"The third young master of the Valdeck family came to our gambling house?""Yes, boss.""Puh-hah! That deer prince is dabbling in gambling now!"
Hugo burst into a cheerful laugh at his subordinate's report.
Noble customers were not uncommon, but the son of a grand duke—not even a knight—was something else.
"He must've brought quite a bit of money with him.""He pulled out his money pouch the moment he came in. Looks like he's determined to set up a proper game.""He's probably never held cards properly in his life, yet he dreams big."
Hugo clicked his tongue briefly, the corner of his mouth twisting.This was why he didn't like noble young masters.Since everything in their homes moved according to their wishes, they assumed the world outside would too.Letting him properly experience the harshness of the real world sounded fun, but patience was needed if they wanted to squeeze out full profit.
"Just set him up lightly today and send him off. You know you can't clean him out all at once, right?""But of course. We'll give him a few coins for pocket money and send him home.""And don't forget proper seasoning. He has to win by a hair so he'll think it was all his own skill.""Naturally. We'll stage it beautifully."
To lure someone into gambling, you first have to let them taste the thrill of winning.
At first, the plan was to lose to him just enough to drag him into the swamp of gambling.
After a few wins, he would get arrogant, and after that, they would let him win little by little to stir up his desire to challenge more.
If they pushed and pulled like that for about a month, he wouldn't be able to escape even if he wanted to.
"Going from a deer prince to a mangy stray dog prince will happen in no time. The grand duke must be worried sick. The boy's already sixteen, yet look at him."
Hugo stroked his chin lightly as he let out a cold laugh.
He had been given a card he never expected, and now the question was how to use it.
Besides, the grand duke had already half-given up on the third young master.
If they saddled him with a convenient gambling debt, the boy would be too scared of his father finding out to disobey any order.
'If this goes well, we might pull out far more than just the principal. And I've been in need of an internal collaborator from the grand duke's household anyway.'
But as he said earlier, acting too hastily would only scare the prey away.
It was important to give it time and slowly drag him into the mire.
If they worked on him for about three months, it should be enough.
The problem was choosing the right moment to play this trump card.
"B-boss."
Hugo frowned at the subordinate's voice that interrupted his thoughts.
"It's only been a few hours since your last report. Why are you back?"
"Well… it's about the deer prince I just reported on…"
"What about him? Is there a problem?"
"It's more than a problem. The deer prince is currently sweeping the entire gambling hall."
"What?"
Hugo tilted his head, wondering if he had misheard something.
Seeing this, his subordinate spoke again with a tearful expression, as if to confirm it.
"That young master's gambling skills are no joke. Forget setting him up—our gamblers can't beat him even when they go all out. What do we do?"
"…What?"
The gambler felt as if he were possessed by a demon.
How could things possibly turn out like this?
No—was something like this even possible?
Barely holding onto his sanity by a thread that felt ready to snap at any moment, the gambler gritted his teeth and spoke.
"C-Crimson Rose."
"I also have Crimson Rose."
Unlike the heavily trembling gambler, Lucian placed his cards down lightly.
He looked utterly relaxed, as if the idea of losing had never once crossed his mind.
"My victory. Even if the hands are the same, my card numbers are just a little higher."
At those words, the gambler shut his eyes tightly.
Lucian had revealed the exact same hand as him five times already.
And every time, he had won by a tiny difference in numbers.
If he had a higher-ranking hand, that would be one thing—but to mock his opponent by matching the same hand every time?
Even for someone who had rolled around gambling dens for decades, this was a first.
"I–I lost."
"Already giving up? I was having fun."
Lucian clicked his tongue in mild disappointment as he swept in the chips on the table.
The mountain of chips already stacked before him grew even higher.
The other gamblers around them swallowed dryly at a sight they had never witnessed before.
"Good heavens, what even is that?"
"What do you think? Those are all chips that young master won. Didn't know they could pile up that high."
"Did he use some kind of magic? Or is it pure sleight of hand?"
"I watched right next to him, but I couldn't catch a single trick."
"They call him the deer prince, but that's no rookie—he's a full-fledged shark."
Hearing the murmuring crowd, Eric, who managed the gambling hall, scowled deeply.
What humiliation was this—being crushed by some baby-faced young master?
Grinding his teeth, Eric seized the collar of the sagging gambler and dragged him into a corner.
"You crazy bastard! What the hell do you mean, 'I lost'? Go back and recover what you dropped!"
"That's impossible. That young master is a step above me—what do you expect me to do?"
"You trying to die? You think your hands will stay attached if you back out now?"
"Even if you cut off my arm, it won't help. Better to walk away now while it ends with a limb than keep going and lose my head."
No matter how much Eric threatened him, the gambler remained limp and defeated. It drove Eric mad.
He had already sent word to Hugo, but losing this much made it impossible to avoid responsibility himself.
At the very least, he needed to recover some of the losses before Hugo arrived.
"Pathetic fool."
"B-boss!"
But Hugo's arrival came sooner than Eric expected.
Hugo clicked his tongue as he looked at the chips piled even higher than what had been reported.
"Wonderful. I trusted you with this, and what the hell is this mess? Are you trying to drain all of the organization's funds?"
"Boss, it's not that—"
"Shut up and get out of my sight. I'm the idiot for ever trusting you."
At Hugo's cold voice, Eric squeezed his eyes shut and stepped back.
Still, if there was any silver lining, it was that Hugo had arrived before they lost even more.
If it was Hugo, he would be able to force that bratty young master to cough up every coin he had swallowed, no matter what tricks the kid used.
Hans stared blankly at the stacked chips and Lucian, looking back and forth between them.
Instead of being robbed, he had completely cleaned out a professional gambler.
He never imagined the young master had such talent.
"Young master, did you truly use magic?"
"Magic? Hardly. It's just technique."
"And where did you learn gambling techniques?"
"Oh, here and there. Somehow."
Lucian toyed with the cards, brushing off Hans's question.
In truth, it was a skill he learned in his previous life after saving a one-armed knight.
Despite looking like a seasoned veteran hero, the knight had been a timid coward—except for his gambling skills, which were first-rate.
But because he trusted his skills too much, he joined a high-ranking noble's gambling table, was seen through, and got his arm cut off.
He used to claim he lost it fighting a rival, so Lucian had been speechless at how absurd his reaction was when he heard the truth.
'Still, he was a pretty decent person. Hard to believe gambling ruined him like that.'
"Young master, may I have a moment of your time?"
A heavy voice reached Lucian's ears as he wore a bitter smile.
When he turned his head, he saw a man with a body a full head taller than most.
The impressive scar running from his eye down to his lip made Lucian smile faintly.
'You've finally arrived.'
Black Shark Hugo.
He began as a back-alley thug, but would one day become the man who controlled the underworld of five territories.
When chaos swept the land, he brazenly declared himself a baron and rose up, securing a position as one of the regional warlords.
Because of his origins, he was often looked down on and despised, but he was equally known for his exceptional cunning.
Even by the time Lucian died, Hugo's power remained intact—so the rumors weren't empty.
Hugo glanced briefly at the mountain of chips, then twitched his scar as he leaned in to whisper to Lucian.
"It seems you're quite skilled. How about joining a bigger table instead of playing on something this small?"
"A bigger table?"
"There's a separate floor for high rollers. Up there, one round alone can swing an amount equal to all the chips you've gathered today."
"Oh?"
Lucian's eyes sparkled with interest.
Seeing that reaction, Hugo grinned—only to shake his head with a regretful expression.
"Ah, right… my apologies. It won't do after all."
"What? You tempted me all you liked, yet now you change your tune?"
"On the upper floor, the stakes are higher, but so is the skill of those who play there. Since a gambling house exists for the guests' enjoyment, it would be better not to do anything that would spoil the mood."
"You think I'd lose? I, Lucian Valdeck? You look at this mountain of chips and still dare say such a thing?"
"I didn't mean it that way. My apologies if I caused any misunderstanding."
"Arrogant fool! Take me there at once! I don't know what kind of 'high rollers' you're talking about, but I'll see what they're worth!"
Lucian pretended to be furious as he rose from his seat, and Hugo nodded with an awkward expression.
"If the young master insists so strongly, I have no choice. But please understand—we cannot reimburse any losses you may incur."
"You think I'd do something so pathetic? Stop worrying about useless things and just lead the way!"
"My apologies. I'll escort you immediately, so please calm your anger."
Hugo acted flustered as he turned his back.
But even in that brief moment, the smile tugging at the corner of his lips couldn't be hidden.
Lucian let out a soft laugh and murmured inwardly.
'Even Black Shark Hugo had his childish phase, I suppose.'
In other words, for now, Hugo had no choice but to move according to Lucian's lead.
Lucian suddenly felt the meaning of returning to the past settle more clearly in his mind.
No matter how much potential someone has, if the sprout hasn't fully grown yet, he could embrace it—or snap it—before it ever could.
And the first test subject would be the Black Shark standing before him.
Leaving Hans waiting downstairs, Lucian went up to the third floor.
It was clearly a restricted area for special patrons; compared to the first floor, the place was on a completely different level of refinement.
As he entered the room, the three men already in the middle of a game blinked in surprise at the sight of him.
"What's this? A newcomer?"
"He's way too young."
"Hugo, did you bring us a brat from the streets?"
"Mind your words. This is none other than Young Master Lucian, third son of Grand Duke Balzac."
"Wha—! Such a mistake…!"
At Hugo's introduction, the others scrambled to their feet and bowed their heads.
Soon after, each of them introduced himself.
Two were heirs to fairly large merchant companies, and the remaining one was said to be the second son of a viscount.
Listening to their introductions, Lucian snorted.
'What nonsense. Even for a hastily made-up backstory, they could've put in a little more effort.'
If this were the lavish capital, maybe—but this territory wasn't large enough to support such extravagant nightlife.
Anyone who was heir to a major merchant group or a viscount's second son would definitely be frequenting more luxurious places.
All three were clearly Hugo's subordinates, hastily dressed up and pretending to be nobility.
Since they thought Lucian was an ignorant young noble, they hadn't bothered polishing their roles.
Pretending to be fooled, Lucian took a seat at the empty spot.
"Well then, since we have a new participant, let's start a fresh round."
"As always, I'll serve as referee. But before that…"
Hugo grinned and flicked the cards sharply with his fingers.
At that gesture, the faint traces of mana clinging to the cards dispersed into the air.
"No cheating. A game is only fun when it's fair, don't you think?"
'As expected, he noticed.'
Lucian had been able to dominate the games downstairs thanks to mana-assisted cheating.
He left a slightly different trace of mana on each card, then used light hand techniques in combination with it.
Against ordinary people who couldn't perceive mana, it was basically invincible—but worthless against those who could detect it through proper mana circulation.
Lucian already knew this, but he widened his eyes and pretended to be shocked.
"Then let us begin! I'll deal the cards!"
Satisfied with Lucian's flustered reaction, Hugo started the game.
And as expected, the result was defeat after defeat.
Without using mana tricks, there was no way he could win against actual professional gamblers.
It didn't even take thirty minutes for Lucian to lose every chip he had earned.
"Damn it! This makes no sense! One more round!"
"Young master, you're already out of chips."
"I heard that if one has no chips, it's possible to borrow some."
When Lucian asked the question while feigning hesitation, Hugo grinned widely.
This was the exact moment he had been waiting for.
"Of course it is possible. How much would you like to borrow?"
"As much as possible! Everything you can lend!"
"Hahaha! Bold as always! Here you are!"
How foolish this young master was.
Everything was going so smoothly that Hugo could barely contain his laughter.
The boy probably thought he could turn it all around in one stroke, but all he would gain was a debt no noble allowance could ever repay.
Thinking so, Hugo dealt the cards again.
When the time came to reveal the final hand, Lucian hesitated noticeably.
"Young master, what is the matter? Please show your hand."
"Well, it's just… my hand isn't very good…"
"Good or bad, you must reveal it or the game can't continue. Surely you're not thinking of pretending this round never happened?"
"Do you really have to see it?"
"If the young master is content to end in defeat, there's no issue."
"Haa… I suppose I have no choice. This is my hand."
Pressed by Hugo, Lucian sighed and placed his cards on the table.
They were a meaningless, worthless hand—not a single combination. Hugo was just about to burst into laughter again.
"By the way, how is your drug business going? You've been manufacturing diligently in the underground these days. When do you plan to begin actual distribution?"
"…What?"
Hugo blinked, as if he had been asked what he ate for breakfast.
Lucian, watching his baffled reaction, spoke lightly.
"You were hired by the Marquis of Logran, weren't you? Told to stir up our territory through drug trafficking. Honestly, how petty. To think a marquis would stoop to such back-alley schemes."
"And with the hefty funding you received, you even set up a production site in the neighboring territory. You're quite daring. If you're caught, every noble house around will tear you limb from limb. Hahaha!"
As Lucian's laughter spread through the room, Hugo and the other three froze in place.
The rabbit they believed they had trapped in their mouths had suddenly turned into the reaper himself.