Chapter 13

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Jackpot!

Casino Hudson.

The other name for the city of gold, Arcana, is the city of pleasure.

And this is one of the three casinos operated by Hudson, the landlord of Arcana.

Its grandeur and splendor do not distinguish between night and day, luring people in.

The advantage of Casino Hudson is that 'outsiders' can enter without any special measures.

No identity verification is required, and the only thing needed to enter is 'money.'

Additionally, as the pinnacle of Arcana's entertainment, many people visit Hudson while hiding their true identities.

“This deed is only worth 8,000 gold? What are you talking about, it's still trading for 15,000 gold!”

At the entrance desk where guests are screened, a man shouted, and the small man with glasses inside shook his head.

“The actual transaction price in District 5 is 7,800 gold. 8,000 gold is already a generous offer, but you need to make up the remaining 2,000 gold to enter.”

“No matter what, how can you...!”

“Security.”

Instantly, the burly security guards quickly subdued the man.

“What, what is this! I'm a customer!”

“You're not a customer without the 10,000 gold entry deposit.”

“Choke!”

As the security guard lifted the man and threw him into the sky, the man who flew through the air crashed to the ground and fell over.

The onlookers laughed, covering their mouths.

“Tsk, tsk, what a beggar trying to get in.”

“Oh, how disgusting.”

“District 5 is just a rat's nest, isn't it? It smells like something rotten!”

The city's rich, dressed in beautiful dresses, elegant tuxedos, or suits, or even the symbol of the wealthy, golden turbans, frowned when the poorly dressed man tried to enter.

They mocked and ridiculed him.

This is Arcana, a place where only 'money' is the top priority.

But my gaze was on the security guards, not them.

The security guards are not ordinary.

【Lv. 6】

They are strong warriors or knights.

In the game's setting, they are all official knights of the City of Arcana.

It might seem strange that honorable knights are just standing guard at a casino, but in this game, each 'major city' is a different kingdom.

So, the rules and customs vary from city to city.

Arcana has its own set of laws.

“Welcome.”

And the important thing is that the next person in line after the man who was thrown out was me.

Isabella and I could also be thrown out by the security guards like that man.

“To enter the casino, a 10,000 gold deposit is required. Of course, we also accept collateral.”

The manager inside the glass wall smiled kindly.

10,000 gold deposit. But I had less than 300 gold in cash.

‘I spent 50 gold on a bath and new clothes.’

Exactly 250 gold remained.

I couldn't enter the casino covered in blood.

I was short on cash, and what was left was collateral.

‘The level is also divided by the deposit when entering.’

I had a lot of collateral to offer.

As Isabella said, the pumpkin dagger would be worth at least 30,000 gold.

The manager had a high-level skill to assess the 'value' of all items.

10,000 gold or equivalent collateral is required to enter, and the level is also divided based on the collateral.

Collateral is not treated as in-game currency.

It is merely a measure to distinguish between those who can and cannot entrust large amounts of valuable items without hesitation.

“Customer? Do you have one?”

The security guards took a step closer.

“If not, move quickly!”

“Can't you see the line? Let's go in!”

“Ah, beggars. They're just wasting time.”

The people in line shouted angrily.

With two people causing delays, those eager to enter and play the slots were raising a fuss.

The manager's eyes scanned me.

‘A cheap set of clothes bought for 13 gold at the market. I don't see anything valuable. The woman with him is quite attractive, but there's nothing else.’

The manager sighed inwardly.

It seemed there were unusually many unqualified customers today.

These people should be playing games on mats in the market, not in a casino.

The reputation of the casino would suffer if too many unqualified customers came. Although Hudson is the most relaxed of the three casinos, it can't be this bad.

‘I need to show them who's in charge.’

Even after seeing the man before him fly away, the remaining one was still a troublemaker.

A bigger punishment seemed necessary.

If he gets beaten to near death in a secluded place, he won't come back.

“Security...”

“I'll use this.”

Just as the security guards were about to pounce, the man suddenly pulled out an item from his coat.

The manager, upon seeing the item, tilted his head.

‘What is this?’

He couldn't tell what it was. Activating the 'Appraisal' skill, the manager's eyes widened.

“... I will escort you to the VIP room. Welcome to Casino Hudson.”

The manager and the security guards, who were about to pounce, now clasped their hands respectfully.

“I will guide you through the VIP entrance.”

“Follow me. Move, move!”

The security guards, now with a changed attitude, moved in unison.

They cleared a path through the crowd, creating a new route.

It was a scene reminiscent of the parting of the Red Sea.

“VIP?”

“What... what is this...?”

The people in line, who were also stunned, watched us go through the VIP entrance, not the regular one.

*

The top floor of the casino.

As we ascended to the area reserved for VIPs, Isabella looked at me with a puzzled expression.

“... What did you offer?”

“The Tears of the Fairy Queen. It's a talisman.”

I answered as if it was nothing.

This only made Isabella more curious.

“A talisman? Isn't that something that refines weapons? But even the best talisman wouldn't receive such treatment...”

“It's impossible.”

Even the best talisman is hard to value at over 1,000,000 gold.

If we consider only 'value,' the 'Teleport Book' would be more expensive due to high demand.

But this was Casino Hudson.

‘Hudson. A player who's definitely in the game.’

Players had flowed into the game and become NPCs. I had mistaken their interference for the game's freedom.

But if they weren't NPCs, then Hudson, the owner of this place, is 99% likely a real person synchronized with the real world.

‘Hudson is collecting talismans. He would naturally covet rare ones.’

Hudson is a businessman.

Lacking both combat power and talent, he was trying to become stronger through talismans.

Some talismans remove weapon restrictions or grant abilities to those who lack them.

Naturally, the 'Tears of the Fairy Queen' meet these criteria.

It's an item that might drop from killing about 10,000 'Fairy Queen's Knights,' a sub-boss monster.

Moreover, it's one of the talismans Hudson most desires.

‘He's the easiest to approach. No one is better than Hudson for eliminating variables.’

I was curious about their stories, now NPCs. The information Hudson had.

And among those I was confident about, Hudson was the easiest to approach.

But before meeting him, I had to.

“Spin the roulette first.”

*

Whirrr!

The ball spins on the large circular wheel.

The roulette game where the ball lands on one of the numbers from 1 to 50, and you bet on high, low, odd, or even.

“Go in! Go in!”

“Stop!”

People cheer and focus on the ball.

Ding, ding!

The ball bounces around, making it impossible to guess where it will land.

Soon, the ball lands precisely on '48'.

“Again, again, he got it right?”

“What's with that guy?”

People's eyes immediately turned to one spot.

A mountain of gold in front of a man.

“Starting with 250 gold, how much is it now?”

“Already 1,320,000 gold?”

“No, he just bet ten gold bars, so now it's 1,420,000 gold!”

“Crazy. Is he a god of gambling?”

300 coins worth 100 gold each, with the central bank's seal.

20 gold balls worth 1,000 gold each.

127 gold bars worth 10,000 gold each.

A total of 1,320,000 gold is piled in front of the man.

VIP rooms often see such amounts, but the issue is that he started with just 250 gold.

‘Indeed, the Favor of Gold.’

I smiled slightly.

1,320,000 gold is the amount before betting.

A successful 100,000 gold bet made it 1,420,000 gold.

A true jackpot.

Thanks to the Favor of Gold, I bet on the most probable outcome.

The Favor of Gold shows the probability when betting on something involving money. The more samples, the more accurate, and there's no place with more samples than a casino.

The dealer's face showed confusion.

Not only did I win, but everyone who bet with me also won.

Moreover, he swept up thousands of times the amount.

He would likely be on every casino's blacklist by tomorrow.

“S-Sir, no more...”

The dealer, who suffered a huge loss, looked distressed.

Soon, the security guards grabbed my shoulders.

This means they want me to stop now.

Even in the VIP room with a 1,000,000 gold deposit, this level of loss is significant. They tried to check if I was cheating, but couldn't find anything.

“You can keep the winnings, but you can no longer enter Casino Hudson.”

They had no choice but to send me away.

The security guards surrounded me.

If I persisted, I might lose not only the money but also my life.

Isabella glared at the surroundings.

“Stop. He is my guest.”

At that moment, a man from a higher floor spoke to the security guards.

The security guards straightened and bowed.

The people around also began to murmur, as if they were used to it.

Ignoring them, the man approached me directly, extended his hand, and spoke.

“Pleased to meet you. I am Hudson, the owner of this casino. If it's not too much trouble, would you like a cup of tea?”

... Hudson.

The owner of this casino and, with a very high probability, a real human.

【Lv.9】

The first thing I noticed was the level above Hudson's head.

But as expected, no other distinctions were visible.

Then, can Hudson see my level, just like me?

Other NPCs can't see my level.

Whether this is a player's benefit or a unique ability I have is still uncertain.

If it's a player's benefit, can Hudson tell I'm a player?

Most importantly, I caused such a commotion. How would he react?

I had to confront him directly, so I couldn't help but be tense at this moment.