Setup (8)
Fold.
On the screen, Shion folded his hand.
“…fold with a four of a kind?”
Johanna muttered in disbelief.
Of course, sponsors can’t see the players’ cards. This is to prevent any possible manipulation of the ga.
But… Johanna knew.
That hand was setup.
“That crazy bastard!”
An expletive burst from her lips as every hair on her body stood on end.
The dealer for this ga was Haze.
She was the one who had rigged the ga for the scam.
─With player Shion’s fold, player Eva wins.
But the ga couldn’t be called off.
Shion Ascal had folded with a four of a kind, and Eva swept the chips piled on the table.
“……”
Johanna looked at the leaderboard.
[Chip Leader: Eva]
[2nd Place: Shion]
The chip leader had changed with that ga.
Naturally, from Eva to Shion.
Johanna remained still for a mont.
She couldn’t understand what was happening.
A four of a kind with two Js in the hole.
A ga that couldn’t be lost unless one deliberately threw it away…
“I knew this would happen.”
Beckman stood up abruptly. Almost apoplectic, he raged at Johanna, his whole body flushed red with anger.
“As expected, he’s not to be trusted.”
“……”
Johanna turned to look at Beckman.
“I knew it from the first ti we t. That guy is definitely hiding sothing…”
She could barely hear his voice now.
Johanna brushed Beckman’s face away with the edge of her hand and looked back at the screen. At that mont, Eva’s expression was caught.
Eva, Karlos’ player.
Johanna stared at her.
“…Perhaps.”
Suddenly, her intuition twitched subtly.
As soone who had once been a player and still enjoyed gambling with mafia bosses, Johanna could detect the slightest changes in human expression.
The disturbance in Eva’s face now.
The unmistakable panic that couldn’t be hidden.
Johanna found it odd.
You clearly won, so why?
“…Shall we prepare for interrogation imdiately!”
Beckman was still babbling on.
Johanna gestured to a chair.
“Sit down.”
“Yes.”
Beckman sat down.
“Don’t speak. No one. Not a single breath.”
Johanna thought quietly.
Think about the hand.
A four of a kind with Js. The odds of losing with that hand are quite low.
The chances of winning are extrely high.
No, since the ga was ‘rigged’, the odds of winning are close to 100.
It has to be.
But…
[? 4], [? J], [? J], [? 9], [? 10]
Among the five community cards, particularly noticeable were,
[? 9], [? 10], [? J]
Sequences of hearts.
Assuming it’s not a rigged ga, what are the odds of a four of a kind and a straight flush appearing at the sa ti?
Extrely low.
Therefore, if both hands appear at one table, the four of a kind will inevitably bust.
Because no one folds holding a four of a kind.
“……Shion folded.”
Johanna’s lips smiled. Beckman smiled as if he had mistaken the term ‘folded’ in the ga for actually being ‘killed’. (The term they use for fold is dead, thus makes no sense in this statent)
“……If.”
The four of a kind was certainly a stroke of luck that she had manipulated.
But if another manipulation had been interwoven into that setup.
“If.”
If they had pulled off a Deception once more.
If they had recognized the dealer Johanna had recruited in advance and had laid a ‘strategy’ in return.
─Tiout.
Just then, Eva’s side requested a tiout.
─Player Eva has requested a tiout. The ga will resu after a 15-minute break.
Johanna looked at the screen. The dealer had already disappeared, and Eva’s two hole cards were still lying on the table.
“I’m curious about that woman’s hand.”
It was a truly pure curiosity.
* * *
A tiout was called. The dealer was the first to hurry out, and the other players also left for the waiting room.
“Yawn.”
In contrast, player Roho yawned and remained.
He had given up on winning a long ti ago.
He had given up early on because the cards just weren’t coming his way.
Still, since the prize money is distributed according to the number of chips, he was now just fighting to hold his ground.
“……What the. Where did the dealer go?”
He got up to grab a snack, but the cards were still laid out on the table. The hands of Shion and Eva, who had just played heads-up, were there.
Is the dealer an amateur?
It was the first ti he had seen a dealer run away without collecting the cards.
“Hmm.”
Well, let’s take a look at these guys’ hands. It’s the dealer’s fault for not cleaning up anyway.
Roho pretended to drink water and sneakily opened the cards. He started with Shion Ascal.
[? J] [◆ J]
“Pfft!”
Water sprayed out. He flipped the cards over and over again. He looked at them with wide eyes.
It’s a four of a kind.
“What is this guy doing……”
The player nad Shion had folded with a four of a kind.
Even more, two hole cards, two on the board. Is he ntally deranged? Or did he think he was going to be eaten alive by his own thoughts?
“Hmm-hmm~”
Roho tiptoed over and this ti stood at Eva’s spot.
“Oops.”
He pretended to stumble and slightly revealed the hand.
“……Oh.”
At that mont, Roho’s expression froze. His pupils tightened sharply. His face twitched involuntarily with an unknown spasm.
“……”
He brushed his hair back and set down the cup of water.
With a snicker, a too-natural chuckle escaped.
“He’s going to win. This guy.”
From the start, it was a ga he could never win.
It’s not about rigged gas or manipulation; the skill gap is just too wide.
The difference is as stark as between a straight flush and four of a kind.
***
After a 15-minute break.
We returned to the table. The final match had already surpassed 24 hours. None of the players had slept, and our only sustenance was the occasional nuts and snacks.
It’s a battle of skill, ntal strength, and physical endurance.
The conditions are too favorable for .
As I’ve said repeatedly, my ‘body,’ enhanced by the chemical chanisms of Perion, maintains a certain level even in a No-Mana Zone.
Reaction speed, physical strength, muscle power, stamina, and endurance are all top-notch.
Above all, I was once a gambling addict.
There’s no reason to feel tired in such an exciting ga.
“Call.”
On the other hand, Eva’s ntal state started to significantly waver after that crucial hand I folded.
“Fold.”
Eva seed to have given up on competing. Although she was still the chip leader, the gap was slowly closing, like a drizzle soaking through clothes.
Her montum had broken. It was only a matter of ti.
Probably, everyone at this table already knew. In ten more gas, I would be the winner.
“…Wait. I need to cool my head. Tiout.”
Eva called for another tiout. She had used up both of her tiouts.
“Ah, just play. No fun.”
I taunted Eva as I stood up, and she quickly retreated to her private room. I trudged down the corridor.
“……”
[Shion Ascal]’s waiting room.
I paused in front of the door. A small piece of paper was wedged in the door seam.
I had placed it there before leaving the room.
But its ‘position’ had changed.
It ant soone had broken in. A re cleaner wouldn’t bother to reinsert the paper.
“……Hmm.”
I opened the door anyway.
The atmosphere was foreign.
The air was noticeably heavier.
I scanned the ceiling, floor, and walls, but nothing was amiss.
“……”
I sat down on the sofa, cracking open so nuts and glanced sideways.
The curtain.
Sothing about the curtain was off. It seed unnaturally bulky.
As I pondered, suddenly—
─!
A small noise ca from behind the curtain. A silent spark erupted, and a sharp bullet rushed towards , striking directly in the collarbone, and I collapsed to the floor.
Whoosh—
The curtain was drawn back.
A man in a suit and sunglasses stepped out. He aid a silenced pistol at and kicked my shoulder, flipping over.
“……”
He looked at with closed eyes. He saw the blood flowing from my collarbone. He put his finger on the trigger for a confirmation kill.
In an instant, I opened my eyes.
“……It hurts, you motherfucker.”
He hastily pulled the trigger, but I twisted my body to dodge and kicked his shin with all my might.
Crack!
It wasn’t just a fall; it was the sound of bones breaking entirely.
His ankle actually bent into a ‘?’ shape, and without even a scream—
He died.
“What the hell.”
Foam bubbled out of his mouth, gushing out like the froth from a freshly opened cola. He had bitten into a poison capsule to kill himself.
“Damn bastard.”
The pain started to hit too.
For the record, the bullet was lodged in my collarbone. It had penetrated the skin and muscle, but hadn’t gone through the ‘bone’.
“I didn’t expect a gun.”
Well, in a No-Mana Zone, there’s no weapon more deadly than a gun.
At least it was a silencer pistol, which was less powerful.
“Ah… it hurts like hell.”
The pain was real, but there was no way to remove the bullet lodged inside , not right now.
─The ga will resu in 5 minutes.
There wasn’t much ti left. I roughly tore up the hitman’s suit to use as a makeshift bandage to stop the bleeding.
“…Ugh.”
I gritted my teeth and bore the pain.
There was no need to speak of this assault.
I could talk about it after the ga was over.
I didn’t want to stir up trouble and sprinkle ashes on a ga that was already won.
“Let’s see after it’s over.”
I covered my blood-soaked collarbone with the jacket of the suit.
* * *
…10 minutes earlier.
As soon as Eva returned to the waiting room, she grabbed the phone with trembling hands.
─Don’t worry.
Karlos’s caring voice flowed through.
The ‘setup’ he had promised would ensure victory in this round.
A strategy that involved taking the family of the dealer Hayes, who had switched to Johanna’s side, hostage and betting against them.
It was a straight flush.
“To not worry is impossible.”
It was a crazy act, playing with a four-of-a-kind and folding.
─I’ve prepared for this far. I’ve even thought about the worst-case scenario.
“…Really?”
─Of course. Johanna’s player won’t even show up at the table.
“…”
Eva knew what that ant.
The hitman, the most critical force of the mafia family, who even considers their own life a tool.
The mafia raises and commands nurous hitn. Each one is practically a killing machine.
The reason firearms have developed on the continent is precisely because of the wars in casinos, which are essentially No-Mana Zones.
“There’s going to be a war.”
─That’s a risk we’re willing to take.
Karlos spoke boldly.
─After all, Libra’s Johanna was a mongrel that should never have been part of the Golden Casino scene.
Eva cald herself with his confident voice.
─All the mafia are displeased with Johanna. It was bound to happen soday, so it’s not your fault. So, don’t worry.
“…Yes.”
Despite his words, Eva was still worried.
Shion Ascal.
When he had read her, Eva felt ‘fear’ for the first ti while gambling.
─Eva.
Carlos’s caring voice called her. Eva responded demurely.
“Yes… Mr. Karlos.”
─…I love you.
As Eva watched him discuss love, she smiled silently.
She once considered him rely a tool for use. In fact, most gamblers did.
They saw their sponsors as re cash cows, using their money to satisfy their desires and addictions to ‘the ga’.
Eva, at one ti, treated Karlos as a naive moneybag, but Karlos always believed in her until the end.
Knowing she might betray him, knowing he was treated as nothing more than a financier, he always trusted her, and no matter how she returned, he would welco her back with a bright smile and open arms…
Eva is now slowly realizing.
“It seems I will beco like that soon.”
It was an honest answer.
Not yet, but soon, she would co to love him.
─…Ha, haha.
Karlos smiled shakily. His smile was filled with genuine happiness.
“So… don’t die. No matter what happens.”
─You’re stating the obvious. Don’t worry about , take care of yourself. Finish up and co back. The job is already done, Eva. It doesn’t matter if you don’t win.
“I will win.”
Eva whispered with a low smile and hung up the phone.
Her mind was at peace.
She had regained her composure that was almost shattered.
“Phew…”
Carlos had already considered the worst-case scenario, and the mafia’s bets were ruthless.
There was no reason for sympathy.
After all, it was Johanna who had tried to rig the ga first.
So, the death of a player should have been anticipated.
Eva left the waiting room. She maintained her breathing as she walked and sat at the gambling table. The other players were already there.
Except for one.
The man with blonde hair who had been trash-talking next to her like scum.
“The ga starts in 5 minutes.”
The dealer had already been replaced.
“Haah~”
Eva let out a relieved sigh.
Still, it was a pity. He could have been a great gambler if he had matured.
But that sponsor was a mistake. His overly aggressive table manners were also a problem.
“3 minutes.”
The dealer announced the remaining ti and shuffled the new cards. Eva scanned them with her eyes and leaned back in her chair.
“1 minute.”
Even then, one seat remained empty.
Eva trusted the hitman’s work.
Shion would leave no corpse behind. The man would simply be rembered as soone who ‘ran away due to the pressure of not being able to win’, and if Johanna couldn’t accept defeat, then war or whatever would ensue.
However, there is no family on the continent that could win a war against the mafia in a casino…
─We will start shortly.
The host was about to announce the start of the ga, but the staff behind the table seed a bit busy.
Eva silently looked at the chips on her table.
They were piled up like a mountain.
“Then, let’s begin.”
The mont the dealer declared the ga to resu.
Thump-
The sound of soone sitting down was heard. Eva instinctively looked over.
“……?!”
Her eyes were filled with surprise. Saliva was involuntarily swallowed, and a tingling current ran through her fingertips.
It was as if the world had co to a halt.
“Sigh.”
The man who should not have appeared at this table. The man who should not have co.
Shion Ascal.
He t Eva’s gaze and smiled faintly.
“Why are you looking at like I’m a ghost?”
“……”
Eva was speechless. Her throat was tight. She couldn’t even breathe.
“Ah, that? It’s right here.”
He shrugged and pointed to his collarbone. Eva’s gaze blankly followed to the spot. Between the flaps of his suit jacket, a very small stain of blood was faintly visible.
“The ga will now begin.”
Just then, the dealer dealt the cards. All the stage lights dimd except for those over the table.
However, Eva’s gaze remained fixed on only one man, and he whispered with muted lips.
──Just wait.
With a smile in his eyes, he leisurely tapped the table.
A quiet ssage.
──Because tonight, I’m going to kill you.
In that mont, Eva’s composure shattered.
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