The holograms manifest by their side. Although, now it’s slightly different. The current winnings display isn’t there. Instead, it just shows,

No. 420 Current Inventory: $ 680 521

No. 88 Current Inventory: $ 4 360 613

Withdraw function disabled.

Does this mean, she isn’t allowed to withdraw after 4 games? Are the betting rules different? But before she’s able to contemplate about it, the gold light goes off on Kusma boy’s side. He’s placed a card on the table,

“Bet, $ 680 521” he’s being exact. He’s already taunting her with a bunch of jargon that she’s busy tuning out. Trying to get her to reply. She isn’t good at mind games and word play so it’s better if she flat out ignores him. If she engages with him. She might get pulled into his pace right away.

The countdown’s starting. Her thoughts are racing faster than a bullet train. It’s unnerving. She can never get used to this.

Does it actually matter if she’s lost this round? Because if it’s anything like the games she’s played before hand. Losing on the first 3 rounds wouldn’t lose her the game, just her cards. The fourth is the determinant factor.

But this may be different. Something’s nagging at her that it’s different. It’s that sensation of walking over a thinly concealed pit fall and she knows she shouldn’t even spend a minute letting her guard down. And she understands exactly what’s making her feel this way.

The current winning display is replaced by current inventory.

What if, the safety measure is gone. She already knows custom games can be organized. What if, the inventory is deducted after each game now? And with the withdraw function disabled, the game can only end if one player runs out of cards or money. If that’s the case. She may very well lose on the first round once her inventory hits 0. That’ll explain why Kusma boy is being precise with the bets. He won’t lose the game even if he loses the round, but she will. He has more money than her.

Then... She can’t afford to lose this round. She needs to test it out and confirm her suspicions first. But if she’s wrong, she’ll be giving away her winning ticket on a non-crucial round. Once Kusma boy knows what they can do, it’ll give him opportunity to counter her. He wouldn’t be taken off guard by it anymore. There’s only 5 seconds remaining. She needs to decide quick! What should she do? Should she follow what her instincts are telling her? Or should she take the safe route of what she’s accustomed with that’s already been tested and proven true?

This game is so unsettling. She’s forced into a difficult choice right from the start.

There isn’t time for hesitation. One slip up, and they lose everything. She passes the signal. A gold spark goes off by Kusma boy’s bicep. Interrupting him midsentence of whining about how she isn’t fun as Cyan who actually entertains him. 3 seconds. She’s listening to her instincts,

“Which card did you place?” there’s too much of a risk and uncertainty for her to hope that these matches are benevolent and unchanging. 2 seconds,

“Jester” Kusma boy gasps. 1 second. She slaps a King on the table. Time’s up. The cards are revealed. Her King’s just ordered his Jester to be hung. But her eyes are on the holograms instead. His inventory sum is currently being ticked downwards and hers up. Now it shows,

No. 420 Current Inventory: $ 1 361 042

No. 88 Current Inventory: $ 3 680 092

Her suspicions were right after all. The training wheels are off. Their bets are deducted from their inventories directly after each round. Having more money is actually an advantage. There's no time for sighs of relief. In this stage event, without the withdraw game function. The win condition is no longer to win fourth round but to either get rid of all your opponent’s cards, or get all of their money. Hitting 0 at any point would mean game over. She has 6 cards in total, AAJJQK. Kusma Boy’s only showing her 3 in his hand.

Beneath the stage, Bob’s signaling her that Cyan’s going to be acting as her eyes. He just told her Kusma boy’s holding JJQ, but don’t take the bait. Does he really think she would? At a glance, someone would think to confidently play King. But knowing the kind of person Kusma boy is, he’s definitely hiding more cards up his sleeves. She needs to know for certain, so she signals for another bullet before Kusma boy recovers from looking stunned out of his mind,

“How many cards do you have?”

“Ten in total.”

“What are they?”

“2 Assassin’s, 3 Jesters, 3 Queens and 2 Kings” he shakes himself out of it after realizing what happened. Taking some time to consolidate the information in his head, then he’s amused, scoffing,

“New teammate, huh? What happened to the fox? Did you ditch him? Or is it a ménage à trois now?” this finalizes it. She’s traded away the element of surprise for information, and now, she’s revealed all their tricks on the table ready for Kusma boy to counter. Has he figured out how to yet? She can’t read his expressions aside from, annoyingly cocky. Don’t give him time to think. She starts the timer. It’s a fight and she still hasn’t lost her upper hand yet, so she needs to attack. Corner him, corner him, corner him,

“Bet, $ 1 million.” corner him like a frightened rat before he gets use to it. They’re both staring at the clock sprinting downwards. But Kusma boy is unnervingly calm. He’s trying to pressurize her into engaging him. It feels unsettling. There’re goosebumps prickling her nape. 10 seconds left. He’s starting to whine when she doesn’t reply a single word he’s said thus far,

“Come on, throw me a bone here. I feel like I’m talking to a wall.” 5 seconds. She gulps hard. Three seconds... he’s not placing any cards still,

“Or, am I not your type so you’re just ignoring me. What do you like? A pretty boy, a buffed jock, a hot nerd? Tell me, I can change int-” two seconds, she beckons for another bullet, interrupting him,

“What are you going to put?” she can’t wait any longer otherwise she won’t hear his answer before the time runs out,

“Qu-” they slip their cards on the table, “-een.” the timer buzzes 0. Something feels off. Something feels very off already. Kusma boy is far too relaxed about this, it can only mean one thing,

“Oop. Changed my mind, swapped it.” he’s already figured out how to counter her. That’s so quick. The cards are revealed. He’s no rat that she’s driven into the corner. He’s a snake, preened with fangs and venom ready to strike.

He’s placed an Assassin against her King. The cards slide over to his side. Adjusting their amounts to,

No. 420 Current Inventory: $ 361 042

No. 88 Current Inventory: $ 4 360 092

The bullet only compels the opponent to tell the truth at the moment of time, and he just demonstrated he is quick enough to switch the cards with a sleight-of-hand soon as he admits anything. Before the time runs out, hearing his answers means jack shit. He amends his actions faster than his words. And as long as he makes sure he only places in the final seconds, this tactic won’t work anymore, it’ll be too late when she hears his real answer. He’s found a way to completely shut her down with just one turn. She gulps hard. Now he gets the offense,

“You’re really rude. You know that?” and she needs to figure out how to survive. Starting the clock, he’s unyieldingly trying to make conversation still,

“Entertain me a little. Tell me a bit about yourself.” she won’t reply. She’s seen how the game went with Cyan yesterday. He’s just trying to drag her into his pace. As long as she has less money than him. He can force her into an all-ins like the first round. And he likely will, but he isn’t betting yet,

“Or how about I guess. You seem like the gullible, simple-minded type.” he’s getting theatrical,

“I bet your thought process was all like,” trying to mimic the way he thinks she’ll sound like. Acting like a cheery little girl, pumping his fist before his chest,

“Okay, I caught him off guard once!” leaping up and down with intentional mockery,

“Let’s try to end this quick before he figures a way to counter me. Oh no. He’s already countered me. What do I do. What do I do now? He can make me lose this round if he wants.” he’s intentionally provoking her. Is he trying to get on her nerves? No... that isn’t the right thought process for this game. She needs to focus on what she should do next.

He has AAJJJQQQKKK and she’s left with AJJQK. She gulps hard. 8 seconds left. She has zero clue what he’s going to put, so she can only provoke him with her actions. She slips a card onto the table. He’s mirroring her the moment she does. Why does it feel so unsettling. Why does it feel as though he knows exactly what’s on her mind? He’s making a bet,

“$ 361 042.” like she thought, another all in for her. Cyan’s told her he’s pulled a King from his hand. What should she do? Should she switch to an Assassin? But that won’t guarantee that he’s really put the King on the table. What if he made them think he’s played a King but he’s really placed a Queen? If that’s the case then she needs to one up him and play the King. But, what if he’s really placed the Assassin instead? So, she should play Queen then? This is never ending. Her head hurts.

Should she ask him if he’s switched his cards? No. That won’t work. That’s the same as asking him what card he has directly. The moment he answers her, he can change his mind again. Four seconds. Her heartbeats are getting increasingly deafening.

What’s a way out of this. How does she survive this bet? What’s the information she needs to keep her from losing. Something that he can’t amend retrospectively. Or something obvious that she can visually tell if he were to amend. She’s observing him. He has his cards furled out with his left hand. Whilst he sets his right hand on the table, not entirely dropping the selection. Three seconds. There is a way. She’s figured it out! There is a question that can definitely help her survive! She first needs to ascertain,

“How many cards do you have in your right hand?”

“Just two.” condition cleared. Two seconds. She signals Bob for the bullet,

“What’s the other card that’s not a King?” one second,

“As-” she exchanges her card on the table, he gasps mid-phrase, entirely catching on. She’s placed an Assassin. This way, she can only draw or win. But she hadn’t anticipated him to completely switch hands. He’s now placing a card from his left. He’s going for a Jester or Queen then? They don’t have time left! The timer’s milliseconds before going cold, should she switch to a King too? But what if that’s bait? She needs more time to think! He has 4 different pieces he could choose from. It feels like her life is flashing before her eyes.

Bang. That awfully familiar sensation of Bob’s Magia jolts through her veins. A blue orb expands past her vision. Submerging everything in a dim blue filter. A burst of gold light manifests beneath her the shape of the clock. It’s needles spinning madly about. She’s looking at the final 50 milliseconds slow to a crawl. Bob’s speed buffed her again, but it’s expiring quick, so she needs to make a decision. It’s easy now. She can see the card Kusma boy’s mid-slamming down. It’s a Jester. The buff disappears. She swipes the Assassin off and hits a Queen on the table.

“-sassin” the timer goes cold. Her speed buff expires. It’s fine. She shouldn’t lose this. He doesn’t know about Bob’s speed buff considering he hasn’t met them in Rufus’s trial so he won’t have possibly predicted her on this aspect.

The cards are revealed. She heaves a sigh of relief. He really didn’t switch his Jester and she’s placed her Queen. She should win this, and she’ll get offense next.

Wait. Something isn’t right. The cards are slipping over to his side of the table. Wait. Why? She should’ve won this. She does a double take. It is a Queen versus a Jester. But, why is the Queen getting beheaded by her subjects instead?

Are there some other bullshit bogus rules that she doesn’t know about that’s added to this stage event? The beeps ticking rapidly as she watches her inventory drop to a fat 0. The hologram on her side turns an angry red. In front of her, more panes begin popping up. It’s an anatomy drawing of a humanoid figure. Each organ labelled with a price tag and a huge label of “wager” beside it. The crowd really starts to get excited. Spurring her on to take the deal. Before her, Kusma boy first admits,

“Your new partner’s pretty good.” then he relaxes, untensing his shoulders like he’s just gotten off a thrill ride,

“Too bad you aren’t.” he’s no longer in fight of flight, so he’s telling her,

“It’s not worth it.” pointing at the eye he’s lost beneath the bandage,

“Just try again next year. These types of games aren’t your forte.” he doesn’t sound like he’s taunting her anymore. In fact, it’s genuine advice he’s trying to give her. Beneath the stage, Cyan finally managed to squeeze himself to the front, trying to climb on top, repeatedly warning her,

“He’s messing with your sight!” but it’s too late. So, now he’s instead suggesting,

“Don’t wager anything. Trade places with me!” but he’s held back by two Felmane adventurers. They aren’t letting him.

Fuck... She furls out to observe the hand she’s holding. Confirming his words. They’re wrong. It’s randomly jumbled up. She isn’t seeing the cards as what they really are. Even without replying a single word, she still got dragged into his pace. Fuck! She tunnel-visioned so hard she’s failed to acknowledge Cyan’s warning earlier. She got thoroughly outplayed. She shouldn’t have even let a moment of her guard down.

And now, as long as she doesn’t know how to dispel his perception control, even her own cards are thorns. That Queen she’s selected must have been an Assassin. Cyan’s asking her to regroup. She shouldn’t continue this fight anymore. She should just retreat.

But... She can’t.

She can’t stop.

They have no more money after this. Cyan will get hurt because of her again. If she doesn’t wager up her organs now, Cyan definitely will later. That’s the deal he’s made with Bob. She won’t let that happen. She can’t keep being a dead weight in this trial.

She’s looking at the chart again. Reaching her hand forward. Cyan’s immediately cursing her, to get the fuck off the stage and calling her a dumbass. She isn’t listening. She’d rather take the bet that Alyss might not follow through because of her promise to Killian than to let her harm Cyan. So, she chooses to ignore him, despite her heartbeats are betraying her. She’s afraid. She’s actually afraid. Her hand is trembling as she brings it closer to the hologram.

If Alyss does follow through, then... No. Fuck it! Stop being a dead weight!

A kidney is worth 200k. Even if she follows through, Lilith doesn’t need both of them. She hits the button. A bolt of Magia flashes past her veins. Hot like a searing brand. Snapping her arm back. A blue sigil carves through her side, there’s a timer on it. 72 hours. Hovering above her clothes. Before fading away to nothingness. The wager is made. Her inventory trinkles up. Turning the red buzzer gold. She’s back into the game. The crowd goes wild. She can feel Cyan’s stare, it’s boring through her like a knife. But she’s signaling him there isn’t time for them to argue about her decision. She’s going to continue and she has next bet. She knows exactly how to counter attack,

“$ 4 360 092” what Kusma Boy just did was a double-sided blade and she’s going to end him with it.