Chapter 87
Chapter 87
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Translator: Ryuma
Chapter: 87
Chapter Title: Dice Game (4)
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Lee Tae-gyu, the former president who had left behind the famous saying that a man of Ammunition Group never clings to any god.
But in the past few months, it seemed like he'd suddenly found religion.
His eyes closed, fervently offering sincere prayers to some god somewhere. It was truly as flashy as could be.
“Please, please, just let me win this once. Then from now on, I'll donate properly, and volunteer diligently…”
Lee Tae-gyu, the former president, voicing his firm resolution to become a good person.
He might not know much about donations, but he sure seemed ready to do a ton of volunteering from now on.
Of course, not for the poor and needy, but for the Ammunition Group he'd once been part of.
“Is it all done? Did you memorize that prayer?”
“Ehehe! Angel sir. Don't keep blowing out the candle like that—you'll jinx it!”
Lee Tae-gyu, the former president, snorting like an angry bull.
Finally, it looked like he'd made up his mind.
He rummaged in his pants pocket and pulled out a single sheet of white paper. With a thud, he slammed it roughly onto the table.
“Hey, dealer! Bring over 600 chips here! My prayer power's on fire today!”
A promissory note worth an estimated 6 billion won, payable to a local Chinese firm.
His runaway desire, swollen beyond stopping. The final puzzle piece I'd been waiting for clicked into place right then.
“Hyung-nim, hold on, just wait a sec. Don't bet it all on one go—split it up…”
“Shut it! This'll cover all my losses so far. And besides.”
Lowering his voice so it was barely audible, pointing my way—Lee Tae-gyu, the former president.
With one arm locked around Baek Deok-gyu's shoulder like a noose, what came from his mouth was a bluff brimming with false confidence.
“You said it yourself. That guy's a sucker.”
“Sucker… yeah, he'll win. Witch doctor.”
“Yeah. Every number that angel-masked punk's rolled so far has been crap like 1, 2, 3. Nothing else. So!”
He drew in a rough breath and let it out.
The horned goat mask over his face twitched for a moment. Utterly unaware of the ruin about to unfold.
“We're guaranteed to win. No doubt.”
“No, wait…!”
Ignoring Baek Deok-gyu trying to stop him to the end, Lee Tae-gyu, the former president, gripped the cup containing the dice, consumed by madness.
Like a drunken wastrel dancing with a blunt blade, his hand shot up toward the sky and began a wild shake.
“Here we go! Here we go! Please, come on! Krahhh!”
* * * *
The dice flung onto the table rolled just as wildly as his dramatic gestures.
Rattle, rattle—they tumbled roughly over the green felt, seeking their spots.
The balance points caught on their blunt edges seemed to make onlookers hold their breath, locked in a fierce tug-of-war between high and low numbers.
And finally.
Thud—like a dying gasp, the dice came to a stop in position.
On the ivory dice inlaid with rubies, it was as if the goddess of luck had bestowed one final mercy.
“5! 5! And… 6! Horned goat mask customer's dice total is 16!”
Silence descended with the number 16.
The highest roll in nine rounds of this dice game so far.
Could he not believe the number he'd made? Lee Tae-gyu, the former president's throat trembled, veins bulging.
Only when his pounding heartbeat filled the room did a sudden cheer erupt.
“Wooooaaahhh! 16! Deok-gyu, did you see? 16, 16!”
Clutching Baek Deok-gyu tight, he wailed as if victory was already his.
From Lee Tae-gyu, the former president's arms—who seemed ready to sweep up all 1,200 red chips—Baek Deok-gyu gasped for breath and spoke.
“Gasp… gasp… damn, hyung-nim. Why not just rip out my heart and sell it instead.”
“You idiot! That's 12 billion won if we take it all! Even after principal, that's 6 billion profit!”
His shout was loud enough to stir up the whole casino.
Did that frenzied display rub someone the wrong way?
Yoo Se-na, in her rabbit mask, sidled up beside me and whispered in my ear.
“Chairman, what are you really going to do now? That's a higher number than expected…”
“Are you worried for me?”
“Sigh, how could I not be? Even if you're great at dice… one mistake and it's all for nothing.”
Yoo Se-na, the aide, gripped my sleeve anxiously, voicing her concern.
Her tension was obvious—her once bright red lipstick had faded on her lips.
“It's fine. There's nothing to worry about.”
I brushed off the sleeve she held and spoke with certainty.
Answering the question in her lingering hand.
“I'll show you with my eyes from now on. That we can win—I'll prove it lightly.”
With the click of my shoes, I stepped forward one pace.
The still-cheering horned goat and snake spotted me and started strutting like they'd already won.
“Oh dear, our little angel. You know the house rules trump the constitution in a casino, right?”
“Of course I do. That's why… I'll give horned goat mask one last chance.”
“Last… chance?”
Lee Tae-gyu, the former president, looked utterly baffled, as if he couldn't comprehend.
The cup with three dice rested on my palm.
I spun it freely, like an extra hand, and opened my mouth.
Pouring all my conviction into the dice.
“From now on, I'll make a 6, 6, 6 perfect. The moment these dice in this cup spill onto the table.”
Snort.
Lee Tae-gyu, the former president, scoffed at my claim of a 6-6-6 perfect for a total of 18.
Since I'd only shown bad luck with low numbers so far, he figured my bold words were just bravado.
“Ha! Perfect? Oh, sure, sure. So what then, when it happens?”
“The horned goat mask you're wearing—it won't symbolize soaring toward the mountain peak touching the heavens anymore.”
The horned goat had no idea yet.
That atop the rocky cliff he'd climbed step by step waited an altar.
And on that altar, the angel with the blade would rip out his still-beating heart to offer as sacrifice for the future ahead. All of it.
“It'll just be a sacrifice. A bloodied offering for atonement.”
My other hand swept across the table.
The mahogany's texture transmitted straight to my palm, and through our masks, our eyes met.
“Now choose. Will you continue this game?”
“This guy's gotta have grabbed the wrong drink earlier or something. Hey, dealer! Did you spike my drink with detergent? Why's our angel acting up like this?”
With nothing left to lose, Lee Tae-gyu, the former president, shoved all his chips toward the table's center, toppling them over.
Pounding his chest like a hammer, he added his final words.
“If you're scared, die clean. I'm going all in, no rewind, straight ahead.”
And I… would simply execute that last will.
“This choice is yours. Never forget these words—remember them always.”
* * * *
“First… three light shakes.”
The crisp feel of shaking the neatly aligned dice.
I snapped my wrist the opposite way, putting full arm strength into a strong rebound.
“Then five fast ones!”
Tap-tap—like a crackling bonfire, the three dice clattered and spun inside the cup.
I perked my ears, focusing every nerve on this rough motion.
Not relying on random chance, but on the calculated sensation from my fingertips.
“Shake up and down twice… right now!”
Contrary to the wild motion, the dice settled like petals lightly drifting onto a pond.
Tok, tok—the light bounce unique to ivory twice, and finally, the faces with six red rubies each faced the sky.
The highest numbers, all three dice exactly as desired.
“Ah…”
The casino dealer, stunned by the rare outcome, lost his words for a moment.
Staring blankly at the table, he only began announcing the result in a deflated voice after I nodded subtly.
“Huh… announcing the result. Final dice game outcome: 6! 6! And… 6! Angel mask customer's dice total is 18, perfect!”
The dealer's final declaration.
Before I knew it, Yoo Se-na, the aide's dazed voice came from beside me.
“It really… came out perfect. Chairman, how on earth…”
“I told you. There's nothing to worry about.”
It wasn't just Yoo Se-na, the aide, who was floored.
Lee Tae-gyu, the former president, who moments ago had been certain of his win.
As if his legs had given out, he dropped to his knees on the floor and bowed his head to the ground.
“This… this can't be. It can't happen, it can't…”
A transparent liquid trickled down his stubbled jaw. Sweat or tears, it dripped onto the carpet, soaking it bit by bit.
As if his excessive greed had sucked everything from him.
“Now it's time to pay for your choice.”
I looked around—Baek Deok-gyu had already vanished.
Faced with a hopeless situation, he'd opted for a quick cut and run.
Perfect timing.
No outsiders left, no need to watch our backs.
Sending the dealer out of the room, I approached Lee Tae-gyu, the former president, kneeling on the floor, and spoke.
One hand clutching the fluttering white promissory note.
“SA-Cheolhwa Techwin promissory note, 6 billion won. Or in other words, Lee Tae-gyu, your noose.”
“An… angel…? Who the hell are you?”
Lee Tae-gyu, the former president, gaping blankly, barely lifted his head.
To his question of who I was, I simply answered by removing the angel mask.
The horned goat on the altar, heart ripped out, gasping its last.
Like a fading life spark flaring one last time, the eyes beneath his mask suddenly widened.
“Long time no see. Former President Lee Tae-gyu. Never thought I'd run into you like this in a foreign land.”
“Han… Han Seo-jun… Chairman!”
Squatting before him, trembling all over, I shook the promissory note and spoke.
About the one way he could get off this train to hell, now that he'd boarded.
“If you could turn back time, would you want to do it that way?”