Chapter 201: Trust
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 201: Trust
Even though Yukina grew up in the Geukryu Society, she didn't know much about gambling.
The extent of her knowledge regarding gambling or table games was limited to the pachinko parlors she managed as business sites and the mahjong she had learned simply to fill a seat when they were short on players.
There were various games in the casino, but Yukina knew none of them. The only thing she felt capable of playing was roulette, given its simple rules.
However, lacking any real interest, Yukina felt no excitement. Like Yeon-woo, she simply wandered the casino, observing her surroundings.
The masked guests acted like humans, but they were merely performing set roles.
"Ah—it’s quite alright. We both should have been more careful."
That was the reaction she received after blatantly pouring water over a man's head.
Yukina hadn't even offered an apology after dousing him, yet the masked man brushed it off as if he had already received one. It was a situation where anyone would have been furious at the provocation, yet his attitude suggested a desperate desire to avoid making a scene.
After pouring water on a third person's head, Yukina realized they were all illusions created by the Zone and backed away.
He said we have to take all the money from the casino...
Recalling Yeon-woo’s words, Yukina judged these masked guests to be targets to be plundered as well. Since the casino itself was the Zone, the chips held by the masks it created must also be included.
However, since she didn't know any of the games, Yukina had no way to take their chips. She decided to leave that to Park Yu-jeong or the others and focus on the casino itself.
What caught her eye were the slot machines.
They were different from pachinko, but since all she had to do was press a button, they weren't difficult. Having managed business sites for the Organization, she knew that manipulating the machines wouldn't be hard, but Yukina placed more trust in the miraculous Gentleman's Power that Yeon-woo believed in.
She inserted a chip, checked the betting lines, and pulled the lever. The machine erupted in flashy sound effects designed to delight the human ear.
Knowing only the basics of managing a business site and never having been directly involved in the pachinko operations herself, Yukina didn't even think of cheating. She just tapped the buttons nonchalantly.
Tring-tring-tring—! Ba-bam!!
A row of 7s lined up on the path Yukina had bet on. With a loud fanfare, chips began to pour out.
The nearby masks clapped in congratulation, but Yukina merely stared at the cascading chips before turning her gaze to the other slot machines.
As expected, there was never a mistake in what Yeon-woo said.
With absolute faith in him, Yukina looked down the long row of slot machines.
*
"Giddy up, mister! Let's go check that out over there."
Park Yu-jeong, who was thoroughly enjoying the casino, urged her "mount"—the former veteran she had hired—by patting his backside.
Sitting comfortably on his back, Yu-jeong sipped a cocktail and relished the gazes of the staff members who stole glances at her.
Eyes that pity him while envying him at the same time... I love the gaze of losers.
She understood how the Zone operated.
The reason these people were desperately trying to get tips despite such humiliating treatment was that this was their only hope of escaping the Zone.
Why would the Zone need a workforce? This was all just a game. It could simply kill them, but it was enjoying the sight of people struggling against the sliver of hope it left them.
No, saying it "enjoyed" anything was a contradiction. The Zone had no personality.
Yu-jeong recalled the theory that a "Zone" is formed by the accumulation of human thought-forms. While not a theory recognized by the academic world, looking at this place, it wasn't necessarily wrong. It was a Zone with incredibly poor taste, a perfect manifestation of the murky depths of the human heart.
If this were a human instead of a Zone, they would have either been a partner she’d have fun tormenting people with, or someone she would have done her best to crush.
"But what's the point? There are no customers, so the place is dead."
If it weren't a Zone—if more people constantly visited and fell into depravity—it would have been much more fun.
Feeling a bit disappointed, Yu-jeong patted the staff member's butt.
"Are you tired? Should I switch to someone else?"
"..."
The staff member followed her instruction to never open his mouth perfectly, which pleased Yu-jeong. She tucked a chip into his pocket.
Though he wasn't being treated like a human, the tips he had received so far amounted to nearly 400,000. This was the most anyone had received since the birth of this Zone. Since chips vanished just by breathing, everyone else focused on the games; no one gave tips like Park Yu-jeong.
Ba-ba-ba-bam!!
At the loud noise, Yu-jeong turned her head and saw Yukina.
It seemed she was playing the slots using the luck she had obtained from the shrine... but her method was unusual.
Yukina had taken over an entire row of slot machines. She was walking down the line, rhythmically pulling the levers one by one. Her indifferent manner, like a laborer performing repetitive tasks in a factory, was a rare sight in a casino.
However, contrary to her nonchalant movements, the slot machines she passed erupted in loud celebratory noises, and the large baskets placed at each machine began to fill with chips.
"You're putting on quite a show. Are they all 777s? Even with the Gentleman's Power, this is ridiculous."
As Yu-jeong approached, Yukina glanced at her and continued pulling levers with an indifferent expression.
"I've always been lucky."
"Really? You didn't seem like it. Do you usually win lotteries and stuff?"
"I met Yeon-woo because I'm lucky."
"..."
Yu-jeong stared blankly at Yukina, who spoke as if she were stating an undeniable fact. Soon, the corners of Yu-jeong's mouth curled up, and her expression turned bright.
"You're right. You are lucky."
Yu-jeong felt good, finding both Yukina's fanatical trust in Yeon-woo and her own shared good fortune amusing.
"You should go somewhere else."
"Why? I want to enjoy myself here too."
"Because I can't take the chips from those guys."
Yukina's gaze landed on the masked people. Understanding what she meant, Yu-jeong nodded.
"Dealing with people is my specialty, after all."
With a wicked smile, she patted the staff member's butt and headed toward the poker table with the highest stakes.
*
While Yu-jeong was enjoying poker, Masayoshi was playing roulette on the other side.
He had long since paid off his debt, and a mountain of chips was piled in front of him. However, Masayoshi didn't think a Zone capable of manipulating probability would be this easy.
Masayoshi, who had been checking his overall win rate in thirty-minute intervals, noticed that his success was gradually declining.
Now it's six out of ten...
Compared to the beginning, when it was closer to ten wins out of ten, it had dropped significantly.
Masayoshi figured it was one of two things: either the Zone had intentionally given him a high win rate at first before gradually lowering it, or he had won so many chips that the win rate had been lowered to the point where even the luck from the shrine couldn't overcome it.
Either way, the fact remained that the odds were being manipulated in the casino's favor.
After a moment of thought, Masayoshi pulled out the lottery tickets he had bought earlier. He had purchased 100 tickets at 10,000 chips each but had only scratched the first ten. Those first ten had all been winners, netting him a profit of nearly a million.
Now, half of the remaining ninety were duds.
It's certain. They're blatantly manipulating the win rate.
Masayoshi stood up abruptly to warn the others. Whether it was the Zone’s intention or the shrine's luck, the win rate had been too high in the beginning. At this rate, they might lose everything in an instant, intoxicated by their initial momentum.
"All-in!"
At the familiar voice, Masayoshi ran quickly toward it.
Rio, sitting at a poker table, was confidently betting all his chips, seemingly having been dealt a good hand. No, "confident" wasn't quite the right word. His momentum was strong, but Masayoshi immediately saw the urgency and anxiety in Rio's eyes.
"Rio, wait a second."
"Hold on, I'm sure about this one."
"..."
The words "this one" had come out. That meant he had already lost several times.
The dealer proceeded with the game immediately so that no one could intervene. Masayoshi frowned and asked the bunny girl following Rio.
"How much has he lost so far?"
"He has currently borrowed 1,000,000 chips."
Why had the debt he was supposed to have paid off increased even more?
While a shocked Masayoshi stared with wide eyes, Rio laughed loudly and revealed his cards.
"Four Aces! Foooouuur of a kiiiind! Thank you for the meal~!"
As Rio slammed his cards onto the table and reached for the chips piled in the center, a masked woman in the corner flipped her cards.
"That's unfortunate. It's a straight flush."
"...T-this is a scam..."
Rio froze, and the dealer pushed all the chips to the woman.
Perhaps due to the shock, Rio didn't move. The bunny girl wrapped her arms around him in a cozy embrace.
"Master Rio, since you can no longer repay your debt, would you please come with me?"
"Huh? Uh... W-wait, lend me just a little more. If I just have a million—no, even a hundred thousand..."
"Please, come this way."
"M-Masayoshi! Save me!"
Though he protested verbally, Rio didn't resist as he was led away somewhere by the bunny girl.
The moment you can't pay your debt, you lose control over your body...
Rio called out to him desperately, but as long as he was under the Zone’s influence, there was nothing Masayoshi could do.
If there was any consolation, it was that he wasn't dying but merely remaining here as a staff member. Masayoshi recognized the faces of the staff and knew the others had noticed too. Seeing how Yeon-woo had acted unbothered despite knowing them, it seemed he had been aware all along.
If he knew, he should have told them as the team leader, but the fact that he didn't bother to explain meant...
Once we clear the Zone, everyone is liberated.
Unlike the masks, the staff members were people who had come from the outside. Once the Zone disappeared, its influence would vanish, and the staff members forced into service would be freed.
Having grasped the nature of the Zone through the preceding events and Yeon-woo's attitude, Masayoshi stopped playing and moved to gather the others.
The first person he found was Park Yu-jeong, sitting at the highest-stakes poker table.
"Yu-jeong, let's talk for a second. Just fold this round."
"Hmm? Ahh~ you came to talk about that?"
"All-in."
While the two were talking, someone else at the table bet all their chips. Since she had already committed chips to the pot, it was a waste, but Masayoshi spoke urgently, certain she would end up like Rio.
"No, there's a problem right now, so absolutely do not—"
"All~ in!"
Without even listening to Masayoshi, Yu-jeong pushed the mountain of chips piled in front of her into the center.
Masayoshi, who had just seen Rio being dragged away, was startled. However, the opponent who had gone all-in looked flustered when Yu-jeong followed suit.
"You shouldn't bluff so much. It's a triple~"
While Yu-jeong showed her hand and raked in the chips from the center, the masked man who had gone all-in said nothing and merely hung his head.
"I earned another tip. Exciting, isn't it?"
The chair... no, the staff member, who had received another 100,000-chip tip, struggled to take the chip Yu-jeong offered with his mouth.
Yu-jeong patted his head as if he were cute, then looked up at the stunned Masayoshi and smiled.
"You're saying the win rate dropped?"
"You knew?"
"I'd be an idiot not to notice."
Yu-jeong chuckled, seemingly unaware that one "idiot" had just been hauled away.
"But you see, no matter how much these guys try to cheat, their patterns are so simple that I can see right through them."
"Ah..."
"You felt it too. The Zone really needs to study humans more. This is just too simple."
Even if the win rate had dropped, it wasn't 0%. Even if the Zone made the masks act like humans, they weren't independent entities. In the end, it was just "acting" like a human; it couldn't instill unique, independent personalities into each one.
The reason Yu-jeong had wandered the casino before playing poker was to learn the psychology and patterns of the masks. Although the win rate was constantly dropping, she was winning by exploiting the given conditions.
"I think I understand why Yeon-woo is afraid of you..."
Even if one could read patterns, it wasn't an easy task. Ultimately, you had to bet your own money, and if you kept doubting and overthinking, you'd lose your cool. She was smart, but the boldness to coolly trust her own judgment was something impossible for Masayoshi.
"Really? Well, I'm starting to find Yeon-woo a bit scary too, so that's good. It means our hearts are in sync. Isn't this what love is?"
Masayoshi couldn't understand what part of this was love, but for the time being, she didn't seem to be a cause for concern.
One thing that bothered him was what would happen if the Zone, which was already blatantly lowering the win rate, decided to block them from winning altogether. Since this Zone was the world itself, there was no authority to penalize it or anyone who could stop it even if it played dirty.
As if sensing Masayoshi's worry, Yu-jeong laughed and patted his backside.
"Yeon-woo was confident. Don't worry about useless things and just go enjoy yourself. It was boring before because we were only winning."
Yu-jeong's smile was full of trust.
It seemed he had become anxious after seeing Rio get caught, despite having decided to trust the guy.
Masayoshi chuckled softly, secretly wishing Yu-jeong would pat his backside one more time.