Chapter 12

It's the final chapter of the casino showdown! Please enjoy the conclusion!

"Oh, welcome."

That day, when the man entered her shop, Circula thought, "Oh?"

He was dressed all in black, with a well-worn sword hanging from his waist. His appearance was that of a seasoned adventurer, but there was something off about his demeanor.

"Hehe... Welcome to the realm of dreams and desires, <Gran Ririmu>. I am Circula, your guide through the world of dreams."

While smiling and introducing herself, her eyes quietly appraised the customer.

(Probably a third-rate trying to act like a first-rate, I suppose.)

He was putting on a cool and indifferent attitude, but there was a stiffness in his tone. It was easy to see through his act, which made him less impressive.

His gaze lingering on her chest was also telling. While it was only circumstantial evidence, top-tier individuals usually either show no interest or don't hide their interest.

(So, this one is a dud, I guess.)

She had hoped to feed on high-quality magic power, but in that sense, it was a letdown. However, tormenting and playing with an inexperienced one, no, tormenting and playing with an inexperienced one suited Circula's tastes.

"Are you a first-timer? If you'd like, I can explain how to play the games."

Circula put on a mask of kindness and approached the young man with a genuine smile.

***

The man chose the roulette table.

"Oh, you're playing roulette. Once you place your chip, touch the crystal, and the roulette will start automatically."

(Hehe, the roulette to heaven, indeed.)

Circula watched with a smile as the man placed his chip on the odd number and started the roulette.

(Hehe, such a cute one. He doesn't even know this is a roulette of death.)

This roulette was a literal devil's trap. The crystal ball used to spin the roulette was designed to drain the life force of whoever touched it.

The life force taken from the casino's customers was the sustenance and entertainment of the demon, Circula.

However, if that were the only mechanism, the customers might notice something was amiss. To prevent that, she prepared a sweet, sweet honey to lure them in. All the games, including the roulette, were rigged to keep the customers hooked and to extract their magic power until the very end.

(Come on, dance for me.)

The mechanism was simple. When the crystal ball was touched, the table would light up and read the chip placed by the customer. Based on this information, the mechanism in the wheel would activate.

For example, if one token was placed on an odd number, the odd-numbered slots would be enchanted with an "attraction" spell to draw the ball in. The ball wouldn't always land in an odd-numbered slot, but the probability of the customer winning would significantly increase.

While the customer was winning, they wouldn't leave their seat. Circula didn't want them to lose too quickly or win too much.

(The customers must be kept alive but not too alive. They must be thoroughly engrossed in the game to provide a delicious meal.)

In that sense, this man was an ideal "customer."

Each time he spun the roulette, high-quality magic power nourished Circula. Moreover, he repeatedly placed a single token on odd numbers, winning overall but without any significant changes in his chips.

What was unexpected was that even after eight rounds of draining his life force, the man showed no signs of fatigue. He might be a better adventurer than she thought.

(This could be fun for a while.)

Revising her assessment, Circula approached the man like a snake stalking its prey.

"Oh, impressive! Four wins in a row. As expected of a top-tier adventurer, your luck is top-tier too."

However, his reaction was lukewarm.

(Hmm. This...)

She knew he wasn't uninterested in her allure, as his initial reaction had shown. Yet, his current reaction was...

While she was pondering this, the man continued to play the roulette. He picked up a dull-colored token.

Tokens varied in value based on their material, from copper, iron, silver, gold, mithril, rainbow metal, orichalcum, to adamantite. The most common and lowest-value token was copper, which the man held.

As usual, he placed a single token on an odd number. However, this time, just before the chip was absorbed by the table, he hesitated and added two more tokens to the odd-numbered slot.

(Oh...)

While it wasn't the most polite behavior, Circula didn't reprimand him. She didn't expect adventurers to have manners or etiquette.

More importantly, this unusual move indicated a change in the man's mindset. He had always placed a single token, but now he had tripled his bet. What did this mean?

Under the watchful eyes of the two pairs of eyes, the ball spun in the glass-encased wheel. The attraction spell worked as intended, and the ball was drawn to an odd-numbered slot.

The tokens clattered as they were paid out. For a three-token bet, six copper tokens were returned through the payout slot.

"...If this works..."

Circula clearly heard the man mutter as he relaxed his lips and took the tokens.

She was about to offer a follow-up comment when the man preemptively said,

"Sorry, but I find it distracting. Could you please step back a bit?"

Circula's movements halted.

"Hehe. You're so cold. ...Alright, enjoy yourself."

While outwardly calm, her mind was in turmoil.

(Maybe this man has noticed! The roulette is rigged...!)

Upon reflection, he had been acting strangely from the start.

Small, single bets as if he was testing the waters. Frequently checking and confirming Circula's position, as if he was wary of her. His confident words and determined attitude at the end.

If he was wary of the table being rigged, it all made sense. It all fit together.

The mechanism of this roulette was not something Circula could control freely but was automatically activated based on pre-determined conditions. In other words, she couldn't stop it even if she wanted to.

If the game was designed to drain life force over a long period, and the win rate was manipulated to keep the customers hooked, there was a clear solution.

—Bet a large amount of chips, win the game, and claim all the prizes before being drained of life force.

The casino's purpose was to extract magic power through the games, but the prizes were real. In fact, the prizes were generated using the magic power Circula had accumulated, which could be fatal to her.

(If, if that man...)

If that man had indeed seen through the rigging and was using all his resources to bet large amounts of chips to break the mechanism, it would be...

It would be...

(—What a wonderful thing!!)

Circula watched with a blissful expression as the man walked towards the token vending machine. She could feel the magic power flowing from the machine towards her as he purchased tokens.

(Ah, ah...! How delightful, how delightful.)

While not as potent as the life force taken from humans, the desire-infused money was still sustenance for Circula. She realized that the man had purchased gold tokens, worth about 1 million wens in cash.

(I'm sorry for underestimating you. You are truly the best.)

A smart and very cute adventurer.

(You must think you're doing well and outsmarting me, don't you?)

Noticing the man's awareness of the rigging was genuinely commendable, she thought. After all, out of the countless customers who had visited, only a few had reached this point.

And...

(My casino exists to savor the despair of such wonderful people!)

Behind the counter, the demon laughed.

Indeed, to lure in inexperienced and weak adventurers, the casino had a mechanism to increase the player's win rate. However, this did not mean it was defenseless against those with both wealth and strength.

The second and main mechanism of the casino!

—When a high-value bet is placed, and the payout exceeds the value of a single gold token, the mechanism reverses.

The mechanism that had been "attracting" the ball to the bet slot to ensure the player's victory would change to a cold, demonic trap. The "repulsion" spell would be cast on the high-value bet slot, ensuring the ball would never land there.

At that moment, the gentle hope would transform into cold despair!

(Fufu... Because our motto is to keep the customers alive but not too alive. We don't want them to lose too quickly or win too much. So...)

And...

In front of Circula, who was watching from behind the counter, the moment she had been waiting for finally arrived.

The man returned to the roulette table with multiple tokens, including a golden one.

"——!"

As if sensing her excitement, the man's sharp gaze pierced through her.

In a show of respect, Circula lowered her eyes, but she could still feel his gaze.

(Calm down, calm down...)

If she made the man wary and he stopped betting, it would be meaningless.

At this point, it didn't matter where he placed his bet. With a gold token, the payout would exceed the threshold no matter where it was placed. All she had to do was wait for "that moment."

Circula, still with her head lowered, let her tongue flicker sensually.

(Ah! Hurry! Hurry! Hurry! Hurry!)

It was the most delicious and blissful time, the moment of closing in on the prey. Like a child before a sumptuous meal, Circula heard the clack of the roulette starting.

Even without seeing it, Circula could visualize the wheel spinning and the ball bouncing, eventually landing in a slot.

(It's here!!)

With a sense of anticipation, Circula raised her head. She met the man's gaze, ready to savor the sweet despair—

"A—!?"

Her vision distorted.

It was a momentary dizziness. It was a minor shock, but it made her miss a crucial moment.

She quickly glanced at the man's expression.

(Huh?)

There was no significant change in his expression. He seemed a bit tense, but not like someone who had just lost a crucial bet.

(Maybe he didn't bet the gold token on the last round?)

Given his cautious behavior, it was a possibility.

Circula breathed a sigh of relief. If that was the case, missing the crucial moment wouldn't be a significant loss.

(But, what was that dizziness just now?)

With a vague sense of unease and doubt, the clack of the roulette started again. The ball spun in the displayed wheel and eventually fell—

—Clunk!

The intense sense of fatigue made Circula stagger. This time, it was not just her imagination.

(What is happening...? It feels like something is being drained from me...)

The thought sent a shiver down her spine. Without caring if the man suspected her, she followed her instinct and looked at the table.

Sure enough, a gold token was placed on the table, just as she had imagined. However...

(What is this bet?!)

The gold token was placed on both the odd and even number slots, one on each.

With this bet, whether the ball landed on an odd or even number, he would not gain anything. Worse, if the ball landed on 0, which was neither odd nor even, he would lose both tokens.

"...Ah..."

But the answer was quickly revealed.

The roulette started with a clack. Then, she saw the man reach for the 0 area.

"Oh, no, surely not..."

If a gold token was bet, the ball would never land on the bet