Cards were placed on three spots in front of the Lord of Demons. Three games were being played simultaneously.
“17, 14, 9.”
A light hand gesture followed without conversation. Chips moved back and forth as cards were added or stopped, depending on the results.
While dozens of hands were played at other tables, hundreds of hands continued rapidly without delay.
According to the rules of blackjack, the number of chips exchanged in a single game wasn’t large. As a result, large amounts didn’t accumulate, but it was enough to cover a meal of magic stone worth its weight in gold.
“What’s going on? Why isn’t anyone losing money? Isn’t losing money supposed to be normal at a casino? How are they doing that? Is it some trick only a traitor of the Demon Realm can pull off?”
Nathaniel, whose hobby was losing money, was dumbfounded.
“Puh! Puh! Puh!”
Pastel wore a clever expression.
“Don’t you know, Nathaniel? That’s card counting! They memorize all the cards as they are revealed and calculate the odds! Smart people like the Lord of Demons and me don’t lose money!”
Wow! I just made a super smart comment! Once the Lord of Demons finishes the game, I might as well play poker with all my assets! If I win a single round correctly, my fortune will double!
“What are you talking about?”
Nathaniel was incredulous.
“Are you serious? They’re using six decks of cards and reshuffling after each game! How can you count cards? Plus, I’m not sure, but they say there’s some complicated magic involved.”
Huh?
What is this?
Pastel tilted her head and walked over to the Lord of Demons.
“How are you winning, my Lord?”
Whisper whisper.
If the Lord shares the secret, Pastel might become the richest in the world!
Thanks to the Lord Fairy, she might even restore her position that was pushed to the back!
“Stay. It’s not winning. It’s surviving by luck. There isn’t much risk of losing on a hand in blackjack, so if luck holds out, the chips will circulate. After all, the goal is to fill the VIP spending requirement, so that’s a good thing.”
Huh? That doesn’t seem right. No matter how I look at it, it’s a situation where they’re winning bit by bit, right? It’s enough for Pastel to buy a meal from someone who only accepts pricey dining.
The Lord of Demons looked at Nathaniel.
“What’s the VIP spending requirement? I think this is enough.”
“Well… it’s hard to say since the amount keeps circulating.”
“A weakling like you isn’t much help from start to finish.”
“Excuse me?”
“Dealer, what is my current spending amount?”
Observing the Lord of Demons, the dealer hesitated but quickly calculated and responded.
“You only need to play a maximum of twenty more hands to meet the requirement. Are you planning to access the VIP area?”
“Correct.”
“There are those who are here not for the games but for entry rights. I will speed up the process for you.”
“Thank you.”
Upon hearing the reason, the dealer stopped observing for any tricks and increased the speed of the games.
As the games continued, the number of chips the Lord of Demons held gradually decreased, and upon playing about twenty hands, he returned exactly to the amount he originally brought.
Huh?
“Has luck run out?”
The Lord of Demons said dully after completing exactly twenty hands.
Huh?
The dealer smiled.
“Unfortunately, it seems so. However, it looks like you met the spending requirement.”
“Well, that’s good. Let’s finish here.”
The Lord of Demons brushed his hands off and left.
Pastel’s eyes widened as she looked at the chips that had returned to the original amount.
Waaa?!
“If we had stopped earlier, I would have won!”
She clutched her head and shook it. Her two ponytails flailed around, slapping the Lord of Demons.
“Don’t talk like a gambling addict. It’s designed for participants to lose by probability from the start. There’s nothing more wasteful than betting your life against odds that are predetermined.”
“That’s not true! You were doing excellently until just now, my Lord! The stakes were low, so the amounts didn’t pile up easily, but you absolutely dominated the game! If you played all day, you could become rich!”
Rich! Rich!
The Lord of Demons is rich!
I’m just someone living off a rich person!
Double the riches!
“You keep saying the same thing all day.”
The Lord of Demons sighed deeply.
Pastel suddenly turned to Nathaniel.
“You saw that too, right?! Super super ultra skill! No matter how you look at it, it was skill, right?!”
Nathaniel furrowed his brows in thought.
“Now that you mention it? I’ve been wandering around here for a while, but I’ve never seen anything like this. Plus, there was an atmosphere suggesting some collaboration with the dealer at the end?”
“Right?! Right?! The dealer seemed to notice when the opponent was doing something but didn’t know exactly how, and since the amounts weren’t particularly large, they turned a blind eye, right?! At the end, it looked like the Lord of Demons was deliberately losing, so it felt like they just let it slide!”
If I only knew the secret, even Pastel could become rich…!
A clicking sound was made.
The Lord of Demons’ red eyes glared at Nathaniel.
It was a gaze directed at a being who was physically weak, mentally frail, and lacking in thought and perception.
“You’re not helping. Instead of staring blankly, go get the VIP pass. You said we didn’t have much time; why are you being so leisurely? Were you here on vacation?”
“Excuse me?”
Caught off guard by the unjust challenge, Nathaniel became flustered and went to get the pass. No, he turned back while trying to go.
“We’re supposed to go together, aren’t we…?”
“In that case, instead of standing there, guide me.”
Nathaniel wore an aggrieved expression.
The VIP area had a separate entrance deep within the casino’s main area. Guards armed with swords and guns stood vigilantly, creating an atmosphere of tension.
The security guard checked the entry.
“Your spending requirement has been met. Welcome to the VIP list. However, are you planning to enter with that lady?”
He pointed at Pastel.
“Correct. I am her servant and she is the official representative.”
Puhuhuhu.
The Lord of Demons just called me ‘young lady’~.
Pastel blushed and twisted her body shyly.
Eheehee.
You were trying to act like you didn’t think so, but that’s how you really felt! No wonder you’ve done all the laundry and cooking!
The guard looked troubled.
“Then the young lady must also meet her spending requirement to gain entry. It’s calculated per person.”
The Lord of Demons narrowed his eyes and looked at Nathaniel.
“What? What kind of nonsense is that! If the servant has met the requirement, the master should be allowed entry!”
Nathaniel, startled, protested.
“The recent visit of the Craft Governor to the capital made us cautious, so some of the regulations have changed. Due to high risk of abuse, delegation is no longer permitted.”
“What is that supposed to mean?! Servants are the hands and feet of their masters, why separate them?”
“Because those hands and feet may be armed with guns and swords. If the young lady wishes to enter, she must meet the requirement separately.”
After being locked up for a while as a secret agent, Nathaniel was dumbfounded.
Ugh.
“I’m fine! I want to play some games!”
Yay~!
The Lord of Demons just found an excuse to keep playing~!
The Lord of Demons looked reluctant.
Nathaniel ruffled his hair.
“I don’t have time to meet the requirement. I could stay up all night, though.”
“And—”
The security guard suddenly added.
“There are additional regulations that apply to minors.”
“Excuse me?”
He pointed to a notice on the wall.
“No entry for minors after midnight.”
“The VIP area is an exception, but this applies strictly to general areas. No exceptions even for clans.”
Ugh!
Such a strict regulation…!
“Why is there such a rule?!”
“Some parents among the council complained when their children were late returning home. However, the VIP area is an exception, so please keep that in mind.”
“Ugh!”
Pastel trembled.
That’s unfair! That’s so unfair!
Even minors have the right to gamble all night!
“Wait, I really won’t have enough time to meet the requirement now? No, security! Why do you write rules like that?! I’m Nathaniel of the Priestly Clan! People like me should be given preferential treatment!”
Nathaniel wielded his power.
“I see. I already know. Because you’re a VIP.”
“What?!”
But it was useless, and the Lord of Demons seemed strangely pleased.
“Well, good. It seems like it will just be the two of us who get entry. You should go home.”
The attitude of someone who had allowed entry to the casino just to have this scenario happen.
Ugh!
I don’t want to!
I really don’t want to!
Pastel wants to gamble all night!
“Is there some overwhelming problem?”
A gambler who led a group of patrons in the VIP area approached. He scanned Pastel’s group and grinned.
“If it’s a lack of funds, a few big games should do the trick. Want to play with us?”
Huh?
“Big games?”
“I was planning to play poker with my group, and there happens to be an open seat.”
“Wow! I’ve played some poker!”
“Great! Want to join us?”
The gambler grinned widely.
“I do! I do!”
Such nice people!
The Lord of Demons interjected.
“Wait a minute, this looks suspicious—”
“Servants stay in the back! From now on, it’s the young lady’s time!”
It’s the event to double the fortune!
Yay!
Pastel gathered her credit and cash assets and sat at the table. Documents of real estate in the Demon Realm transformed into chips.
“Big spender! Let’s match our chips!”
The gambler seemed thrilled. Then he exchanged significant glances with his own group that had filled another seat. It seemed like a fiery invitation to match the young lady’s large chips.
Such nice people!
Chips piled up high on the table, and the game began.
One hand, two hands, three hands, four hands.
Bwah-bwah-bwah~!
“Ugh, I can’t win.”
One of the gamblers threw down his cards.
“It looks like that young lady over there has a good hand again?”
“Nope! I’ll raise the bet!”
More chips were added. Pastel couldn’t contain her rising grin.
With her violet lens-like eyes, she glanced down at her stack. It was clearly piled higher.
Before she knew it, it was almost 1.5 times the original!
Her grin widened.
Her available assets were 1.5 times!
Wow, I think I’m a gambling genius!
I’m totally totally a genius!
I think I could have the Lord of Demons as my disciple!
Bwah-bwah-bwah.
“No! Why isn’t it sticking like this?!”
Another gambler threw down his cards.
Huh?
If you drop out now, the chips I would win decrease.
Pastel’s expression turned anxious. She glanced at the remaining opponents.
The gambler frowned at his own poor hand. He then looked over at Pastel.
“Isn’t that a bluff? Your hand can’t keep being that good.”
Oh no.
How did he figure that out?
Pastel feigned a flinch.
The gambler’s eyes lit up as he grinned.
“Can’t just go in blindly. All in.”
His entire stack of chips was pushed to the center of the table.
Oh no.
Pastel’s eyes darted between her own chips and the chips piled on the table.
They were roughly equal.
If I win, my available assets become three times…!
Her eyes spun.
“I knew it! You should fold now!”
The gambler stood up, trying to grab his betting chips.
“Wait a minute!”
Pastel quickly stopped him.
“I’m all in too!”
She pushed all her chips to the center.
Stacks of chips piled mountain-high.
Ehehe.
Her grin beamed widely.
I’m smart, so I’ll only take this much and then leave!
“Show your cards quickly!”
Pastel boldly pointed.
The gambler smiled.
Huh?
He exchanged meaningful looks with his fellow group members before revealing his hand.
Pastel carefully checked the two cards of the opponent. After checking the five cards of the dealer, she pondered what hand could be formed with the combinations.
Heart A
Heart 2
Heart 3
Heart 4
Heart 5
Oh wow.
A straight flush!
Probability 0.0014%
Whoa?!
Pastel jumped up.
“Ugh! That’s cheating!”
The gambler grinned.
“You were just lucky!”
This doesn’t make sense! How could they get that with luck!
That’s cheating! Cheating!
They set me up!
No wonder they kept letting me win at the start!
Right after I went all-in, they’d cheat!
This is a setup! It’s definitely a setup!
“There’s no reversal in win or lose! Give me the chips!”
“Ugh!”
Pastel shook her head. Her ponytails fluttered.
“Dealer! That’s cheating! Totally cheating! Cheating!”
“We only mediate; we do not interfere in the outcomes of wins or losses.”
The dealer responded nonchalantly.
That doesn’t make sense!
“How could that be luck?!”
“We only mediate; we do not interfere in the outcomes of wins or losses.”
This makes no sense!
This is really cheating…!
“Ugh!”
Despairing, Pastel didn’t reveal her hand when the dealer reached out.
Her hand flipped over, and her cards came into view.
Heart K
Heart J
If combined with the dealer’s cards…
Heart A
Heart K
Heart Q
Heart J
Heart 10
Oh wow.
A royal straight flush!
Probability 0.00015%
Whoa.
But I was luckier!
“What?”
The gambler’s eyes widened as he tried to grab his chips.
“How did that come out…!”
The chairs rattled violently.
“Hey, you cheater!”
The gambler’s group stood up excitedly.
Ugh!
Pastel trembled.
Pastel was just lucky…!
“This is invalid! Invalid! Dealer!”
“We only mediate; we do not interfere in the outcomes of wins or losses.”
The dealer answered without emotion.
Pastel trembled.
“There’s no reversal in win or lose!”
“Know your limits, you cheater…!”
Ugh!
Why are they doing this to me!
Such bad people!
