I'm stopping you here.
- He did it! - Zero won!
Our dear friend!
If something were to happen to him, then the Zaizen Group would be transferred to his successor posthaste.
I won't let you name yourself the winner of the Dream Kingdom.
Zero, battle against me.
There's someone I want you to meet.
Zero. Long time no see.
Mitsuru...
I'm so relieved. You're alive.
Where have you been all this time?
Stay away from him.
You have already destroyed him once.
"Destroyed him"?
He lost everything because of you.
Tomorrow, we will battle to see who becomes the successor of the Zaizen group.
And Mitsuru will stand witness.
Well then.
Zero, what happened between you two?
Tell us.
It's true, I did... "destroy him."
Four years ago, when I was a graduate student, I often stayed at the pension that Mitsuru ran in the mountains...
That's how we met.
I was studying astrophysics, and Mitsuru was pursuing professional photography.
We were friends, both of us chasing our dreams together.
Your work has been selected for a prize.
Congratulations, Mitsuru!
"To You, My Beloved" was taken by you, Zero, not me.
And because you lied to me, I lost both my pension and my dreams!
The lie I upheld destroyed his dreams of becoming a professional photographer.
Mitsuru, deep in the pit of despair, got into an accident in the mountains...
Megu...
I couldn't save him.
- Get out of my sight! - I'll come back for you, I promise.
But afterward, the search party couldn't locate him. Mitsuru had disappeared.
A part of me died that day as well.
What?
I found it impossible to continue on with my dream of becoming an astrophysicist, so I threw it all away.
And I decided that I would never abandon anyone again.
I swore that I would protect every person who crossed my path, no matter what danger I faced.
So Zero's incredible sense of justice came from his encounter with Mitsuru, I guess.
Explains why he's such a weirdo.
But where did the boss lady drag him up from, to rub salt in such an old wound?
Tsk. Dirty-handed as they come.
Zero's suffering too.
Just as we were before we met him.
And that's why it didn't seem so crazy to him to become a gentleman thief to change the world...
Even then...
Won't you become gentleman thieves to save the world?
The Zero who saved us was the Zero who had already lost his own dreams.
No matter what happened in the past, Zero is Zero.
He's our savior, and our dear friend.
We're bound together, thick as gentlemen thieves, and nothing can change that.
Don't you think so?
We finally get a chance to talk.
Luckily, help came not long after you left.
But you remained missing...
The Zaizen Group hid my status at my request.
She... Goto Mineko is...
My sister.
Sister?!
I had to rely on her in order to survive.
She despises you, enough to want to kill you, all because of me.
You quit grad school?
Yeah. I'm teaching at a cram school now.
I see.
What about you? Why did you go into hiding for four years?
- Do you still... - Tomorrow. Please win.
What?
Mineko wants to shake you.
That's why she brought me here, to you.
Don't mind me, just fight on as you have been.
I've been thinking for these four years.
But I think I finally figured it out.
Your lie was out of kindness to me, not spite.
But you always employ that kindness at the wrong time.
Don't worry about me.
If you lose on purpose because you want to protect me, I won't forgive you.
Fight and win for yourself for once.
I got it. Thank you.
That's too much! Sunao!
- Zero! - What's that smell?
Before tomorrow's match, I figured we should power up with a nutritious dinner.
Behold, the Zaizen Group Sumo Wrestler Special: Chanko Nabe!
I put a lot of things in, so it'll be a pot of surprises.
It's good! Yeah!
Please, help yourselves.
So she's even dragged her brother into it...
Fascinating.
How magnanimous, taking over for me immediately after it seemed I was out of the picture.
My apologies, sir!
I have a great idea.
Sir?
Tomorrow, I will give you orders. Follow them.
Your orders, sir?
Look forward to hearing them tomorrow.
Both Zero and Mineko will taste a bitter hell of their own.
We'll face off here?
Zero will become the winner of unspeakable riches.
I'm so nervous... my stomach hurts.
Looks like all the other competitors get shipped off yesterday.
Shall we?
We'll see you through until the end.
Thank you.
This way.
Approach the table.
Today we shall bid farewell to your magnificent hypocrisy.
What is the game?
- Poker, of course. - Poker?
An unusual poker game, run according to the Dream Kingdom's original rules.
"Day and Night".
What a weird name.
Twenty-six cards? There are only the clubs and spades.
I only have half of the deck.
Indeed. You have the clubs of "knowledge," and the spades of "death."
And of course…
I have the other half, the diamonds of "wealth" and the hearts of "love."
The red and black of this deck symbolize day and night, respectively.
This is a game of poker in which day and night battle against each other.
- The last game, and it's a round of poker? - Seriously?
Hiroshi!
Duck down!
That's such a relief! I thought because it was the last game of the competition,
it'd be another terrifying, life-threatening gamble or something.
Do your best! If you win, you'll be the richest man on earth!
- Quiet! - Huh?!
- Remove them from the room. - Hey, wait...
Wait, wait! What's the big deal?
Hey… hold on! You have your own allies here.
If none of us is here, then who knows what kind of unfair tricks you'll pull? Allow me to stay here, as witness.
Fair enough.
- Ow! That hurts! - I want to sta... ouch!
- I'll stay too! - Zero!
Allow me to explain the rules.
There will be three rounds.
Using the twenty-six cards you have, make five hands of five cards.
From the strongest to the weakest, the hands you can make from your cards are:
Royal Straight Flush
Straight Flush
Flush
Straight
Two Pair
One Pair
And the Hog. Seven in all.
Because you each only have two suits, making a three card or full house is impossible.
However, you cannot repeat hands in this game.
For example, in a single game, you cannot create two Royal Straight Flushes.
You will hide your hands behind the screen, so your opponent cannot see.
You will have to guess what hand your opponent has made.
If you are able to make a stronger hand than your opponent,
we will take the number of the highest card in your hand and add it to your score.
For example, if you were to win with this one pair, you would gain eight points.
Moreover, an Ace does not stand for one point, but fourteen-the highest card value.
What if the hands are the same?
In "Day and Night", you can't possibly assign the suit values of regular poker.
Normally, spades have the highest value and clubs have the lowest.
Yes, in this game, there are no values attached to the suits.
If the two hands are the same, then the win will go to the person whose turn it is.
Which means, on your turn, you should match a hand that is stronger
than your opponent's, and if they are the same, you get points anyway.
If I were to select a Royal Straight Flush on my turn, and pit it against my opponent's Royal Straight Flush, I would win.
And because it includes an Ace, it would add up to fourteen points.
In the first two rounds, each player will receive a turn.
The final turn, you will reveal your cards at the same time.
In the third round, the person with the better hand will win.
However, if the third round ends in a draw, you will draw cards from a deck,
and whomever draws the highest card will win.
What is the dart board for?
So you make the other person reveal the cards you hit?
Precisely! Though it's not that hard to figure out.
For each of the first two rounds, you will have two darts to throw.
In the third, you will have three darts.
And your opponent will have to show you the cards that you hit on the dartboard.
A game of darts to gain the advantage.
A tool necessary in order to figure out what hand your opponent has made.
Yes.
First, we will determine the turn order.
Zero, you're blue. - I'll be red.
Second turn, I see.
From here on, you will trade off turns.
Now, let us begin the first round.
I have to make five hands…
I'm not sure which cards she'll be able to see after the first round of darts,
But for now, let's defend hard with the Royal Straight Flush,
Straight Flush, Flush
Two pair, and one pair, these five will do.
Next, the darts, beginning with Goto Mineko.
Watch closely.
King and Ace.
She's really hitting you where it hurts.
Hey… hey! Are you any good with darts?
- No. I've never played before. - What?!
I'll have to get the hang of it while we play.
“Get the hang of it” are you kidding?
- You idiot… - Sorry.
Well, this will be easy. How advantageous for me.
I can see that hand has both a King and an Ace.
If the hand, has both, then that means…
Royal Straight Flush.
Just as I thought.
She hit my strongest Royal Straight Flush right back with a Royal Straight Flush…
And that King, that must be a Straight Flush.
And the Ace there, could it signal a Flush?
She saw all of them…
Which means I should crush your valuable Flush, correct?
She used a Flush against a Flush…
And because it had an Ace, she gets another 14 points.
Your turn.
The only thing I can be sure of is that one hand is either a One Pair or a Two Pair.
If I rule out the cards that she has already used…
Then one of those completely hidden hands must contain a Straight Flush.
I should use my own Straight Flush to defeat it.
Which one is it?
It's a fifty percent chance.
Damn, Two Pair.
Oh my, you wasted your valuable Straight Flush on a Two Pair.
I got thirteen points from that win.
But the Straight Flush that I should have beaten is still in there somewhere.
There are no repeated hands allowed, which means that she can either play a One Pair or Straight Flush in the next round.
I have the choice between a One Pair or Two Pair…
And neither can win against a Straight Flush.
Which means I have to…
That's all you have left, huh?
But the last cards…
A Straight Flush against a One Pair, she gains thirteen points.
Zero…
Could it be? You're terrible at poker?
I have a message from the Chairman.
What?
If you lose this game,
Then as a punishment, he will have your brother killed.
A punishment, because you have sullied the Dream Kingdom
for your personal gamble, to carry out your little brother's grudge against Zero.
Sister?
Huh, what's wrong?
You are not allowed to tell these new stakes to Zero, or even hint at it. So says the Chairman.
What?
Let's go out for some fresh air.
Wait, but…
Hey! Zero!
- Zero? - Is he alive?
What the hell is happening in there?
- Ugh, I'm so curious. - Come on, can you just let us take a peek in?
- Wait. - Where are they going?
For a walk?
Uh… where are you taking me?
He was taken away…
Mitsuru…
I have a full nineteen points of leeway.
As long as I can hold off in the next round, then I'll have the first turn again in the third round. I'll have the advantage.
I should be able to win.
No, Zero does not bend easily in any circumstance.
He'll come at me, bearing his fangs.
So you get the first attack this round, huh?
King and Queen, not bad.
I think I've gotten the hang of it.
You want to get rid of the Royal Straight Flush first, but which is it, Diamonds or Hearts?
I'm certain it's made of the Hearts.
- Huh? - How do you know that?
In normal poker, Hearts are a stronger suit than Diamonds.
In this game, the strength of the suits isn't counted,
But the average gambler would find the strength of the suit nagging at them.
So you think she picked the stronger suit out of habit.
Just a guess.
I was right...
You...
And this one is a straight flush.
You've caught up.
Stay calm. I can take back those points in my next turn.
My turn.
I'll crush your Flush with my own.
Knowing he would use the stronger hands, the Royal Straight Flush and the Straight Flush,
Of course he would put his strongest card, the Ace, into the third strongest hand, the Flush.
But... I can't read that random seven.
My remaining hands are the Straight Flush and One Pair.
It's likely he has also made the same hands.
If that's it, then...
Shit, One Pair.
You've wasted your Straight Flush.
Which means your remaining hands were...
A Straight and One Pair.
I get nine points from the highest card in my hand.
Six points difference... Pressure's on now.
I have to do something to catch up...
Zero is putting all of his efforts into this, I see.
And yet, he remains unaware that his victory ensures his friend's death.
Before you become the successor of the Zaizen Group and gain control of my 100 trillion yen empire...
I will destroy your heart.
Why did you bring me here?
Are you planning to kill me?
It's an order from the Chairman.
If your sister loses the bout, this will be her punishment.
I see...
Which means, if Zero wins... I will die.
Indeed. Such is the way of our Chairman.
Do not blame me.
Does Zero know about this?
No, he does not.
Zero... might win though.
Your legs... is it because of Ukai Zero?
No.
We were good friends.
Stop it, you hypocrite!
Leave me alone.
Because of you, I lost my dreams… my everything…
Get out of my sight!
But sometimes, when I look at these immobile legs, I remember.
All of the emotions I felt when it happened.
I don't... know if I have truly forgiven him yet.
And... if Zero wins, then I'll cause him greater pain.
Zero's at the disadvantage again this round.
This is unfair.
What will you do?
If I make the strongest hands possible with these cards,
And I hit the cards that I want on the dartboard,
Then there's no way he can make up the point difference.
In the final round, each player will throw three darts.
King, Queen, and Ace.
With this, I will be able to see where his Royal Straight Flush lies.
My win is guaranteed.
My, your Royal Straight Flush is out in the open now.
What? A Hog?
Yes, a Hog dressed like the Royal Straight Flush.
He made her waste her strongest hand on a hand with absolutely no value...
What on earth is he thinking?
I may have hit on a Hog, but the round's points are still mine.
As long as I keep my head clear, I should be able to win with ease.
Next, I need to get rid of whatever hand holds the Ace.
But wait...
The Ace, King, and Queen of Spades are all in separate hands,
So it would be impossible for him to make a Royal Straight Flush with his remaining Ace.
But there remains the possibility of a Straight Flush with the Ace.
I cannot beat it with a regular Flush.
If we consider the possibility of a Straight Flush, then that Queen and King are...
I'll counter his Straight Flush with my own!
You fell for it.
What?
This is a One Pair masquerading as a Straight Flush.
You didn't...
Having seen your fearsome skill with darts, it was clear to me which cards you would likely aim to reveal.
In round three, we each had three darts, and you had the first attack.
It felt like a handicap at first,
But knowing the cards you would aim for, I set a trap.
When the time was right.
It is my turn now. Allow me to begin my counterattack.
First, that Flush.
You were going to destroy my Flush with that, but you decided not to.
A Flush for a Flush.
And… that hand is a Straight.
Both of my remaining hands have seven and eight, so what makes you so sure?
You always arrange your cards in ascending order.
I realized in the first round.
When you reveal your hands, it becomes quite obvious.
So that hand must contain a nine on the end.
I'll fight against it with my secret weapon.
Don't…
I will attack your Straight.
My Straight Flush was hidden here.
Mitsuru is going to die.
And the cards we have left…
Excuse me.
No…
It's a tie?
In that case, we will determine a winner by picking a card from the top of the deck.
I... is this a joke?
Are you telling me it's all up to luck? This is isn't a game anymore, it's just a gamble!
What's that? You were the one who started this in the first place.
Then… I'll draw first.
Now, it's your turn.
Zero lost?
What?
You're saved.
Zero… lost?
I refuse to be saved by you of all people!
Get away from me!
I'll come back for you, I promise.
Mitsuru!
Zero!
I told you not to worry about me,
but you really did come back for me, just like you promised.
Mitsuru…
Thank you.
Hey.
I'm about to reveal everything to you.
What are you talking about?
You lost on purpose.
What's that?
It was the way you assembled your hands in the third round.
You made a Straight Flush using cards from four to eight.
But if you had just rearranged your other hands a little,
You could have made a Straight Flush with cards five through nine.
Then, instead of eight points, you would have received nine.
And you wouldn't have tied. The score would be 92 to 91, your win.
There's no way you didn't realize it was possible.
Just looking at her, anyone could have figured out what was happening.
They were going to do something with Mitsuru.
That last card draw was also a simple sleight of hand.
I saw it all.
You had two cards hidden in your hard.
And when you went to draw them, you placed both on top.
The first was yours.
And the second, you made Goto Mineko draw.
Luck wasn't on my side. That's all.
Hey! Zero!
The-the final battle! What happened?
About that… Unfortunately, I lost.
What?! You didn't!
Dear friend!
- You lost… - So even Zero couldn't win…
You were almost a trillionaire!
We'll just have to try again.
What do you mean, “try again”?!
Hey, why does he look so happy even though he lost?
Probably because he's a fool, through and through.
ONE YEAR LATER
And a one!
That's good! Keep going!
- It's so heavy! - Forward, forward…
Isn't my end the heaviest?!
Bring it down... down!
- Let's take a breather. - Ready… and down!
Okay!
Are you slacking again?
Sorry.
Useless three stooges!
Sorry!
After leaving the Dream Kingdom, each of us returned to our everyday lives.
By the way, I saw it on the news earlier, but apparently Goto Mineko ended up succeeding the Zaizen Group.
Oh right, after she beat Zero, she inherited the company.
But apparently Zaizen is still running the show.
At least according to Yuuki.
I can't believe he went to work for the Zaizen Group after all that.
He has debt, so what else was he supposed to do?
Apparently Kuroda, that black suit guy, was the proctor for his exam and interview.
What the hell is he made of?
The good looking ones always come out on top.
Are you talking about yourself?
What the hell!
Are you still on break? Come on!
Roger!
President Goto. Good morning.
Hello.
The top card on this deck is the King of Clubs.
But if I do this…
You were merely hiding a card in your palm.
Ooh, so you figured it out this time.
What?
- Huh? - Please excuse me.
Thank you again for coming today!
You… got the chance!
Welcome! May I recommend to you the ZeroZero lunchbox.
What the hell kind of name is that?
Seigi! What's with you? What's with that get-up?
I'm job-hunting.
Job-hunting?! You?!
Seems like you've washed your hands of the clan too.
Are there any companies out there who will employ a snot-nosed brat like you?
- Huh? Shut up! What is this anyway? - Wait, wait, stop that.
Nobody out there cares about your dumb lunchbox specials!
My sign! Stop that, you!
Wow, I wonder if this place is up to the health code….
You're going to say that in front of a health care center?
Is it okay?
Dinner time! Hurry down!
Did you eat snack breads before dinner again?
Hey, eat your green peppers.
Even if your studies are going well, you can't be so picky.
You have to grow up well.
Yes.
Hold your chopsticks properly!
We've already used ten billion yen.
Well, it did go to a lot of different places.
Don't worry about it. We're doing exactly as Zero told us to.
We have so much left, so wouldn't it be okay if I used twenty or thirty thousand?
There's a bike I want.
No way in hell.
That's right. It may be money to fund our work as gentlemen thieves, but it's still Zero's money.
- But it's still so weird... - What is?
That Zaizen kept to his promise and gave the prize money to the winner of his competition.
Well, you know. To Zaizen, a hundred billion is basically pocket change.
But apparently he hasn't given up on getting Zero to become his successor in the future.
Yikes. I wouldn't want those eyes always following me.
Where's Zero, by the way?
Oh, apparently he's busy with his research.
Oh…
Astrophysics Research Lab Ukai Zero
- Did you check out my email? - Hold on.
- A signal from outer space? - NASA is secretly analyzing it.
Got to go.
Well… If I don't get this solved right away, we're going to be in trouble, huh?