Chapter 266: Ch 266: Who will be playing?
We gathered the basic information needed to rake in over 1,000 coins at the
Casino of Corporeity.
With all preparations complete, it was time to make the attempt.
"...Huu."
While low-quality jazz music echoed through the underground casino.
A guest of the Casino of Corporeity steadied their breathing and started
walking.
[It’s begun.]
That’s right.
"Hello, Mr. Dealer!"
First, the guest sat down at a table in the dealer room.
But the table chosen was not the one belonging to the dealer who wore
Assistant Manager Lee Seonghae’s head, but a different dealer with an
unfamiliar face.
From afar, Assistant Manager Lee Seonghae’s gaze could be felt, but it had
to be ignored.
"Hello, dear guest. Shall we begin betting?"
The guest looked at the unfamiliar dealer and smiled politely.
"Yes. Let’s bet. Will we be using the card game I was introduced to at the
very beginning? The one where you guess what card it is."
"Of course. We will proceed with the ’clairvoyance game’."
After speaking kindly to the guest seated at the table, the dealer deftly
shuffled a deck of playing cards and held it out.
"Oh, I’ll go with this."
And the person seated chose a single card from the splayed deck.
A simple game of guessing what suit it is, or what number it is.
"I’ll bet three coins on hearts."
"Yes. Confirmed."
But the guest’s attempt failed.
The card was the seven of spades.
Three coins were lost.
"So close. One more game!"
"Yes. Bet confirmed."
And so the game repeated.
The guest bet the minimum amount, winning a bit and losing a bit.
And then, once in a while.
"This time I’ll bet thirty coins. I’ve got a good feeling."
The guest bet big.
And.
"You have lost the bet."
"Argh!"
And lost big.
But once every three or four rounds, they succeeded and won money.
"Nice!"
In that way, the amount of coins was adjusted with care.
For a long time, the guest’s win rate and bet size rose and fell, reaching
highs and lows in a messy, irregular pattern.
More than a hundred coins were piled up on the table, yet the guest’s ’war
funds’ had somehow been cut in half from the starting amount.
Then...
At some point, after more than an hour had passed.
[Now.]
"Would you like to bet?"
"Hm..."
The guest, as if completely absorbed, reached out...
And pushed all the coins on the table forward.
Clink clink clink...
Tak.
Coins glinted under the light of the old bulbs.
The dealer within the ghost story, who even kindly caught the coins that
rolled, asked with shining eyes.
"Will you bet a total of 113 coins?"
[Oho.]
"Yes, all in."
"Then please choose a card."
Once again, the guest casually reached out and pointed to one of the cards
laid out on the table.
"This one."
"Confirmed."
The dealer picked up the card the guest chose.
The guest’s eyes flashed strangely while watching, then momentum slipped
away.
And then.
"...I will bet on the number seven."
"...!"
The dealer’s expression did not change, but started subtly moving slower.
"Confirmed."
The dealer flipped the card...
"Seven of spades."
Jackpot.
"...You have won the bet."
"...!!"
"Here is your payout."
An enormous quantity of coins came out from under the table and returned
to the victor.
"904 coins."
Under the table, the guest briefly clenched and unclenched their fist.
In a single shot, they had earned an amount close to 999 coins.
[Oh, congratulations, Friend. Success!]
Right.
And of course, this was not a coincidence.
’I chose it knowingly.’
Seven of spades.
Because I already knew what number and suit were printed on the front of
that card.
Of course, it wasn’t as if I’d gained some kind of clairvoyance. We used no
trickery at all, and we played within the conditions the casino provided.
Just.
’There’s a loophole in those conditions.’
And that was...
Thanks to one element that could be used the moment you entered this
casino.
Its run-down facilities!
’It’s seriously old.’
The walls, the bulbs, the slot machines, and even the tables in the dealer
room were already worn down and frayed. It was in such disrepair it almost
looked like an abandoned casino.
That did add to the creepiness as a ghost story, but more importantly, it
created a ’condition’ that differed from an ordinary casino.
Namely... the things used in the games were old too.
For example.
’The playing cards.’
Normally, the backs of playing cards are all identical, mass-produced
goods, so you cannot distinguish them from one another.
But once time leaves its mark, it changes.
’You get distinguishing marks.’
Tiny stains, scratches, wrinkles.
The traces of wear that are revealed ever so faintly when they reflect light
create elements by which each card can be distinguished.
So we decided.
This time, that card was the seven of spades.
I must have confirmed that a faint, forked scratch on the back shimmered
very slightly under the light.
After that, I confirmed the information on the front, the seven of spades,
and waited.
And then.
Triggering the jackpot.
Of course, the scratch marks are extremely fine, and in truth are
extraordinarily difficult to distinguish with the naked eye, so it would be
hard for an ordinary person.
– For the first game, choose a card whose back shows the most visible
’marks’.
– Once enough time has passed to avoid suspicion, find that card again and
place a bet.
However, astonishingly, there was a perfect candidate among this group.
"Hahaha, jackpot again!"
Agent Choi.
He possesses observation and memory sharp enough to distinguish human
bodies by veins and skeletal structure alone.
On top of that, he already has the habit of memorizing details, so there was
nothing more to ask for.
And he truly sat at the table with composure, maintaining his calm and
acting nonchalant, and gambled up to this point.
Like that.
"Ah~ that felt good."
It succeeded.
– Ah~ Normally a virtuous civil servant shouldn’t gamble, but... it can’t be
helped. Okay. Leave it to me.
[Oh, there have been real cases where people earned vast sums in casinos
using similar methods.]
[Of course, in those cases, they were reading printing defects in the card
back patterns!]
Right. In a real casino, they would likely use new cards every day to
prevent this sort of thing.
But in this ghost story, where ’oldness’ is a defining trait, such a method
works.
"Current coin count... 924."
"...Okay."
Everything proceeded smoothly.
I sat beside Agent Choi as he played, watching as if I were simply enjoying
the spectacle of the stakes growing larger.
’Just one more round, carefully, like this.’
To earn without drawing attention, we had carefully built and followed a
natural-looking scenario up to now.
"We’ve got momentum, so let’s keep going like this..."
"Dear guest."
...
I turned my stiff neck.
"You’re using an interesting method, aren’t you?"
The face of Assistant Manager Lee Seonghae was peering down at us as she
approached the table.
Staring straight at us.
She smiled faintly.
"It’s the method I used back when I was also a guest."
"...!"
"Remembering the flaws on the backs of the cards to figure out their
numbers and suits, right?"
With an unfamiliar hand formed from the ring finger and middle finger of
different people, the dealer traced over the backs of the cards.
A chill ran down my spine.
"And once a trick is figured out, it can’t be used to gain profit again."
Damn it.
[Come to think of it, I recall the unfortunate aftermath of that anecdote as
well.]
[That professional gambler was sued and had every last bit of 16 billion
seized. Oh, the cunning of casinos.]
"...I don’t quite understand what you mean. Do you have evidence?"
"Took the words right out of my mouth, Grapes-ie! This casino is really
scary. You win a bit of money and suddenly they accuse you of using tricks.
How is anyone supposed to play without fear? My back’s all sweaty now,
seriously."
"..."
"But there’s no evidence, right?"
The dealer lifted her hand away from the backs of the cards.
"It’s exactly as you say."
But I couldn’t relax at all. Because.
"Then, shall we continue the game?"
The dealer wearing Assistant Manager Lee Seonghae’s head pushed aside
the dealer who had been at our table and took his place.
As the one running the game.
"You’re not going to run away, are you? That’d look suspicious."
"..."
"Very well. Then from here on, I’ll continue assisting you as the dealer."
And from her chest, she took out a new deck of playing cards.
Old, but an entirely different set from before.
"Now then..."
The smiling face spoke.
"Please place your bets."
We’re screwed.
"I’ll do it."
"Oh."
"Grapes-ie."
"It’s public funds. Luck usually spreads out to an average, so it’d be better
for the one who’s been winning a lot to stop here, and for me to take over."
I said this while looking at Assistant Manager Lee Seonghae’s remaining
eye.
"That’s fine, right?"
"Of course."
Then I whispered to Agent Choi.
"This time, I want to experience the fun of betting too. Just a moment."
"..."
"I’ve got a feeling I’ll win."
Agent Choi’s gaze was heavy, but in the end, he let go.
And I, for a brief moment...
...
[Oh, that’s not difficult at all, Friend.]
"Dear guest?"
"Ah."
I lifted my head.
"Would it be possible to move to the table you usually use, Ms. Dealer?
This one feels like I’ve already used up all our luck."
"Of course, that’s finee!"
The dealer wearing Assistant Manager Lee Seonghae’s head readily guided
me to her own table. I gathered all the coins and hurried over to Lee
Seonghae’s table, where I was asked again.
"Then how much will you be betting?"
I held out the coins I had brought.
All 924 of them.
"...!!"
"Are you sure you wish to bet 924 coins?"
"...Yes."
"Confirmed. Then..."
Assistant Manager Lee Seonghae spread the cards on the table again. I
reached out to choose my card...
"Wait."
My hand was caught.
"Dear guest, you shouldn’t touch the card you’ve chosen, right?"
"..."
"You were trying to leave a fingerprint on the back to remember the card,
weren’t you?"
"No. And there’s a misunderstanding."
"Oh?"
"I’ve put in everything I own. If I don’t win this round, there won’t be a
next game. So what use would it be to remember this round’s card? I’d
already have lost."
...
"Oh."
The dealer relaxed her grip.
"That’s true. Then we’ll proceed."
"Yes."
I chose the card I had originally intended to pick.
Drip.
Cold sweat fell onto the table.
"Now."
...
"Which suit or which number would you like to bet on?"
I barely managed to lift my eyes.
"...Hearts."
This one.
"I won with hearts on my first bet, so I’m going to wager on that again this
time."
"..."
The dealer, who had been looking at the cards, suddenly turned her head.
She checked the people and objects around the table, but there was no one
reading the dealer’s cards and giving signals, nor anything like a suddenly
placed mirror.
At most, Section Chief Lee Jaheon was leaning casually against the back
wall nearby, but that was all.
No dealer intervened.
Meaning he had not done anything that could be considered ’suspicious’.
"..."
"Ms. Dealer?"
The dealer flipped the card.
"Congratulations."
Four of hearts.
"The payout is 2,772 coins."
An enormous quantity of coins began pouring onto the table.
"...!!"
That did it.
’It worked.’
Under the table, I clenched my fist tight, then released it.
Cold sweat had pooled, leaving everything damp.
"That’s insane, hahahaha!! Wow, it’s a coin downpour!"
Agent Choi slapped my back excitedly like a gambler who’d hit it big, but
his gaze was sunken.
Because he had no idea how I had managed to guess this correctly.
’Right.’
That made sense. Because...
I hadn’t used a trick. I had outright cheated.
’Huu.’
There’s a reason I suddenly moved to this table.
Yes.
It was a table with the wall that Section Chief Lee Jaheon would naturally
lean against directly behind it.
And the reason I needed Section Chief Lee Jaheon was simple.
’Because he looks like a lizard to me.’
And the eyes set in a lizard’s head the size of a human’s were larger than a
human’s, with thicker lenses.
Which meant.
’The card the dealer is holding is reflected.’
There was no need to read fine details like numbers.
Just the color and a very faint silhouette were enough.
– Braun, could you ask Section Chief Lizard to... stand leaning against the
wall behind Assistant Manager Dolphin’s table?
’...And it worked.’
I succeeded in the bet by looking at the front of the card reflected in Section
Chief Lee Jaheon’s eyes.
[Excellent quick thinking, Mr. Roe Deer.]
Thanks.
...And the best part was.
’No one knows what method I used.’
Because to everyone else, Section Chief Lee Jaheon appears to have a
human appearance.
That had been true in every ghost story we’d encountered so far, so if you
judged based on Section Chief Lee Jaheon having a human head...
’There’s no way the card would be reflected in his eyes.’
In the end, this became a signal only I could perceive.
Perhaps even without his own awareness.
[Oh, that was quite thrilling.]
[Of course, a broadcaster can’t be involved in casino fraud, but this much
could be considered a pleasant little supernatural ability.]
[If a man who guesses which piece of music is recorded by looking at the
grooves of a record can be treated as a psychic, then what my friend did
isn’t so different, is it? Haha!]
I don’t know.
Even if only I could verify it, if you look purely at the mechanism...
’It’s undeniably fraud.’
But in a casino, the only reliable ways to make money were outright
cheating or the earlier trick, and since that trick had already been blocked
by someone who used it before, there was no other choice.
I used it impulsively, and in such a roundabout way, but just in case...
"..."
Did she notice?
I sat at the table as calmly as possible, laughing and exchanging
congratulations with Agent Choi, but the dealer said nothing.
I couldn’t even bring myself to look at her.
And then...
After a brief pause.
"Congratulations. You’ve surpassed 999 coins."
"...!!"
"You may now enter the VIP area. Shall I guide you right now?"
"...Yes."
That did it.
I clenched my fist tightly and carefully stood up from the table.
* * *
"Only parties in possession of 999 coins or more may enter the VIP room.
At that time, the party may include the holder plus up to two additional
people."
The lively-voiced dealer explained as the six of us walked through the
casino’s public area.
Soon, our footsteps came to a halt.
VIP ACCESS
"Then, I’ll open it."
The dealer grasped the golden iron door and pulled it to the side...
The VIP room opened.
"...!!"
Inside was, unexpectedly...
A maze.
[Oh, it hasn’t fallen into disrepair.]
It looked as though luxurious spaces meant for secret conversations
stretched endlessly beyond layered curtains. Areas connected as if mirrors
faced one another.
It was as if the space existed to show that it was fundamentally different
from the worn and decayed Casino of Corporeity outside.
There was only one discordant element.
~■■ CITY ROYAL CASINO~
A subway advertisement board was mounted inside a wall frame instead of
a painting. It gave off an eerie feeling.
Trying not to listen to the whispers drifting from beyond the curtains, we
came to a stop in front of one.
"Would you like to go inside? Please make yourselves comfortable. You can
enjoy private betting in a separated space."
The group entered quietly. Baek Saheon tried to slip away at the very back,
but Agent Bronze grabbed him, and he was pulled inside as well.
But I felt a dangerous premonition boiling up.
"This way."
The dealer drew the curtain aside and stepped in.
What appeared beyond was similar each time. Velvet sofas, a table,
refreshments, and...
A silver revolver.
"Today’s prepared game is..."
Step, step.
The dealer walked over, picked up the revolver resting on a refined wooden
table, and cocked it to load.
"Russian roulette."
Fuck.
"It’s so famous you probably know it already, but to explain. One bullet is
loaded into a six-shot revolver, and two people take turns pulling the
trigger!"
Click, click, click.
The dealer’s hand pulled the trigger without hesitation.
As people instinctively tensed and drew back, the dealer smiled and held up
the revolver, which still hadn’t fired.
"The one who gives up loses."
Ha.
"But. If firing scares you, there’s another optionn."
The dealer swept her gaze over us.
"You can give up one body partt."
"...!"
"Then you can skip your turn and hand the revolver to your opponent."
"Wait a moment."
I hurriedly asked.
"Who are we competing against?"
"Another guest, of coursee?"
"...!"
"You play Russian roulette against each other, and the winner takes all the
coins bet. But right now, in this VIP room..."
The dealer smiled faintly.
"There aren’t any other guests besides you, it seems?"
"..."
"If we wait, will other guests come?"
"Well. I can’t say for suree."
"When was the last time a guest visited the VIP room?"
"Hmm. That’s something I’m not allowed to tell you."
"...Have you personally seen it happen?"
"No."
"..."
This is so fucked up.
"Wait. Then the ’special-purpose’ body parts in the pawnshop..."
"Oh, so you already know about that too."
Assistant Manager Lee Seonghae’s lips curled up into a smile as she spoke.
"If a guest pulls the trigger three times in a row, they can receive one body
part as winnings."
"...!"
"Isn’t it wonderful? A prize that suits such a thrilling game."
The subway advertisement panel slid down, revealing what lay behind it.
A freight elevator.
No, not an elevator... rails.
’Body parts.’
Various limbs and organs from different people were hanging neatly along
the rails...
Among them would be Assistant Manager Lee Seonghae’s.
"..."
If we were to rescue Assistant Manager Lee Seonghae, there was no choice
but to participate in this game and win body parts.
"Well then..."
The dealer smiled as she looked at us.
"Who will be playing?"