Ho Cheon-an swallowed hard as he gazed at the spread of the board. Confident in his ability to defeat the Unknown, his mind wandered to the gambling he’d had with Master Un-jong from the Jeomchang Faction, and he finally spoke up.
“Are you finishing this in one round?”
If they ended up battling just once, luck could turn against him, so Ho Cheon-an needed to secure as many rounds as possible.
“Well, go ahead and do what you want.”
“How about the one who wins ten rounds first takes it all?”
Unknown looked at Ho Cheon-an with a look of disdain, but Ho Cheon-an boldly held his head high. His companions sighed, shaking their heads at his audacity.
“I’ll mention this just in case—but no empty tricks…”
“Not using them. Nope.”
And thus, the wager began!
“If you win, I’ll prepare a lavish feast for you. You won’t miss out on any future meals either. But if you lose, you’ll handle all the cleaning, laundry, firewood, and dishes… In short, you’ll do all the chores. Got it?”
“…That sounds good.”
Ho Cheon-an steadied his breath and grabbed the cup. His companions, who had given him lukewarm looks until now, suddenly felt a spark of tension as they watched the table.
Everyone knew Ho Cheon-an’s gambling skills were exceptional, so they cautiously anticipated his victory, but his opponent was no slouch either.
With the level of Hyeong-gyeong and the various tricks he had shown until now, it seemed unlikely that Unknown would go down easily. In fact, there was a chance he might outsmart Ho Cheon-an.
A duel where victory wasn’t easy to predict, especially with Ho Cheon-an’s years of training on the line—naturally, all eyes were glued to him.
Ho Cheon-an, feeling the weight of everyone’s stares, quietly declared, “Let’s begin.”
Zoom! His hands moved like lightning, starting the game. Yeo Il-ye and the Black Cat, along with Hyeok Gi-rin, who had seen Ho Cheon-an gamble many times, were taken aback.
Until now, they had never seen Ho Cheon-an unleash his full power right from the start.
Like a fisherman throwing bait, he had typically let his opponent set the pace to gauge their strength. But now, the moment he began, he surged ahead.
Clash!
“Wow…”
This was the first time Tang So-yeol witnessed Ho Cheon-an in action. After honing his insight through his training, he prided himself on being able to see through everything, yet he was genuinely astonished.
The speed of Ho Cheon-an’s hand movements contained a certain logic.
Even the insights drawn from the energy of his training couldn’t blur the truth that lay in those motions. Tang So-yeol could typically perceive ordinary changes just by looking, but as soon as Ho Cheon-an’s hands began to move, he couldn’t grasp the essence of that table anymore.
“I just assumed when the Clan Elder or the Family Head said they learned from him, they meant it. But this is genuinely shocking.”
Tang So-yeol searched for the right words to describe what he observed in Ho Cheon-an’s movements. What could he call it? Endless transformation? No, it was something much more than that.
Unlimited variations!
In just a few strokes of his hand, spinning three cups, he created infinite possibilities. Before Tang So-yeol could even comprehend the potential for change, the round concluded.
Ho Cheon-an’s gambling was something even the techniques of his training couldn’t entirely wrap around!
‘It worked.’
Ho Cheon-an stifled the urge to clench his fist in triumph. he had faced a master once in a match through gambling. Reading one’s intent, huh? If that were the case, as long as he harbored a grand enough ambition in his heart, it wouldn’t matter!
Having successfully manifested infinite possibilities, Ho Cheon-an watched Unknown with confidence in his victory.
“This is it.”
But the calm gesture from Unknown caused Ho Cheon-an’s face to momentarily harden.
Tap.
The left cup toppled over at Unknown’s gesture.
Inside it, there lay a die that Unknown had just cut.
“Haha, I’m honestly surprised. It seems like my grandchild has really… bet his life on this gambling board.”
Ho Cheon-an quickly wiped the expression from his face. His inner self was chastising him. How could he show emotions when the gambling round hadn’t even ended yet? No matter how well things had unfolded, gambling fundamentally operated on a third chance of winning!
‘In gambling, ultimately, it’s those who respect and embrace the realm of luck who emerge victorious. A loss or two would be fine.’
As Unknown gestured, a stone suitable for playing in games flew and landed on Unknown’s side.
“Learning only how to roll around on the board without properly cooking and steaming the rice means you wouldn’t know any better. There’s a lot to correct. A whole lot.”
Hearing his tone, Ho Cheon-an’s face dripped with sweat.
However, he quickly shook his head to clear his thoughts. Now that the game was on, winning was the only option.
“I’m going!”
Once again, Ho Cheon-an’s gambling arts were set into motion.
Zoom!
At first glance, it looked similar to before, but the Black Cat caught on to the variations Ho Cheon-an made. While the previous mixing relied solely on quantity, this time it felt like he’d added skill atop that quantity.
The strategy of hiding the tree in the forest felt similar, but now there was a clever thought in where he placed the tree, making it difficult to see.
Clang!
“Center.”
As soon as Ho Cheon-an placed his cup down, Unknown spoke. Quietly managing his expression, Ho Cheon-an lifted the cup from the center.
Inside it, there lay… a die, once again.
His companions looked at Unknown in astonishment. To figure out Ho Cheon-an’s gamble consecutively was utterly incredible, especially since he had managed to stay ahead by two points against Ho Cheon-an who seemed to be full of tricks.
“I’m going.”
Ho Cheon-an grabbed the cup once more.
Unknown chose another cup.
In the blink of an eye, five rounds passed.
Three stones lay in front of Unknown, while two lay before Ho Cheon-an. Unknown had guessed three right and two wrong.
‘This isn’t going to be easy.’
Ho Cheon-an quietly released the cup from his hand, taking a breath. Just then, Unknown spoke.
“Alright, is it now my turn?”
‘Hmm?’
For a moment, Ho Cheon-an froze, unable to grasp Unknown’s meaning, but soon he understood and replied.
“Are you sure?”
“Why would the one losing worry about anyone? I despise it when there are grievances later, so let’s switch roles every five rounds.”
What a stroke of luck! Ho Cheon-an nodded quickly. As long as a gambler cannot grasp their opponent’s hand technique or psychology, they risk perpetual defeat, but once their techniques or psychology are figured out, the attacker becomes immensely disadvantaged.
Ho Cheon-an stepped back, and now it was Unknown who took the cup. Ho Cheon-an held the cup, observing his opponent closely as he moved it around.
‘Definitely, looks like the Elder learned some gambling techniques somewhere… but it seems he hasn’t dabbled in it for quite some time!’
Ho Cheon-an, making that judgment, nodded.
Judging by how he treated his companions, Unknown probably chased after women in his youth! After all, those who enjoy the pleasure of women rarely abstain from drinking and gambling, so he must have picked up some skills back then.
“What’s with that creepy look in your eyes?”
“Nothing at all.”
For a brief moment, Unknown fidgeted with the cup before firmly clutching it.
“Grandchild.”
“Yes, Master.”
“Have you ever heard the phrase, ‘If the body isn’t well, the mind suffers?’”
“Isn’t it the other way around?”
“Normally, it’s said that if the mind isn’t well, the body suffers. But in your case, this saying fits you perfectly.”
Unknown said that as he tossed the die into the air.
“Lacking speed, aren’t we just doing tricks here?”
Whoosh!
In an instant, Unknown’s hands vanished and reappeared. Everyone blinked in confusion, trying to wrap their heads around what had just happened.
Ho Cheon-an silently wiped the cold sweat from his brow.
Though he too often threw the die high and caught it with a cup, that was just part of his technique. It was easy to draw attention, and the psychological inertia made it harder for opponents to predict his movements.
But Unknown’s recent technique… no, his ‘action’ was simply too fast.
So fast that he couldn’t tell which cup the die vanished into at all.
“Are you forfeiting? Say something.”
“…Left.”
Without a word, Unknown lifted the central cup. Closing his eyes tightly, Ho Cheon-an felt the gambling confidence that he’d built quickly slip away.
That unsightly disadvantage turned out to be a vulnerability after all.
That was the inability to read Unknown’s expressions.
Usually, he thought he could see Unknown’s expressions, but it was all possible because Unknown allowed him to have that feeling.
If one cannot perceive the mind of a master when faced with overwhelming physical prowess, then how will they read the psyche of a supreme being without seeing their eyes and expressions?
‘But I can’t give up!’
Ho Cheon-an burned with determination in his eyes. At this rate, he’d end up doing all the chores, so he had to give it his all until he had no energy to struggle!
Ho Cheon-an began employing every psychological tactic he had to bait Unknown’s psyche.
Pretending not to look, he subtly rolled his eyes toward a specific cup or slightly twitching his fingers while touching a cup. Sometimes feigning distraction by scratching his nose while moving or simply parting his lips slightly only to close them.
As long as they’re human, they’d assign meaning to such actions!
“Left, he’s aware of the left cup! Master! I’m conscious of the left cup, but I’m trying my best not to look there!”
Whatever Ho Cheon-an did, Unknown remained silent, tossing his die into the air with confidence as he planned his next move.
Whoosh!
Once again, Unknown’s hands demonstrated overwhelming speed, with the falling die vanishing from sight.
Ho Cheon-an calmly stared at the three cups laid out before him as he calculated his final psychological warfare.
‘Excluding everything about Master’s gestures and actions.’
Those were things he could use to deduce Unknown’s psychology, but Ho Cheon-an deemed it right to erase everything and start anew.
Using body responses as references was possible because those actions were expressions of the unconscious. But Unknown had reached a level where he could perfectly control his body, so even those reactions could be intentionally fabricated!
‘It might lower the accuracy, but I’ll only predict the Master’s psyche!’
What conclusions can be drawn when assumptions are piled upon assumptions?
He realized that providing baseless fantasies was mere daydreaming. Yet, Ho Cheon-an supplemented that fantasy with his experiences, unfolding memories of nights spent in gambling dens after lugging in a pouch of money.
Overlaying that with Unknown’s training process—what thoughts prevailed during specific situations? And what actions resulted from those thoughts?
Countless gambling experiences and Unknown’s prior actions began to merge into a distinct shape, giving Ho Cheon-an confidence in his surmising.
“Left.”
“Oh, are you confident?”
“Yes.”
Ho Cheon-an stared at Unknown and thought.
‘The Master has clearly realized I’ve coerced him to place the die in the left cup.’
And because he understood that, Ho Cheon-an was convinced he must have placed the die on the left!
Because—
‘That would maximize my humiliation and outrage if I were wrong!’
After leading him to the left, what would happen if he chose not to have confidence and picked the other?
And if the die ended up in the left cup when they opened it?
Even knowing he was led there, placing the die in the left—surely, that was the path that would inflict the greatest blow to Ho Cheon-an!
Ho Cheon-an believed in the devilish cunning of the Master and chose left!
Hearing Ho Cheon-an’s confident shout, Unknown silently knocked over the left cup. All his companions held their breath, eagerly awaiting the result.
This round was pivotal in determining victory.
It was a chance to see if the pressured Ho Cheon-an had the power to overturn the game.
“Ah…!”
“Whoa!”
As the cup toppled, everyone let out a collective gasp.
Inside the fallen cup lay the die.
With this, Unknown claimed his fourth victory while Ho Cheon-an garnered his third. This round proved Ho Cheon-an could counter Unknown’s blatant cheating in gambling.
This single round demonstrated that despite trailing a point, Ho Cheon-an had the strength to close the gap, causing the outcome of the match to remain uncertain.
“Well then, I’m going.”
“Yes.”
Would Ho Cheon-an manage to maintain his momentum and mount a comeback?
The next round started, bringing him a heartbeat closer to the answer.
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