Blackjack Versus 21

The game continued to roll on and it was Lloyd's turn to hit or stay. He didn't immediately answer and pretended to think while having a frustrated expression. He could see in the corner of his eyes that the others were staring at him. The muscular man was showing a slight smirk while Alice was smiling at him as usual, still being so hard to read.

"I'll stay." He said while gritting his teeth and clenching his fist.

The dealer had a look of pity aimed towards him for a short period and then faced Alice.

"Your turn, miss."

"I'll hit."

A card was given to her and she took a quick peek at the top of card by folding it a little. Her eyes lit up for just a split second. Lloyd noticed it immediately. She definitely received a good card.

'Heh? Looks like you got a good hand.'

"I'll stay." She called out.

"Alright. It's time to reveal your hand. Lay your cards on the table on face up position. But before that, you can double down or increase your bet. Is there anyone who wants to increase their bet?" The dealer said.

"I'll increase the bet to 500 coins." The muscular man said.

"I'll double it to 1000 coins."

"Tsk. Cheeky woman. 1000 coins for me!" The muscular man got irked by Alice, but still increased the bet.

"What about you, sir?" The dealer turned to face Lloyd.

"I'll also increase the bet to 1000 coins."

Coins were piled on the table which amounted to 3040, including the 10 coins the angry scion had bet. Then the dealer announced for their cards to be revealed.

They flipped their cards face up. The muscular man had a jack of hearts, a three of spades, and an eight of diamonds which totaled to 21. Meanwhile, Alice flipped hers and revealed a seven of spades, seven of hearts, and another seven of diamonds.

"I'll be damned! What are the chances that sets of legendary hands like this would come out?!"

Ray who was done sulking on the floor stood behind Lloyd and exclaimed loudly with a shocked look as he saw the cards on the table. The dealer's eyes also sparkled when he saw the unfolding events.

"Oh, you're done crying, Ray?"

"I wasn't crying, for god's sake! But anyway, how about your hand, Lloyd?"

Upon hearing Ray's loud voice, several onlookers went to check on the commotion. They gasped in awe after seeing the intense revelation of hands.

"What a thrilling standoff. It's a competition of 21s!" Someone among the crowd shouted.

"This is worth watching and will be remembered in this casino forever!" Another unknown onlooker exclaimed.

"Well, Lloyd? Wanna give up? Why don't you reveal your hand now and accept your loss?" She said teasingly.

The muscular guy's face was already twisted into an ugly expression upon seeing that he lost this round. Lloyd closed his eyes for a while as he crossed his arms and spoke.

"What makes you think you already win? Look closely."

He revealed his own cards that showed an ace of spades and a king of spades.

"Holy cow! That guy drew a natural. This round is a blackjack versus 21!" A random young man from the crowd loudly said out of excitement. The crowd went wild and they could hear cheers and euphoric shouts.

The moods of both Alice and the muscular guy went sour and their faces darkened.

"It's my win." Lloyd gave them a smirk.

"Tsk. You have surpassed my expectations. You are such a vile, deceitful person. You were showing a pained expression earlier, so I thought you didn't have a good hand." She pouted.

"If you show your true expression, then you're like an open book. I'm not that stupid." He explained with a smug expression which irritated the muscular man who was also listening this time.

"You are so arrogant! Are you talking about me?!" He stood up and glared at Lloyd.

"Oh? I'm sure I didn't mention any names. If your ego got hit by it, then I apologize. I just said a fact."

"Why, you—"

Before he could violently retaliate by punching Lloyd, the dealer's expression went hostile as he glared at the muscular man which seemed to have pierced his soul. He was terribly sweating and his skin was as white as a sheet.

"I won't allow you to create trouble in here. Get lost!"

"Y-Yes, sir!" He immediately ran away after taking his remaining pile of coins which were not included in the bet.

"Congratulations to you, good sir. Here are your coins." The dealer said and handed Lloyd the large pile of coins he had won.

"Thank you." He graciously accepted it. Then the dealer asked them if they would like to play another round. However, Lloyd declined as well as Alice and they left the table.

"So, you're not thinking of running away and not uphold your bet, right?"

Lloyd turned towards the frowning Alice who followed behind them.

"Of course not! I am a dignified woman who always keeps her words."

"Good. How about we talk there?" He pointed at an empty table in the corner of the casino which was meant for customers who wanted to have a chat.

Lloyd, Ray, and Alice walked towards there and took their seats, with Lloyd and Ray seating next to each other while Alice sat opposite to them. A few seconds later, a waiter came to them while holding a menu.

This wasn't just a simple casino but it also functioned as a bar. They could order food and drinks while they were here.

"Here is the menu, dear customers. Feel free to choose what you want to order." He said and stood there silently, waiting for them to speak their orders.

They looked through the contents of the menu. Surprisingly, it was very detailed. Lloyd could see 'beefquake steak' among the available dishes. However, it was not made from the meat of a cow, but from the flesh of a cow-like hellspawn called Beefquake. He thought that maybe this type of hellspawn just lived somewhere outside the outer districts of Arcadia like the small jungle where they had passed through and hunted lots of hellboar after reaching the walls.

He hadn't tasted beef before so he didn't know if it's delicious or not. Would it taste like the hellboar, or was it like any meat found on the real world? He wanted to experience it so badly so he immediately spoke to the waiter.

"I want this beefquake steak. Then, I also want to have this nightshade juice."

"Alright, sir. What about you two?" The waiter turned towards Ray and Alice respectively.

"I want this hellboar soup paired with a strong cocktail. Also, add another cocktail for this guy here." He said and looked at Lloyd with a grin.

"Hey! I'm not yet in the legal age!"

"Who cares, man? You should take advantage of this moment to taste everything you could taste. We don't know if we will live tomorrow or die. So, just go for it." He hung his arm around his shoulders and whispered to him.

Ray's words somehow made sense. It was rare for him to experience anything like this. And who cares about some minimum age restriction for alcohol? They were already in a world where it could end anytime soon, so it wouldn't matter if he actually took a sip of alcohol.

'Okay. This is only for experience. I'm not doing anything wrong.' He kept chanting it to his mind and made a decision.

"Fine!"

"Right away, sir. What about you, miss?"

"I'll also have the same as this gentleman here." She pointed at Lloyd who looked at him with raised eyebrows. The waiter nodded and left shortly after.

"What is that all about?"

"What?" She innocently asked.

"That! Why did you order the same thing as me?"

"Is there anything wrong with it? I like you, so of course, I'll take the same order as you." She smiled at him.

"What a load of crap!"

Lloyd was exasperated at this woman. He only sighed and didn't say anything more. He would only get frustrated if he would get into a deeper exchange of words with her. Then, he remembered what he had to do and spoke once again, this time, looking so serious.

"Let's get to the point. Tell me what you know about this city. Like, who is the one in-charge, what rules they had set for the people living here, how powerful they are, and their plans in the future."

"That's a lot. Why don't you ask them directly?"

Lloyd shook his head in response.

"I don't know them. That's why I am asking."

"I see."

She went silent for a while. The waiter came back, bringing their orders with him. He put down the food they had ordered on the table, which let out a wonderful aroma that entered their nostrils and made them gulped. It smelled so delicious that Ray and Lloyd could imagine its taste to be so exquisite.

"You can take your time slowly in thinking what to say. I'd like to eat this first."

"Good thinking, Lloyd. I am about to go starving!" Ray seconded.

They dug on their meals with enthusiasm and took their sweet time in filling their stomachs. It was so delicious that Lloyd was thinking of having seconds, but unfortunately, it had to wait. He could just come back here later to enjoy the other options in their menu.

As he finished the food in his plate, he looked at Alice who also had finished her meal. He took the glass of nightshade juice that was made from a hellspawn named nightshade grape, which looked like a tree with grape-like fruits in its branches.

He savored the juicy sweetness that lingered on his mouth as he drank down the contents of the glass slowly. It also had a tart taste in it which blended well with the sweetness. He was extremely satisfied with the amazing meal they had as he patted his stomach and let out a burp.

"Don't just keep drinking juice. Drink that."

Ray nudged him and pointed at the strong cocktail he ordered for him. Lloyd stared at it for a long time, still hesitating whether he should drink it or not. In the end, his curiosity won and he gulped down the contents in one go.

"Ah! What's this? My throat feels like it's on fire!"

Ray laughed as he looked at him fanning himself with his hands. Lloyd tried to stand up. When he tried to walk, he suddenly staggered and felt like the world was spinning. He asked Ray in a slurred speech. He was already drunk with just one glass of cocktail.

"Wh-What's happening to me?!"

"Why did you even drink the whole glass in one go? It's so hilarious." Ray was still laughing continuously at his undoing as he was holding his stomach, while Alice slightly chuckled.

"Looks like we won't be able to continue our discussion today. If you feel better later, you can just find me at the maple hotel which is situated in the downtown area. It's nice meeting you two."

She stood up and left the casino, leaving a drunk Lloyd who was having a hard time going back to his chair and a laughing Ray. Just like that, their short entertainment and gathering of information for the day had abruptly ended.