Shit… I want to fall asleep and die.
Maybe if I wake up, I'll be reborn as the youngest troublemaker in some cushy noble clan.
…As if that'll ever happen !
I never thought this household would be an absolute dumpster fire, how did this bum even gather this much debt?
How much do I owe again?
Let's see the loan papers.
Three hundred gold for a single health potion.
Six hundred for one month's worth of bread .
A thousand more to cover for daughter's tuition.
With interest?
…Over three hundred thousand gold coins.
I stared at the papers in my hand.
This family is seriously going off in flames soon.
A low, broken groan carried through the thin walls, uneven and wrong, before fading into thin fragile exhales.
"Rola…nd… An…gel…"
…Do organs sell well in this world?
"..."
No that wouldn't do, what's the point of starting a new life in a fantasy world if you die right after ?
There must be a way, there has to be.
"Be…bee… BEE! Yes! There is a way!"
I'm a fucking genius, the solution was in front of me all this time, the biggest gambling den of the first kingdom is next door !
The "B-HIVE", built to be a house of entertainment and endorsement of the rich and corrupted. Many say it's the gate to happiness, others tell it as a slippery slope, a bottomless pit one can't ever climb out from.
But from a player's perspective, it is nothing more than a money printing factory. Speaking of, gambling has been my main profession since I graduated. If this isn't a once in a lifetime opportunity, then what is ?
Alright lets gather funds, if I sell this crossbow and the furniture here…
…
Around that time, unnoticed by Roland, something began to fester.
A deep sense of paranoia, mixed with hidden euphoria. A blasted joy and unbearable hunger he vowed to forever bury, never to resurface again.
His gambling addiction rises, now a physical and psychological phenomenon. As he's about to play his biggest bet yet, his and his new family's legacy.
** The next day **
He stands in front of the casino, a broad sign proudly stating the name of the establishment: "B-Hive - where dreams come true".
"Who would have thought that crossbow was a magic-imbued weapon, it sells for almost thirty thousand! Finally, after selling all the other valuables in the house, I've gotten around fifty thousand gold coins, not even enough to fill those loan shark's pockets. "
"After converting them into platinum coins, I got around a hundred coins right now, time to make a miracle"
Roland said, holding the pouch of coins tightly—his only lifeline now.
Stepping into the casino, the smell of cigarettes and overly potent perfume fills his nostril. Laughs of the guests and the clanking of roulettes, reminded him of bygone days.
It felt just like walking into a memory, one he'd rather forget.
Roland knew the risks. His grip tightened, cold sweat crawling down his spine. There was no other way—at least, none he was willing to see.
Yenica, his new life. Everything would burn to the ground if he loses this gamble.
In his past life, he swore to drop gambling, vowed to look for a job and refresh his pathetic state. And now, he's walking right back to his old ways.
He had no choice, He had to save himself even if that meant gambling his entire household away. He deemed this choice as manageable risk and this justification stood true, at least to him.
And so, Roland began his gambit. His worn-out boots dragged him across the floor, halting at the nearest blackjack table.
…
"This is it"
I sat down at the cramped table.
There sat four other players. Four different faces.
Desperation. Hope. Arrogance.
They wore those expressions like badges of honor, drunk on the illusion that luck will favor them today.
It is all too familiar.
An old man across from me squinted, eyes cloudy but sharp with curiosity. He set his glass down with a dull clink.
"Would you look at that," he chuckled. "Old Roland in a place like this. Done gutting deer and wolves already?"
I met his gaze, unfazed.
"Just here to play," I said. "Games here are simpler than in the woods."
Before he could respond, another man leaned in from my side.
"Well, I'll be damned," he said, grinning. "Loan Lords were ringing bells in your neighborhood yesterday, weren't they?"
His eyes dragged over me, slow and hungry.
"Must be tight at the end of his rope."
He fiddles with a gold coin on the table. "I could lend you a hefty sum. Right now."
The corner of his mouth curled up into an ugly smug.
"I've been lonely lately. Maybe your wife could keep me company for a while." He said casually
He shrugged. "Debts cleared, burden lifted. Fair trade, yeah?"
Laughter erupted around the table—ugly, disgustingly.
The laughter drilled into my skull, sharp enough to draw blood.
Just you bastards wait.
A familiar pure black window pops up
[Choose your bet:
A - 1000 coins /B - 10000 coins.]
"We'll see about that." I make a motion to press the A button
[Option chosen: B - 10000 coins]
WHAT !!! I clearly click on A !
Not even waiting for me to process this enigma, my right hand suddenly threw down twenty platinum coins without warning, as if it was pulled by a string.
[Option B - Reason: You're a gambler aren't you? Don't be such a pussy]
…
This bastard has to be a troll.
The other players started placing their bets while laughing. "Oh my, we have a risk taker today". " Guess I don't have to work next week !". " I was about to buy a pony for my mistress, but it came right to me!"
A few minutes later. The laughter dies down, the game commences.
That old man was the dealer after all, he started handing out two cards for each player, when it was my turn he simply threw them at me.
The old man glances at his card, and with a shit-eating grin carelessly places them down."Don't worry" he sneers" I'll take care of your wife"
Ignoring his ugly face, I look at my cards.
Alright, that's a solid king, let's rub them together a bit…
I pressed the cards between my palms, rubbing them until the edges felt like they were going to burn.
Come on... just one Ace... give me the 'Sing' luck...
…
Holy Stephen Chow… sixteen?
A single tear slid down my cheek as I hit.
The dealer flicked me another card.
King.
Son of a whor—
Just like that, ten thousand gold coins evaporated.
The slimy bastard from before threw his cards down: a Jack and an Ace. Blackjack.
"Looks like we got a king of bust here!" he shouted, and the table laughed again. He leaned in, smiling with pity." You know, my offer still stands. Just lend your wife for one night and all your troubles will fade away like jizz down a drain".
The pure black window appeared once more
[Accept the offer ?: A - Yes /B - No]
This motherfuc-
I took a deep breath and signaled a hostess for a cigarette.
She lit it with a small flame from her index finger. As I inhaled the smoke, thoughts of violence silently faded. Only sheer will remains. My gambler blood is rising.
The players stiffened. They felt the shift in the man who had just lost a week's worth of bread in a single round.
I exhale right into the bastards' faces." Alright then gentlemen, let's start the next round. I'll throw in sixty platinum this time".I threw the pouch of coins on the table.
Back in my golden days, people called me, "Saint in red and black". I'll show them why it's not just smoke and mirrors.
The bastards quickly regained their senses, and laughed it off as a loser's bluff.
Little did they know, it was the prologue to their demise.
A few rounds later…
Beads of cold sweat rolled down the side of Johan's nose. He sneaked a peek at Roland who was in deep focus.
When that guy first came in, I thought he was just another desperate bastard, knowing he came from that neighbourhood.
I played him like a fiddle—tossed out a few comments about his wife, hinted at how "comfortable" I'd make her once he was broke. I figured his psyche was already fragile…
It kinda worked at the beginning, poor bastard lost twenty platinum coins in the first round. I walked away from that first hand with thirty platinum coins in pure profit. It was the easiest money I'd ever made.
But now…
HE JUST KEEPS WINNING!
For the last three hands, he didn't even check his cards! That bastard was just rubbing the corner of the two faced-down cards together as if performing a ritual, and somehow keeps getting either blackjack or a twenty!
Is he cheating? Is he perhaps an undercover mage ? Johan's hand shook as he reached for his drink. He had come here to make a quick buck.
And now he's watching helplessly , as his life savings get sucked into Roland's crimson vortex.
After Roland unsealed his true gambler aura, it only took five rounds for the other players to call it quits.
Johan - The slimy bastard, was the first to fold, excusing that his wife has gone into labor.
Even the dealer dipped, saying he has some urgent issues that need his immediate presence.
Roland sits at the now vacant table. Still smoking a cigarette, he started organizing the money pouches he gathered through his "natural talent". his fingers moving with a practiced, rhythmic grace.
"Ninety three.. ninety five.. a hundred. That'll be three hundred platinum coins, which is around half of my debt" He whispered with relief. " What a bountiful harvest !"
He stood up and started laughing manically, the sheer insanity in his laughter gave many guests long lasting trauma. Rumours later spread in the underworld about the mysterious demon-lord of B-Hive.
When Roland was about to leave B-Hive, planning for his next move tomorrow. Something caught his eyes, something round that spins. The wheels of fortune, Roulette.
He halted. His gaze drifted to the far corner of the hall, where a crowd was gathered around a spinning wheel of polished wood and ivory.
"Hmm, isn't that the infamous gacha minigame? I'm still 150k short so maybe…" Roland re-routed, he turned his back towards the exit and started bee-lining straight to the crowded roulette wheel.
But this time, he walks with unseen confidence. Unlike when he first started, he had proved that his "gambler aura" is still in great condition. Or so he believed.
A pure black window appeared in front of him, but with some concerning changes
[Play the roulette ?: A - Yes/B- No]
He stood behind the crowd at the roulette table. Staring at the new system window, now adorned with a deep crimson outline, as if warning him of something he's going to deeply regret.
Roland dropped the cigarette he was smoking, crushing it under his worn out sole
"Yes"
The window didn't react immediately, as if thinking. Just a second later, it started shaking. And finally faded with an ominous message
[This is your decision.]
Roland was taken aback, but he soon shaken off the ominous feeling and continued observing the Roulette.
Clueless of his impending fate.