The Assassin's Seven Principles of Manipulation

Chapter 172: Chapter 169 — Wheel

The one who began the round had the opportunity to set the mood of the entire game. Since they decided the amount to wager based on the minimum, the other players would then choose whether or not to join the round.

Right now, Forn had just given Zephyrion the chance to begin.

Zephyrion reached into his sack, pulled out twenty gold coins, and set them on the table.

”Twenty.”

Forn flashed a toothy grin, then casually matched it. Across the table, the others also placed the same amount. Then Forn gestured to the man in charge of the outlet roulette.

”Roll.”

The man rolled it.

As it spun rapidly, Forn leaned back slightly and stared at Zephyrion with amusement.

”Your move.”

Zephyrion fell silent. The numbers on the roulette went from one to a hundred, divided into multiple columns and rows. Given its speed and the force of the spin, determining where the ball would land was almost impossible.

”Ten,” Zephyrion said a moment later.

”Hmm... ten...” Forn rubbed his chin dramatically before grinning. ”Then I’ll go with... thirty-one.”

Others echoed their chosen numbers across the table. As the seconds passed, the roulette slowed. The clinking sound of the ball skipping across its surface became more pronounced until, eventually, it stopped, the ball settling on the number thirty-three.

”Haha!” Forn slammed the table with a loud smack. ”Good! Good! Did you all see that? First round and the king already cleans house!”

”Yes boss, nobody does it like you!”

”At this point we should just hand you the money directly haha!”

”...”

Forn dragged the pile of gold toward himself, accepting the accolades with glee. Then he looked at the silent Zephyrion, his excitement growing.

”I’ll let you start again, kid. Maybe luck’ll pity you this time.”

Zephyrion said nothing. Instead, he simply reached into his bag and took out another twenty gold.

”Twenty.”

Forn grinned. ”Haha, this guy’s serious. Alright then, I stake.”

Oh, what luck he had.

Unlike what he had told Zephyrion, their minimum had actually been one gold coin, not twenty. And most of the coins on the table had belonged to him to begin with. He had only been playing with his men to enjoy the thrill of gambling.

But to think some random cloaked figure would walk up to their table, willing to throw away such a large sum of money.

Forn would not be the greedy man he proudly believed himself to be if he let this opportunity slip by.

He tossed in another twenty gold coins.

As the roulette wheel spun once more, Zephyrion made his choice.

”Ten.”

Forn chuckled under his breath. This time, he allowed the others to choose first before finally leaning back in his seat.

”Forty.”

The wheel gradually slowed before the ball finally settled on thirty-seven. Forty was the closest number.

”Haha... again! Again!” Forn barked out another booming laugh as he dragged the gold toward himself. ”This is too good! At this rate my descendants are gonna be born unlucky from how much fortune I’m using today!”

Another wave of praise immediately followed from the others at the table.

”Boss is terrifying.”

”Nah, forget terrifying. This is straight-up robbery haha!”

”Another round.” Forn waved casually toward Zephyrion. ”Come on, kid, don’t tell me your spirit’s already broken.”

Without a word, Zephyrion reached into his sack and pulled out another twenty gold coins.

”Twenty.”

”Haha, good! That’s what I’m talking about. The kid’s addicted now.”

Forn immediately matched it.

The wheel rolled again.

”Ten.”

”Thirty-five!”

The ball stopped on thirty-one.

”Hahaha! This is gold! Pure gold!” Forn wheezed with laughter as he slammed the table again. ”Look at this poor bastard donating his life savings to me one round at a time!”

He leaned forward with a grin so wide it almost looked deranged.

”You get it now, kid? This table ain’t for little pups. You’re gambling with the king himself. You sit at my table, you leave lighter than you came. Ain’t that right, boys?”

”Haha! Boss is farming him alive!”

”At this point the kid should just hand over the sack and save time!”

The others joined in on the laughter, throwing mocking looks toward Zephyrion.

”...”

Forn’s grin slowly faded into something thinner.

”What’s wrong?” Forn smirked as Zephyrion remained silent. ”Lost so much money your soul left your body? Haha, don’t tell me I bullied the words outta you—”

Bam.

Forn blinked.

A sack of gold now sat in the middle of the table. Zephyrion’s last remaining coins.

Slowly, Forn turned toward him.

”Forty,” Zephyrion said calmly.

His tone remained so flat and unaffected that no one would believe he had just lost sixty gold coins back to back.

”Hah... amazing. I like you, kid.” He chuckled deeply. ”Fine then. I stake.”

He gestured for the others at the table to throw in wagers as well, if only for the fun of it. The kid was about to lose everything anyway.

Then the wheel rolled.

”Ten.”

Forn glanced toward the man handling the wheel before letting out a low chuckle.

”Fifty.”

The others also placed their bets. A few moments later, the wheel slowed to a stop, the ball settling on the number eight.

A vein twitched near Forn’s eye.

”Impossible...” he muttered quietly, turning toward the wheel handler with a look sharp enough to skin flesh. The man swallowed hard, staring at the roulette like it had betrayed his ancestors.

”I win.”

Silence instantly swallowed the table.

Zephyrion calmly pulled the pile of gold toward himself while the surrounding men slowly lost the amusement in their faces.

”Hah...” Forn forced out a laugh, though the smile barely remained now. ”Looks like luck finally kissed you once, huh?” His eyes narrowed slightly. ”But surely... you’re not thinking of ending the fun already?”

There was a dangerous edge beneath his voice. It wasn’t a question, nor a suggestion.

It was a threat.

However, Zephyrion didn’t react in the slightest.

”No.”

As he spoke, he pushed the entire pile of gold back to the center of the table.

”Two hundred.”

”Boss, that’s—”

Forn silenced the man instantly with a single look.

Then he turned back toward Zephyrion, silently studying him as the fiendish glint in his eyes deepened further.

”...Buck,” he called.

”Yes, boss.”

”Go bring me two hundred.”

Buck’s expression changed immediately.

”B-boss... that’s basically everythi—”

”Buck.”

Buck immediately stiffened beneath Forn’s icy stare.

”Now.”

”...Right away, boss!”

Buck hurried through a door directly behind Forn. A moment later, he returned carrying a large sack before quickly handing it over.

Bam.

Forn slammed it onto the table, then fixed Zephyrion with a hard stare.

”I stake.”

This time, no one else at the table joined in.

It wasn’t that they didn’t want to. After all, the more people staking, the greater the chances of winning. However, two hundred gold coins was simply an absurd amount, far beyond what any of them could afford.

With the stakes set, Forn shot the wheel spinner a brief look.

All this while, the man had been feeding him tips. As the one controlling the wheel, he decided the force and speed of each spin and, after years of doing this, could predict almost exactly where the ball would land. The reason Forn had gradually increased his numbers each round was simply to avoid looking suspicious.

Now, however, the warning in Forn’s eyes was unmistakable.

If he failed this round, he wouldn’t survive it.

The wheel spinner swallowed hard before giving a faint nod. A moment later, he spun the wheel.

”Ten.”

Forn waited quietly. Then he glanced toward the wheeler again.

The man subtly gestured twenty-five. This time, Forn didn’t bother adding anything to it.

”Twenty-five.”

The wheel slowed. Then stopped.