I Suddenly Became Rich, But I Have No Idea How to Spend the Money

As I was eating my meal, the bartender struck up a conversation.

“Good evening. Welcome to Shangri-La.”

“Ah, uh, thanks.”

What the hell? “Thanks”? That’s the best you could come up with?!

The little Kirishima inside me was fuming, but of course, only I could know that.

“You seemed a bit nervous, so I thought I’d say hello. This is a place for guests to relax and enjoy themselves, so please, make yourself comfortable.”

Inside, I was deeply impressed.

“What incredible hospitality.”

“This is my first time staying at such a high-end hotel, so I guess I got a bit nervous… But I splurged for the occasion, and now I feel like it was worth every yen.”

“Thank you very much, sir. There’s no need to feel nervous at all. In fact, we’re the ones who are constantly on edge, making sure we don’t make any mistakes in serving our guests. If you’re tense, that makes us even more anxious.”

What a witty and charming response…

In that moment, I silently promised myself that I would come back here again.

“Hearing that really puts me at ease… I truly feel staying here was the right choice. I’d love to return someday. May I ask your name, bartender?”

“Thank you, sir. My name is Yoshimura, and I manage this lobby lounge. May I have the pleasure of knowing your name as well?”

“I’m Kirishima, from Osaka. Yoshimura, your hospitality has left a deep impression on me. I’m truly glad I chose to stay here, visit this bar, and most of all, meet you.”

“Kirishima-sama, the pleasure is mine. There’s a saying that encounters in a bar are once-in-a-lifetime. But I hope this isn’t our only meeting. As a token of that wish, may I offer you a drink on the house?”

“Absolutely! Thank you so much!!”

So this is what the adult world is like…

I want to become more of an adult. I really do.

“Here you go, a Clover Club. I made it with the hope that we’ll meet again.”

HOLD ME RIGHT NOW!!!!!!!!!!

The inner university girl in me was starting to surface.

“How incredibly romantic…

And it’s delicious. Truly.”

I was probably wearing “that” expression—a woman’s expression.

“Thank you, Kirishima-sama.”

And just like that, the romantic night deepened.

After an enjoyable time at the bar, I left, requested a 6 AM wake-up call at the hotel front desk, returned to my room, and went to bed.

As expected, the wake-up call rang at 6 AM sharp. I got ready and headed to the hotel’s restaurant for breakfast.

“Since I’ve indulged myself this much, I absolutely have to win today. You got that, Rolex?”

I spoke to my watch in my mind.

Maybe it was just my imagination, but for a brief moment, my wristwatch seemed to gleam.

After breakfast, I paid my bill with slightly trembling hands, checked out, and walked to Tokyo Station.

I had already looked up the route—there was a direct train from Tokyo to Funabashi-Hōten.

With renewed determination, I boarded the train and arrived at Funabashi-Hōten.

From there, Nakayama Racecourse was just a ten-minute walk through an underground passage.

Since it was a major race day, Nakayama Racecourse was absolutely packed.

I asked a staff member if there were any reserved seats available. After checking, they found a vacancy in the S section. I paid for my seat, and now—finally—it was time to place my bets.

Apparently, today’s races offered a special bet called WIN5.

It worked like this: if you correctly predicted the winners of five designated races, you’d receive a payout.

To buy WIN5 tickets at the racecourse, you needed something called UMACA—essentially a prepaid IC card similar to a Suica.

I asked the staff for guidance on how to use WIN5 and UMACA, then decided to give it a try.

I wasn’t sure if I was doing it right, but I focused on my Rolex and tried to visualize five numbers.

Nothing came to mind at first.

Then, the moment I let my guard down—suddenly, five numbers flashed in my mind.

I quickly jotted them down and arranged them in the order they had appeared, placing my bets accordingly.

“I’m counting on you, Rolex!”

Instead of praying to God, I prayed to my Rolex.

I placed a 200-yen bet following the sequence I had seen.

Though I was curious about the WIN5 results, I deliberately pushed it out of my mind and focused on enjoying the other races at Nakayama.

Since I was at the racecourse, I wanted to experience the thrill of betting with physical tickets, marking my predictions on a sheet and placing my wagers.

I gradually got the hang of betting, experiencing wins and losses in cycles.

Then came Race 11—the Satsuki Sho.

It’s April, and yet… “Satsuki” (May)?

That thought briefly crossed my mind, but I brushed it off.

“I have to win this race!”

With strong resolve, I rubbed my golden wristwatch and asked myself:

“This one!!!”

I must have said it out loud.

For some reason, I just knew which horse would win. I felt almost certain.

With trembling hands, I placed a trifecta bet.

The amount? 100,000 yen.

Ten-thousand-yen bills disappeared into the machine as if they were mere scraps of paper.

My heart pounded uncontrollably.

“What’s done is done.

If I win, I reach heaven. If I lose, there’s always next time—and I still have my stocks. The damage won’t be too deep.

Stay strong!”

I steeled myself and watched the race unfold.

The horses took their positions.

I watched, heart pounding.

The fanfare played, amplifying the tension.

Clang! The gates burst open, and the horses surged forward.

“Go! Go!!” I might have shouted. I didn’t care.

The entire crowd cheered as one, united in excitement and ulterior motives.

And just like that, the race was over in a flash.

Or was it? Maybe I was too focused to grasp the passage of time.

“Phew…”

I had been so absorbed, I didn’t even know if I had won or lost.

“Might as well check.”

I fed my ticket into the payout machine—and to my shock, it directed me to the counter.

Still clueless, I walked over and was handed…

1,000,000 yen.

I had no idea what had just happened.

I stuffed the cash into a paper bag and returned to my seat.

As I held the bag, people around me clapped and cheered. I noticed others with paper bags too, and I heard congratulations being exchanged.

Apparently, this was just how things worked in this world.

Much later, I looked it up.

The payout had been about 10,000 yen per unit.

I had bought 1,000 units (100,000 yen worth).

Thus, I had won about 1,000,000 yen.

What a crazy world.

Completely forgetting about WIN5, I kept placing bets, winning and losing in turn.

Despite spending 150,000 yen on the hotel, I had still made an outrageous profit.

Finally, as the last race ended, it was time to cash in my WIN5.

I had forgotten all about it until I felt the UMACA card in my pocket.

With a deep breath, I headed toward the payout machine.