Chapter 784

Morimoto Yūki's chest heaved violently, and he could no longer bear to stay in this place that humiliated him to the extreme.

He turned around suddenly, almost hitting the door, and stumbled out.

His back was panicked, like a stray dog.

Kishida Mineisuke counted the banknotes inside with skilled technique.

The rustling sound of counting money was particularly clear in the quiet storage room.

After a while, he handed the counted money to Natsume Chikage.

"One hundred and fifty thousand yen exactly."

"Natsume, please confirm."

Natsume Chikage took it.

His fingertips could feel the unique texture of the banknotes.

He counted them and nodded:

"Correct."

Seeing this, the official expression on Kishida Mineisuke's face seemed to loosen slightly.

He looked at Natsume Chikage deeply, his eyes complex, and finally just said in a deep voice:

"Thus, the wager is fulfilled, and the notarization is over."

"Goodbye."

After speaking, he didn't stay any longer, turned around, and strode out of the storage room.

Natsume Chikage looked at the back of this person leaving, his brow moved imperceptibly, his face strange.

But in the end, he didn't delve into it.

At this moment.

His attention returned to the thick stack of banknotes in his hand.

Heavy.

One hundred and fifty thousand yen.

An unexpected, generous "trophy."

Even though his temperament was steady, a trace of real pleasure couldn't help but rise in his heart.

Very good.

In this way...

He calculated silently.

If he could also win the second match next, and get another sixteen thousand yen prize money...

Then today, his total income would reach an astonishing three hundred and ten thousand yen.

This had already far exceeded his initial expectations for participating in the tournament.

Enough to make his sister Ruri's rent and living expenses for the next few months comfortable, without having to frown for basic expenses.

The heavy burden on his shoulders seemed to instantly lighten by a chunk.

However...

The pleasure in Natsume Chikage's eyes quickly settled, turning into deeper consideration.

The hole in tuition fees still existed.

And that longer-term, heavier goal—buying back the house his father left behind, which was now mortgaged—the huge sum of over five hundred million yen required was still out of reach.

Three hundred and ten thousand, just a small step on the long journey.

However...

He suddenly remembered another thing.

Today, it seemed to be the day his novel "The Devotion of Suspect X" was officially released.

I wonder what the initial market response will be?

It's just that now, the second match is still waiting.

He must pull his attention back to the shogi board.

Natsume Chikage carefully put away the money, tidied his clothes, pushed open the door of the storage room, and walked back to the corridor leading to the arena.

The noisy human voices came vaguely again.

His steps were steady, and his expression returned to his consistent calm.

As if that intense duel just now, the gunpowder-filled interview, and the exchange of a not-small amount of money, had never happened.

He raised his eyes, his gaze sweeping calmly across several shogi tables still in intense play on the big screen.

Suzuki Takayuki's brow was furrowed, fighting a bitter battle.

Little devil Fukuda Yasuhiro was biting his nails, full of unwillingness.

Professional 5-dan Ishida Kazuo was still steady, placing pieces without haste.

And several other unfamiliar faces exuding extraordinary aura, presumably also powerhouses who had killed their way out of a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood.

The second battle...

Who would his opponent be?