“Hmm... Well, fine.”
The two of them flicked their coins with their thumbs. The coins bounced on the table and spun.
What a terrifying duo. Fifty billion krams appeared to be an expendable sum of money to them. Just how deep did their pockets go?
Wu Haitong had a long history—it was often said that there were residents who were beyond the imaginations of ordinary people. Among those incomprehensible people were the main house of the Qilong, an assassin’s organization. There had always been several mysteries and rumors surrounding them.
“Hey. Move our coins to the names closest to where they fell.”
“Uh, yes, sir.” Still taken aback by the absolutely chaotic nature of their choices, Nastine moved the black coin and the white coin. “Are you satisfied with these choices?” he asked for confirmation, too afraid to make the wrong adjustment. The old men nodded.
“You really okay with such a random method?” Kaffes asked.
They smiled.
“It’ll only hurt a little. I’ll have to skip my special family treat just this once.”
“It won’t be long until I have no need for money. The only reason I came here was because I might walk away with a nice allowance for my beloved grandchildren.”
Kaffes couldn’t get a read on these guys at all...but in any case, they’d made their bets. Keya Kin’s black coin was set on Lynette Bran. Zen Fowah’s white coin was set on Asuma Hinoki.
Truly terrifying... Both of those picks had been fighters the Liston kid had said might win. Had they actually aimed for those spaces? Was it even possible to aim for an exact spot with such a casual throw? Or was this solely because of their luck?
These old men really were impossible to read.
Kaffes had begun to understand just what kind of person the Liston girl was. That was exactly why he’d done his best to avoid her at all costs. Honestly, he’d started panicking a little when he learned that Anzel was quite involved with her.
She wasn’t someone they should get too involved with. All it would take was upsetting her even slightly to bring everything crumbling down. And she would do it as casually as if she were adding an errand to a stroll. As if it were a little something for her to do in her free time. As if it were just a simple quick detour.
That was why Kaffes had so adamantly avoided her, and though he’d remained aware of her movements, he had refrained from digging too deeply into her circumstances. If she happened to learn of them, it was over.
Cedony Trading had handled the cards they’d been dealt well, he thought. Or...maybe not. If they got on that thing’s bad side, they might not be able to continue doing business. They would need to remain just as cautious of her.
In any case, the elders from Wu Haitong had bet on two of the fighters who the Liston girl had mentioned as possible winners. The chance was high that these idiots hadn’t realized it yet, but that kid’s predictions had all been correct so far.
It was highly likely that both Lynette Bran and Asuma Hinoki had a chance of winning the tournament.
He wanted to say something about the way the old men were acting.
“Who will you bet on, Grieg?”
But the two ambitious youngsters from Vanderouge and the unfathomable elders had made their bets. The only ones left were Grieg and Kaffes. Kaffes was betting last, so Grieg was up next.
“I mean no ill will, but...” Grieg held out a red coin between his index finger and thumb. “Care to bet together, Kaffes? If you wait until literally everyone else has bet, you might get complaints later.”
“I thought you were about to ask if we should bed together for a moment there.”
“Sorry, you ain’t my type.”
“Ha ha, same here.” Kaffes leaned forward off the backrest and held the yellow coin he’d been fiddling with in the same fashion. “Sure thing. Let’s do it.”
The two of them placed their coins down...on the same competitor.
“So we went for the same one, eh?”
This was also within Kaffes’s expectations. The moment Grieg had said he meant no ill will, he’d become certain this was what was about to happen. Honestly, if he hadn’t been able to see this far ahead, the man would’ve probably been dead by now. Grieg had been trying to lead Kaffes in various directions through this money game, but the real question was whether or not he’d caught on to the real reason for this betting game.
Kaffes had gathered these members here today to win. The only reason he’d called Grieg early was to force him to think this far ahead, to let him dig deep enough to determine exactly who Kaffes would bet on. He had let Grieg freely gather information as he wished—about Kaffes’s assets, the scale of the groups working under him, his area of influence, his businesses, and also who he would bet on—all without leaking a bit of it himself.
This was the result. In just a few days, Kaffes had been stripped bare. He was fairly sure Grieg had discovered around eighty percent of his secrets. It seemed that Grieg had some great intelligence agents on his side. He was jealous.
“Anzel. He’s your man, ain’t he?”
“Up for debate. He’s gotten powerful. Too powerful. I can’t control him the way I used to. I’m quaking in my boots imagining the day he finally turns on me.”
Quit with the jokes, Grieg couldn’t help but snap internally.
Kaffes’s face had been blank as he’d flatly uttered those words, not an ounce of his true feelings present.
✦ ✦ ✦
“But there’s no reason for you to mind, is there? My man is in the tournament, simple as that. There’s no fancy tricks here. You can examine me all you want if you don’t believe me. I’m coming at this fair and square. When I gamble, I always win, and I spare no effort in laying the groundwork for that victory. That’s just how I roll. Though I’m sure that goes for everyone else here too.”
The underworld wasn’t so kind a place that those who weren’t willing to win by underhanded means could survive. It was for that exact reason that Kaffes’s gamble had gone through. Because if any of them showed even the slightest hint of weakness, they would immediately be crushed. Because he’d been able to create a reason to gather the exact types of people who despised those shows of weakness. Because if he could crush them, all that was left was to steal from them. Because this would become the ultimate justification for him to take action.
After all, even subordinates he’d trusted until yesterday would turn their backs on him. It was unavoidable. Relationships in the underworld were based on nothing but shared interests. The exceptions to that were a miraculous handful.
“The only thing behind this gamble is my trust in my subordinate. I fully believe he will become champion. Nothing more, nothing less.”
Grieg and the elders all huffed, as if they didn’t believe him. But this was the one time Kaffes revealed his true feelings. He truly believed in Anzel’s victory. There was no clear reasoning for his confidence. But if that wasn’t the case, he wouldn’t be able to taste the excitement that made his instincts tremble.
Kaffes Jacks had spent all his time as the ruler of the Altoire underworld indulging in these kinds of gambles, intoxicated by the thrill and violent thrashing of his emotions—and he’d won his way here. Really, he viewed himself as nothing more than a gambler. He’d long been aware that his emotional wires had been crossed since birth.
His feelings toward gambling might honestly have been a desire for destruction. But whatever it was, he’d made it all the way here. He couldn’t change anymore.
That was just the kind of man Kaffes was.