Hello, this is a fic from ''Yami no Matsuei'' I wrote some time ago in spanish, but I recently wanted to start translating it to english. There are a few things I would have liked to correct in my original story, but I eventually decided not to, because I mostly wanted to practice translation.

Just in case, I wanted to point out that this story is rated M. My personal opinion is nowhere there, I just wanted to write something really different to what i usually write and a little darker. I hope you like it.

Also, english is not my first language, so if I have any misspelling, please let me know!

''Tzusuki, how do you feel about a card game?'', Muraki asked with a vicious looking grin spreading across his face, ''just to warn you though, we wouldn't be betting with money, but with something more…interesting''.

''Interesting?'', I asked cautiously.

''Yes…we would bet with your body''.

Those words went through my head a million times as I stared at the cards in my hand, that shitty set of cards, which they were clearly nothing in comparison to what my opponent was presenting right now in front of me. But that shouldn't have been a surprise. After all, Muraki had always been a master of games, especially in Poker, and you could say I lacked ability.

However, even knowing full well who I was up against, my arrogance and greed made me accept a challenge I was bound to loose from the beginning, a challenge with consequences I wasn't sure I could face. Reckless and so unbelievably stupid, that's me, always taking the worst decisions possible. Anything for the sake of getting information for a case, right?

''Well?'', Muraki asked in an amusing tone, ''Will you show me what you've got?''

I raised my gaze from my pathetic set of cards, and squeezed my brain trying to think of a way out of this situation, before I actually had to admit defeat. However, soon I understood it was pointless to argue. One look at his heavy lidded eyes, and it dawned on me…he already knew full well I had lost the fight.

That bastard, I thought, while on an impulse I threw my cards on the table, made me think I had a shot.

Mad as hell, I realized he hadn't only wished to win, but to see me fall in slow, humiliating way. Waiting a little longer to help himself with the ''reward'' didn't bother him in the slightest, because, by adding tension, he knew his victory would be the sweetest at the end. That's just how much of a perverted freak he was, and I had been stupid enough to be fooled. He was smart enough to make the game last, but not really risk loosing. Even in the moments I had thought that maybe I had a chance, in the sick plan on his head, I had been far from it.

''I think you know already'', I answered grimly.

He smiled then, a gesture that was pure animal, like a predator stalking his prey. While getting up, he put his cards on the table (face up so I would see them) and slowly started to approach me.

''You have lost'', he whispered, as he took off his black tie and let it fall in a cascade to the ground.

I didn't answer anything at all, because there was really nothing to say. I had lost, and considerably, but that didn't mean I was ready to fulfill my part of the deal. As a matter of fact, I didn't think I could be ready for it. Ever.

I started walking backwards, trying to get away from the man who was currently stalking me and looking at my face as if he wanted to devour me. Suddenly, my back reached the wall behind me, and I was entrapped within the cement…and his hard body. While putting his hands on both sides of my head, I found myself surrounded.

''There is no chance of escaping, Tzusuki. Tonight, you are mine'', he murmured against my ear.

I stayed as still as possible, cringing to his every touch.

Was I really that stupid to accept such a bet? , I asked myself without being able to believe it. I knew every bet carried the possibility to pay the price, and in this case, the price had been too big. Muraki didn't want money from me, nor possessions, but something far from elemental and ephemeral: my body for a night.

Not long ago, I realized that Muraki would look at me in a way which he wouldn't look at anybody else. Leaving aside the fact that he got in the middle of my job and was basically my enemy, I had to admit he looked at me weirdly, as if he…wanted me. Badly. He would flirt with me, or touch me in the lightest and most subtle of ways, giving me a preference I had never wanted, but grown accustomed to expect from him.

For that reason, I hadn't been that surprised when he voiced out loud his desire to spend the night with me, but still I wasn't fond of the idea, and I almost automatically said no. However, the sudden thought that I could get valuable information out of him if I won, overruled the rational side of me, and I couldn't think of anything else. I believed too much in myself, in my stupid abilities, and underestimated my opponent. With Muraki, sometimes it seemed to be impossible to win.

''Tzusuki'', the voice of my captor was slightly drowned by the kisses he was leaving in my neck, ''relax, I feel like I'm kissing a statue''.

I bit my lip in anger, and felt the first tremors of humiliation overcome me, which I knew I would feel for the rest of the night. Muraki needed to show who was in charge, but unfortunately for him, I was pretty stubborn about authority too.

''It's what it is, take it or leave it'', I answered firmly, and part of me felt a tiny bit proud of standing up to him.

Nonetheless, the pride didn't last for long, because as soon as those words left my mouth, his whole attitude suddenly changed. Grabbing my jaw ruddely, he made me look straight into his eyes, to the very fountain of lust I was trying to avoid.

''Let me make myself clear'', he started to speak in an angry voice, ''I won this bet fair and square. I only expect my reward to be given to me as I deserve it. Tonight you are mine, and do not doubt yourself, I will make you follow each one of my commands…every single one''.

My eyes went wide with surprise at his nerve, and slight fear of what these ''orders'' he was talking about could mean. My mind was spinning around possibilities, making up different sceneries, each one more twisted and dark than the last. I knew him enough to believe he could teach me stuff I had never even heard off, and I most certainly did not want to be a part of that.

''I-I'm not your slave'', I answered in a rather shaky voice.

He threw his head back, and the most diabolic laugh I had ever heard in my life resounded in the room. With the voice of a man who knows he has won, he answered me without hesitation:

''Until the sun comes up, you are''.

And without another word, he crashed his mouth on mine.

At the beginning I couldn't offer any resistance, being so shocked as I was, for the events that were unfolding right before me. But a part of me (one that I was not ready to admit yet) pointed out I didn't really want to reject his touch.

Truth is, Muraki's lips weren't at all as I had thought, they didn't feel rough against mine, but soft and strangely gentile. He was kissing me with a skill I couldn't help but acknowledge, biting my lower lip lightly, and dragging his tongue in a way that left me trembling on my feet. I was unable to think, thus, also unable to act against him, or act in way at all.

He is not bad at this, I though vaguely as I felt his tongue enter my mouth and start prying.

''See? I'm really not that cruel'', he said after he separated our mouths and gave me time to breathe, ''I could make you feel good, Tzusuki''.

I blushed in utter embarrassment, feeling mortified that he had caught me enjoying his touch more than I needed to. I hated Muraki to the deepest part of me, for the horrible things he had done to so many people, including myself, and I could not allow myself to feel anything for him other than disgust. And certainly not pleasure.

I couldn't let him get away with it, to let him have this power over me. I had been a lot of things in the past, but never a slave, and I sure as hell wasn't going to start now.

''Keep dreaming, that is not going to happen'', I answered and tried to control my breathing to make it calm and stable, just like his, ''you can do whatever you want to me, but I don't have to enjoy it''.

I smiled to make myself seem a little bit more confident than I was, to show that neither his actions nor him, scared me one bit.

Of course, that was nothing but a big fat lie. I was terrified of what he could do to me, and just imagining the lengths he would go to fulfill his perverted fantasies, made me want to run away as fast as I could. But even so, I wasn't planning on giving him the satisfaction to see me fall. I would fight him as many times as it took, in order to preserve my dignity.

However, with my little attempt at a rebellion, Muraki threw his head back and laughed once again.

''You couldn't be more wrong'', his answer came in a soft voice as he started to unbutton my shirt, ''I'm pretty good at a great number of things, my dear Tzusuki, but in this particular area, you should believe me when I tell you I excel considerably. I could make you see stars behind your eyes''.

Hearing those candid words, my cheeks got crimson again, and I tried harder to keep his hands out of my body. I hated his arrogance, the fact that he thought of himself as a king of some sort, and I specially hated how much of a smartass he could be. Excel considerably? Make me see stars? Who the fuck did he think he was? His whole attitude was annoying, and the fact that he thought he could make me enjoy my own rape experience, showed just how much of a sick bastard he could be.

''I think you are the one who is wrong'', I said while looking straight to his eyes, ''the only one who could enjoy this perverse bet is you, it's impossible that I would feel anything but disgust with you''.

Suddenly, his eyes opened slightly more and a small light started shining threw them. A light I could recognize easily and knew I should be afraid of, because it meant Muraki had gotten an idea, which could not be good for me at all. I vaguely asked myself if it had not been a better move on my part to just stay quietly.

''Is that a war declaration, Tzusuki?'', Muraki asked as he dragged his words lazily, like he was enjoying them, ''are you challenging me in my own game?''

''What? No, that's not what I…''

''Too late'', he said suddenly, and then my shirt was off my body and falling to the floor, ''I accept your challenge, Tzusuki Asato. I will make you feel so unbelievably good you will take back those words''.

Without any other explanation, he lunged forward and kissed my with an almost uncontrollable passion. In some corner of my mind that was not distracted by his kisses, I wondered to myself if I had ever been so stupid. With my big mouth, not only I had gotten his laughter, but also encouraged Muraki to try harder to seduce me. Now, he wasn't going to be satisfied by having his wicked way with me, he had also made his personal goal to test my limits.

I need to keep my ground, I thought to myself, can't let him think he has advantage over me.

But soon, it proved to be harder said than done, because a few moments later, I understood Muraki was good not only at kissing, but also touching.

His fingers, which had been travelling all across my chest and tracing patterns only he could see, suddenly located my nipples, as he graced them with his gloved-covered hands, I shivered.

Shit, he wasn't lying when he had said he had talent. The way he was twirling around the nubs with his fingers, tugging lightly, made me want to get a little closer, and feel it more deeply.

I held on to the wall behind me, and tried to stay as still as I could, willing my body to stop shaking.

''Feels good, doesn't it?''

His lips traced a path from my neck to my shoulder, and then back up again, going over a bunch of sensitive places I never knew I possessed.

''N-not at…all'', I answered, but the shaking in my voice gave me away.

He laughed in a quiet manner.

''No? Then I should probably try harder…how does this feel?''

Suddenly I felt his fingers applying more pressure on my nipples, and the spike of pain made me find my voice.

''Stop!'', I yelled and tried to get his hands away from me, but mine were shaking so badly, it was hard to put any sort of strength ''that hurts!''

''That is exactly what I'm talking about, my dear Tzusuki'', he answered with a smile that was pure animal, ''pain is a powerful component to induce pleasure…here, see for yourself''.

I opened my mouth to send him to hell, but didn't get a chance to do so. Muraki repeated his motion, twisting my nipples in a painful matter, until it made me tight my jaw so I wouldn't scream. However, to my surprise, a wave of pleasure went through my body, starting from my chest and ending right between my legs.

Again and again, the actions were repeated, and I started arching my back to him without even realizing it. I didn't even recognize what I had been doing, until he so cruelly pointed it out to me, and the shame was almost too much to bear.

''Stop…it'', my voice seemed nothing more than a whisper.

For once, he actually listened to me and stopped his actions, giving me time to breathe and pulling myself together. But I got tense all over again when he put his hand in a place that was far more sensitive and intimate.

''We are just getting started and you are already hard'', he chanted in my ear while he rubbed me between my legs, ''you are really a good slave, Tzusuki''.

I opened my mouth with the full intention to curse him; however, I could do nothing but moan. I shut my lips as I realized I wasn't going to stop making those shameful sounds as long as he kept touching me that way. I tried to get him off me by any means necessary, forgetting the fact that I was nothing but a prize in a stupid bet. I knew I didn't have a right to resist the man in front of me, but I was too scared to see what would happen if I submitted.

''Stop…'', I said in a partially coherent voice.

''Why? I can see you are enjoying this so freely''.

I wanted to call him a liar, tell him I could never enjoy his touch, but my own body seemed to be betraying me at that moment. I didn't even need to lower my head to see that I was fully aroused and blushing all over.

Why?, I asked myself in disbelief, why am I reacting to him like this?

How could I be feeling so…good, by the touch of that killer? How could I enjoy his way of torturing me? What was wrong with me?

''What did you to me?'', I asked tightening my jaw, ''what drug did you make me take?''

''Drug? I didn't give you anything, Tzusuki, this is all you'', and to complete his words, he started rubbing again in that sensitive place between my thights, and I lost my breath all over again.

I barely noticed when my belt was unfasten, and my pants were lowered in a rush down my legs. Almost immediately, his hand touched my naked skin, and caressed me in a way that made my body even warmer than before. I put my head back against the wall, feeling too far gone in the pleasure, to even think about resisting. I knew it was wrong to let myself be swept away by him, by his touch, but in that moment, with him putting all his experience to good use, I was incapable of doing anything else.

Weak, I told myself, you are weak...

I raised my hips to meet his hand, knowing I was too far to pull back now. I was almost at the edge, one small little push, and I would be there. I needed…one...little…push…

''Not yet, Tzusuki'', he whispered in my ear, ''I won't let you come just yet''.

And with those cruel words, he stopped touching me. Suddenly he grabbed me, and I found myself being thrown on the bed across the room.

''What the hell…'', I started to argue. I didn't want to admit it, even to myself, but I was mad at him for stopping halfway…and even madder at myself for wanting his touch that badly. Where the hell had my pride gone?

Muraki then flip me around, so I was facing the mattress, and firmly took my hands, spreading them in front of me. Too fast to comprehend his intention on time, I watched him tie my hands together with a soft black fabric, and restrain me to the bed. Only when I was bound completely, I understood his purpose.

''Muraki, let go!'', I objected, but he didn't care about my opinion, and started bounding my feet as well.

I kicked him as hard as I could, desperate to make him stop. Who knew what would become of me if i let him do as he pleased? What kind of sick things were going on inside that crazy mind? But no matter how hard I fought, I ended up naked, tied up to a bed, and at the mercy of a sadist.

''This is much better'', Muraki whispered while kissing my hip, ''I like your fierceness…but making you submit is also quite irresistible''.

I tried to pull myself away from his lips, getting angry at the word ''submit'' and the fact that it was directed to me. However, the ties let me move but a few centimeters, so my struggle was only going to get me sore wrists.

I was trapped, and the only person available to release me, was the same monster who had put me in that position in the first place. Only thinking about my situation, my stupid and scary situation, made my chest start to ache, and a knot started to form in my throat, making it difficult to breathe.

''Untie me'', I demanded.

''Now, why would I do that?'', he asked and started caressing my chest in slow motions, ''Are you afraid of what I might do to you? Are you afraid of losing your ground now that you are unable to move? This is what's erotic about this game, Tzusuki, even though it scares you…it also excites you just as much. Don't you feel that adrenaline rush to know that somebody else has power over you?''.

As he kept talking, his hand started getting lower and lower, tracing an invisible path through my body, and reaching my arousal. I gasped when I felt him grabbing me almost too hard, but, still…I didn't find it unpleasant.

What I did find unpleasant and downright disturbing was the fact that I was reacting so much to his every word or touch. How could I get hard when he was talking about raping me? Was I enjoying this…?

No, absolutely not, I said to myself. There was no way I could just lie there and enjoy being hurt. I wasn't sure how far Muraki would take this situation, but it scared me to even think about it. It seemed like he didn't have any boundary at all.

''I want to show it to you, Tzusuki. I want to show you everything: the fear, the humiliation and the pleasure. I want to make a mess out of you, and see your every reaction to me, that's why, nothing you can say will make me change my mind''.

Fear started going through me like a living thing inside my body. Hearing him speak, in that low seductive kind of threat, gave me a foreshadow of what my future looked like, and I wasn't fond of it. He wanted to show me things, perverse things I wasn't sure I wanted to know, and the worst was, even if I managed to somehow resist and break free, he would only claim he still had a prize to collect. He wanted me, no matter what.

The realization of the type of scenario I was in, suddenly hit me hard, and I broke into a cold sweat.

''Stay still'', he said in a joking matter, and then I heard him stand up and walk to the other side of the room.

With his absence, I felt cold, and ashamed of being naked on that bed. I tried to change the angle of my body, but in the moment I was checking if I could close my legs, a sudden sharp pain went through my buttock. I yelled in pain and surprise, and when I twisted my neck to see what had happened, I saw Muraki with his hand high in the air.

''I thought I told you to stay still'', he said in a serious tone and a gaze nobody would want to defy.

''You've got to be kidding me...'', but a moment later I regretted my words. Muraki was never kidding.

Before I could do or say anything else, Muraki raised his hand and struck me again, this time, with a little more force, and I tightened my jaw in pain. He repeated his action again and again, until I felt that part of me burning up.

''Let me be very clear about this: defy me again, Tzusuki, and you will suffer the consequences''.

He made a gesture as if he would strike me again, and I hid my head between my arms, bracing myself for the pain. But it never arrived.

I breathed in relief, but what I felt next, was not calming at all. I felt a cold liquid running through my butt crack, and as I stared behind me, I felt more than saw, how his finger began to enter the most private part of me. For a moment, I could do nothing but stay in shock, without understanding what was going on. But then, the sudden sharp pain made me clench my hands over the sheets, and I bit my lip until I tasted blood.

The humiliation inside me seemed to grow to a level I had never even considered, and I almost let out tears of rage. I couldn't handle the fact that I was letting him do whatever the hell he pleased with me, allowing that monster to defile me in such shameful ways. And the worst part was, I couldn't really do anything to stop him, because I had become his…whore. His fucking prize.

''Give yourself time to feel'', he said in a quiet voice, and his words made me hate him even more, ''and relax, you might even enjoy this''.

Enjoy?!, I asked myself in disbelief, while I felt his finger moving around inside me. I highly doubt that he would try to ''enjoy'' anything if the roles were reversed. He was only trying to appease me, lie to me so blatantly so I would stop fighting. Well, if he wanted me submitted so badly, he should know I sure as hell wasn't going to let that happen.

''Not…possible'', I tried to muster between clenched teeth.

Of course, he didn't stop his actions, or felt remotely sorry for me. On the contrary, he kept putting more pressure in that sensitive place of mine, and another finger found its way inside me. The pain in that moment, made me scream out loud.

''Stop…please…'', I pleaded. The contact was too much to bear, and I wasn't sure for how long I could still handle it.

''But it's not just pain that you feel, right? It would be unfair of me to deny you the pleasure''.

I growled in annoyance, hating how he could see the situation only from his point of view and ignore whatever my opinion may be. But why was I surprised? This was Muraki I was dealing with! He was a killer, a liar, and a sadist, nothing more than that. My feelings of betrayal, of surprise or shock, made no sense at all, because I should have guessed from the beginning what he was like, and never taken that stupid bet. I was done for, and the fault was all mine.

''There…is no…pleasure…'', I tried to argue, but then I felt his touch over my arousal, and my thoughts went flying through the window, as my body heated up.

He started touching me in an expert way, knowing which places would feel best, and just how hard or how fast I wanted it. It got so arousing, I unconsciously started moving my hips against his hand. He laughed then, while kissing my skin, and to my surprise, I realized I wasn't avoiding his touch, and the pain on my backside had considerably diminished. It still burned a little, but the feeling of his fingers inside me, stretching me ever so slowly and carefully, brought with it a tingling and a desire I couldn't for the life of me, describe.

I moaned without meaning to, and started pulling on the ties again, feeling more desperate than ever.

I couldn't believe my own actions! Was I a street whore right now? Was I really naked on a bed with a stranger, tied up for his pleasure and with my legs opened for him? Was I starting to…enjoy it? I could handle the pain, but moaning for him, was a blow to my pride, and that hurt even more. I was giving him the power I had so stupidly stated I would never yield.

''You can stop fighting'', he whispered in my ear, before nibbling on my skin, ''it's useless to resist, you know you will end up surrendering to me''.

Has anybody ever told him he is too damn arrogant?

''Never'', I managed to answer before I lost my breath completely.

I felt his touch become rougher, and I saw his frown when I turned my head to him. In that instant, his expression was scary, and I knew I was in for torture.

With a somber voice, Muraki threatened:

''Then I just won't let you come until you beg me for it''.

He pulled away from my body, but this time I didn't turn around to see what he was doing, I preferred not to know. I was digging my own grave by protesting so much, I knew that, but I couldn't just lay there and…be touched like that. My pride wouldn't let me.

Suddenly, and without a word of warning, Muraki grabbed me so I would stay still, and inserted something inside me, something that wasn't his fingers. I gasped as I felt that thing enter me, and with a certain relief, I realized it hadn't hurt that badly.

''Start begging whenever you want, Tzusuki'', he said before I heard the click of a button.

I tensed completely and opened my eyes big enough to jump out of my face. I wanted to run out of the room as fast as I could, but tied up as I was, I could only stay still and shake, while I felt the thing inside of me starting to vibrate.

I tried to get it out of me, but the movement of my hips was only making that thing move even deeper inside, and much more intensely. I felt strange, so terribly humiliated when I imagined the sight of me, and my whole body started burning with discomfort. I definitely didn't like. Not. One. Bit.

''Ta…take..it out…'', I said, but my voice sounded so strained in my ears, so hopeless, I ended up closing my mouth. I was too embarrassed to even utter a word.

''You can lie to me, Tzusuki, but not to yourself'', and without wasting any time, he started caressing my arousal…this time with his mouth.

I yelled against the pillow, and tensed all over. I couldn't believe the waves of pleasure that were running through me in that moment. How could I feel so badly at one moment, and then so exquisitely good the next? How could my body change it's opinion so rapidly when it came to him?

I tried pulling away from his mouth, from that delicious source of heat, but he simply took my hips between his big hands, and kept me still.

With shame, i realized he was too good in that department too, licking me slowly, and nibbling gently, until I felt nothing but pleasure coursing through my veins, unbearable and beautiful at the same time. I begged him to stop, told him it was too much for me, but he didn't even slow down or showed he had heard me. He kept going as if he didn't have a care in the world, and nothing but time on his hands, which was making me crazy.

Nevertheless, silently, and in the comfort of my own mind, I thanked him, because to my surprise...he was right. I was completely humiliated, frightened and a mess, but I couldn't deny the reaction of my own body. I couldn't deny I was feeling more alive than what I ever felt before.

The pain, the ties, the exposure of my body, was only adding to the fire inside me, making me desire something I couldn't quite explain, or even wanted to understand. What had scared me so much before was making lose my mind.

Only then I realized that my fight was almost over, if he didn't let me finish, I was going to explode.

His mouth and the vibrator started going faster, until I thought I could see color patterns behind my closed eyelids. But even then, as close as I was, I couldn't get to the other side of that pleasure. He just wouldn't let me. As soon as he guessed that I was close, he would stop his actions, let me gather my breath and then continue where he had left off. Again and again, he did this to me, until I couldn't take it anymore.

''Muraki…please…'', I found myself saying.

He pulled his face from my body and started biting my tight gently.

''What is it that you want, Tzusuki?''

I stayed quiet, allowing every doubt to go through my head, and leave me wondering just what I would lose if I gave up my fight now. I sensed the consequences could be catastrophic, but I didn't seem to have a choice. It was either beg, or get even more crazy and irrational. And the longer I kept waiting, I was sure I would become even more of a mess.

Apparently my silence made him think I had changed my mind, because he went back to working on my body, torturing me with pleasure, and not letting me touch the edge.

''Let me…'', I begged, ''please…let me…come!''.

I closed my eyes before the wave of humiliation that overcame me, but it wasn't enough to make me regret my words. I was too far gone to care now, I needed release.

''As you wish'', was his only answer.

Immediately, he took the foreign object out of me, earning another moan from me, and put himself in that place.

''You are a hard one to crack'', he said while panting, ''but not hard enough. Being honest though, I'm at my limit as well''.

I felt fear wrapping itself in my throat, before I could feel him move forward and sink himself inside me, with a force and a speed that was overwhelming. I yelled against the pillow, and my knees gave out under my body. I clawed the sheets with my hands, and I closed my eyes, breathing deeply until I could feel the pain making a slow passage to pleasure.

I breathed in again, and I knew I had surrendered. I was lost in a world of unimaginable feeling, doing things I had never though I would be able to do, and my pride was definitely destroyed. Strangely though, I had never felt so desperate to feel something, so alive inside of me.

''So…tight'', Muraki murmured, I think more to himself than to me.

Suddenly his hips went backwards, and he sunk in again. Unable to stop, I moaned freely, feeling again that delicious tingle, and those waves of pleasure that were flowing over me. I moaned and pleaded for release, pleaded with every single fiber of my being and every drop of blood inside me. I moved against him, without caring how shameless the image of myself could be, I just needed to feel more.

I knew the release waiting for me would spectacular. Maybe I would feel as if I was being thrown from a cliff and down to an amazing fall, or like I was soaring high. But not even my idea of what it would be like prepared me for the actual thing.

When Muraki hit that place inside me that felt just right, the last wave in my body finally broke, and I screamed, seeing all white under my eyelids and raising my hips from the bed. I felt him get tense behind me and I knew he was coming as well, but I was too numb to care.

It ended up being spectacular, and amazing, and painful, and so much more, I can hardly describe. It was a strange mixture of pleasure and pain, which left me shaking even long after the effects should have ended. Under his touch, I had come undone.

''Delicious, isn't it'', Muraki asked as he gently removed my ties.

I could have run then, escaped from him, or even hit him, but I didn't find the strength inside me to keep fighting. I was so tired, in body and mind, so satisfied, I only wanted to sleep.

I closed my eyes, wishing for a dream to take me away, when I felt a slight peck on my forehead. I opened my eyes to see what Muraki was planning, but I got a surprise when I saw he was nowhere to be seen.

It made sense, probably, because he knew I wouldn't want him near me if it wasn't for that bet, and had fled the room as soon as his prize had been collected. I should have felt angry then, violated, but all I felt was tired and fuzzy. To think that I had gotten in that mess because of my bad poker skills...or was I not so bad after all?