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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 52
Chapter Title: The Genius Gambler
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* * *
Have you heard of the genius gambler living in a remote mountain village in southern Xenon?
The god of poker!
The master of psychological warfare!
His name is…
‘Joe!’
I, Lilis Rubinstein, was his star pupil, having learned poker and various other card games from him.
The time had finally come to show off the skills that had stunned even Joe, proving the student had surpassed the master!
After giving my dad a crash course on the rules of poker and hatching a plan, we entered the gambling den.
Inside, the den was hazy, thick with the cigarette smoke puffed out by the people gathered around each table.
Of course, thanks to the spell Dad had cast on me, my vision was only a little obscured.
“Do you know what he looks like?”
“Yeah. I saw his portrait.”
Dad, who was carrying me through the tables, said, “There he is,” and strode forward.
We saw five men in the middle of a poker game.
“Excuse me.”
Dad tapped on the table, and all the men looked up at us.
“Are you Baron Joseph Luttman?”
At his question, the other men’s gazes all shifted to one person.
It was Joseph.
‘Wow, he really looks like a wreck.’
Dark circles reached down below his chin.
Empty eyes seemed devoid of all interest in the world.
Hollow cheeks.
Despite this, a strangely sharp aura gave him a presence that was more than just an extra.
“That’s right. I’m Joseph Luttman. What do you want?”
“Could you spare a moment? I’d like to speak with you.”
Joseph let out a short laugh. He took the cigarette from his lips, stubbed it out in an ashtray, and gestured to the men beside him.
“Put out your cigarettes.”
For a brief moment, Joseph’s gloomy gaze swept over me.
I knew Joseph had them put out their cigarettes because of me.
“Who sent you?”
“Let’s go somewhere else.”
“No need. This isn’t the first time some noble lord has sent someone to fetch me.”
“…”
“I’m sure you’re just doing this because you’re short on cash, but you should still be mindful of the time and place. What are you doing bringing a child here?”
Joseph waved a dismissive hand.
“Don’t waste your time. Go back. I have no intention of leaving.”
“I want to talk.”
When Dad stood his ground, Joseph shot him an irritated look.
A dangerous atmosphere.
Joseph and Dad stared at each other in silence.
As if reading something in Dad’s unusual gaze, Joseph leaned back with a slight smile.
“If you insist, then wait. Until the game is over and I leave the den.”
“When will that be?”
“That’s a question only someone who’s never been to a place like this would ask.”
Joseph pulled a heavy bundle from under his chair and set it on the table with a thud.
“The game ends when I’ve lost all my money.”
The men beside him snickered.
As if a pro gambler would easily lose that much money. It meant he had no intention of talking.
‘Yep, I already thought of that.’
I poked Dad’s shoulder.
At that, Dad pulled out a chair and sat down.
“Then I’ll join you for a game.”
* * *
Joseph watched the child with gloomy eyes.
The child, who looked to be five or six, was smiling brightly in her father’s arms.
‘Ella…’
The name of his daughter, a name he hadn’t spoken in a long time, lingered on his lips.
His daughter, Ella, had been around that child’s age.
If she were still alive, she would be eight by now.
“I’ve got it all down.”
The simple-looking man who introduced himself as James said this was his first time playing cards.
Only after spending a full twenty minutes learning the rules from the dealer did he accept his cards with a nervous expression.
‘What a moron.’
He was probably just another man hired by some greedy noble, given a few coins to entice Joseph away.
‘He must have heard the rumors about me and brought his daughter on purpose.’
Joseph had lost his wife and daughter.
Did he think seeing a child would soften him up?
If so, wasn’t that even more despicable?
“Cough. Cough.”
The child coughed repeatedly, as if the cigarette smoke was irritating her.
“Raise. Fifty thousand more.”
Joseph called out in irritation, sharply raising the pot.
He had to quickly win all of that pathetic man’s money and get him out of this gambling den, which was so harmful to a child.
“Fold.”
“…Fold.”
“Call?”
“Fold!”
But as the game progressed, a vein began to throb on Joseph’s forehead.
A novice was a novice, after all.
He wouldn’t make a single bet.
He would either timidly fold or bet a paltry sum.
‘Damn it. At this rate, we’ll be here all night.’
Joseph glanced worriedly at the constantly coughing child, his eyes filled with impatience.
“Uh, call?”
Just then, James’s eyes lit up as he looked at Joseph’s hand.
‘He took the bait.’
The opportunity had finally arrived.
“Wow! Dad, Dad! We have two of the same number!”
“Uh, shh, shh. Princess.”
As the child cheered with her arms in the air, James flusteredly glanced around.
Joseph scoffed.
‘One pair. With one card left to draw, the best he can hope for is three of a kind.’
The reason that foolish novice’s eyes were shining over a mere ninth-rank hand was because his opponent Joseph’s hand looked terrible.
The part of Joseph’s hand that James could see was a 2, 10, and Q.
No pair.
A jumbled mess of a hand, the lowest possible.
However, Joseph’s hidden cards were all spades, making a flush.
In reality, it was a fifth-rank hand.
“All in.”
Joseph said, pushing his entire bundle of money onto the table.
James’s eyes widened.
“…You mean you’re betting everything? With that hand?”
“And?”
James pointed to his own cards.
Q, 7, 7.
“I already have two sevens. One pair.”
“So what? My hidden cards could be better than a pair.”
“Don’t lie. Aren’t you just trying to scare me with a trash hand?”
“Even if I am, what does it matter? That’s the beauty of poker.”
Joseph shrugged.
“If you’re scared of my hidden cards, you can just fold. If you think it’s nothing, then you can go all in, too.”
At those words, James hesitated.
His face clearly showed every thought in his head.
He was truly the greenest of novices.
‘Go for it, please. Once you lose all your money, you’ll have no choice but to leave.’
Joseph just wanted James to hurry up and take his young daughter out of there.
“…I’ll do it. All in.”
James pushed his entire bundle of money forward with a trembling hand.
‘Good. It’s over.’
Joseph smirked and leaned back leisurely.
The dealer began to reveal Joseph’s face-down cards one by one.
A flush, a fifth-rank hand.
“No!”
A shocked James shot to his feet.
“Wh-what is this?!”
“Don’t get excited. Sit down. You know you can’t take back a bet.”
At a nod from Joseph, the dealer began to reveal James’s cards.
When one face-down card was flipped, it was, surprisingly, a 7.
7, 7, 7.
Three of a kind, a seventh-rank hand.
Joseph’s eyes sharpened.
And in the next moment.
For some reason, the corners of James’s mouth curled into a grin.
At the same time…
* * *
Dad did exactly as I told him.
Even though he’d already learned everything from me, he pretended it was his first time and listened to the dealer explain the rules again.
A tap.
When I tapped my pinky on the table…
“Fold.”
He’d fold.
A tap.
When I tapped my ring finger…
“Call.”
He’d call.
“You have to act extremely timid until you get a good hand. Dad, don’t you dare make a bet.”
“Okay, I got it.”
“I’ll give you a signal when the opportunity comes. Until then, you only say check, call, or fold.”
Everyone grew bored with Dad’s playstyle, folding and running away whenever the pot got high.
They all had expressions that said, ‘There goes that timid novice again…’
Every time I made eye contact with Joseph, who kept glancing at me, I gave him a bright smile.
“Cough. Cough.”
Thanks to the spell, I couldn’t even smell the cigarette smoke, but I threw in a fake cough for good measure.
After calling a few times while waiting for an opportunity, about half our money was gone.
‘It’s here.’
The opportunity had arrived.
Looking at Joseph’s hand, the best he could possibly have was a flush, a fifth-rank hand.
‘Then it’s over.’
I curled my hand into a fist.
“When I make a tight fist, that’s the signal. It’s a game you’re guaranteed to win, no matter what you bet!”
I did tell him he could bet as much as he wanted when I gave the signal, but…
“Wh-what is this?!”
“Don’t get excited. Sit down. You know you can’t take back a bet.”
After seeing Joseph’s hand, Dad even acted shocked.
‘Seriously, does he have to go this far?’
I barely suppressed a laugh as I watched Dad get so seriously into character.
7, 7, 7.
And, at the moment our three identical cards were revealed.
Everyone, including Joseph, was staring at our hand.
They probably expected this much.
Because earlier, I had…
“Wow! Dad, Dad! We have two of the same number!”
…subtly dropped a misleading comment.
‘In reality, we already had four of the same number.’
It was a bluff that only worked because I was a kid who supposedly didn’t know any better.
7, 7, 7.
With three of a kind on the table, the dealer revealed Dad’s final card.
“What is this!”
At the same time, Joseph shot to his feet.
“Wh-what?”
“Gasp.”
The others watching also covered their mouths and gasped.
“Hahahaha!”
Dad laughed heartily, his shoulders squared, and planted a kiss on my cheek.
As if praising my performance.
“…Hah, you’ve taught the kid quite a few things.”
Seeing this, Joseph let out a hollow laugh.
The final card was…
……the seven of hearts.
7, 7, 7, 7.
Dad fanned out the spectacular hand and said.
“Four of a kind. I win.”
