Chapter 162 - 161: A New Commission
He won by a single point.
"Nice!" Gray excitedly patted Zelir’s shoulder.
Valles and Marcus were also a bit surprised.
"Hmph..." The bearded Dwarf snorted and slid A Gold Coin across the table.
’To think he rolled two sixes twice... His luck is really something else.’
"Kid, you playing again? Don’t tell me you’re thinking of running off after one win?" the bearded Dwarf asked provocatively.
"There’s money to be won. Why wouldn’t I play?" Zelir smiled.
"Pretty arrogant, huh... Fine! I’ll play with you to the bitter end today!"
This time, the bearded Dwarf got completely serious.
His technique for shaking the dice cup was even more exquisite, almost like he was performing a ritual, shaking it back and forth in front of him.
"SLAM!"
The dice cup was lifted.
The result this time was, once again, stunning.
The bearded Dwarf’s "five," "six," "five," against Zelir’s "six," "five," "six."
Once again, by just one point, Zelir was the winner!
"My god... How can you lose even with a sixteen?"
"This guy’s luck is way too good, isn’t it?"
"Could he be a dice master just pretending not to be...?"
Amid gasps of surprise, the crowd of onlookers began to whisper among themselves. The way they looked at Zelir was no longer normal.
"Tch..." The bearded Dwarf’s expression started to crumble.
He slid another Gold Coin over, shouting defiantly at the same time.
"Kid, again!"
Next, the bearded Dwarf and Zelir battled for four rounds, the game entering a white-hot stage...
But... over those four rounds, there were two draws, and for the other two, Zelir won them both!
He remained undefeated.
There was even one time when the bearded Dwarf rolled three sixes, but when Zelir lifted his cup, he forcefully responded with three sixes of his own!
The entire tavern fell silent. It was simply unbelievable.
’Something’s not right. Not right at all... This is completely off!’
A drop of cold sweat trickled down the bearded Dwarf’s forehead.
’This guy’s luck is like a vicious viper!’
’A beginner might get lucky and beat me once or twice by a fluke, but he manages to stay undefeated every time.’
’How?!’
’Maybe... he’s cheating!’
"I want to change the dice and the cup!"
The bearded Dwarf slammed his palm on the table and said fiercely, "Do you dare go again?!"
"Do you think I’d be scared?" Zelir retorted sharply.
The bartender, who was enjoying the show from the side, quickly brought out two new sets of dice and cups.
The bearded Dwarf’s face was flushed red, as if he was mustering all his strength.
He stuffed the dice into the cup, glared at Zelir, and then began to shake it furiously.
Zelir also picked up his new cup, still with that same casual air, and began to shake it nonchalantly.
This time, the bearded Dwarf shook with exceptional vigor, putting every last ounce of his strength into it.
"SLAM!"
He slammed it onto the table, then slowly lifted it.
The surroundings fell silent, followed by a collective gasp of admiration.
"He got a triple... three threes!"
Inside the cup, three dice lay quietly, all of them showing a three.
A triumphant smile finally appeared on the bearded Dwarf’s face.
"Heh heh... Kid, you’re still a bit green to be playing with me."
This win wasn’t just about A Gold Coin; it was about his reputation as the Dice King.
Then Zelir also lifted his cup, and the smile on the bearded Dwarf’s face instantly froze.
Zelir had actually rolled a triple too!
And it was...
A "six"! A "six"! And a "six"!
"I... Holy crap!"
"Is that really possible? Two people rolling a triple at the same time, and one of them is three sixes!"
The crowd of onlookers went wild.
Even Gray was stunned speechless behind them.
’This has to be Magic, right? It must be Magic!’
Forget the others, even Zelir himself was surprised.
He had just been shaking it randomly.
’Looks like 51 points in Lucky... really did make a big difference.’
"Calling it a day!"
Zelir rose leisurely.
’That’s about enough for today.’
’Although luck was a mysterious thing, something that couldn’t be quantified or accurately perceived, Zelir still felt there was a limit to its use.’
’If he just blindly relied on his luck and squandered it everywhere, sooner or later he’d run into misfortune.’
"I don’t accept this!!!"
The bearded Dwarf was on the verge of frenzy. He stood on his chair, slammed both fists on the table, his eyes bloodshot. "Don’t you dare leave! Again!"
"What’s the matter? Sore loser, you damn Dwarf?"
Gray immediately stepped up, moving to protect Zelir. "I’m warning you, you better not try anything."
Marcus also unobtrusively took two steps forward.
He said nothing, but his cold gaze and burly frame made his position clear.
Just as a new tavern brawl was about to erupt, the owner hurried out to smooth things over.
"Hey now... everyone, don’t be angry. Winning and losing is a normal part of gambling. It’s all for fun, so don’t start a fight over it. Drink up, drink up."
The owner said with an apologetic smile, "Quick, bring more ale!"
As he spoke, he hurriedly had the bartender bring over a few more mugs of ale and handed them to both parties.
’If another fight broke out, it would be a real headache for him.’
Given an out by the owner, the bearded Dwarf gradually calmed down.
’He’d long heard that there was a Mage in Marcus’s party. If they really came to blows...’
’His side would probably get steamrolled by Magic.’
"You got lucky!" the bearded Dwarf spat fiercely, then pushed through the crowd with his other Dwarven companions and left the tavern.
After they left, Gray’s laughter became even more uninhibited.
"Hahahaha! That was so satisfying! Zelir, how on earth did you do that?!"
"Did you see his face at the end? He looked like he’d just swallowed a fly!"
"Just shook it like that."
Zelir smiled nonchalantly and flicked the Gold Coins back to Gray.
"Take them. Don’t get carried away with gambling again. You’re buying the drinks tonight."
"You’re a true brother!"
Gray’s spirits soared even higher. He waved to the counter and shouted, "Bring us your best ale! And a mixed grill platter!"
...
「The next day.」
「Adventurer’s Association.」
Because they had drunk too much the day before, everyone woke up a bit late and didn’t gather until noon.
Arriving at the Adventurer’s Association again, Zelir suddenly felt like he was coming home.
"Long time no see, Mr. Zelir!" Eira, at the front desk, greeted him happily as soon as she saw him.
"Long time no see," Zelir replied with a wave.
"How did the Monster Hunting go? I heard you all worked together to take down a One-Eyed Giant."
"It was mainly thanks to the help of the mentor in our squad."
Zelir leaned against the front desk and started chatting with Eira. "Have there been especially few guild quests lately?"
"Yes, because winter is coming, the Demons aren’t coming out as much..."
Eira suddenly remembered something.
"Oh! I have a quest that just came in. I haven’t had time to post it yet. You guys might be interested."
"What is it?" Zelir’s interest was immediately piqued.
In front of the quest board, Marcus was frowning as he scanned the tasks listed on it.
Most of them were normal-rated quests, like helping to collect firewood for the winter, clearing out goblins hiding in caves, or gathering some plant species.
Occasionally there were some Junior one-star quests, but they were all commissions that paid little for a lot of work.
’Are any of these really worth my team’s time?’ Marcus wondered.
Valles was also looking beside him, but he kept shaking his head, clearly not very satisfied.
"Marcus!"
Just then, Zelir’s voice came from the front desk. "Come over here for a second."
The group walked over and saw that Zelir was holding the quest form Eira had just handed him.
[Minotaur Eradication Quest in Oak Village]
According to villager reports, Minotaurs have recently been sighted in the vicinity of Oak Village.
These Demons have extremely violent temperaments and are highly likely to attack lone villagers from Oak Village when food is scarce.
Therefore, we are calling for an Adventurer Squad to go and eliminate them.
Quest Level:
Junior Three Stars
Quest Objective: Completely eliminate the Minotaur community.
Reward:
A bounty of Eight Gold Coins for each Minotaur.
Association Notes:
Minotaurs are among the more intelligent humanoid Demons. Their individual strength is not to be underestimated. Adventurer Squads are advised to proceed with caution.
"A Minotaur tribe..."
As for a Demon like the Minotaur, there’s no such thing as a [Simple] rating. Every adult is a [Difficulty] rated creature.
They also usually move in groups, from five or six at the minimum to more than a dozen or even two dozen. They are one of the more difficult Demon Creature Communities of their size to deal with.
Otherwise, the quest rating wouldn’t have reached Junior Three Stars.
"This quest is good," Gray said with interest.
In the current climate, getting a quest like this is pretty decent.
Marcus’s expression also relaxed considerably.
A normal four-person squad definitely wouldn’t dare to take this kind of quest, but they were different.
The team had one Middle Level Warrior, one Middle Level Ranger, a ridiculously strong Junior Mage, and a Junior Swordsman.
More importantly, Zelir wasn’t afraid of close-quarters combat; even if a Minotaur got close, it couldn’t harm him.
As for Gray...
’Anyway, Gray has long legs. He’ll run if he runs into danger.’
"I think it’s fine. Let’s take this quest," Marcus said.
Valles had no objections either.
"By the way... where’s Gak?" Zelir suddenly remembered something.
It had been a while since he’d seen that Beastman Warrior.
"I went by his place when I came over today. He left a message with the inn’s front desk, saying he went home for a visit. No telling when he’ll be back," Marcus said.
"I see..."
"If there are no other opinions, then we’ll gather tomorrow morning!"
...
「Oak Village.」
The village was situated on a plain, separated from Black Stone Town by a stretch of rolling hills, the two visible to each other in the distance.
The village’s name came from the vast and ancient oak forest that surrounded it.
Compared to the Gray Wood Forest, the oaks here were thicker, sturdier, and full of Life Energy.
In the late autumn, golden fallen leaves carpeted the entire path to the village, making a "RUSTLE RUSTLE" sound when stepped on.
Warm, rustic, and resilient—that was Zelir’s first impression.