As soon as my words ended, silence enveloped the surroundings suddenly. It was a calm, unshaken silence, as if it had sunk deep beneath the surface of the sea.
The eyes of those around me carried a mix of emotions—surprise and admiration, for instance. I rubbed my arms, which felt goosebumps under the intense gazes as if they could pierce through my skin.
Why is everyone reacting like this? Is it not usual to step forward like this? Or was there already a chosen player?
While I was considering all possibilities and ignoring the unfriendly stares, Kartan, with a purely businesslike smile, gestured towards the seat in front of him.
“Please, take a seat here.”
Thankfully, it wasn’t a rejection.
Relieved that the response was not negative, I gently took the seat he indicated.
Then, Kartan began to shuffle the cards for the game with dazzling skill, speaking in a calm voice.
“The rules are…”
“I know. I’ve heard the explanation,” I interrupted, glancing briefly at a man with black hair. When I caught sight of him, his shoulders were tensely raised—it seemed he was quite taken aback, probably having never imagined I would partake in blackjack.
After swallowing a gulp of regret for unintentionally deceiving the man, I averted my gaze from him.
Then, I turned my attention back to Kartan, who was fiddling with the colorful tokens beside him.
When our eyes met, he gave me a meaningful smile and placed two golden tokens in front of me. It was just a hunch, but somehow, I felt that these golden tokens were the most expensive ones, as Ruth had mentioned earlier.
It was while I was absentmindedly staring at the golden tokens, which boasted a unique presence on the green table, that I snapped back to reality at the sound of Kartan’s fist lightly tapping the table.
“What bet will the lady place?”
“Um,” I hesitated for a moment in response to his question.
The pouch that Ruth had given me contained a total of ten tokens, which altogether might amount to a little more than two gold coins.
Considering that the living expenses for an average peasant family for a month were around fifty silver coins, two gold coins were certainly not a small sum.
However, I was in a casino frequented by nobles, and to them, two gold coins were mere pocket change, not even enough to pay for snacks.
Thus, I pondered over how much to bet to keep up with the others in the game and yet, not suffer too much loss if I were to lose.
After much deliberation, I finally decided to place all the tokens from my pouch onto the table.
(TL/N: And there you have it ladies and gentlemen no more snacks for them. Amen to Ruth’s money)
“All in.”
“Oh?”
As soon as my answer was given, playful snorts could be heard from around us.
Conversely, all traces of a smile disappeared from Kartan’s face.
I looked directly into Kartan’s dull-glowing pupils, wearing a calm and composed smile.
No matter how much I resolved not to recklessly use the tokens, this was a necessary expenditure. Moreover, Ruth had only warned me not to accrue debt, not to avoid spending tokens.
Furthermore…
While shallow thoughts continued in my mind, Kartan once again confirmed my intention.
“Do you really intend to go all-in?”
“Yes.”
Going all-in, betting all one’s tokens, is a risky betting method that is rarely preferred by most people because it’s very rare not to lose when going all-in.
Nevertheless, the reason I chose to go all-in was none other than Kartan himself. To catch a big fish, one needed a bait attractive enough for the big fish.
Even if I lose, if this helps me to find out how the Duke Dright earns his money, it wouldn’t be a bad deal at all.
While I was muttering to myself, Kartan placed his hand on the stack of cards.
“Then, let’s begin.”
“Just a moment.”
“Yes?”
When I stopped him from starting right away, he looked at me, asking for a reason.
I watched Kartan, who looked puzzled, with a slight squint in my eyes.
“I would like to proceed with the cards face up, not face down.”
“!”
Apparently not expecting me to say this, a subtle ripple of disturbance stirred in Kartan’s pupils, calm as a serene lake at dawn.
It seems my guess was right.
Seeing his disturbance becoming more apparent, I pressed the twitching end of my lips and continued.
“And if it’s alright with you, please proceed with your eyes closed. The onlookers will watch whether I cheat or not.”
“…Is there a reason I need to proceed with my eyes closed?”
“Well, it’s… because things seem to be changing.”
“What do you mean?”
“Your eye color.”
“……”
While learning about blackjack from the man with black hair, I kept watching Kartan play the game. At first, I watched the cards busily moving on the table, and then, the faces hidden behind masks.
Then I realized. Every time Kartan looked at his cards, a faint light leaked from his pupils, like Tommy’s eyes when he cast mental magic on Ruth.
This added credibility to my hypothesis that the inhibitors installed in the casino could only suppress the guests’ mana application.
With my lips tightly shut, unable to manage my own expression toward Kartan, I drove the last nail in.
“I heard you have a genius talent for blackjack. If that’s the case, wouldn’t it make no difference if you played with your eyes closed?”
“……”
“Or not?”
As I tilted my head provocatively on purpose, Kartan, as expected, took the bait.
“…Not at all. As you wish, I’ll proceed with my eyes closed.”
“That’s fortunate.”
This response was sincerely heartfelt, without any pretense.
If he had said that it would be difficult due to regulations, my position would have been a bit awkward. If Kartan was truly using magic to win consecutively, there was absolutely no way for me to win with him watching.
Provoking the dealer, who was likely to have a competitive spirit since he was participating in blackjack, seemed like a divine move in hindsight.
First…
I glanced at the cards in Kartan’s hand and reminded myself of the blackjack rules the man with black hair had told me.
Blackjack is a gambling game where both the player and the dealer start with two cards, and the basic rule is to win by making the sum of two or more cards as close to 21 as possible.
Once the game starts, both the player and the dealer can decide whether to receive more cards from their initial two cards or to leave them as is. The former action is called a hit, and the latter is called a stay.
If receiving more cards causes the total to exceed 21, it’s called a bust, and the person who busts automatically loses.
And if the total of the dealer and the player’s cards are the same, it was called a push, right?
I finished organizing the blackjack rules in my mind and tapped the table while lifting the corners of my mouth.
“Then let’s get started.”
It’s time to catch a big fish.
***
Despite my fears of having made a mistake, it turned out to be unwarranted as I comfortably secured victories in three consecutive games.
Initially, people chalked up my wins to beginner’s luck and were quite vocal about it. However, as my winning streak continued, they gradually fell silent. From time to time, exclamations of disbelief such as “I can’t believe it. That Kartan…” would erupt from various corners.
After winning three rounds, having bet all the tokens I had from Ruth, I found myself in possession of three times that amount in tokens.
It seemed about time to leave.
After the third game ended, I inadvertently checked the time and realized it was time to meet Ruth. I quietly got up, gathered all the tokens I had won, and felt their substantial weight settle in my grasp.
Looking down at my significantly heavier purse, I smiled with pride, thinking about the information I would relay to Ruth.
The fact that Kartan used psychic magic during the games meant that the Duke of Dright was making money through the casino. This was evidence that the Duke’s aim wasn’t merely to operate a casino, but to amass a vast fortune, even if it involved deceiving the emperor with false documents.
What could the Duke of Dright possibly want with such a vast fortune?
As I mulled over this question, intending to move on, someone suddenly called out to me from behind.
“Lady!”
“?”
Even at a glance, the urgency in the voice made me turn around inadvertently, and there was Kartan, catching his breath heavily.
“What’s the matter? Do you have any business left with me?”
“It’s just…”
I asked straightforwardly, wanting to go to Ruth as soon as possible, but what came back was Kartan hesitating, unable to continue speaking.
I wish he would quickly tell me the reason he stopped me.
I glanced at Kartan, who was only moving his lips even after a few minutes passed, and swallowed a sigh. The realization that time was relentlessly passing by made me anxious.
While I was nervously fidgeting with my fingers, looking at Kartan who was delaying, an arm suddenly appeared out of nowhere and wrapped around my shoulder. Then, my body was pulled sideways by an unknown force.
“!”
I couldn’t hide my astonishment and lifted my chin to see who had pulled me, with my eyes widened. Then, my gaze caught playful yet immensely kind dark eyes.
