Chapter 472: Chapter 243: Golden Flow Wheel, Gamblers and Brawls

Luca finally let out a sigh of relief.

He took a big gulp, feeling the cold liquid slide down his throat into his chest, temporarily dispelling that craving for excitement that drags countless people into the abyss.

“Luca? Why are you sitting here alone, where’s Sava?”

Before he could even warm the chair, a familiar voice suddenly came from the noisy crowd nearby.

He looked in the direction the voice came from.

He saw Xia Nan and Vier walking towards him.

He quickly stood up, a slightly awkward grin appearing on his face, scratching his head as he replied:

“Uh… I got a bit bored, came out for a break.”

“Sava is still playing over there, she seems to be on a roll, so I didn’t want to disturb her.”

Following Xia Nan’s gaze, his eyes swept over the chips on the Dragon Descendant poker table, then glanced at Luca’s somewhat shriveled pouch and the glass of wine on the table before him.

Without needing further explanation, Xia Nan could already guess that Luca had lost all his money in the casino.

He wasn’t worth pitying, but also, there was no need for sardonic remarks.

As long as he didn’t lose his cool and pawn off the [Dream Weaving Corridor] for money, all the results were his own choices.

He nodded expressionlessly.

“Vier and I were just passing by, heard you guys were inside, so we came in for a look.”

Of course, it was just a casual look.

His eyes swept around, comparing the “Golden Flow Wheel” with the now-ruined “Full Bag of Gold” in River Valley Town, destroyed during the battle between Kalanfor and another powerful figure in Frogon.

Undoubtedly, from both the flow of customers and the interior decor, the latter was a complete winner.

After all, being near River Valley Town, the adventurers traveling through were considerably wealthy, unlike the remote town of Melted Scale Town located in the wilderness.

No matter how well it was decorated, benefiting from the thorough societal awareness of gambling’s dangers in the previous world and the countless chilling tales on the internet, Xia Nan would not bet even a single copper coin.

They chatted casually, seeing that Luca had already lost all his money, while Sava, feeling lucky, was unwilling to leave the table.

The three of them decided to settle down at a nearby table by the bar for a while, planning to head back to the inn together later.

Once they were engrossed in small talk, Xia Nan suddenly caught a whiff of alcohol.

Looking over, he saw three rosy-cheeked hooligans with arms slung around each other.

Having had some drinks and lost some money, with comrades by their side.

They naturally had the audacity to approach, seemingly wanting to “borrow” some money from two passersby.

Xia Nan could sense that the hooligans’ initial target should have been their table.

But maybe it was Luca’s burly frame, or perhaps it was their own fully armed adventurer garb, which indeed carried some intimidation for the ordinary people.

He watched as the drunkards whispered to each other, then changed their course and headed towards a young man sitting alone at a nearby table to Xia Nan’s left front.

Compared to the gamblers in Golden Flow Wheel, this young man, dressed like an ordinary townsperson, seemed unaffected by the enthusiastic atmosphere.

He simply sat unobtrusively in a corner, with a half-drunk bottle of beer on the table in front of him, subtly scanning the tavern with his eyes.

Xia Nan suddenly felt the young man seemed familiar, as if he’d seen him somewhere before.

As he pondered this, the three hooligans had already engaged in a scuffle with the young man.

…

…

Lawson was in a terrible mood.

Two whole days had passed since they found the corpse of Dwarf Lao Gu in the alley.

The treasure stolen from the Red Dragon Nest was still nowhere to be found.

He knew all too well what this meant.

This indicated that if there truly was a third-party force that had taken the item from Lao Gu.

Two days were enough for them to finish restocking and leave the town.

If they traveled quickly enough, they might have already crossed a large part of the Melted Scale Mountain Range.

Almost two years, over six hundred days, spent perfecting the arrangement, going through countless difficulties, almost emptying his savings, only to have his teammates perish until he was the only one left.

A desperate gamble that finally yielded the spoils of victory.

Now snatched away by an unknown entity whose identity remained a mystery.

Lawson’s repressed anger almost threatened to explode.

In this matter, Rottoe, who followed at his side like a servile lackey, had profound insight.

Two days ago, he dared to argue his case for the investigation results, but facing Lawson’s curses now, he didn’t even dare to cough too hard, fearing he might inadvertently ignite the other man’s explosive temper.

As one of Melted Scale Town’s so-called “Big Shots,” even within his field amidst countless subordinates and customers.

Rottoe remained unabashedly subservient, following behind Lawson, awaiting his orders.

After all, he knew clearly that everything he currently had was bestowed by this high level professional.

To reclaim it, he wouldn’t even need to do much.

A mere twist of the sword handle could swipe gently across his neck.

All he could hope for was that the gold he sent to the nearby Church might spare him from Hell and help his soul ascend to the Divine Country after death for some respite.

“Have the entrances and exits been thoroughly checked recently, are you sure there aren’t any noteworthy individuals?”

“Absolutely certain, Mr. Lawson, only ordinary merchants and adventurers have been coming through these days, hardly any professionals.”

“Useless! Useless! Useless!”

Rottoe hung his head, not daring to utter a word.

And just then, a commotion suddenly erupted from the front.

The gamblers who should’ve been at the poker tables, striving to buy his nineteenth shop in town, were for some reason gathering together.

Among the ruckus and cheers, muffled sounds of flesh colliding could faintly be heard.

“Who dares to stir up trouble in my turf?”

Rottoe furrowed his brow and waved his right hand subtly.

The henchmen who had kept silent, instantly transformed into the role of “lackeys,” making way for their boss, and the boss’s boss, through the crowd.

By now, the fight was nearing its end.

Two of the black-and-blue thugs lay unknown on the casino floor.

The remaining one lunged with his fist towards their target, a young man who had been sitting in the corner.

The disparity in strength was too vast.

The young man didn’t even dodge, just slightly lifting his left hand. A clear bone crack resounded as his opponent’s right arm fractured and dislocated.

At the same time, the young man took a step forward with his right foot, assuming an unusual stance. He seemed to aim for the thug’s lower abdomen but reconsidered, shifting to a stamp, stepping down hard on the thug’s knee.

“Crunch.”

Accompanied by a shrill wail, the thug’s left leg twisted grotesquely, reducing him to a quivering heap of flesh.

The Golden Flow Wheel was no virtuous place, and its owner Rottoe was infamously a villain in town.

But business had to go on, and given that this was clearly instigated by drunken thugs, the young man would face no trouble.

If for some reason he were hurt, they would even compensate him.

Thus, having swiftly dealt with the thugs, the young man lowered his head slightly, trying to leave the scene without interference from Rottoe’s men.

However, at the same time, from the shadow standing like darkness behind Rottoe.

Upon seeing the unique stance the young man adopted instinctively during the fight, then withdrawing as he became aware.

The pupils suddenly contracted.

Just as he was about to blend into the crowd, moving with a speed that was but a blur to ordinary eyes.

Buzzing—

He advanced.

His fingers, claw-like with the strength of steel, embedded into the young man’s shoulder, rendering him immobile.

In his ear, came a voice thick with latent death and cold hoarseness:

“That move… I’ve seen it somewhere before…”