“That’s an unusual name,” Martin Artezia muttered, blowing into the neck of his bottle.
He looked as if all the fun had drained out of the room the moment the women left.
“Pff… Whatever. Go call those girls back. We were having a good time until you barged in and ruined it.”
Martin Artezia waved his hand in a shooing motion, as if casting out unwanted guests.
The message was simple: men out, women in.
“Haha… If that’s what you want, I’ll send those girls in as much as you please. I’ll even have the slave contracts drawn up for you before you leave.” Makio kept his smile fixed as he spoke.
However…
“Ah, fuckin’ hell.”
Crash!
What came flying back wasn’t a thank you, but a bottle made of glass.
Fragments of the bottle flew past, grazing Makio’s face.
Drip. A thin red line traced itself across Makio’s pale cheek.
“Is it really so hard to just bring the women? Hm?”
“…Haha.” Makio kept smiling, his hand clenched tightly out of sight.
Should I kill him?
If he went with his gut, he’d have snapped the bastard’s neck a dozen times by now, but reality was less forgiving.
Sure, in terms of strength, he could kill him any time he wanted. The problem was, the man was one of Artezia’s direct bloodline.
If he killed one of the three direct heirs, the consequences would be impossible to handle.
He wasn’t foolish enough to ruin everything over a moment of anger.
Tch, nothing for it.
Makio lowered his head, his eyes still smiling. “Haha… Very well. I’ll go bring the women.”
“Now you’re making sense. Off you go. Seeing a man’s face ruins my drink. Oh, and as promised, make sure every woman who comes in has her slave contract stamped and sent over.”
“…Understood.”
“Right, close the door on your way out.” Martin Artezia waved him away again.
Makio bowed and left the room.
Click. As the door closed, the knight who had followed Makio asked quietly, “Should I kill him?”
“…Leave him. As long as he’s here, we’re making money.” Makio clicked his tongue softly and turned away. “Tch. This is why you don’t get mixed up with the direct bloodline.”
But there was nothing for it. Keeping this vast kingdom afloat required their support, whether one liked it or not.
Makio clicked his tongue again, grumbling. “I never planned on cleaning up after some brat.”
Just then—blood trickled down his face. It was from the cut left by the bottle shards a moment ago.
Makio wiped the blood from his face, his irritation plain to see.
“Of all the things to throw, he had to pick the expensive one. Do you know how much that cost?”
Makio muttered a string of curses under his breath and swept his bangs back.
It seemed the best course was to give the bastard what he wanted and send him on his way as soon as possible.
Makio, voice edged with annoyance, gave the knight his orders. “Get the money ready to send to the main house. And start asking around about ‘that’ as well.”
A certain item was rumored to be coming up at the black market.
Once he had that, this brief misery would be over.
* * *
Meanwhile, elsewhere…
I finished my meal and stepped outside the inn.
I’d thought about heading to the black market, but it wasn’t time yet. If I went now, they’d just be introducing worthless trinkets.
Exactly one week from now—that was the day the item I wanted would be up for sale.
Until then, I’ll just have to pass the time.
Well, more accurately, it was less about killing time and more about gathering information.
As I stood at the inn’s entrance, the coachman asked me quietly, “Shall we head straight to the entertainment district?”
He probably thought I’d hired him to show me around the pleasures of the city.
Not that I’m particularly interested in such amusements.
Of course, not every place in the entertainment district was a brothel or a den of vice.
Being a bustling part of town, there were sure to be pricey taverns and light amusements as well.
I do have some interest in drinking, but I’m not about to start wasting time in places like that. Besides…
I glanced over at Lancelot and the rest of my companions.
They were a collection of men who looked like they hadn’t been acquainted with soap in some time, plus a kid who wore his hard life like a badge.
Hardly the sort you’d expect to see frequenting the entertainment district.
If I marched in there with this lot, we’d draw every curious stare in the place.
“…Let’s save that for later. For now, let’s head to the casino.”
“The ca-casino, sir?” the coachman asked, sounding flustered.
Well, after all the warnings he’d given about the dangers of gambling, it was only natural he’d be thrown for a loop at the suggestion of going to the casino.
“Once you go in there, it’s hard to come out again.”
“Of course. Gambling is the quickest path to ruin.”
“And yet you still want to go?”
“That’s right. Isn’t going broke at least worth experiencing once in a lifetime?”
“I—what…?” The coachman let out a hollow laugh as he stared at me.
But then he gave a long, suffering groan and nodded as if he understood.
“…I understand. I’ll get the carriage ready.”
While the coachman headed off to the stables, Lancelot sidled up to me, asking, “Are you really not going to the entertainment district? Really?”
“I am.”
“Ohhh! I knew it! That’s our boss! So, are we just going to leave the kid behind and go, just us?” Lancelot gestured toward Kai, who was standing with Roxen.
Judging by his face, he was expecting something grand.
I let out a dry chuckle and turned away. “Don’t get your hopes up.”
“Huh?” Lancelot cast an inquiring look at me.
“With that face, even if you had all the money in the world, you’d still have trouble meeting women.”
“…?”
Lancelot glared at me, as if cursing me with his eyes.
Even with my back turned, I could practically see his expression, so I walked on, lips curling into a faint smile.
“Come on, hurry up. If you want to get information, you have to make as much of a spectacle as possible.”
* * *
It wasn’t long after we boarded the carriage that we arrived at the casino.
As soon as we stepped through the entrance, the spinning of the roulette wheel was accompanied by a piercing scream.
“Ah, no!”
The voice was frantic, but here in the casino, it was such a common occurrence that not a single person paid it any mind.
“Please, follow me.”
“Wait, wait a minute!”
The man who had screamed was being dragged out by the casino guards.
Judging by his clothes, he’d already lost everything he owned. He’d probably kept gambling after signing a waiver to forfeit his body parts.
I offered a silent wish for the nameless man’s soul and turned my head away.
Gamblers and dealers filled the casino to the brim. And then there were the latest “machines” proudly showing off their gleaming forms.
“Wow… So this is a casino.”
“It’s so shiny in here.”
“Damn, is that what they call a slot machine?”
“How do you even make something like that?”
“No idea. This is my first time seeing one too.”
Kai and Lancelot were chattering away among themselves.
“First time too, old man?”
“If you’re going to talk, do it in full sentences. And yes, it’s my first time. My daughter hated gambling.”
“She sounds like a fine daughter.”
After that, Lancelot struck up a conversation with Roxen, trying to draw him out.
Meanwhile, beside them…
“…Why me?” The coachman was crouched next to Roxen, muttering to himself.
“If you want to beat the enemy, you have to know the enemy,” I said.
“…I wasn’t planning on beating anyone.”
“So you’ve got a problem with that?”
“…No, sir.”
I patted the coachman’s shoulder, certain he’d resigned himself to his lot.
“Life never does go the way you want it to.”
“Ugh!”
“Cheer up. Isn’t this enemy territory?”
“I’m telling you, it’s not…”
Hmm. I thought he’d be pleased, but apparently not.
Well, not my concern.
I shrugged and walked further into the casino, remarking, “You all look like a bunch of country bumpkins—wipe those clueless looks off your faces.”
“…Boss, have you ever been to a casino before?”
“Have I ever been to a casino…?” I let out a dry chuckle.
Striding forward, I took a seat at a mahjong table where the betting was already in full swing.
The dealer gave me a quick sideways glance, then continued with their business.
The others were no different.
The gamblers hunched over their tiles looked me up and down, curling their lips into sly smirks. They probably thought they’d just found themselves a prime sucker.
And, to be fair, with my appearance, I probably did look like a pampered young master out for a picnic.
A young little master with only a handful of attendants in tow.
“Well now, since we’ve got a new player, how about we raise the stakes a bit?”
“Oof, shall we?”
“Look at that, a young master’s joined us. You do know how to play mahjong, right?”
The gamblers sidled up, all putting on their best imitation of friendliness.
My subordinates rushed over, ready to intervene, but I raised a hand to stop them.
The gamblers hesitated, startled by the sudden movement, but when my men stopped, the gamblers’ smirks returned.
“Looks like someone doesn’t know you can’t use force in a casino.”
“Just because you’re a noble doesn’t mean you get any special treatment~”
They twitched their lips, trying to get under my skin.
I suppose they wanted me to get flustered and jump into the game.
However…
“Excellent. No special treatment, you say? Good. That way, you won’t have any excuses later.”
I twisted my lips into a crooked smile at them.
Though I was the son-in-law of House Praha, in my previous life, I’d been the black sheep of Berg. The kind of scoundrel who’d reached the top of the continent in gambling and drugs.
Having taken a seat, I tapped the table with my fingers and spoke up. “What are you waiting for? Deal the tiles already. Time is money, you know.”
Louis Berg the Casino-Going Noble Scion.
It was a name I thought I’d never hear again in this life—but this was a moment I needed it again.
* * *
Utter silence hung over the mahjong table.
Or rather, the only sounds were my voice and the soft clatter of tiles shifting.
I spread my hand and shrugged my shoulders, exclaiming, “Oh dear, it’s a nine-gates hand. After drawing a heavenly hand last round, too. If there’s a god of gambling, he must’ve descended upon me today.”
“…”
“Your hand is… Really, were you trying to take the pot with something this pitiful? You’ve got no shame.”
With a cigarette clamped between my lips, I gave a thin sneer.
The gambler who’d just lost thirty gold coins to me this round trembled, grinding his teeth. But what could he say? It had been a fair game.
“Well now… You all believed I was the sucker, but turns out the real sucker was right here.”
I curled my lips into a mocking grin and let the words drip with scorn.
From the moment the mahjong started, I’d been like a fish in water, darting around the table and butchering the gamblers.
At first, they chalked it up to beginner’s luck. But as my winnings grew, their faces went stiff, as if they’d realized the joke was on them.
And finally—
“Looks like, after this round, everyone but me is bankrupt. For people who claimed you wouldn’t go easy on me, you’re surprisingly compassionate.”
I gathered up the pile of winnings on the table and stood up, announcing, “I’ll be going first. Not like any of you have anything left to bet.”
“…”
Just as I was about to leave, something occurred to me.
“Oh, right. I almost forgot.” Glancing back, I flicked a few coins their way and curled my lips into a sly grin. “A little tip. Go buy yourselves a warm bowl of stew.”
“…”
“Well then, I’ll be off. Thanks for the fun.”
With that said, I left the table, while the others sat there, mouths agape, staring blankly.
“…What a bastard to play against.”
Among gamblers, that was the highest praise you could get.