Heartbeats and Illusions

Monopoly, a game of managing virtual wealth, starts with a simple premise: roll dice, buy and sell land, and aim to bankrupt your opponents. Victory belongs to whoever amasses the most money by the end.

Its charm lies in its simplicity, yet the endless possibilities of chance and strategy have made it a timeless favorite worldwide. Over time, countless expansions have evolved—spinning off into themed board games, digital editions, and even experimental hybrids.

Which brings us to today, and Fujiwara Chika's latest offering: Monopoly and The Sims 3.21 Final Edition.

"The rules are easy!" Chika declared with her trademark enthusiasm. "You finish the game when someone crosses the finish line three times. The one with the most yen wins! Everyone starts with 1,000,000 yen, and the dice dictate your actions. Depending on the grid you land on, you'll draw an event or opportunity card, and bam! Drama unfolds!"

Apparently, this game wasn't commercially available yet. According to Chika, it was the pet project of the school's board game club—a handcrafted masterpiece not yet unveiled to the public. Naturally, she had used her connections to snag an early copy for the student council to "test."

It sounded innocent enough.

But "innocent" was never a word that applied to anything Fujiwara Chika did.

Initially, everyone rejected her suggestion, citing workload or sheer lack of interest. However, her relentless persistence wore them down, and with Natsukawa Kanade expressing mild curiosity, the game eventually began.

"Alright, I'll go first!" declared Ishigami Yu, eager to test the waters. He rolled the dice with gusto.

"Three… Looks like I landed on an event grid," he muttered, eyeing the board.

"Oh, an event right off the bat! Ishigami-san, please draw a card," Chika chirped, shoving a stack of event cards into his hands.

Ishigami selected one at random, reading aloud. "The hero rescues a damsel in distress, but the misunderstanding causes him to shut himself away for three turns."

He blinked. "Well, that's unexpectedly tame. Though the wording is oddly dramatic…"

"It means you skip three turns," Shirogane Miyuki explained, nodding. "Alright, my turn. Let's see… event grid for me too?"

Shirogane drew a card and chuckled nervously as he read it. "Meet your true love…"

"Wow, lucky break!" Ishigami clapped, smirking.

Shirogane laughed lightly, but his smile froze when Chika butted in.

"Look at the fine print, Shirogane-senpai! It says you'll need to financially support your partner. That's half your funds every turn. Permanently."

"Unless," Chika added gleefully, "you draw a 'breakup card' or your character dies. Good luck!"

A heavy silence fell over the two boys as they exchanged looks of pure horror.

"...It's fine!" Shirogane declared with forced optimism, though sweat dripped from his temple. "If it's for true love, half my assets are a small price to pay!"

"Shirogane-senpai, so manly!" Chika cheered, clapping.

Natsukawa Kanade, watching from the sidelines, felt a headache brewing. Was this… really something to celebrate? Half their assets gone in round one? He sighed inwardly.

"Guess it's my turn," Kanade muttered, rolling the dice. The result? Five. "Another event grid?"

He frowned slightly. Three consecutive event grids? The odds seemed oddly high. His suspicions turned to Chika, whose innocent grin made her look anything but.

Still, he rolled again and picked up his card. "Confess your feelings and get rejected. Spend one turn recovering from heartbreak."

Kanade's eyebrow twitched. He looked up, locking eyes with Chika.

"What's the matter, President?" she asked, tilting her head like a curious child.

"…Nothing." He sighed and passed the dice. "Your turn, Chika."

"Oh, no rush! Kaguya, why don't you go first?" Chika handed the dice to Shinomiya Kaguya, whose expression betrayed a mix of excitement and apprehension.

Kaguya, after a brief pause, took the dice with a delicate hand and rolled. "Four… Opportunity grid!" she announced, visibly pleased.

She drew her card, her cheeks immediately dusting with pink as she read aloud. "Meet someone you like. Decide to make money to support your family. Gain 1,000,000 yen."

The room fell silent for a beat, and Kaguya, flustered but trying to appear composed, muttered, "Supporting the family… It's… not bad."

Though she would never admit it outright, the thought of earning money to support Kanade filled her with a strange sense of pride. Imagining herself in such a role made her heart race in ways she couldn't fully understand.

"This is unfair!" Shirogane Miyuki slammed his fist on the table, his frustration on full display. "Both of us ended up with partners, but why is Kaguya making money while I'm hemorrhaging it?"

"Opportunities and events are two different things," Fujiwara Chika explained, her tone the epitome of calm mischief. "No need to get so worked up, Shirogane-san. The game has only just begun!"

"I have a theory," Ishigami Yu said, raising his hand dramatically. "The twisted mind behind these absurd events… isn't Fujiwara-senpai's, is it?"

"Ding-ding! Correct answer!" Chika chimed, flashing a victory sign. "But sorry, no prizes."

Ishigami let out a weary sigh. "Fine, I take it back. Everyone, stay vigilant. This game is rigged!"

Kanade Natsukawa nodded subtly. He had been wary from the beginning but now fully understood Ishigami's suspicions. "It's not rigged," he thought, watching the dice with sharp focus. "But it's definitely chaos disguised as fun."

"Alright! My turn!" Fujiwara Chika declared, her excitement radiating as she rolled the dice in a graceful arc.

"Six! Let's see... event slot!" She drew a card and gasped in delight. "A flash marriage?!"

Her eyes sparkled as she read further. "Ignoring all basic requirements, you marry the player nearest to you. Oh, it's the president! What luck!"

The announcement drew collective groans from the table, but Chika was unbothered. "We're unstoppable now, President! Married characters share assets and event effects. Together, we're twice as powerful!"

"Twice the assets," Kanade corrected, deadpan. "We're sitting at 200 million yen, Chika. That's hardly a fortune."

The truth of his statement did little to dampen Chika's enthusiasm. "It's fine!" she chirped. "With my unparalleled luck, we'll make up for it in no time!"

Her confidence aside, Kanade couldn't ignore the glaring disadvantage. Pairing up made them an easy target. Alliances like this were always the first to be sabotaged. Still, as he glanced around, he noticed only Kaguya Shinomiya seemed to view them as a threat, her sharp eyes practically dissecting their every move.

"At least it's just Kaguya," he muttered, relaxing slightly. "She's the only one I need to watch out for."

With Ishigami's turn skipped due to his ongoing "self-imposed exile," Shirogane rolled next. His card revealed:

"After learning the truth about your partner's secret family background, the pressure is overwhelming. All asset gains or losses are doubled (fixed-percentage effects excluded)."

Shirogane slammed the card onto the table like it was a badge of honor. "Bring it on! I won't falter, no matter the cost!"

"That's the spirit, Shirogane senpai!" Ishigami cheered. "For love!"

Kanade felt his temples throb. "Can you two stop turning this into a soap opera? It's a board game!"

Kaguya Shinomiya's turn came next, and she rolled with quiet determination. Landing on an opportunity grid, her card read:

"Your family grows, and you work tirelessly to support them. Gain 10 million yen."

A slight blush dusted Kaguya's cheeks as she clutched the card. The idea of building a family—even in this absurd scenario—made her heart flutter. However, her gaze flicked toward Kanade and Fujiwara, and her mood soured.

"Building a family?!" she thought indignantly. "With whom? The president is already taken! Am I supposed to rely on Ai Hayasaka for this imaginary expansion?!"

Before she could wallow further, Chika's turn came around again. She gleefully rolled the dice, landing on yet another event.

"I gave birth to quintuplets!" she announced, clutching her stomach as though she were truly expecting. "Unfortunately, their nutrition costs halve my assets!"

Kanade groaned. "Quintuplets aren't a blessing, Chika! You've just sunk our funds."

Still, her joy was undeterred, and Kanade could only resolve to rely on himself moving forward.

Then came the third round, starting with Shirogane. His card?

"Elopement with your partner. All costs are doubled again for every payment."

The room fell silent for a beat.

"Elopement... the ultimate romantic escape," Shirogane said wistfully, his resolve unshaken.

"You're right, Senior!" Ishigami cheered. "Eloping is a man's true test of love and bravery!"

Kanade clutched his head in exasperation. "Will you two stop? You're sabotaging yourselves for no reason!"

Despite his irritation, he couldn't deny that Kaguya now stood as the clear frontrunner, her assets totaling a staggering 25 million yen. He had to remind himself not to conflate her in-game dominance with real-world stakes.

Rubbing his temples, Natsukawa Kanade groaned inwardly as the game dragged on. This absurd board game was proving to be more addictive than he'd anticipated. How had it managed to suck him in so completely?

"It's my turn…" Kanade rolled the dice with a resigned sigh. The result was predictable. "My love relationship failed again, and I'm in despair for one round..."

"Wow! The president is such a playboy! Cheating on his wife like this—totally unforgivable!" Fujiwara Chika declared, her voice brimming with melodrama.

"It's a game! A game!" Kanade shot back, exasperated. "Stop treating it like it's real life!"

But even as he said it, he couldn't shake the nagging thought: this game was trash. Absolute garbage. Why had he thought it would be fun in the first place? He glanced down at the pathetic pile of fictional yen he had left and felt an overwhelming sense of regret.

Despite his growing disdain for the game, it continued without mercy.

Among the five players, Kaguya Shinomiya dominated the board, steadily raking in money and leaving her competition in the dust. However, even with her massive fortune, her face betrayed no joy—only exhaustion. Perhaps being a tycoon wasn't as glamorous as it seemed.

Meanwhile, Baiyin Yuxing clung to optimism, fighting valiantly despite his dwindling funds. His determination was oddly inspiring, even if it made no logical sense in this chaotic mess of a game.

Ishigami Yu, true to form, somehow managed to turn his pitiful misfortunes into the premise for what could only be described as a cheesy romantic comedy. It was hard to tell if he was genuinely enjoying himself or just putting on a show.

And then there was Kanade. He sat numbly, watching as his character endured heartbreak after heartbreak, his funds dwindling to a comical low. His gaze drifted to Fujiwara Chika, who now had enough fictional children to form a full football team.

Yet, despite her sprawling imaginary family, she hadn't made a single yen in profit.

Kanade let out a defeated sigh, locking eyes with Chika's mischievous grin. "You're a menace, you pink octopus-headed disaster…" he muttered, half in frustration, half in admiration of her uncanny ability to turn a game into complete chaos.

In the end, Shinomiya was crowned the winner—rich but weary. The rest of them? Utterly defeated, both in assets and spirit.

As the board was packed away, Kanade vowed never to touch this cursed game again. But deep down, a small part of him already suspected that Fujiwara would somehow convince him otherwise.