Chapter 91
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Translator: MadScientist
Chapter: 91
Chapter Title: Silan (5)
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The current round wrapped up, so I jumped into the game.
'Hold'em poker, huh...'
Including me, there were four players total.
"First things first, pay the entry fee."
"...Fine."
I paid up as the guy said. It didn't matter what we did anyway.
The dealer handed out two cards to each of us and we got started, but honestly, it didn't mean much to me.
'I can see everything anyway.'
Anyway, as the game went on, one of the guys spoke up.
"Speaking of which... that regular today? He's getting worse and worse."
"Yeah, tell me about it. Hmm... but a new guy's joined in his place, so isn't that for the best?"
From what I could overhear, there must've been some guy who always came to the gambling den.
"He was nuts anyway. Always rambling on about how he used to be a big-shot clan executive or whatever—who buys that crap?"
Common story. People always puff themselves up the less they have.
'...Maybe I should lose a little first.'
I didn't want to go all out right from the start.
Truth be told, I hadn't planned on winning big, but their attitudes rubbed me the wrong way, so I figured I'd fleece them a bit.
'And... I can't lose sight of my real goal.'
I didn't come here to gamble. My aim was to find someone in this den with solid connections.
Wi Ho-yeon had questioned my plan to investigate via the gambling house at first, but since she trusted me and followed quietly, I needed to get some results before heading back.
"Fold."
"Heh... Young buck's got no guts."
In a round after some betting, I folded, and they snickered as they raked in the chips. If I were someone who'd actually lost that money, it would've pissed me off big time.
Wi Ho-yeon stared at me with trembling eyes now that I'd lost money.
Of course, she didn't know my abilities, so all she saw was me losing.
"Y-Young master... the money..."
"Heh heh... Don't worry, Ho-yeon. You don't trust me? I'll win it all back in the end."
Despite Wi Ho-yeon's protests, as I kept joining rounds, the guys started smirking and chiming in.
"Right, right. A guard shouldn't second-guess her master, yeah? The young master's confident, ain't he?"
'They must think I'm a total mark.'
Well, if I were them, I'd see me the same way.
No one would look at me now and think anything but a spoiled rich kid blowing his cash.
The rounds dragged on. I kept losing money and put on a show of stubbornly sticking with it out of frustration.
After several games, the gold piled up in front of them was nothing to sneeze at.
They weren't even hiding their glee anymore—their mouths were grinning ear to ear.
Finally, Wi Ho-yeon, unable to take it, pinched my side where no one could see and whispered.
"...Mr. Lee Yun-seong. Maybe you should stop gambling now..."
She must've thought I was getting hooked.
It was good that my act had worked on them, but the problem was Wi Ho-yeon had bought into it too.
"You've already lost quite a sum... We're here to investigate, not gamble."
I glanced at her, and she was giving me a stern look.
'Well... I have been enjoying this a bit...'
Watching them snicker had been fun, so I'd let myself lose some, but now Wi Ho-yeon had the wrong idea.
"Haha... Ho-yeon, don't look at me like that. I've got a plan."
"But young master..."
Maybe it was her constant worrying that twisted something in one guy's gut, but he leered and spoke up.
"Heh... Young fella. Thing is, in a gambling den, you don't have to bet just money."
"What're you getting at?"
"Well... Not sure if you've got more cash, but if you wanna keep going, we could spot you something..."
"......"
The guy glanced greedily at Wi Ho-yeon and continued.
"How about wagering your guard for a round?"
'Hah...'
"Huh? We'd sweeten the pot big time in return."
'This bastard...'
My reason went ice cold in an instant. He'd overstepped, trying to touch what was mine.
"....Nah, pass. I've got more money, so let's keep going. Up the stakes."
"You sure you're not pushing too hard? My offer's a sweet deal..."
"Shut it. You in or not?"
I cut him off with the most pissed-off face I could muster and taunted him. One of his eyebrows twitched.
"Haha... Ignoring my goodwill, eh? Don't regret it later."
Wi Ho-yeon shot me a worried look, but it wasn't long before shock replaced it.
As the game continued, chips piled up in front of me while theirs dwindled—only natural.
There was no way they could bridge the gap with me seeing their cards.
"Sh-shit...! How's this even possible?!"
Everyone loves winning, but losing? That's when the rage hits—you can't control it. That's gambling for you.
'No wonder they recommend gambling to get drug addicts off the stuff back on Earth.'
How many families went bust from gambling there?
Dreaming of easy money, they dive in like moths to a flame. It's universal.
"If you wanna make money gambling, run the house." Not a saying for nothing—the structure's built for the house to win over the players.
'I'll make sure you lot can't set foot in here again after today.'
Not because they'd eyed Wi Ho-yeon, of course.
"Puhaha... Gambling's a breeze. See that, Ho-yeon? Told ya, when I commit, I deliver."
Wi Ho-yeon stared at the scene in disbelief.
She gawked at the mountain of chips by my side.
"Sh-shit... Just one more, one more hand...!"
'Idiots.'
Risking sure things for maybes—they had me chuckling.
They'd never realize it till they died.
"Hmm... I've won so much, maybe I should call it."
"F-fuck! No way! You kidding?!"
"C-calm down, man? Why so worked up?"
"You...!"
'Alright, that's enough.'
Gambling had served its purpose. I'd skimmed their status windows during the games anyway.
"Here, your money."
I tossed the pouches their way, and they snatched them desperately.
"Wh-what?"
They couldn't figure out why I was giving back some of their cash.
I hadn't planned to originally, but their eyes when I'd taunted them convinced me.
'...If I walk out without returning any, I'll get jumped.'
Too big a win.
I'd meant to take a moderate amount, but they'd pissed me off earlier, and I'd overdone it.
Handing back most of what they'd lost should keep things quiet when I left.
'Even without it, Wi Ho-yeon could handle trouble, but no need to stir shit up.'
I hated needless commotion. Investigation was the goal—fuss would ruin it.
"Just take it. You're the seniors here; feels rude to sweep it all."
"Ha... haha! R-right. Th-thanks."
They slunk out of the den. If they learned their lesson and quit gambling, great—but...
'People don't change that easy.'
They'd be back tomorrow, no doubt.
'If they could've reformed, they would've by now.'
"Alright, Ho-yeon. Time to head back."
"...Pardon?"
Wi Ho-yeon looked at me like I'd lost it. No surprise—we hadn't investigated a thing, so it didn't make sense from her view.
"...We can take it slow."
"Ah... Yes. Whatever you wish, young master."
As we headed out, I glanced at the guy leaning against the wall, smoking.
He noticed and met my eyes for a moment.
Eye contact made, I strolled out like nothing happened.
'First things first... meet up with Seo Yu-ju.'
"Whew, feels like I can breathe now. What's with all the smoking in there... air's so stuffy..."
"Tell me about it, young master."
Wi Ho-yeon had hated the stifling air too.
Made sense—she didn't smoke, so the den must've been torture for her.
Back at the inn, I spotted the group gathered at a table on the first floor.
'...No Seo Yu-ju yet?'
Before splitting for individual investigations, we'd agreed to regroup here late tonight and share findings.
"Ah... You're back, Yun-seong, Ho-yeon."
"Yeah, Jae-hyo. Any progress on the investigation?"
"Hmm..."
From Lee Jae-hyo and Kim Ho-won's reactions, no real results.
It'd only been a day since we started, so lack of progress was expected—success would've been weirder.
"Truth is... we didn't find out much. Honestly, we didn't even know where to start."
Lee Jae-hyo was top-tier in expeditions and fights, but that didn't mean he excelled at this stuff.
Especially something shady like drug-related underworld business—neither he nor Kim Ho-won had the edge here.
Ding-
The door opened. Seo Yu-ju was back.
"Ah... Everyone's already here. Sorry I'm late."
"No, Yu-ju. Ho-yeon and I just got here too."
'...Why does she seem so upbeat?'
Something was off about Seo Yu-ju's vibe—subtly different from usual. Hard to pin down, but she seemed... excited?
'Did she get a lead?'
"Anyway... now that we're all here, let's go over today's progress."
Lee Jae-hyo spoke to her with a hint of self-deprecation.
"Well... starting with us: Ho-won and I got nothing. More like... we couldn't even get a sense of how to investigate."
Despite their experience in this world, the lack of results here must've stung.
Seo Yu-ju seemed to pick up on it and comforted him.
"It's only the first day. No results is normal, Jae-hyo."
"...Thanks."
"Any luck on your end, Yu-ju?"
"Ah... No, actually. I didn't get much either... Which brings me to something I need to tell you all."
I'd thought her good mood when she entered meant success, but apparently not.
'...So why was she so chipper?'
"The thing is... I had a planned investigation route, but a problem came up, so this might be tougher than I thought. I'm really sorry to drag you all into this... We might even have to scrap the job."
'...What?'
She'd been confident when we started. What a turnaround in one day.
'Something must've gone wrong on her end.'
Clearly, trouble had hit Seo Yu-ju's side.