“Here’s the odds table,” Green said with a grin, pulling out a piece of paper and handing it to Debbie. From his demeanor, it was clear he saw the petite Debbie as the kind of naive girl who could be easily swayed.
Debbie took the paper, and Ye Chui leaned in to look. The paper listed the betting options and their corresponding odds, written in the language of this world. The original Wade had some education and was at least literate, and Ye Chui, having inherited Wade’s memories, could decipher the text, though it was somewhat challenging.
Raiken to win, odds of 1:1.5.
A draw, odds of 1:2.
Ye Chui to win, an exaggerated odds of 1:5.
Though Ye Chui didn’t care much about this, he still rolled his eyes at Green. Seriously, do I inspire that little confidence?
Green kept grinning. “I run a fair game, no cheating, payouts settled right after the duel. So, what do you say?”
His eyes gleamed as he stared at Debbie’s money pouch, thinking of ways to convince her to part with her coins. But he soon realized he’d underestimated her.
“Whoa, one to five?” Debbie’s eyes sparkled even brighter than Green’s. She poured out the contents of her pouch like spilling beans and turned to Ye Chui. “Where’s your money? Hurry up, we can’t miss this chance to make a fortune. One gold coin could turn into five!”
Debbie’s reaction left Green overjoyed. If everyone were as gullible as Debbie, he’d have made a fortune long ago. Her response was so confident, as if Ye Chui’s victory in the duel was a foregone conclusion, with no chance of anything going wrong.
Ye Chui hesitated, or at least tried to act like he was hesitating, but in the end, he decisively pulled out his own money pouch. He was confident in his abilities, and hearing those odds, he could practically see the glittering gold coins piling up in front of him. Isn’t this the mindset of every gambler?
Still, he was a bit worried about potential trickery and glanced at Los.
Los replied, “Green’s a gambling addict with a history of cheating, but since he started running his own bets, he’s built a decent reputation. He shouldn’t welch on the deal. But, Wade, you’d better think this through.”
“I’ve thought it through,” Ye Chui nodded, pouring out his gold coins and combining them with Debbie’s. After their recent expenses, they had seven gold coins left. Debbie bet all seven on Ye Chui to win, her face beaming as if the thirty-five gold coins were already within reach.
In this world, one gold coin, if used frugally, could cover a common household’s expenses for a year. Thirty-five gold coins was an absolute fortune.
Green summoned a quill pen from his magic book, a perk of its spatial properties allowing storage of items. As he recorded Ye Chui and Debbie’s bet, he secretly rejoiced.
In any form of gambling, the house always wins, but running the game requires skill.
Before the duel, Green had done his research and predicted the outcome, setting the odds accordingly. Ye Chui was indeed impressive, having defeated an experienced wizard like Kaimis, but what did that matter? Raiken, though newly awakened, had far greater talent and combat strength than Kaimis.
Most importantly, Raiken was favored by the Bullhead Magic Guild. This duel, ostensibly to decide who between Ye Chui and Raiken would join the guild, could only have one outcome: Raiken’s victory.
This was a conclusion many could predict, so most bets would naturally go to Raiken. To entice riskier bets, Green had set higher odds for the other options and specifically approached Ye Chui and Debbie to lure them into betting.
From their confident expressions, they clearly believed in themselves, so they wouldn’t hesitate to bet big. And sure enough, as Green had anticipated, they dropped seven gold coins, a massive sum for a small betting pool like this, guaranteeing him a hefty profit.
If Ye Chui and Debbie had shamelessly bet heavily on Raiken to win, Green would never have allowed it.
Los, Matt, and the others exchanged glances, feeling a bit helpless. Though they had great confidence in Ye Chui, gambling was never a sure thing. After a brief discussion, Los said to Green, “We don’t usually gamble, but today we’ll do it to support Wade.” With a flick, she tossed a gold coin to Green. “We’re betting on Wade to win.”
In such betting pools, most people wagered only one or two silver coins. Los and her group betting one gold coin was a strong show of support.
“It looks like I might lose big this time. If our young master Wade wins, I’ll have to pay out forty gold coins,” Green said, catching the coin and feigning distress, though it was obviously an act.
At that moment, someone nearby said, “The Bullhead Magic Guild people are here, and that must be Raiken with them, right?”
Ye Chui looked over and saw the first person he’d met after crossing into this world, the young man named Raiken. Raiken’s face was cold, his eyes fixed on Ye Chui with intense hostility. Ye Chui smiled and gave him a friendly wave, clearly catching Raiken off guard.
Then Ye Chui glanced at the people beside Raiken. A middle-aged man with white hair, whom Ye Chui had met before, was Ryan, the vice-president of the Bullhead Magic Guild. With him were two others Ye Chui didn’t know by name but recognized from the night he arrived in this world, standing in the shadows of a street corner. He recalled Ryan calling them Melly and Tatak.
Melly was a woman with a seductive, provocative air, wearing a revealing low-cut dress. Tatak was a man with yellow hair, exuding a wild, frenzied energy.
Since this duel was to determine whether Ye Chui or Raiken would join the Bullhead Magic Guild, it was effectively hosted by the guild. Ryan didn’t linger upon arriving, heading straight to the center of the square. He quickly outlined the rules: “The winner earns the right to join our Bullhead Magic Guild. This is a deathmatch, no limits on life or death. That’s all.”
He turned to Ye Chui, his eyes carrying a faint, unfriendly smile, tinged with a playful cruelty.
“You may begin,” he announced after glancing at Raiken.
“I believe in you. You definitely won’t lose,” Debbie said, patting Ye Chui’s shoulder.
Ye Chui smiled, warmed by the girl’s trust.
Then she leaned close to his ear, her teeth gritted, she clenched her small fist, threatening him. “We’ve bet our entire fortune. If you dare lose, I’ll make Afu cook your dinners for a month.”
Ye Chui was speechless. That’s harsh, where’s the trust?
“Give it your all,” Los and the others chimed in.
Over the past few days, Ye Chui and Debbie had become quite familiar with the mercenary guild members. Since the duel was set in the square outside the guild, most of them were present, offering Ye Chui sincere blessings and encouragement before decisively betting on Raiken to win with Green. Support was one thing, but money was another, right?
In the end, Ye Chui might not be as useless as they initially thought. He was clever and had somehow beaten Kaimis, but those advantages didn’t mean much in a serious duel like this.
As Stan Town’s mayor, Cass, quietly arrived, Ye Chui and Raiken were already standing face-to-face.
