novelraw Chapter 148 : An Old Grudge
Chapter 148 : An Old Grudge
Chapter 148: An Old Grudge
Thud!
Two bamboo dice shakers clattered roughly onto the floor.
A gambler from the Man Geum Trading Post stared at me with tense eyes, beads of cold sweat forming on his face.
After five consecutive losses, his composure had long since worn thin.
“...Which shaker would you like to open?”
“Mine.”
Here at the Man Geum Trading Post, the game started by opening one party’s shaker and placing bets accordingly.
When the gambler opened mine, the three dice revealed themselves: six, five, five.
If someone unfamiliar had walked in, they might’ve wagered a fortune on such a high roll.
But not me.
Srrrk.
A red palm slipped past the screen concealing the opponent’s shaker and gestured discreetly at me.
‘Six... Six... Five...’
A razor-thin margin. The opponent’s total was just one point higher than mine.
In other words, he’d rigged the round to bait me. Like a game of Seotda, he'd handed me a “Nine” to inflate the pot, only to sweep it all with his “Ten.”
Typical of the seasoned tricksters at Man Geum Trading Post.
“Mujin, those are good numbers. Why aren’t you betting?” Jo Harang whispered eagerly beside me, eyes sparkling. It seemed the rare dice roll had stirred her impatience.
I’d brought her along wearing a human-skin mask to play the crowd, but she wasn’t proving all that helpful.
Definitely the type who should never gamble. She’d come back stripped clean like that sucker from the Peng Clan.
“I’ll pass this round.”
I grinned as I folded instead of betting.
“Tch.”
The gambler clenched his jaw in frustration, as if he knew I’d seen through his trap.
“What’s wrong? You should open your shaker too.”
With reluctance, he lifted the lid in front of everyone, revealing his dice.
The spectators erupted with astonishment.
“Whoa, just one point difference?”
“Would’ve been a disaster if he went in!”
“That guy’s got insane self-control.”
By now, a crowd had gathered like clouds to watch our gamble.
Seeing a Man Geum gambler get wrecked was a rare spectacle.
Especially when I’d borrowed money from Eun Hwaran to raise the stakes—no wonder people flocked to watch.
“Alright, let’s shake again.”
“...Hmm.”
Maybe convinced now that I wasn’t some clueless noble, the gambler groaned and hesitated.
This wasn’t luck anymore—it was a battle of skill.
Pressured by jeers from the crowd to get on with it, he reluctantly began shaking the dice again.
Clack-clack.
The dice rattled inside the bamboo tube.
But perhaps due to his nerves, he made a mistake—the dice inside spun one extra turn.
And that one last spin turned a six into a one.
“Shit.”
He stared down at the shaker he’d slammed down too late, hoping I hadn’t noticed.
But I already had.
Because, well, I had something ghost-like clinging to me, after all.
‘That bastard... messed up.’
This dice game was like blackjack—a player versus the house.
So, players didn’t fleece each other; it was one-on-one against the dealer.
And the Man Geum Trading Post’s pro gambler was now sweating bullets.
“I’m all in.”
I crushed his hope with a clean, ruthless declaration.
I shoved a mound of silver and gold coins forward with both hands.
Gasps rang out from the crowd, and the gambler’s face turned pale.
“W-Wait a second!”
“Wait for what? The dice are already cast.”
Once the shaker’s down, the rules forbid backing out.
That illusion of 50-50 odds was what lured so many into ruin in this game.
But today was different. Bring in all the tricksters you want.
No matter how expertly you fiddle those dice, it’s all useless in front of Salsung.
Being able to see through the shakers—that’s the ultimate con.
‘Heh heh.’
‘Huh... hehe.’
The two of us couldn’t help but laugh as we watched the gambler turn ghost-white.
At first, he’d smirked, thinking I was just some ignorant noble. Now, his face was full of dread.
“Hey! What do you mean wait! The shaker’s already down!”
“Yeah, open it already! That’s the rule, ain’t it?”
“What, are you saying he can see inside the shaker or something?! What the hell?!”
Anyone who’d gambled at this place had been scammed by one of Man Geum’s pros at least once.
So naturally, no one in the crowd was on his side.
Instead, they raised their voices, urging him to reveal the dice.
“Tch...”
In the end, the gambler had no choice but to lift the shaker with trembling hands.
And in front of everyone, the result was revealed.
Six, one. Versus six, five, five.
His final mistake cost him dearly. A one-point difference—and I’d won.
“Whoooo!”
“He actually did it! Beat that damned gambler!”
“When’s the last time anyone saw this happen?!”
The gambling hall erupted. Cheers and chaos exploded all around.
These were all people who had once lost big here. Addicts who returned night after night, knowing they’d lose.
All the frustration they’d bottled up burst out with my victory.
“Boss! Are we rich now?!”
“Is it true?! Are we eating meat dumplings every day from now on?!”
I’d told them to hype the crowd, but the office workers were losing their minds like the rest.
Just watching seemed to flood them with dopamine. Seriously, those two must never gamble.
“Bring the money! Right now, Man Geum bastards!”
“Yeah, your warehouse is stuffed with gold, ain’t it?!”
People shouted furiously.
Using me as their champion, they were venting their long-held grudges against the Man Geum Trading Post.
“You, you! What scam are you pulling?! How could you act like you saw inside the shaker...?!”
The gambler, overwhelmed by the shock of defeat, shot to his feet and grabbed me by the collar, shouting his denial of reality.
“Do you have proof?!”
The same cry of "cheater!" that losers always screamed in the gambling den.
But every time that happened, Man Geum Trading Post would just scoff and slam the poor sap to the ground.
Now, that very same cry was coming from one of their own gamblers.
The surrounding spectators wore schadenfreude-filled grins.
“I-I may not have proof, but I’m sure he saw inside the shaker...!”
“Oh ho! You accuse a man of cheating with no evidence?”
“This gambling den’s no damn good!”
“Take a win from them, and suddenly you’re a scammer?!”
Sharp jeers flew from all directions, and the gambler was left floundering, speechless.
Even the treasurer from the Trading Post, who normally handled payouts, was visibly flustered, glancing back and forth between us.
When he hesitated and failed to bring out the money, the gamblers surrounding him began to rage like a stormy sea.
Overwhelmed by the growing anger, the treasurer finally gave in and dropped double the original sum in front of me.
Thud.
“Whoa...”
A soft glow radiated from the pile of gold and silver before me—it looked like a small hill made of treasure.
The sight alone drew gasps of awe from me.
Gulp.
Envious stares poured in from every direction.
The moment they saw the cash, even those who had taken my side began to shift. Their eyes flickered, no longer warm with support but tinged with jealousy and envy.
‘Yeah... this is it…’
The air of the gambling den churned with raw malice and sticky greed.
Salsung seemed pleased, his ghostly hand twitching with mirth at the sight of these filthy human emotions.
That thing getting excited only made me feel worse.
“Everyone, don’t worry. Do you really think I’d just keep it all for myself?”
After all, this was money won by cheating the cheaters.
And today, I’d come here with the goal of bringing this gambling den down. So, I declared I’d only take half and began passing out small shares to the crowd.
When I added that I’d cover drinks and food in my name, smiles bloomed across their faces.
“Ahaha, that young man! He knows what he’s doing!”
“A real man of principle, that one!”
“With that kind of character, he should be the one winning big!”
The crowd's sentiment fully turned to my favor. Though the gambler continued trying to paint me as a scammer, no one paid him any mind.
Instead, they fiercely defended me, telling him to shut his mouth.
Meanwhile, Salsung grew visibly annoyed by my generosity.
He probably wanted me to lean harder into greed.
“Boss, can I get a share too?”
“Mujin, I’ve been down bad lately…”
“Snap out of it, you fools.”
Did they think we were actually here to gamble? We came here for a job, remember?
These two were way too susceptible to the mood.
“Stop right there—!”
Suddenly, shouts rang out amidst the commotion.
Man Geum Trading Post’s martial artists came rushing over, along with a middle-aged man whose goat-like beard made him stand out.
Clearly alarmed at the sight of the hefty payout, the goat-bearded man rushed between me and the gambler.
“Hmm...?”
Something about his face felt familiar. I narrowed my eyes.
Then, a vague memory began to surface.
“Ah!”
The very first day I arrived in Beijing—he was the wretched merchant who taught me how cruel the Central Plains could be.
That was the day I headbutted him like a wild roe deer and pretended to be his son to swindle money out of him.
“You’re Chief Steward Bang?”
“What’s he doing here…?”
Judging by the murmurs around me, he wasn’t just some merchant—he was the Chief Steward of this place.
Apparently, his name was Bang Sobyuk.
“What’s the meaning of this! Who are you, and why are you causing such chaos?!”
But the man didn’t seem to recognize me, even though I was standing right in front of him.
Back then, I’d been a filthy-haired street brat. Now I was a clean-cut youth wearing the Headband of Heroes—understandable he wouldn’t connect the two.
“Are you the one overseeing this gambling hall, Chief Steward Bang?”
Suddenly, I understood why fate had led me here.
Despite his high position, this bastard had been preying on vagrants out of sheer malice.
What a twisted piece of work.
“Yes, I am Chief Steward Bang. And who exactly are you?”
“Just a passing noble with time to kill.”
I kept up the act of a young master from a wealthy family, shrugging with nonchalance.
“Hmph, unlikely. I heard our gambler claim you were cheating. Confess your tricks! Otherwise...”
As always, the tip of his goat beard trembled when he got angry.
No sooner had he spoken than the Man Geum martial artists closed in around us with menacing expressions.
And the crowd—seeing this—erupted in fury.
“You bastards! So now every win is cheating?!”
“When we called out dice scams, you all just sneered!”
“But when we win money, it’s suddenly ‘not ours’?! Is that it!?”
Seems those small shares I handed out had the desired effect.
Everyone who’d received my money or drinks now turned into loyal attack dogs, tearing into him.
Each one voiced their own long-harbored complaints.
A storm of jeers echoed from every corner.
“Silence! No one said we wouldn’t pay up!”
The folks in this gambling den might be gamblers, but they weren’t broke. Some had serious wealth and influence.
If they started spreading rumors like “Man Geum Trading Post cheats winners,” the establishment’s reputation would nosedive.
Knowing that, Chief Steward Bang clenched his teeth and shouted:
“We’ll pay! But that man’s conduct is suspicious! In order to clear any doubts, he must play a few more rounds!”
He jabbed his finger at me with eyes blazing.
Determined to expose me as a cheater. Laughable, considering they were the ones cheating first.
“I’ve got nothing to hide. But are you ready? Your gambler’s luck hasn’t been so great, you know?”
I hadn’t used a single trick. There was nothing they could catch me on.
And with Salsung on my side, they had no chance of winning my money back.
“You arrogant brat... No need to worry. I’ve brought in a new gambler.”
A man stepped forward from behind Chief Steward Bang, having kept his head lowered until now.
A sallow complexion, hollow eyes like a wraith, and a gleaming, sinister gaze.
“Th-The Gambling Ghost (Do-Gwi)! It’s the Gambling Ghost!”
“Why’s he with the Man Geum Trading Post...?!”
The crowd buzzed in stunned murmurs. Seemed he was infamous in these parts.
The Gambling Ghost smirked at me and motioned to the martial artists nearby.
“Boys, better prep the cutting board.”
After all, the rule here was—anyone caught cheating loses a hand.
And now, a cruel chopping device was being brought between the two of us.