Chapter 204: Despair Casino (2)
Ji Ning didn't rush to start gambling. Instead, she strolled around the main hall first, hoping to meet up with Song Weiyang.
Song Weiyang was also looking for her, and the two quickly found each other.
Seeing how formally the other guests were dressed, this casino clearly had an image-based entry standard. So the system had outfitted Song Weiyang in a white dress shirt, suspender trousers, and a tiny printed grayish-pink bow tie at his neck.
The outfit made him look lethally sweet. Ji Ning felt like tossing him a few chips as a tip just for being so nice to look at.
Song Weiyang spotted Ji Ning and immediately broke into a grin, his little dimples bright and dazzling.
He restrained himself from taking too-large strides. Pretending to casually hit on her, he sidled up next to Ji Ning and stood with her to watch others bet on points.
"Big sister, you're so pretty." He tilted his head and said to her.
Ji Ning pursed her lips in a smile. "Thanks for the compliment, handsome."
In front of them was a dice-betting table. The most common and simplest form of wagering, a game called Sic Bo.
The two of them figured they'd watch the excitement for a bit, so they stood shoulder to shoulder at the corner of the table, observing.
The dealer held a dice cup and three dice. Guests could place their chips on any betting area of the table before the round started; different bets had different payout odds.
Here you could bet on a single number, a two-number combination, a three-number combination, Big or Small, as well as a specific double, any triple, and a specific triple.
The posted odds chart to the side listed the lowest payout as 1 to 1, for betting on a single number or on Big/Small. The highest payout was 150 to 1, achieved by correctly betting on a specific triple.
Ji Ning knew this one: a 1-to-1 payout meant you neither lost nor gained; you just got back what you put in. But 150 to 1—if you hit that insane payout, a ten-thousand bet would bring back one and a half million. Bet a hundred thousand, and you'd get back fifteen million!
Just thinking about that staggering contrast made her heart race. If she actually hit that, wouldn't the Clearance Condition be completed in one go?
But the gambler's fallacy was a trap. Three dice all landing on the same number was already rare, a 1-in-36 probability. And that wasn't even factoring in betting on the exact correct triple, which added another 1-in-6 on top of the 1-in-36. That made it a 1-in-216 probability. It really was something you could only fantasize about.
Ji Ning shook her head, certain she didn't have that kind of luck.
"Big sister, want to give it a try?" Song Weiyang asked her softly.
Ji Ning turned her head, tilting her face up to meet Song Weiyang's downward-crinkled smiling eyes, and nodded firmly.
She didn't understand anything here, so she'd start by testing the waters at the simplest tables.
Ji Ning decided to begin with the lowest-risk option: betting on Big or Small. After observing five rounds, she noted that two had been Small, with totals from 4 to 10, and three had been Big, with totals from 11 to 17.
Going by the psychological 50/50 split of a coin flip, Ji Ning placed ten black chips on Small, which equaled a thousand-credit bet.
When the dealer opened the cup, the three dice showed 2, 6, and 1—a total of 9, Small.
Ji Ning beamed, delighted, and took her ten original chips right back.
It didn't matter that she hadn't made any money. To Ji Ning, this move was like being in a game's starter village: she absolutely needed a no-failure start to have the courage and confidence to keep playing.
With her first win secured, she was ready to take a small gamble next.
Ji Ning scanned the odds chart and chose the two-number combination bet, which paid 6 to 1.
This time, she would deploy her mystical addition-subtraction method.
Since her lucky number and Survival Game number were both 6, 6 would be the first digit. Because this was her second bet, she subtracted 2 from 6, getting the first number: 4.
Song Weiyang's number beside her was 7. Subtract 6 from 7 to get the second number: 1.
Ji Ning still didn't dare bet too much. She once again placed ten black chips, betting on the two-number combination of 4 and 1.
The probability of hitting this wasn't actually high, but Ji Ning had a really good feeling right now, a premonition she wouldn't walk away empty-handed.
Even Song Weiyang beside her looked nervous. The NPC onlookers at this table noticed someone betting on a two-number combination and started paying attention to Ji Ning as well.
The young dealer closed the dice cup, his hand shaking in a blur of motion. After several rounds, he slammed the cup onto the table with a thud, then slowly lifted it.
Two of the dice near the center quickly stopped spinning, their upward faces showing 1 and 3. But the third die, having bounced off the cup wall, was still turning.
A 1 was already there. The small crowd held their breath, staring fixedly at the die still rotating in tiny increments.
Just as the blue 3 seemed about to settle as the top face, the die flipped one more side with its remaining momentum. A vivid red 4 stared up at them.
"Whoa!"
"She hit it!"
The onlookers around the table erupted in exclamations, even more excited than if they'd won themselves.
The fervent atmosphere at this Sic Bo table stood out amid the clamor of the entire hall, instantly drawing many gazes.
Ji Ning was overjoyed too, scooping up the six-times chip reward the dealer pushed toward her.
She had bet ten black chips and received an additional five yellow chips, earning five thousand credits.
"If only she'd bet a hundred thousand on that…"
"Yeah, such a hot hand and she chickened out. What a waste."
People nearby were chattering, but Ji Ning ignored all of it, refusing to let it get to her.
From the moment she'd stepped in here, she had constantly reminded herself: "Don't regret losing; don't regret winning either." After all, what she was gambling wasn't money—it was her life. If her mindset got shaken, how could she complete the mission?
Song Weiyang had watched the whole process, even happier than Ji Ning. His eyes curved into crescent moons. "You're amazing, big sister. Teach me, I want to win money too."
Although Song Weiyang hadn't made a move yet, Ji Ning could tell from his demeanor that he was far steadier than her and didn't seem like a novice. He'd probably seen these things in online games.
Saying this was just an excuse so they could act together.
Ji Ning nodded with tacit understanding. "Sure, let's go check out something else then."
Seeing Ji Ning about to leave, someone seated at the gambling table spoke up to engage her. "With luck that good, not going for a bigger one?"
"No thanks." Ji Ning shook her head, lifting her own case. "This is my last bit of money. I can't afford to lose." She underscored her cover identity.
"You hit a two-number combination. Won't you try a specific triple? The payout's 24 to 1." A clear, pleasant male voice rang out from behind them.
Ji Ning and Song Weiyang turned around together. One looked surprised; the other frowned.
Yan Qiao seemed not to notice Song Weiyang's resistance to him, offering a relaxed, faint smile.
Ji Ning only now noticed he had two sharp canine teeth, and on the cartilage of his right ear he wore a matte black ear stud of irregular shape and indistinguishable material.
It made him seem dangerous even while smiling, keeping others from letting their guard down.
Livestream comments:
"Battle of Light and Night!"
"The puppy's busy flirting, and the little wolf sidles up: What flavor are you eating? I want a taste too."
"Sun Dog: Lemon flavor. Sour. Go away."
"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!"
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