Free Web NovelWe had gathered the basic intel needed to scoop up over a thousand coins in the Body Casino.
Preparations complete, it was time to make the attempt.
“...Hoo.”
The low-quality sound of jazz echoed through the underground casino.
The visitor to the Body Casino steadied his breath and stepped forward.
[It begins.]
Yes.
“Hello, dealer!”
First, he sat down at a dealer room table.
But the table he chose wasn’t the one with Deputy Lee Seonghae’s head attached—it was a different dealer with an unfamiliar face.
He could feel Deputy Lee Seonghae’s gaze from afar, but he forced himself not to notice.
“Greetings, visitor. Will you begin betting?”
The visitor smiled politely at the unfamiliar dealer.
“Yep. Let’s bet. Can we play the first card game we were introduced to? The one where you guess the card?”
“Of course. We’ll proceed with the ‘clairvoyance game.’”
The dealer, kindly, spoke to the seated visitor, then shuffled the deck of cards with dazzling skill and spread them out.
“Oh, I’ll go with this one.”
The visitor picked a card.
A simple game: guess the suit or the number.
“I’ll bet 3 coins on hearts.”
“Confirmed.”
But he lost.
The card was the seven of spades.
Three coins gone.
“Close one. Another round!”
“Yes. Bet confirmed.”
And so the game repeated.
The visitor bet the minimum, sometimes winning, sometimes losing.
Then, once in a while—
“This time I’ll bet thirty coins. I have a good feeling.”
He went big.
And—
“You lost the bet.”
“Ugh!”
He lost big.
But one in three or four times, he’d hit and win.
“Nice!”
In this way, the flow of coins rose and fell, his winnings manipulated to swing wildly.
Coins piled up high on the table—easily more than a hundred—but his actual “war chest” was already halved from the start.
Then, after more than an hour—
[Now’s the moment.]
“Will you bet?”
“Hmmm....”
As if utterly immersed, the visitor reached out—
And pushed all the coins forward.
Clatter, roll—
Clink.
Under the dim glow of old bulbs, the coins gleamed. The dealer of legend, catching even the last rolling coin, asked with shining eyes:
“You’re betting a total of 113 coins?”
[Oh-ho.]
“Yes, let’s go for it.”
“Then, please choose a card.”
The visitor, just as casually, pointed at one of the spread cards.
“This one.”
“Confirmed.”
The dealer picked up the card.
The visitor’s eyes flashed strangely for a moment, then he masked it.
And then:
“...I’ll bet on seven.”
“...!”
The dealer’s face didn’t change, but his movements slowed subtly.
“Confirmed.”
He flipped the card—
“The seven of spades.”
Jackpot.
“...Bet successful.”
“...!!”
“Your winnings will be paid out.”
From beneath the table poured an overwhelming torrent of coins.
“Nine hundred and four coins.”
Under the table, the visitor briefly clenched his fist tight, then released it.
In one stroke, he had earned nearly 999 coins.
[Congratulations, my friend! You’ve done it!]
Yes.
And of course, this wasn’t luck.
He chose it knowing.
The seven of spades.
Because he already knew what was printed on the face of that card.
No, he hadn’t gained clairvoyant powers. We hadn’t used any trickery beyond the casino’s own conditions.
It was simply—
Those conditions had a flaw.
That flaw was...
The decrepit facilities!
They’re worn out.
The walls, the bulbs, the slot machines, even the dealer room tables—all worn down, almost abandoned.
Eerie, yes, but it also created conditions different from any normal casino.
Namely: the game pieces themselves were old.
For example—
The playing cards.
Normally, the backs of cards are identical—mass-produced, indistinguishable.
But with age, that changes.
They develop markers.
Tiny stains, scratches, creases.
When light reflected just right, faint signs of wear revealed distinctions that let you tell them apart.
So we had decided—
—In the first game, pick the card whose back has the most visible “mark.”
This time, that was the seven of spades.
Perhaps he had caught the faint glimmer of a forked scratch reflecting in the light.
So he confirmed the face, stored it away—
And waited.
Then—
—After enough time passes that suspicion fades, find that same card again and bet.
Trigger the jackpot.
Of course, the scratches were faint, nearly impossible to distinguish with the naked eye.
But in our group, someone was perfectly suited.
“Haha! Another hit!”
Agent Choi.
His observational powers could distinguish people by bone structure and veins alone. His memory was sharp.
He even had a habit of memorizing.
—Ah~ A good ◆ Nоvеlіgһt ◆ (Only on Nоvеlіgһt) civil servant shouldn’t gamble, but... what can you do? Fine. Leave it to me.
And so, without batting an eye, with perfect composure, he had been gambling all along.
And thus—
“Ah~ That’s the stuff.”
Success.
[Indeed, there was a real case of gamblers using similar tricks to win fortunes in casinos!]
[Of course, in that case, they exploited a printing flaw on the card backs!]
Right. In real casinos, they change the deck daily to prevent this.
But in this ghost story casino, defined by worn-out things, the trick worked.
“Our current holdings: 924 coins.”
“...Okay.”
Smooth progress.
I sat beside Agent Choi at the table, peering in as if fascinated by the swelling stakes.
One more careful round.
We’d crafted a scenario natural enough to avoid notice.
“Riding the flow, let’s keep going—”
“Visitor.”
......
My stiff neck turned.
“You’re using an amusing method, aren’t you?”
Deputy Lee Seonghae’s face leaned in close, staring at us.
Piercing.
Grinning.
“The same method I used as a visitor.”
“...!”
“You’re memorizing the scratches on the card backs to learn the suits and numbers, aren’t you?”
The dealer ran his mismatched fingers—an index from one hand, a middle finger from another—across the card backs.
My blood froze.
“And once a trick is exposed, it can never pay again.”
Damn it.
[Ah, yes, I recall the sad end of that tale as well.]
[That professional gambler was sued and lost all 16 billion won he had won. Oh, the cruelty of casinos!]
“...I don’t know what you’re talking about. Do you have proof?”
“That’s right, Podo! This casino’s terrifying. You win a little and they accuse you of cheating. How are we supposed to play like this? My back’s dripping sweat.”
“......”
“No proof, right?”
The dealer lifted his hand from the cards.
“You’re right.”
But I couldn’t relax. Because—
“Then, shall we continue the game?”
The dealer, wearing Lee Seonghae’s head, shoved aside the previous dealer and took his place.
As host.
“You’re not going to run away, are you? Suspiciously?”
“......”
“Excellent. From now on, I’ll personally handle your play.”
He produced a fresh deck from his breast pocket.
Old, but different from before.
“Well then...”
That smiling face said—
“Place your bets.”
We’re screwed.
“I’ll do it.”
“Oh.”
“Podo.”
“It’s public funds. Luck tends to average out, so better for the one who’s already won plenty to step back, and let me handle it.”
I looked into the dealer’s remaining eye.
“That’s fine, isn’t it?”
“Of course!”
Then I whispered to Agent Choi.
“This time I want to feel the thrill of betting myself. Just for a moment.”
“......”
“I have a good feeling about this one.”
His eyes were heavy, but in the end he relented.
And I—
......
[Not difficult, my friend.]
“Visitor?”
“Ah.”
I raised my head.
“Would it be possible to move to your original table? This one feels unlucky now.”
“Of course!”
The dealer happily led me to his own table. I gathered all our coins and followed in a rush.
“How much will you bet?”
I slid all of them onto the table.
All 924.
“...!!”
“You’re betting 924 coins?”
“...Yes.”
“Confirmed. Then—”
He spread the cards. I reached—
“Wait.”
My hand was caught.
“Visitors can’t touch the chosen card, remember?”
“......”
“You were about to leave a fingerprint to memorize it, weren’t you?”
“No. And you’re mistaken.” freeweɓnøvel.com
“Oh?”
“I’ve put my entire fortune on this. If I lose, there won’t be another game. What good would memorizing this card do me then?”
......
“Oh.”
He released my hand.
“You’re right. Then, proceed.”
“Yes.”
I picked the card I’d intended.
Drip.
Cold sweat fell onto the table.
“All right.”
......
“Which suit, or number, do you bet on?”
I forced my eyes up.
“...Hearts.”
That was it.
“I won with hearts on my first bet. I’ll wager on them again.”
“......”
The dealer glanced around the table, checking the players, the objects. No one signaled him, no mirrors appeared.
Section Chief Lee Jahaeon leaned casually against the back wall nearby, but that was all.
No dealer intervened.
Meaning I’d done nothing suspicious.
“......”
“Dealer?”
He flipped the card.
“Congratulations.”
The four of hearts.
“Your winnings: 2,772 coins.”
An avalanche of coins flooded the table.
“...!!”
Yes.
Success.
Under the table, I clenched and unclenched my fist. My palm was soaked with sweat.
“Holy shit, jackpot! A coin shower!”
Agent Choi clapped me on the back like a gambler gone mad, but his eyes were calm.
Because he had no idea how I’d managed it.
Yes.
No wonder.
Because I hadn’t bent the rules. I’d cheated.
Hoo.
The reason I’d switched to this table—
—Brown, could you ask Section Chief Lizard to lean casually against the wall behind Deputy Dolphin’s table?
Yes.
It was because Section Chief Lee Jahaeon was leaning there now.
And why I needed him was simple.
Because I see his lizard head!
And the eyes on a lizard’s head, human-sized, were large and lens-thick.
Which meant—
The dealer’s card reflected in them.
I didn’t need numbers.
Just the color, the faint silhouette. Enough to succeed.
...And I did.
I had read the card’s face reflected in Section Chief Lee Jahaeon’s eyes.
[Splendid improvisation, Roe Deer!]
Thanks.
And the best part—
No one else knows how I did it.
Because to everyone else, Lee Jahaeon appeared human.
Even within ghost stories, he was seen with a human head.
So of course, no one would suspect cards reflecting in his eyes.
It was a signal only I could read. Perhaps not even he knew.
[Oh, what a thrill!]
[Of course, a broadcaster couldn’t be caught in casino scams, but this—this is more like a delightful psychic trick, isn’t it?]
[If a man who guessed songs by reading record grooves could be called a psychic, then surely my friend deserves the same! Ha ha!]
Maybe.
Though it was cheating, undeniably.
But other than that and the earlier trick, there was no guaranteed way to win here. And with the trick blocked by someone else having used it, this was the only option.
It was improvised, convoluted, but... worth it.
“......”
Did he notice?
I forced myself to sit calmly, laughing and celebrating with Agent Choi. But the dealer said nothing.
I couldn’t meet his gaze.
And then—
A little later.
“Congratulations. You’ve surpassed 999 coins.”
“...!!”
“You may now enter the VIP section! Shall I escort you?”
“...Yes.”
We’d done it.
I rose from the table, fists clenched.
***
“Only those with 999 coins or more may enter the VIP room, and each may bring up to two companions.”
The six of us walked the casino’s common floor, the dealer’s cheerful voice guiding us.
Soon, our steps halted.
VIP ACCESS
“Then, I’ll open it.”
The dealer grasped the golden iron door and pulled—
The VIP room opened.
“...!!”
Inside was, astonishingly...
A maze.
[Ah, not decrepit.]
It stretched endlessly, like a labyrinth of curtained-off luxury parlors, mirrored to infinity.
The stark contrast to the worn-out outer Body Casino was obvious.
Only one thing was out of place.
~■■ CITY ROYAL CASINO~
A subway advertisement placard, not a painting, framed on the wall. It gave a strange feeling.
Ignoring the whispers leaking through the curtains, we stepped to the threshold.
“Come in, please. Relax and enjoy your gambling in private, partitioned spaces.”
We entered quietly. Baek Saheon tried to slip away at the rear, but Agent Cheongdong caught him and hauled him in.
I, however, felt unease rising.
“This way, please.”
The dealer drew back the curtain.
The next scene was the same: velvet sofas, tables, refreshments—and...
A silver revolver.
“Today’s game is...”
Clack, clack.
The dealer picked up the fine revolver from the table and broke it open.
“Russian roulette.”
Fuck.
“It’s so famous, I’m sure you know. A six-chamber revolver, one bullet loaded, two players taking turns pulling the trigger!”
Click, click, click.
His hand pulled the trigger fearlessly.
We flinched, tense. The dealer smiled, raising the still-loaded revolver.
“The one who gives up first loses.”
Ha.
“But! If you’re too scared, there’s another option.”
He scanned us.
“You can forfeit a body part.”
“...!”
“Then you can skip your turn and hand the revolver to your opponent.”
“Hold on.”
I blurted, panicked.
“Who are we playing against?”
“Another visitor, of course.”
“...!”
“You play Russian roulette, and the winner takes all the coins wagered. But in this VIP room...”
The dealer grinned.
“There are no other visitors but you.”
“......”
“If we wait, might another visitor come?”
“Hard to say. Not certain.”
“When was the last time you saw a customer in the VIP room?”
“Mm, can’t disclose.”
“...Have you ever seen one yourself?”
“No.”
“......”
Fuck.
“Wait. Then those ‘special-purpose’ body parts in the pawnshop...”
“Ah, you know of them already.”
The dealer’s smile widened.
“If you pull the trigger three times in a row, you’ll receive a body part as a prize!”
“...!”
“Isn’t it marvelous? A fitting reward for such a thrilling game.”
The painting with the subway placard slid down, revealing what lay behind: a freight elevator.
No—rails.
“Body parts.”
All sorts of human limbs and organs hung in rows on the rails....
Among them would be Deputy Lee Seonghae’s.
“......”
To rescue him, we would have to play. Win the body parts.
“Well then...”
The dealer smiled at us.
“Who will play?”
