By the time they got to their sixth turn of the final round, Harold had calmed down and was less agitated. He knew he had lost the money, and fury would not improve the situation in any way, so he recollected himself to focus on the game.
If he wanted to win the final round, he had to give it his all.
When he scanned the tabletop, he noticed that there werenât a lot of good cards and that he shouldâve dealt with the situation during the previous turns. There were a few cards that he could use, but not enough to form a sequence. At the same time, he checked the card Eugene played, which seemed to be forming a pure sequence.
Slightly unnerved by the situation, he and Michael checked each otherâs cards. It wasnât until he knew that Michael had two cards that could be used to form a pure sequence that he felt more at ease.
You can spend all your time waiting to form a pure sequence. If I manage to form a winning set, I can salvage some of the losses I suffered earlier. Then, Iâll kick Michael away when we settle the accounts, which means I wouldnât be losing that much tonight. Iâll just have to release Terrence and Eugene, and Iâll let Sawyer settle the rest on his own. Iâve looked after Michael for long enough. Itâs time he repays his debt. My dear disciple, this will be your masterâs final lesson for you. Never trust anyone while youâre gambling!
Harold had made up his mind to sacrifice his disciple to save himself.
After taking a look at his hand, Harold noticed that he now had a few cards of the same suits as well as three different suits.
Eugene would definitely stop me from forming a winning set. Heâs currently passively waiting, but heâll never be able to clear his cards in one shot. If heâs solely aiming for a pure sequence, I will definitely win.
Ascertained of the situation, Harold stopped worrying so much as he discarded his cards. Casper hadnât even formed a sequence yet, so he was certain that he could win if he managed to form a winning set before the other two.
Meanwhile, Casper had no idea that the situation had changed and was still figuring that he might be able to form a nice sequence. However, as time went by, the more he felt that something was off. He had yet to combine any of the cards that could determine a definite win.
It wasnât until then that he realized belatedly that someone was trying to form the ultimate winning set.
The heck?
His hands shuddered as he discarded a card because he noticed he had an Ace among his cards. If one of the players were trying to form a winning set, he would have the remaining three Aces.
A rough calculation indicated that that person could likely win a total of two hundred and seventy million.
âD*mn!â Casper shot up from his seat while looking at Eugene and Harold, knowing that either of the two would have a winning set.
Why didnât Eugene give me any tips? What if we lose the game?
After some consideration, Casper figured that even if Eugene might be the one aiming for the winning set, he shouldnât discard his Ace either.
Thus, he ended up laying three random cards. Since neither of the other players reacted, he supposed he was safe.
Casper was the third person, while Harold was the fourth, so it was Haroldâs turn after his. Without hesitating, Harold laid down a sequence.
âGame over,â said Eugene all of a sudden.
âHuh?â Casper didnât hear him clearly.
âItâs over.â
As Eugene lit a cigarette, his serious expression had given way to a casual one.
âAre you faking this?â Harold snickered. âYou canât frighten me.â
Instead of speaking, Eugene spread his cards out to reveal all of them.
âA pure sequence and two impure sequences.â
Harold had a look of disbelief on his face. âThis is impossible! How could you have three of that card?â
All of a sudden, he seemed to have realized something as he stood and turned to yell at Michael, âYou d*mn brat! Did you lie to me?â
Michael was also wearing an impassive look on his face as he faced Harold. âLetâs call this even, Master. Not only would I have gotten nothing if you had won, but you would have also kicked me away if you had lost! Do I look like a fool?â
While Harold was enraged, Eugene said, âThe game has ended, Harold. Please calculate our earnings.â
âDonât you dare do anything fishy. Pay up everything that youâve lost,â Casper demanded. For securityâs sake, he took out his gun and unlocked it.
All the while, Haroldâs face contorted with anger. Although he wanted to go back on his word, there was a grenade and handgun in front of him. Between his own life and money, he ended up choosing the former.
With Michaelâs betrayal and the fact that Harold never intended to pay him anyway, they only had to calculate how much Harold lost to them because Casper and Eugene were a team.
During the final four rounds, Casper won the first round, so Harold owed him sixty million. During the second round, Haroldâs move helped Eugene win, so he owed the latter sixty million. Eugene won during the third round, so Harold owed him seventy million.
However, the fourth round was when Harold lost the most money. He helped Eugene form a pure sequence, losing to the latter a whopping six hundred forty million.
After deducting Terrenceâs debt of twenty-five million and the chips worth twenty million that Horington Casino lent to Casper, Harold lost a total of seven hundred eighty-five million.
âOh, I should be paying you a million, so the total will be seven hundred eighty-four million.â
Eugene was even merciful enough to give Harold a discount of a million.
âDoes this guy have this much savings? Will he even pay us obediently?â
Casper was a little worried when he noticed that the staff of Horington Casino around them had placed their fingers on the triggers of their guns.
Eugene stood up and cried, âHmph! Theyâre nothing but dogs! We donât have to fear them now that their master has collapsed. Why would they want to engage in a gunfight with you when the customers of Horington Casino are still around? Donât make me laugh! Theyâre delighted to witness this old guyâs fall! According to the rules, your boss lost more than seven hundred million to us, so this gambling resort is officially bankrupt. You can step up now if you still wish to fight for this old guy. However, those who are delighted can come to the ground floor and clap their hands. Whoever claps the loudest will be offered one million.â
What happened next made Casperâs jaw drop. Eighty percent of Horington Casinoâs staff came to the ground floor to clap. The cacophony managed to even make the tables tremble slightly.
âF*cking hell.â
Casper wasnât sure what to say about those people, so he could only swear to express his astonishment.
âThis is an age where wealth dictates everything.â Eugene snatched Haroldâs cane away from him. âGo on. Show us the way to your tiny vault. All gamblers are the same and will never trust banks. They must have stashed their cash away.â
âBefore that, letâs take everything to the counter where people exchange their chips for money on the ground floor,â Casper suggested.
Both of them dragged Harold, who was drained of all strength, along to the counter on the ground floor.
There was still some thirty million in cash. Casper scratched his head as he thought about calling his subordinates to come and retrieve the money, but his phone was left outside.
At that moment, Michael handed Casperâs phone back to him smilingly, seemingly having just taken it from where it was kept.
Casper glanced at him in surprise. Despite feelings of disdain toward the latter, he praised, âNot bad.
You have a keen eye.â
After making the call, the other customers walked up to them. They wanted to return their chips and leave the place as soon as possible.
Those customers were all privileged in some sense, so Casper figured he should best not offend them.
After taking a look at the thirty million on the floor, he instructed Gunther and two gunmen to exchange the chips the customers held with the cash and put the remaining cash away if there were any left.
What followed was the most important part. The men of Firewolf Chamber of Commerce rushed into the space, after which Casper led them to the third floor. There were a few rooms over there that were either used for illegal gambling or money laundering, a surveillance room, as well as Haroldâs office.
Although Harold kept on throwing a hissy fit along the way, it didnât work on someone as heartless as Eugene. In the end, Harold was forced to unlock his vault behind a hidden door. Casper estimated that there should be ninety million worth of cash, gold, and diamonds.
Is that all? Casper heaved a sigh mentally, thinking that they perhaps wouldnât be able to get back the full amount Harold owed them. I think he might have purchased a yacht or stored more cash at home.
âProfessional gamblers would only spend a tenth of their money on here. There must be more,â said Eugene.
After spending another ten minutes dealing with Harold, Eugene finally managed to pry the location of the second safe out of him. Casper nodded internally. Cunning people always have a backup plan for everything. Itâs expected of this sly fox to have two secret vaults.
There was a lot more loot in the second vault. There was almost twenty million worth of cash, a few passbooks, and stock receipts.
âDidnât you say gamblers donât trust in these? Why does he have so many of them?â Casper made a rough calculation. Damn! This is worth around six hundred million. Harold is capable of making money.
âBoth parties are merely using each other,â Eugene replied after a brief pause.
Upon listening to Eugeneâs words, Casper couldnât help but feel like the former sounded rather proud.