Phi-Fic Chapter 865 Card Master
Chapter 865 Card Master
Chapter 865 Card Master
As the eyes of all the pirates in Bilgewater turned to the Bauhinia Inn, there were other guys who were tempted by the high bounty. Among them, there were two who were particularly special.
One of them was wearing a baggy coat with a large shotgun hidden under it. His manly face was filled with impatience. He said hastily, "Tobias, what are you still hesitating about? No one is better at finding people than you, and no one dares to break the rules of the bounty list! This is a chance to earn 500 gold without any risk. With this money, we can live happily for a year!"
The Tobias he was talking about was wearing a leather cloak and a mask-like hat on his head, which blocked the upper half of his face, especially his eyes, making it difficult to discern his thoughts.
Tobias has a more famous name, the card master 'Twisted Fate'. Together with Graves beside him, he formed a...notorious fraud and robbery gang.
The two had known each other and worked together for many years, but there was an accident ten years ago. Because of Graves's recklessness, he was caught and imprisoned for ten years, and was just released a month ago.
Thinking that he was framed by Drizzt, he went to Drizzt again. After a long argument, the two of them finally put aside their past grudges and started working together again.
In the past month, they had teamed up to commit a few "small crimes" while Bilgewater was in chaos, and were barely doing well, but they still hadn't saved any gold coins as they spent money whenever they could, and were far from as carefree as they were ten years ago when they were traveling around the world cheating people.
That's why Graves was so anxious after learning about the 500 gold coin missing person reward, fearing that someone else would get there first if he was too late.
But Trist remained unhurried. He stretched out his hand and turned over the three cards in front of him one by one, with a thoughtful look on his face.
Graves also suppressed his anxiety and said in a low voice: "...Is there a risk?"
"The more money you have, the harder it is to get it. This is the same everywhere." Drizzt shook his head. "Miss Fortune is not someone you can easily mess with. She might become the Queen of Bilgewater who can truly replace Gangplank in the future. I don't want to have no place to stay even here."
"Tsk, you are always so timid." Graves said unwillingly, "Is it really impossible?"
"Okay, the cards tell me there's only a small risk." Drizzt shuffled and cut the cards again, then randomly drew three cards and placed them in front of him. "But we have to keep a hand as an insurance policy. Don't submit Miss Fortune's exact location, just a general one."
Be kind to others so that you can meet again in the future.
Graves immediately laughed: "You are the one with the most tricks... So ten years ago, the insurance you left was really not a betrayal of me?"
"…I told you that it's over, but you're just going on and on."
Drizzt flipped over three cards helplessly and skipped over the topic: "In the east... the mansion on the cliff?"
……
Half an hour later, the two arrived at the Bauhinia Hotel together, and according to the information reserved by Ji Xing, they quickly arrived at the first room on the third floor.
Hearing a knock on the door, Ji Xing, who had just taken a light nap, opened the door. Seeing the two familiar-looking guys at the door, he was a little surprised, but his expression was normal. He asked, "Do you know where Miss Fortune is?"
Trist and Graves were also observing Ji Xing at the same time, but they found him very unfamiliar and could not be sure which side he belonged to. They even felt that he did not look like a Bilgewater person.
"Is that Mr. Roger?"
"Yes, location?" Ji Xing asked.
Drizzt and Graves exchanged a glance before answering, "We saw Miss Fortune and her men quietly climb up the cliff in the east the night before yesterday. They must have moved into an empty mansion. As you know, many pirates in the upper city have died recently, and no one has had time to take over their houses for the time being."
"What are you doing in the upper city?" Ji Xing asked casually.
Instead, Drizzt felt that it was more reliable, and said without hiding anything: "Find some money to spend."
Ji Xing nodded: "Wait for me at the door." Then he closed the door.
Drizzt looked at Graves again, and Graves whispered, "This guy... why does he look like a pink-faced guy from out of town?"
"Never mind." Drizzt shook his head: "We are only here to earn the bounty. Anything else has nothing to do with us."
"I know, of course I know." Graves muttered, "I just wonder if I can make more money than 500 gold."
At this time, the door opened again, and Ji Xing smiled at them and said, "My people have gone to confirm the information you provided. Please come in and sit for a while. Once I receive feedback, I can settle the reward for you two."
Drizzt tried to find out, "It's so inconvenient to go in and sit down. Why don't I give you an address? After you confirm it, just send the gold coins and the verification form over. We can pick it up ourselves."
"That's not good, come in and sit down."
Drizzt shrugged and looked at Graves.
Being familiar with the gang, he had not expected to leave now. If he made someone make a wasted trip, not only would he and Graves not receive the bounty, they would also have to leave something behind.
But the information he submitted was real and blurred, so he was not panicked at all.
The two had never lived in Bauhinia before, and they were shocked by the luxurious decoration as soon as they entered the house.
Fortunately, they were also worldly people, but they couldn't help wondering, it must cost several gold coins to stay here for one night? Let this guy enjoy himself here, he must be more than just an errand boy, but why haven't we seen him?
"I'm from Piltover."
At this time, Ji Xing took the initiative to answer their doubts and said, "I am here on behalf of the Philos family to establish a stable sales point for the Universal Capsule."
The two were stunned. Piltover? Philos? The family that was said to have a secret weapon and that had teamed up with Miss Fortune to kill Gangplank?
Selling universal capsules? The kind of magical capsules that can store countless things?
Many of their puzzles were solved, and at the same time, they felt a little nervous. So the reward was...
"You should have heard that Miss Fortune has a connection with us. This reward was posted for her to see. I didn't expect anyone to come and claim it."
"Uh, we..." Trist didn't know what to say for a moment.
“It’s okay, it’s only 500 gold.” Ji Xing smiled and said, “Follow the rules. As long as the information you provide is correct, I will pay you, and Miss Fortune won’t cause you any trouble.”
He extended his hand and said, "Please take a seat, both of you."
Graves had already shown some vigilance, ready to leave at any time, but Trist thought about the results of his card divination, and finally shook his head to Graves secretly and sat down in front of the coffee table.
"Welcome to Bilgewater." He flattered Ji Xing, "We brothers have actually wanted to visit the City of Progress for a long time, but we never found the time and opportunity."
“Really?” Ji Xing just responded casually: “Anyone is welcome in Piltover.”
No polite response. Drizzt had to admit that he was a little bit excited when he heard the keywords like Piltover, Ferros, Universal Capsule, and 'only 500 gold'... They were really rich!
500 gold is indeed nothing for the big families in Piltover. 500 million gold would not break their bones. If they can make a big profit, they can retire!
But it's hard. Don't be impulsive, Drizzt.
"It's too boring to just sit and wait like this." At this time, he only heard Graves mutter, "Mr. Roger from Piltover, do you know how to play cards?"
"This idiot!" Drizzt's face suddenly darkened. What he couldn't stand the most was Graves's cautious yet bold feeling. Why didn't you just say you wanted to cheat me out of money? !
“Play cards?” Ji Xing smiled and said, “That’s fine. I’m free anyway. Do you have any cards? If not, why don’t you buy one? I may not be very good at playing Biltworth…”
"I did bring some cards." Drizzt was afraid that Graves would say something else, so he took out a deck of cards and said, "If we talk about the more popular card games in Bilgewater, they are 'Death Wheel' and 'Conduit'. If you don't know how, Mr. Roger, I can teach you. We're not playing for money, we're just killing time."
Only by casting a long line can you catch big fish.
And you'll probably meet Miss Fortune soon, so don't cause any trouble!
At this time, he heard Ji Xing say, "What's the point of playing without money? It's okay, let's play something small, the bottom bet is... one gold coin? If I lose, I will consider it as paying tuition to the two of you."
"..."
Fuck! He's so rich!
One gold coin is too small for a ante?! With the highest bet, you can win or lose hundreds of gold coins in one round!
Trist now really had the urge to snatch Ji Xing and run away, but he didn't dare. Before, Ji Xing said, "My people have gone to confirm the information you submitted." They didn't notice anything, and they didn't notice Ji Xing's men around the hostel.
How many people and what kind of armed strength can make the man on the opposite side so fearless?
No one is a fool.
Oh, besides Graves?
"Then let's play a few games with Mr. Roger." Graves grinned and said, "Mr. Roger, do you want to play Death Wheel or Thorn?"
"Try the Death Wheel?"
Ji Xing took Trist's card and cut it a few times casually in his hand. The skillful movement surprised Graves a little.
"Mr. Roger is an experienced hand."
"Well, I play it a lot in Piltover. Tell me about the rules of 'Death Wheel'."
Hey, it’s easy to talk to an old gambler!
Trist understood and began to explain the rules of the 'Wheel of Death' to Ji Xing in detail.
It's a bit like '21'.
There are eight patterns in this deck of cards, each suit number is '1~5', totaling 40 cards.
Each person starts with three cards, with a base bet of 1 gold coin. Each time you bet a multiple of the gold coins, such as 1, 2, 4, or 8 gold coins, you can draw another card. The player closest to 25 points wins.
There are also some complex score accumulation judgments, such as 1 point for three cards of the same suit, 3 points for four cards of the same suit, and 1 point for three cards of a straight...
Players with more than 25 points will be busted, and the first player to reach 25 points can directly collect all the gold coins. Every bet is thrilling, and it is a double game of mentality and calculation, so this card game is called "Wheel of Death".
"I see, bet on the deal?"
Trist nodded in response, and each of the three took out a gold coin. Ji Xing then picked up the deck of cards and dealt three cards in turn. Trist, who was staring closely, confirmed that there was no problem and picked up his own cards.
"Mr. Roger seems to be using Hex Coins. In this case..."
"It doesn't matter. I don't have any Siren gold coins, so forget it. It's a bother." Ji Xing said casually, throwing another gold coin up and drawing a card.
"..."
Fuck! So rich!
In that case, I won’t be polite!
Trist is not a 'cheater', but a gambler with extremely high gambling skills, and he also possesses an innate ability.
To him, every card has a strange attraction. He can see through the fog behind the cards, which is almost equivalent to playing with the cards openly.
It is really difficult to lose unless his luck is extremely bad, but then he might be able to use his superb card skills to give himself a great win.
He observed Ji Xing's expression and the cards in his hand from time to time, and asked in a relaxed tone: "Maybe I said too much, but what will Mr. Roger do after finding Miss Fortune? Biltworth is too chaotic, and the universal capsule is something that can arouse everyone's greed. Miss Fortune may not be able to ensure the safety of the goods."
"That has nothing to do with Ferros." Ji Xing threw two more gold coins and drew a card: "I will let Miss Fortune take the lead in talking to other gangs. No one can resist money. As the seafood base of the entire Rune Continent, I think Bilgewater is in great need of the universal capsule."
Graves next to him looked at the cards in his hand and said, "I won't follow."
"Hmm? You won't follow after four?"
Graves laughed and said, "First time, let me try it out. I haven't played for a long time."
In fact, it was Trist who gave him a look. Drawing cards with two people is completely different from drawing cards with three people. If Graves continues to follow, he might lose to Ji Xing... if Ji Xing is brave enough.
Ji Xing looked at the cards and said, "Okay, for the first hand, I won't follow."
Drizzt was startled, then slowly put down four gold coins: "Then I won't be polite."
After looking at the cards, he grabbed eight more gold coins. He played six cards against two four-card ones, and won with 24 points. All the gold coins were taken away by him, but in fact he only won two gold coins from Ji Xing.
After taking a look at Ji Xing's card with only 8 points, Drizzt's eyes flickered slightly. He shuffled and cut the cards naturally, then dealt the cards and continued the previous topic: "Mr. Roger is right. It is always difficult to guarantee the freshness of the frozen food shipped to the distant continent..."
Time passed quickly at the gambling table. Two hours passed in a flash. Trist was no longer calm and composed, and there were even beads of sweat on his forehead.
He won, winning 208 gold coins.
But in a two-on-one match, only winning 208 gold coins in two hours is already very telling.
The opponent was just like him, able to see through the numbers and suits of every card, and always folded at the critical moment. Even though he tempted the opponent with the same 25 points but he was the first to arrive, he did not elicit a big amount.
The most he won was just 8 gold coins. When it was Ji Xing's turn to cut the cards, he would occasionally lose some. Together with Graves, it was double. Without cheating, he had already done his best to win these 208 gold coins.
After traveling all over the country for so many years, this was the first time he encountered a guy with such excellent gambling skills, and he didn't dare to cheat at all.
Even Graves next to him had already noticed that something was wrong and remained silent.
Another round ended. Ji Xing collected his eight gold coins, picked up the cards and cut them, then said to the two people on the opposite side, "How about we stop here today?"
Drizzt felt relieved and politely pushed back the remaining two hundred gold notes: "As long as Mr. Roger enjoys himself, we..."
“No need.” Ji Xing smiled and said, “I told you this is tuition, just keep it, it’s only 200.”
Without waiting for Trist to reply, Ji Xing randomly pulled out three cards from the deck at a frequency that Trist was very familiar with, placed them on the table, adjusted their positions, and opened them one by one.
“You should be able to use divination cards, right? If we use these three cards to calculate Miss Fortune’s location, where is she now?”
pat-
A bead of sweat rolled down Trist's ear. He opened his eyes wide in disbelief, feeling the clear gravity coming from the three cards.
"Mr. Drizzt?"
"…Is she downstairs?"
Ji Xing nodded and pushed the gold note back forcefully: "Put the tuition money away, let's go out and pick up Miss Fortune."
(End of this chapter)