drawing the S-rank.
It was sharing this precious memory with someone I consider a once-in-a-lifetime fortune.
That’s what true luck means.
“…Thank you, Nagi-chan.”
“But, this was drawn by you, Mika-san…?”
“Ahaha.”
That’s not the kind of thanks I meant, Nagi-chan.
That was a promise to always be by my side.
So please stay by my side. I hope we can collect even more memories throughout our lives.
“I love you, Nagi-chan.”
Whispering my feelings softly, I waited for her response.
“No way! That’s impossible! This is rigged! I swear it’s rigged! I saw it myself!”
…Well, this isn’t exactly what I was waiting for?
