On the first floor of the pagoda, Sora struggled to place bets, unlike her teammate Mikino, who could cheat with ease. Stuck in a game of luck and fate, Sora's teeth clenched in frustration as she lost another round of hana-awase.
She moved to a different table, but before she could play, the buff man approached her.
"Miss, please come with me." He said.
Sora ignored him, continuing her search for a profitable table. However, the man grasped her shoulder, attempting to gain her attention. Sora's expression remained cold as she took his hand and slammed him to the ground, stepping on him as she continued her game.
Her round blue eyes scanned the gambling den, recalling Lucy's words before they set out.
"I remember my mother telling me about a black market secretly governed by one of the major clans in the village... She didn't say much, but I recall her mentioning an independent group that gathers information from the gambling den. Try to get in touch with them... As someone in charge of intelligence, you can do that, right?"
Sora sighed gloomily, feeling stuck while Mikino advanced on her mission. As she continued to scan the room, her gaze landed on a group of females dressed in white hakamas, smoking at a hanafuda table.
Sora found it unusual, as most people avoided smoking while wearing white.
She approached the table, scanning the four girls and the male dealer.
"Can I join you guys?" She asked with a smile.
The woman with long, spiky black hair in a ponytail glared at Sora coldly.
"Only if you perform all three phases of Tebakau-Temaki." (1)
Sora raised an eyebrow, sensing something suspicious. However, she decided to play along, thinking that these women might be a distraction from the real mastermind.
The silver-haired girl took a tobacco leaf from the bold-headed girl, crushed it on a piece of paper, and smoked it before exhaling.
As she finished, the spiky-haired woman teased, "For a first-time smoker, you're actually pretty good."
Sora rolled her eyes in disdain, trying to maintain a mature demeanor. The woman chuckled and pointed to an empty seat.
"How do you want this game to be?" Sora asked, unfazed by the deadly glares from the other three females.
"A set of 10, 100 Kojin per set," Sora replied.
The spiky-haired woman shrugged. "Why don't we exchange something different?"
Sora's brows curled up. "Different?"
The bold-headed woman replied, her voice cold as ice, "We know very well that last night's attack was your doing."
Sora's eyebrows curled up slightly, amused by what she was hearing, 'It seemed that Lucy-san was right, and this group might be the ones we're looking for.'
The spiky-haired woman's face turned cold, her voice dripping with malice. "Why did you do it? Are you planning something? Or are you part of that pathetic group preaching about equality between mortals and Tama-Artists?"
Sora originally knew the meaning behind her words but decided to smoke the cigarette in her hand, annoying the group of women.
The man she slammed to the ground earlier approached her, gripping her shoulder with force.
"You should answer when you're being asked something. This is a matter of life and death," he said.
Sora shrugged, puffing out smoke, the corner of her eyes gazing at the man.
"For you, it is. Not for me?"
The man released his grip, his face relaxing, and sat next to her.
"How do you know?"
Sora shrugged, focusing on rolling another cigarette.
"Just know."
In her mind, Lucy's words played: "The organization must be led by someone who works at the gambling den. After all, top-secret meetings happen daily on the third floor. Try to check out men who approach women, they might be linked to this person."
She asked curiously, "Is there a problem with men approaching females? It happens almost all the time."
The man replied, "It takes real courage to approach a powerful woman, and it takes even more courage to approach someone like you."
Sora frowned, thinking of Lucy's last words. His joke appeared more like an insult. Although not interested in any gender, it wouldn't hurt for someone to approach her. But, just like he said, she became violent when someone approached her.
She sighed, puffing out smoke, intensely gazing at the muscular man beside her.
"What do you want?"
The man shivered a bit at the cold glare.
"We'll help you save your teammate if you agree to work with us for the time being, until we figure out Yurei's true intentions."
Sora scoffed at his words, smiling. "Do you want to make a bet, then?"
The spiky-haired woman chimed in, shock visible in her eyes, "A bet? I don't think this is the right time to be gambling. Your teammate's life is in danger; she could be in great danger as we speak."
Sora rolled her eyes, disdain visible in her actions, "I'm not friends with her."
Sighing, she continued, "Are we betting or not?"
The man regained his composure, leaning towards the bold-headed girl. "That depends on what we're betting on."
Sora's gaze moved to look at the pink-eyed girl next to her. "Whether my teammate can live... or not."
Before the spiky-haired girl could say a thing, the bald girl threw a punch at Sora, sending her crashing towards a betting table. The pink-haired woman stepped up, everyone glaring at Sora coldly.
She said, "Some things are better left unknown, even if you know the answer yourself. In this world, acting up will get you killed."
Sora's face cringed in pain, noticing that everyone on the first floor was after her.
'This is worse than I expected.'
---
1 - Tebakau-Temaki - it's just like what it is described - crushing tobacco on paper, and smoking it.