Hikaru shuffled his deck with practiced ease, letting the cards slide seamlessly between his fingers. Across the wooden table, the bearded adventurer—Gorin, as he introduced himself—watched with an amused smirk.
Around them, several guild members had gathered, sensing something interesting about to happen. The air smelled of ale and grilled meat, the clatter of dice and laughter filling the background.
"Alright, kid," Gorin said, tapping the table. "We're playing Thieves' Fortune. You know the rules?"
Hikaru tilted his head. "Never played before. But I'm good at learning fast."
Gorin chuckled, exchanging looks with the other adventurers. "This oughta be fun."
Hikaru, of course, was lying.
Thieves' Fortune was a common gambling game that existed in multiple forms across different cultures. It wasn't that different from some underground card games back on Earth. But the trick wasn't in knowing the rules.
The trick was making sure the other players didn't know what you knew.
A few of the Bronze-ranked heroes noticed what was happening from across the room. Ryou, still rubbing his bruised ribs from his earlier beatdown, frowned. "What's Kageyama doing?"
"Looks like he's gambling," someone muttered.
One of the girls shook her head. "Is he an idiot? He just got here, and he's already picking fights with veteran adventurers?"
Hikaru ignored them, focusing on his opponent.
Gorin shuffled the deck and dealt five cards each. Hikaru fanned his out, glancing at his hand.
A decent spread.
But winning wasn't about getting good cards.
It was about convincing everyone else that you had them.
The first few rounds were slow. Hikaru played carefully, making small bets, watching how the adventurers reacted. He noted Gorin's habits—how his fingers twitched slightly when he was bluffing, how his eyes darted to his coins when he had a strong hand.
Every player had tells.
Hikaru was an expert at reading them.
By the fourth round, Gorin leaned back, grinning. "You're not bad, kid. Lucky, or good?"
Hikaru twirled a card between his fingers. "Bit of both."
A few more hands passed. Hikaru started shifting the rhythm. Small wins, small losses. He let Gorin think he had control.
Then came the final hand.
Gorin pushed forward a fat stack of gold coins. "All in, kid."
The crowd murmured.
Hikaru tapped his cards against the table. This was the moment.
He could fold, take a safe loss, keep his reputation neutral.
Or…
He reached for his deck, flicking a card into his other hand.
The Seven of Spades.
He felt a faint pulse of energy run through it. His ability activating.
[Skill Activated: ♠7 – Weighted Deck]
The weight in the air shifted. It was subtle—so subtle—but Hikaru could see it. A tiny hesitation in Gorin's movement, a flicker of doubt in his eyes.
It was a trick of perception.
A tiny, invisible nudge that made his opponent question himself.
Hikaru slid his stack of coins forward. "All in."
The guild erupted in cheers.
Gorin grinned, flipping his hand—a strong full house.
A good hand.
A winning hand.
Unless…
Hikaru slowly turned his own cards over.
One by one.
And revealed—a better full house.
Silence.
Then a roar of laughter and applause.
"Holy hell, the kid actually won!"
Gorin stared at the cards, then threw his head back and laughed. "You little bastard! I thought I had you!"
Hikaru smirked and leaned back. "Guess the house always wins."
The adventurers clapped Gorin on the back as he handed over the winnings. "Alright, fair's fair. First drink's on me!"
Hikaru pocketed the coins, feeling the weight of his first real earnings in this world.
More importantly, though—
He had just won the room.
The guild had been indifferent to the new heroes before. Now? People were paying attention.
And in the long game Hikaru was playing…
That was the real prize.
Back at the quest board, Ryou scowled. "He's just gambling. How's that gonna help?"
Elara, watching from the counter, smirked. "Kid's smarter than you think. You lot showed up expecting to be respected as heroes. He just earned respect as an adventurer."
She leaned back, watching Hikaru as he raised his glass to the cheering guild members.
"Let's see how far this trickster can go."