In the next days, Leonard and the others would wake up early, eat breakfast near the inn, then head straight to the gambling den.
For lunch, they ate in turns so the tables were never left alone. Ferio and Eric would go first. When they returned, Gareth and Anika would take their break next. Last was Leonard, who usually ate quickly by himself.
Hours passed every day with the sa feeling. They worked until the sun set before returning back to their inn. They will take a short rest, eat dinner, and then sleep.
That cycle would start again the next morning.
It has already beco their routine.
For a whole week, nothing really changed. The den was always full, Alder Street was always loud, and coins filled their pockets.
But on the seventh day, Leonard noticed it.
His body ached more than usual when he rolled out of bed. His shoulders were heavy, and even his fingers that were so eager to handle dice and coins felt stiff.
It wasn’t just physical, either.
He felt it in his head, too.
The constant noise, the endless gambling, the sa pattern day after day.
"This is not ." As he sat at the edge of the bed, rubbing his eyes, a sigh slipped out.
"Working every single day like this... It’s too tiring."
He stayed at the sa place for a mont. He was hunched forward with his elbows resting on his knees. His hair was all over his face. They were damp with sweat, even though morning had only just begun.
It was strange.
The first ti he heard those sounds, his blood raced with excitent. But now? It just left him drained.
He thought back to that first day. The crowd, the energy, the way everyone’s eyes had been on him—it had felt almost unreal. He was proud of what he made. He felt alive those days.
But after repeating it over and over again, that thrill had slowly disappeared into nothing but habit.
Leonard leaned back against the wall of his room and stared at the ceiling. His chest rose and fell with another long breath.
"Is this... how it’s going to be?" he muttered under his breath.
The thought lingered in his mind. Waking up, working all day, going back to sleep. Again and again. A week had already felt long, but what about a month? A year?
His fingers curled slowly into fists. The truth was simple. He didn’t hate the gambling den. But working nonstop, with no pause, no chance to breathe, was too much for him.
And if he’s feeling that, he knew that the others must be feeling the sa too. After all, they’re just re humans.
Leonard let out a tired laugh that didn’t reach his eyes.
"Money’s good... but this can’t be all there is," he muttered.
They may want money, but it’s in their nature to have fun too.
The idea of venturing into other things brushed against his thoughts. Maybe he could try sothing else. He wanted to have another thing to look forward to. Sothing that wasn’t just rolling dice and handing out coins.
But the more he tried to think about it, the more his head felt heavy. His mind was too tired. He had no clue what to even try next. It was like staring into an empty road with no sign of where to go next.
As he sat there, sothing unexpected flickered before his eyes.
[Since you’re so bored, Host, let’s make things a little fun for you.]
"Huh?"
[Ding!]
[New Mission Generated.]
[Mission: Find a new venture to try as a rchant.]
[Details: Gambling can only take you so far. To truly grow as a rchant, you must seek out new opportunities. Explore, experint, and establish another source of inco beyond using dice.]
[Reward: 1 Luck, Bundle of Coins (30 gold coins) as starting capital.]
Leonard froze. His breathing caught in his throat as his eyes widened.
"A mission? Again?" he whispered before making a face.
He blinked a few tis, making sure he wasn’t just imagining it. But the glowing text remained in front of him, bold and clear, like it was waiting for his answer.
At first, he didn’t want it. But then suddenly, a jolt of energy shot through his chest, pushing away the exhaustion for a mont. Suddenly, excitent filled his veins.
"I an... that ans I have sothing to look forward to now." His heart thumped faster.
’A new venture... huh? Then let’s see what I can make out of this.’
Leonard’s lips slowly curled into a grin. The dullness in his chest loosened, replaced with the feeling of anticipation he hadn’t felt in days.
"Alright... I guess I can do this," he muttered, his grin widening.
His mind imdiately went to the skill he had gained not too long ago.
[Golden Fingers].
That strange gift had already proven itself once, and he hadn’t even scratched the surface of its potential yet.
If the system was telling him to try a new venture, then maybe this was the mont. Maybe he could use Golden Fingers to build sothing more than just dice gas.
The more he thought about it, the bigger his smile beca. His eyes lit up, gleaming with the kind of anticipation he thought he had lost.
"Not bad," Leonard whispered under his breath. "This could actually work..."
Then, another thought slipped in.
"Maybe it’s also ti... for to find people who can fully take over the gambling den."
The idea sat in his head. It was heavy and tempting. Eric and Furioh had already settled. Gareth is also trustworthy enough with the guarantee of the system.
He knew that if he could leave the den in the hands of capable employees, he wouldn’t have to chain himself to the dice table every single day. He could step back, let it run, get rich, and focus on sothing else.
Leonard chuckled, running a hand through his ssy hair. For the first ti in a week, his chest felt lighter.
"Finally," he said, his grin still there. "Sothing new to look forward to."
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