Chapter 331
Returning to the Rabbit Room, I gambled for a little while longer, pretending that nothing had happened.
To be honest, I wanted to go back right away, but I thought I would arouse suspicion if I did.
My prediction was spot on, as Hwang-jo was stealthily watching me from a corner, pretending to be doing something else.
"Agh! Wrong again, wrong again!"
"No, what on earth is wrong? Have you lost all your divine power?"
"How would I know? It just suddenly stopped working after I came back from somewhere."
"Oh dear... in times like these, it's best to take a break."
"I'm so angry that I can't do that. This time, it's odd! ... Oh no! Wrong again!"
After returning from the Green Snake's room, I kept losing at gambling.
Although I could think that it was just my original luck, losing like this is as unnatural as only winning.
So when I raised my senses, I could feel the energy of the Formless Heaven Creation.
Old man Maeng Gwang-gae was making me keep losing.
'It's probably because he wants me to get out of here naturally.'
It is said that there are only two cases where a gambler leaves a gambling house on their own.
The first is when they have lost a huge amount of money.
The second is when they are so unwell that they don't even have the strength to gamble.
It's ridiculous to say that I'm suddenly getting sick now. So he's trying to make me keep losing and get me out of here.
"I can't do this anymore today. Is it because the flow was interrupted in the middle? Or is it because I've been jinxed?"
I deliberately said it so that Hwang-jo could hear.
Although I saw Hwang-jo's eyebrows twitch from afar, I didn't care.
Although he would be angry that I was saying he was jinxed because I had met his master, there was nothing he could do.
"I have to go back today."
"Oh my... are you leaving already?"
"You saw how much money I lost today, didn't you? You said it's also a method to take a break when you only lose like this, right?"
Chun-mong, who had been sticking to my side, smacked his lips as if he were disappointed, even though he had told me to take a break.
"Then I'll also stop here for today."
"Why don't you stay a little longer, Mr. Chun? Just because I'm unlucky doesn't mean you'll be unlucky too, does it?"
"My luck was meeting you here. But since you're leaving today, my luck has run out. Are you planning to come tomorrow too?"
"Of course. I'll go back and rest a bit today, and I'll have to see if my luck has returned tomorrow."
"Then let's go out together. Since we're leaving early, I'll buy you a bowl of makgeolli."
"Why are you suddenly buying me a drink?"
"Well, since I've won a lot of money thanks to you, isn't it the right thing to do as a person to at least give this small reward?"
"Hmm..."
I, trailing off my words, dragged my feet for a moment.
The reason old man Maeng Gwang-gae is trying to send me out is probably because he wants to ask what kind of conversation I had with the Green Snake inside, and whether I succeeded in putting the Manlihyang on her, but if I have a drink with him, that time will be delayed that much.
So I, after waiting for old man Maeng Gwang-gae's reaction for a moment, came up with a good idea.
"Then let's do this. Although I want to rest now, I don't want to just refuse Mr. Chun's offer. How about we decide by gambling, as befits our fate of meeting at a gambling house?"
"What kind of gamble?"
"Let's move to the coin toss again. And let's each bet on a different side. So if I win, we'll stop here for today and meet tomorrow, and if Mr. Chun wins, we'll have a drink together today. How about that?"
"Hahaha! It's a proposal worthy of a god of gambling. I really like it. Let's do that."
I, along with him who had laughed heartily, moved to the coin toss.
In fact, the reason I did this was none other than to give the choice to old man Maeng Gwang-gae.
Because if old man Maeng Gwang-gae had heard my story, he would have performed the Formless Heaven Creation in the direction he wanted.
Since he had said that he wouldn't even use telepathy in this gambling house, I wanted to hear his intention in this way.
"I'll bet on tails."
"Then I'll bet on heads."
We each chose a side and bet only five nyang each, and.
Ting—
"Huh?"
"I won. Haha! Mr. Hwi. It seems today is really not your day."
I was a little surprised.
I thought old man Maeng Gwang-gae would tell me to come right away, but to think he told me to spend time with him.
Although I was puzzled, I, guessing that old man Maeng Gwang-gae had a plan for everything, said, pretending to be really disappointed, "Oh dear... it's not bad to make a new connection like this, but my luck is too much today."
"I know, right. How can the god of gambling be like this?"
"So I wasn't a god of gambling. That's what I'm saying. I've told you several times that I was just lucky, haven't I?"
"But no matter what anyone says, a god of gambling is a god of gambling. It's just that your flow is cut off for a moment. Then let's go out."
"But I don't know any restaurants around here, do you know any?"
"Of course I do. Do you know how long I've been living here? Hahaha!"
He, laughing heartily, walked ahead, and I had no choice but to follow him.
***
Inside the gambling house.
Hwang-jo reported to the Green Snake that Unhwi had left the gambling house.
She, snorting, said, "So. He left right away?"
"Yes. That's right."
"Is it also true that he just kept losing as soon as he left?"
"Yes. His win rate was less than 20%. He kept repeating that he was jinxed, so I was about to say something, but I held it in."
"Geez. What jinx?"
She, after thinking about something for a moment, grinned as if she understood and said, "As expected, that bastard. I don't know what it is, but he was definitely using a trick."
"Why is that?"
"Think about it. Does that win rate make sense unless you're a real god of gambling? And he said he absolutely can't play difficult gambles like mahjong, and only plays very simple things like dice and coins, right? There's definitely some kind of trick. But he might think that I called him not just because I was purely curious, but to warn him that I've noticed he's using a trick."
"Ah... if he feels guilty, that could be the case."
"That's it. So can he use a trick again after going back from here? He doesn't seem to have the guts, and there were no signs of him having learned martial arts. So he didn't use a trick from then on."
"For those reasons, he just kept losing after returning from here."
"That's right. That's exactly what I think."
The Green Snake, with a confident expression as if her words were accurate, continued, "And he's definitely a country bumpkin who's not used to a woman's touch. When I touched his hand earlier, he was so surprised that he grabbed my hand, you know?"
She, as if the situation from a little while ago were amusing, laughed and said, "If he comes again tomorrow, I'll be keeping a close eye on him."
"Yes. I'll also check carefully to see if he's using a trick or not."
"I understand."
Hwang-jo bowed his head deeply and left the room.
The Green Snake, thinking that she had won, chuckled and said to herself, "But his face was my type... should I use his cheating as a pretext and make him my plaything? Hee-hee."
Unhwi would surely never have imagined that she was thinking this.
***
The place Chun-mong took me to was a restaurant near the gambling house.
Although it had no signboard and almost no customers, he boasted to me that this was the best restaurant in the area.
"I'll be right back, I need to use the restroom."
"Go out and turn left, and you'll find it. What kind of food should I order?"
"Order anything. I'm not picky."
"Then I'll order only the most delicious food I've had here. What about the type of alcohol?"
"Order that appropriately too. I don't really care."
"Alright!"
I, leaving him, headed towards the restroom.
When I arrived at the restroom, I didn't go inside, but looked around and waited for someone for a moment.
Then, a person who appeared, performing a stealthy movement technique.
It was old man Maeng Gwang-gae.
"Elder!"
"Shh. Just in case, let's talk telepathically."
—Ah, I see. I'll return this first. And I think I need to wipe off the Manlihyang on my hand.
—I've prepared it.
Maeng Gwang-gae took out a small bottle from his bosom and dropped the contents onto my hand.
He gestured for me to rub my hands, and I diligently rubbed them all over.
Since I couldn't tell if it was wiped off or not, I was staring at him, and Maeng Gwang-gae sent me a telepathic message.
—That's enough. How is it. Did you succeed in putting the Manlihyang on the Green Snake?
—Yes. I put it on her hand. It won't be wiped off by washing her hands, right?
—Yes. Unless you have this special chemical, it won't be wiped off easily. Anyway, what did you talk about inside?
—Surprisingly, it was a story with no nutritional value. Just that she was watching me... it seems to be about that much. She also said that if I go up to the Tiger Room, I can see her freely.
—Hee-hee... She probably thinks you're using some kind of trick. So she might have called you to give you a warning that wasn't a warning.
—Really? I didn't take it as a warning at all.
Maeng Gwang-gae chuckled.
It seemed he was amused by my indifference.
—But, elder. Why did you tell me to eat with that man named Chun-mong?
—Because I don't know who that person is. There's definitely something... something different from ordinary martial artists, but I can't figure out exactly what it is. It was my intention for you to talk with him and find out a little about him.
As expected, old man Maeng Gwang-gae. He already knew that Chun-mong was a slightly unusual person.
—While I was planning to attack this place, I investigated almost all the people who frequent this gambling house. Because they could be a lackey of the Evil Faction Alliance disguised as a customer. But while I was able to find out the past and identity of all the others, as for that person... even with the information network of our Beggars' Sect, I couldn't find out his real identity.
—I see. Then I'll try to have a conversation.
—Good. If you take too long, he will surely think it's strange, so go in quickly.
—Yes. I'll roughly finish up and go back to the inn.
—I understand. I have to go back to the gambling house again. Your senior brothers are still there.
Maeng Gwang-gae said that and then jumped towards the gambling house and disappeared.
I immediately returned to the restaurant.
There were already quite a few dishes on the table.
"Why were you so late? I was about to go and rescue you, thinking you might have fallen into the restroom."
"I'm sorry. I wasn't feeling well because I had been in the basement all this time."
"Then you have to fill it up with good things again. Here, have a drink too."
He also poured me a drink.
Although they say gamblers only drink good alcohol, when I glanced at the liquor bottle, it was a Yeo-a-hong that looked quite old.
I thought he would order something like a cheap liquor.
"I'm buying today, so drink as much as you want. Haha!"
He, laughing heartily, said, and we shared drinks and food for a long time.
Since I don't usually enjoy drinking, I refused a lot and poured him drinks, and quite a bit of time passed.
When the atmosphere was at its peak, I was about to wrap things up.
Because he hadn't said much. He just kept saying 'bottoms up, drink up' and kept talking about trivial things.
"Ahem. It's been quite a while, and we've finished all the food, so how about we call it a day? We have to sleep early to wake up and win money again tomorrow, don't we?"
"......"
But Chun-mong looked at me and didn't answer.
I was thinking that he just wanted to play more, but he slightly opened his mouth.
"But, Mr. Hwi."
"Yes?"
"By any chance, can you tell me what Mr. Hwi's name is?"
"Hey. I told you before, do we really have to exchange names? Just like this..."
"No, I was just thinking that you might be someone I know through a mutual acquaintance."
"Yes? What's that..."
My heart began to pound for a moment.
Could this person. Already know my identity?
"That expression... you're definitely hiding something. Tell me honestly. Is Mr. Hwi's name by any chance..."
Gulp—
As I, swallowing hard without realizing it, was looking at him, Chun-mong stealthily opened his mouth.
"Isn't it Hwi-un?"
"Yes?"
"The Self-Taught Swordsman, Hwi-un. I mean, isn't that Mr. Hwi's real name?"
I, a mixture of surprise and dumbfoundedness, couldn't even speak properly.
Because an unexpected name had come out of his mouth.
(End of Chapter)