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[Jkguitarist]

What do you guys think the purpose of this arc is?

 

The story so far just describes a gamble that someone else will be taking. So what is the purpose of having Kaiji along in this segment? Will it turn out to just be a simple plot where Kaiji bets that the three will live?
 

Or will it take a more complicated turn? The gamble doesn't necessarily have to be about the money. Is Kazuya simply trying to convert Kaiji to see the way that he does? 
 

It seems like Kazuya doesn't have any intent of having Kaiji gamble away his money until he has nothing. Instead I feel like Kazuya is trying to make Kaiji into an ally of some sorts. Kaiji has just faced betrayal from two people that he thought was trustworthy, but still managed to overcome the handicap. By showing the true nature of humans through this Salvation game, I think the purpose of this arc is an attempt to change Kaiji's point of view to match Kazuya's own.

[paraquat]

I like your take on this arc. It seems entirely possible that what Kaiji is betting in this arc is not his money, but his world-view, or sense of ethics. Kazuya can't seem to understand why Kaiji has trust in people, despite being betrayed by his two former friends that he helped, as well as many others throughout the course of the series. And Kazuya seems to think that, if he does convert Kaiji to this view, he will have a friend of sorts, because he was complaining earlier that other people did not really understand him. Even his novel seems to speak to the fact that the guy is lonely, but he seems to see a sort of kindred spirit in Kaiji.

 

Alternately, though, I'm wondering whether this particular gamble is not the main gamble of the arc. Perhaps Kazuya is trying to prove something to Kaiji, or goad him into betting his fortune (and his life?) on a subsequent game that has trust as a theme. It will be exciting to see how this arc plays out.