T/N: I know nothing about cards. Enjoy!
Once the game began, the servant, clearly accustomed to the task, gathered and dealt the cards.
There were six teams participating:
Crown Prince Lucian, Prince Eagle, Count Antoine, Count Kamil, Bertol, and the Baron and Baroness Greze.
Zester swallowed hard, taking the three cards handed to him by the servant and blinked, staring at them blankly.
“Wife.”
He whispered into Cassia’s ear.
“Honestly, I didn’t understand any of that. What do I do?”
Cassia glanced back and forth between Zester’s anxiously twitching lips and the three cards, then smiled softly and whispered back.
“It’s fine. I understood it.”
Bertol, who was watching the two whisper to each other, gestured with his hand.
“You just need to reveal one of the three.”
“Yes.”
Without hesitation, Cassia flipped over two of Zester’s cards to look at them, then placed one face-up on the table for everyone to see.
Ace of Hearts.
From that alone, it was impossible to tell whether the hand was good or bad, but the fact that she had chosen without much deliberation was unsettling. Bertol stared at Cassia, whose expression was unreadable and cold sweat formed on his palm.
Lucian, Count Antoine, and Count Kamil, having watched the baron and baroness select a card so carelessly, exchanged glances in midair and quietly sneered.
The servant went around the round table, giving each team two additional cards. Bertol quickly checked the hand placed before Cassia and Zester.
The two new cards were Jack of Hearts and Jack of Diamonds.
Two identical cards, a pair. Since they had a set of identical cards, it was a ranked hand, but it was nowhere near a level where one could bet with confidence. That was why Bertol grew uneasy at Cassia’s expression.
‘Why can such a sharp woman not hide her expression over something as trivial as a mere pair?’
Cassia was smiling so broadly the corners of her mouth nearly reached her ears. In card games, managing one’s expression was crucial, so the nobles gathered there all scoffed inwardly at the young noblewoman’s apparent cluelessness.
“I recently discovered a small gold mine in my territory in the central region. Count Axios, have you heard?”
When it came time to bet, Count Kamil casually asked Bertol. Caught off guard by the sudden mention of a gold mine, Bertol frowned slightly without even realizing it and nodded.
“Yes, I have.”
“I think I’ll wager that.”
“Hk—!”
Zester sucked in a startled breath.
“That’s excessive. Why raise the stakes in a game meant for amusement?”
The one who cut in with a displeased expression was Eagle, who had remained quietly silent until then. He shot Count Kamil a rather sharp look.
The basic rule of betting was that one could only call an amount equal to or higher than the previous bet. Although they had said the Baron Greze couple could bet freely, even with such freedom, one could not be completely shameless.
How humiliating would it be to wager a paltry amount while enormous stakes were being thrown around?
Count Kamil was deliberately inflating the bet. It was a clear attempt to show the vast difference in status to the naive lord and his wife from a poor territory.
“Count, I think you’re being—”
“Now, now, brother. What is the problem?”
Lucian grinned and lightly patted Eagle’s shoulder.
“It’s not as if there are people here who can’t match what Count Kamil put up. And I already said the Baron and his wife have the freedom to bet whatever they wish. Don’t spoil the mood over nothing, hm?”
Eagle, who had been about to say more, let out a long breath and swallowed his anger. At that sight, Lucian let out a short laugh.
“Then I’ll put up one of the trading companies I run in my territory. The Uzbek Merchant Guild. It’s a large group focusing on spice distribution.”
“Wow, Count Antoine. Are you serious?”
“You put a gold mine on the table. I have to offer at least this much.”
“Haha, excellent. Very good.”
Watching the two counts laugh heartily, Zester felt a profound sense of alienation.
This didn’t feel right. Cassia had urged him to make an effort to blend into noble society, but there was clearly an invisible wall between them that effort alone could not overcome.
Unlike Zester, who looked dejected, Cassia seemed delighted, staring at the laid-out cards with a broad grin. Bertol, who had observed her closely, leaned in and murmured near her ear.
“A One Pair(two cards of the same rank) isn’t a very strong hand.”
He felt compelled to advise her. He knew she was intelligent, but since this was her first time playing, he worried she didn’t realize how weak her hand was.
“Oh, is that so?”
Cassia’s face instantly fell, and she scratched her cheek.
So she really had been that happy over a single pair. Bertol let out a dry laugh at the uncharacteristic sight.
“I’ll fold.”
Amid it all, Eagle pushed his cards forward with an indifferent look.
“Tsk, no fun.”
Lucian’s gaze shifted to Bertol.
“What about you, Count? I heard you recently unearthed a mineral called Ayla. Why not wager that mine? Hehe…”
“Very well.”
“Oh? Really? Haha, as expected…. This is why I like you, Count. You’re manly and decisive.”
Lucian gave this praise while staring pointedly at Zester. He was clearly trying to pressure Zester into embarrassment if he couldn’t put up something comparable.
“Then what should I put up? Let’s see, judging by the stakes so far, it must be worth about a thousand gold bar.”
“That’s too high.”
At Bertol’s objection, Lucian smiled and shook his head.
“I should at least go that far. Now then, Baron, what will you put up? If you don’t like your hand, you’re free to fold and leave the game like my brother.”
“Ah, I…”
“Or, for the sake of the Baron and Baroness, shall I let you see your final card before you bet?”
Pretending to be considerate of Zester, he threw away the betting rules, but in truth, there was no consideration at all. He was putting Zester’s pride on the chopping block.
“If you would do that, I’d appreciate it.”
Cassia answered in Zester’s stead, and Lucian readily nodded. The servant dealt one more card to each player.
There were now four public cards in front of the Baron and Baroness.
Ace of Hearts, Jack of Hearts, Jack of Diamonds, Ace of Diamonds.
Whether fortunate or unfortunate, a lucky draw had turned their hand into two pair (*two sets of One Pair).
“Whoa!”
“Oh.”
Zester and Cassia looked at each other and exclaimed in satisfaction at the same time.
To be so moved by a mere two pair…it was truly a pathetic sight from novice card players.
“Now, deal the final card.”
At Lucian’s command, the servant turned over the seventh and final card and placed it before each player.
With uneasy eyes, Zester slightly lifted his face-down card. The couple’s expressions, as they looked at the revealed cards, showed no great change.
Bertol clicked his tongue softly. If the final card had been an Ace or a Jack, they might have had a high rank, but judging by their faces, they had probably drawn something useless.
“Um, Count. I have a question. May I ask?”
“Of course.”
Bertol nodded as he looked at Cassia’s innocent face.
“Is Two Pair also not a very good hand? In my opinion, it seems quite difficult to get…”
“It’s also not that—”
“Mmm, no, it’s a decent hand!” Lucian cut in interrupting Bertol. “And look! The numbers are very high. Even against another Two Pair, it would be hard to beat yours.”
“Really?”
“Of course.”
“Then, um, since I’m ignorant of rules, I wanted to ask one more thing….”
“Go ahead. What is it?”
“If we happen to win… does everything wagered here truly…?”
“Everything indeed. Ownership would be transferred to the Baron and Baroness. You’ve understood correctly.”
“My…my goodness.”
“However, that would be putting too much of the burden on us, wouldn’t it? If the Baron wins without betting anything, it will feel rather hollow for us. Don’t you agree, Baron Greze?”
“Ah, yes, well…. I suppose so.”
“Isn’t there something bold you could wager? Is there nothing in Greze?”
Both of them fell silent. Lucian let out a small laugh, then clapped his hands as if he had just remembered something.
“Right. I heard there’s a clever business item that you recently applied for a patent with the Imperial family. How about wagering that patent?”
“Ah, Your Highness, that’s—.”
“We’ll do it!”
Cassia shouted, slamming her hand on the table, her eyes filled with apparent greed.
Bertol was dumbfounded. He wondered if living in a poor territory had caused the Baroness to lose her mind.
“W-wife. His Highness said he would show us consideration, so you don’t necessarily have to wager that…”
“No. Our hand is really good, Honey.”
Cassia muttered loudly enough for all to hear.
‘You foolish woman. That’s only based on the cards we can see.’
Bertol couldn’t help but let out a sigh.
Based on the four public cards, there was no hand that could beat a high Two Pair, but the nature of the game meant no one could predict the winner until the hidden cards were revealed.
Even Bertol himself held a hand ranked higher than a Two Pair. If the Baron and Baroness truly wagered the patent for the wig business, they would lose it outright.
“Let’s reveal then.”
As soon as Lucian spoke, Count Antoine and Count Kamil revealed their face-down cards.
Both had One Pair.
It was an absurdly low hand, yet they looked completely unfazed. From the start, the gold mines and merchant groups were likely meaningless figures to them; merely a standard price for their entertainment.
Lucian stared at Zester, who could not hide his excitement, and Cassia, who was making a fuss and pounding Zester’s shoulder repeatedly, then finally burst into laughter.
“Hahaha! Hahahaha! Ah, what can I do…”
Wiping tears of laughter from his eyes, Lucian flipped his cards.
Three of Hearts, Four of Hearts, Five of Diamonds, Six of Diamonds, Seven of Spades.
A Straight. Five consecutive numbers. It was two ranks higher than the couple’s Two Pair.
“Haha, ha… ah…. Baron, and Baroness, let me give you a piece of advice. A gambling table like this… it’s no different from high society.”
Lucian continued with a mocking smirk.
“You have to read the room, manage your expressions well, know which side to stand on, and…”
He made a circle with his thumb and forefinger and shook it.
“You need money. This isn’t a world where just anyone can jump in.”
“…You’re right, Your Highness. And words, too… one must be careful with them.”
Nodding, Cassia turned over the last card she had received.
Five of Spades.
Since they had celebrated over a Two Pair before receiving the last card, there was no hope left for their hand.
“Haha, exactly, exactly. Careless words can lead to disaster. I heard it was a business you prepared with great ambition, but isn’t it all gone now? I won’t be giving it back, you know?”
“Until everything is revealed, no one can know, just like a card game. For instance, would our Baron have ever expected to receive a noble title from His Majesty the Emperor?”
As Cassia spoke, she flipped over her remaining two cards, and a sudden silence fell over the table.
“Likewise, isn’t it impossible to know? Just how far our Greze will rise in the future.”
Ace of Clubs, Ace of Spades.
Combined with the two public Aces, it made four cards of the same rank.
If one were to rank it, it was a top-tier hand rarely seen even in serious games.
Four of a Kind.
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