"Blue-colored arrows will be displayed on the exterior. Follow them quickly. When you cross one, it will disappear— the system said calmly."
To Hui Cao's eyes, the arrows seemed to be made of amethyst and pearls, practically ethereal to her vision, yet to the outside world, nothing at all remained in that place.
She followed them to the location, where what appeared to be an Old West casino stood. A mannequin was present, this time with vividly detailed eyes and mouth. Its outfit was pristine beyond what should have been possible. There was a small roulette wheel where a tiny metal ball fell, and beside it a gacha machine with its prizes listed on a wooden board. Finally, the last thing present was a single table with a deck of cards.
When she entered, the system spoke inside her head once more.
"You are about to enter the Luck Training Field. You must play the following games and fulfill the following conditions: Select the correct roulette number five consecutive times, obtain three rare prizes in the gacha or one epic prize within it, achieve Blackjack seven consecutive times. Three Radiant Gold Coins are granted for your cooperation with the system. These coins are only usable in the gacha. When you run out of coins, the gacha will stop granting rewards but will remain playable. If used in blackjack or roulette bets, luck difficulty will increase to Legendary. If you win those bets, the trials will be considered cleared. Final rewards: +1 Luck. To begin, say, "Lucky Jack" the system said inside her head."
In Hui Cao's hand were three gold coins.
They bore an inscription: "Casa de apuestas, Van Derline — even if you win, the house never loses." The inscription ran along the edges. At the center was the image of a small hat, and when flipped over, it changed into that of a Remington pistol.
—How do these games work?— she asked the system.
"The explanation will be given at the moment the game is selected— it said dryly."
Hui Cao pouted and reluctantly accepted the voice in her head.
—Lucky Jack— she said, and in an instant, the static and nearly lifeless mannequin stood up again, accompanied by music and a force field that sealed the place.
—Ah, No name Old Man, it's been so long. Do you wish to lose your gold coins in the game once more?— the mannequin said as it lifted its hat, looking toward a height of two meters.
It scratched its head upon not seeing that man, then lowered it as the sound of old gears slowly turning echoed.
—A newbie? Ha! I used to think the boss would only allow that bitter old man to stay in this place. Well then, what is your name?— its mouth opened and closed almost out of sync while the voice came from an internal speaker.
—My name is Hui Cao— she said carefully while staring at the strange marionette.
—What a strange name. Very well, I'll call you Guest. I am Lucky Jack, the owner of this humble establishment. I see you have some very pretty chips. Would you like to use them? Perhaps luck is on your side, don't you think, miss?— he said while moving his hands maliciously.
After a quick glance, she immediately stored the coins inside her spatial ring while staring straight at Lucky Jack.
—Well, it seems you're just like that bitter old man. At least he lost a couple of times. Are you relatives? Whatever. Which game would you like to start with, Guest?— he said in his animated robotic voice.
In the background, the music was lively and calm, while the air felt full of vigor and vitality.
—How does each game work?— she said calmly while watching the automaton move with ease.
—Let's start from the easiest to the hardest— he pulled out a top hat and approached the roulette wheel with painted iron shoes.
—Very well, Guest. You select a number you see here, or you can choose red or black directly. The good thing is that we are an honest establishment, and we've done away with that horrible green zero that ruined the clean fifty percent— he said calmly while spinning the roulette wheel.
—If the little ball falls on the number or color you chose, you win. But if you don't bet anything, you win nothing. That simple— he said as the top hat vanished into the air.
She thought about the rules while looking at the coins inside her ring and asked:
—Can I select both red and black at the same time?— she said calmly while staring into Lucky Jack's shining eyes.
—You really do seem like family. No problem, Guest, but the payout ratio for color alone is 1.5. If you choose a number, it goes up to 21. For example, if you bet one gold coin on red, you'll get one and a half coins—but half coins don't exist, do they? Let's continue— he said as he pulled out a taller hat from his left side, like a fair announcer.
—And this is the great Western Gacha Machine. On the left side is the chance to obtain what one desires most, even a mythical item, inside a small and lovely wooden chest. But ohhh, if you don't use a coin on the pull, the best you can get is a material. But watch the glows carefully, and you'll know when to spend everything. Who knows? You might pull a steel bar as tall as the sky— Hui Cao looked at the automaton with greater curiosity. It seemed as though he was drawing information from his own memory of this place.
Hui Cao looked to the right at the wooden board and noticed the probabilities written there.
—Common 70%, Uncommon 15%, Rare 8%, Epic 5%, Legendary 1.5%, Mythic 0.5%, all based on the user's luck— the letters on the sign were painted in the color representing each item. The common category looked cheap, as if one could almost smell the lead within it, while the others shone increasingly brighter until reaching the vivid purple at the top.
Hui Cao immediately understood that this game was pure luck beyond limits. Still thinking about the intelligence part The Man Without a Name spoke of during the daily routine, she shook her head slightly.
—How many times did that man win something mythical here?— she asked Lucky Jack, who was calmly leaning against the machine.
—Well, it's not good manners to talk about a casino client, but it must be at least a few dozen times. And that was without using coins. I must say, this game is more about a person's fortune. But for you, you'll surely win many times in a row. Would you like to play?— Lucky Jack's eyes rose again with an intense gleam.
—No, that's fine. I want to know what the last game is— she said firmly, as Lucky Jack's hat vanished from his head and a dark cowboy hat, black as the night, appeared in his hand while he walked toward the Blackjack table.
—This game is the simplest and the most complicated of all. In this deck, there are fifty-two cards— he sat in the air and spread the deck on the table.
—Each card has a written value; that's easy. The only cards that vary are those with letters. All letter cards except the Ace have a value of ten, and this one with the big A is worth eleven or one, depending on the game. The hardest part of this game is that you're facing Lucky Jack, and the game is called Blackjack—so who do you think has the advantage here?— he said with great confidence, and Hui Cao noticed the difference between this explanation and the others.
It was the first time Lucky Jack acted beyond his presenter role, but more importantly, he didn't encourage using coins in this game. Sensing that small opportunity, she saved it for later and spoke.
—Can I change games after choosing one?— she asked calmly while looking at Lucky Jack.
—You're not restricted. However, the longer you stay in one game, your luck may fluctuate. Games that rely more on luck can increase or decrease it— he said calmly as his speaker emitted a bit of static.
Hui Cao thought calmly while looking at the roulette table and said:
—Let's start with roulette— she said calmly. In an instant, Lucky Jack turned into particles and appeared at the roulette table, now wearing a black-and-red suit with a tag on his chest that read Lucky Jack.
She walked over and took a seat in the comfortable chairs at the roulette table, where Lucky Jack spoke.
—Very well, Guest. Your chips for tonight. Take good care of them, as they can vanish in an instant— instantly, five hundred black chips, neatly stacked and solid, appeared in front of her.
She took them in her hands, noticing that each one bore the same distinctive markings and white dots.
—What do I win in this game?— she asked calmly while looking at the numbers marked on the chip.
—Simply chips. They can be exchanged for one or two dollars in your New Amster account, though you must win over 100,000 for each dollar—and you don't have a bank account— he said calmly while looking at Hui Cao.
Looking at the numbers calmly and counting about twenty chips, she placed them on red.
—Is this your final offer?— he asked calmly, his tone faint.
—Yes— she said calmly while spinning a chip.
Immediately, the small steel ball, shining like the moon, fell from the center, hovered briefly, and then the roulette spun, landing on a black number.
The roulette continued until it finally stopped on black six. Immediately, as if punishment, the chips on the table shattered into pieces before disappearing into the air.
—What a shame. Would you like to try again with the same bet, or would you like to change?— Lucky Jack said in a subdued voice. The music remained lively as usual, but faint static concentrated in each high note as he spoke.
Noticing this, she placed another twenty on red.
—Red again. Well, that's your choice— the faint static intensified as the color was mentioned.
The roulette spun again, but this time the ball was forcefully thrown, striking and bouncing before landing on red eight and stopping.
—It seems you want a streak, miss— he said as the chips shone and multiplied repeatedly until ten more appeared.
She then threw ten of her chips onto a group of black numbers, causing Lucky Jack to look confused.
—Are you sure about your bet?— he asked calmly.
This time, she noticed the ball spinning outside the roulette uncontrollably before falling as the wheel remained still, landing on one of the numbers she had bet on.
The system spoke in her mind once again.
—1/5 correct numbers completed. Continue the task. If this method is used, there will be no luck bonus in this training— it said with its characteristic calm.
Hui Cao, knowing how powerful the system's bonuses were, having experienced them in the Strength Training Field, didn't want to lose them. She bet on a number again—this time, red ten.
Lucky Jack took the ball in his hands, but this time, like dice, he bounced it on the spinning roulette until it stopped on black nine, right next to her bet.
Noticing Lucky Jack's smile, Hui Cao looked at the table once more. Preferring to leave this aside and use the safe method later, she said calmly while walking away from the table:
—I want to choose the gacha—
As she said it, Lucky Jack disappeared along with the chips, reappearing beside the machine with a large top hat and a cane.
Hui Cao walked toward the gacha. Instantly, a small table with the 501 chips she had from the previous game appeared beside her again.
—Each pull costs a total of twenty chips, miss. Some prizes can grant you a small number of chips, but they're in the Uncommon section. To begin, insert the chips into the right slot until you reach twenty, then pull the lever— Lucky Jack said.
At that very moment, the whistle of The Man Without a Name echoed in the distance.
Hui Cao glanced toward the cabin for a moment before returning to the words written in the routine in her mind. She let out a small sigh and took out a gold coin.
—Is it one coin per pull?— she asked Lucky Jack bluntly.
—Of course. When you deposit the coin, the prizes inside will change, though not their probabilities— he said calmly as his hat began to show a faint, nearly invisible gray line running across it.
—But it will be a simple pull. If you accompany it with chips, they'll grant the chip-mode reward in its respective wooden box— he said calmly, lifting his hat as if wiping sweat, making the line disappear.
—I'll try the common pulls— she said calmly as she inserted chips until reaching one hundred, then pulled the lever beside her.
Upon doing so, the machine began jumping like a rabbit. Finally, like an animal, a tongue of pure metal shot out, releasing five wooden boxes that looked like fresh pine.
They fell to the ground and began vibrating before exploding into a combination of colors—two gray, two green, and one small blue.
In front of Hui Cao, the materials appeared on the ground, slowly spinning as if being presented, each glowing faintly in its respective color.
Three lead bullet tips spun on the ground as if dancing. Basic pine logs did the same, though their size had shrunk to that of the bullets. Among the uncommon materials were a red nettle and a piece of manufactured cloth.
The most interesting was the small cactus fruit, spinning with its spines shining like silver needles, looking strange in its very appearance.
The system notification announced the overall progress of the luck training in her mind.
—1/5 correct numbers (roulette), 1/3 rare objects (gacha), 0/7 Blackjacks (blackjack).
Looking at this, she reviewed her chips—only 401 remained. A total of four pulls out of five. If she spent them now, she would still have the chance to reach the three rare objects. No matter the outcome, she would gain at least two objects in the remaining twenty pulls.
—It's easier than you think—
Recalling what was written in the book, she finally understood that the game had been rigged from the very beginning.
Carefully storing that realization within her psyche, she looked Lucky Jack in the eyes and said:
—I want to try the Blackjack game—
As she said it, Lucky Jack disappeared from the gacha, and the rewards on the ground vanished as well.
In an instant, Lucky Jack wore a fine black leather vest, dark as the night. His cowboy hat matched, faintly reflecting the sunlight. It even seemed as though a twisted mustache had been painted onto his face at that moment.
—This will be quick, so I'll explain it calmly. You can bet everything here—your clothes, items, and things you obtained from the gacha. If you win, you can duplicate the item. If you lose, you lose everything— he said calmly, lifting his hat mischievously.
Hui Cao sat in the chair while watching Lucky Jack's internal lights glow with a golden hue.
At that moment, the items she had won from the gacha and the chips were placed on the betting table.
—Reach twenty-one with the fewest cards and you win a blackjack. Also, beat my numbers and you win, even if it's not a blackjack— he said, his mechanical eyes now glowing a faint gray.
—I bet these wooden logs— she said calmly.
Immediately, they were placed at the center. Lucky Jack pulled two identical logs from his hat and placed them alongside the others.
The cards were dealt. A K and a J appeared in her hand. She calmly observed them while looking back at Lucky Jack.
—That's twenty total. Risking everything foolishly isn't necessary— she thought calmly before Lucky Jack asked.
—Do you wish to double or continue?— he asked calmly as the cards in his hand seemed to bend in a strange grip.
—Continue— Hui Cao said calmly, prompting Lucky Jack's hand to draw another card from nowhere.
And another. And another.
Until they vanished from both hands, with the four logs returning to the betting area. As the games unfolded, The Man Without a Name watched a train… out of control.