Video Tower. Seongrak Tower. Manhwa Tower.
These are considered the best among the peak experts in the bustling Sacheon City.
These towers in the Martial World handle all kinds of nighttime entertainment—alcohol, gambling, music, women… basically everything related to nightlife congregates in these towers.
Among them, the Video Tower specializes particularly in fair gambling, while the Manhwa Tower boasts exceptional courtesans.
Then, what about the Seongrak Tower’s weapon?
The reason people regard Seongrak Tower as the best is its size. It’s a massive scale, unmatched by any other towers. The cheap food and drinks, along with the low gambling exchange fees that generate from this size.
But that’s just the surface reason; the real reason is something else entirely.
It primarily provides ‘entertainment’ to special customers.
For instance, let’s say a wealthy person wants to enjoy gambling.
Even if a rich person isn’t skilled at gambling, if two players collude and stack the deck, it’s an easy task to fleece someone unaware and simply enjoying the game. It’s about mocking those who come to enjoy a typical night out and satisfying their twisted desires.
This sordid VVIP service is what Seongrak Tower specializes in.
The nature of the tower business is basically an underground trade, and when morals are discarded, the ways to make money become limitless. Seongrak Tower could be said to be the ultimate in shady practices, willing to sell out even regular customers if the price is right.
Thus, Seongrak Tower’s gambling tables are filled with fake gamblers pretending to be peak experts, using actual gamblers to make a show of it. It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that the gambling table itself is a playground for special customers.
“…Seongrak Tower Master Yu Ji-gyeong.”
“Ah, have you forgotten our agreement?”
“Phew.”
Yeo Il-ye, dressed in disguise, settled her nerves. It wasn’t much of a disguise—just the Black Cat putting her heart into beautifying the face that never seemed like it would wear makeup—but a charm point below her left eye made her feel like a different person altogether.
This level of makeup is suitable for the original purpose rather than completely hiding her face.
“Miss.”
“…What is it?”
“I understand your desire to eradicate Yu Ji-gyeong right away. No, it’s more appropriate to say I can only guess. But please endure for today and bear witness to this Ho Cheon-an’s face.”
“Of course. I agreed to the honorable person’s plan as well.”
Yeo Il-ye flexed her form. Today her disguise concept was a beautiful bodyguard hired by a rich man.
Her brightly adorned face and form-fitting, luxurious attire still retained the sharp eyes typical of a martial artist but, as far as appearances go, she was stunning enough to catch the casual passerby’s attention.
“However, controlling my emotions as easily as I wish is not as simple.”
“From tomorrow, it should be all right.”
“…I don’t think I will get used to it in just one day.”
Ah, well, I said tomorrow would be fine. Yeo Il-ye didn’t seem convinced by my words, but as long as she doesn’t go on a rampage today, that’s all I care about.
“Now, let’s go in.”
Gambling often comes with its share of thuggery from gambling halls. Sure, I end up losing it all in the end, but up until that point, I always seemed to win. Many towers cause a ruckus with just a few stacks of cash in front of me.
I haven’t forgotten the contempt I faced at gambling houses during my training.
I’ve also been indebted to Seongrak Tower.
Even without those petty resentments, I still wanted to try it once.
Gathering money without worrying about the aftermath of a gambling hall.
From today until the day of execution.
I’m planning to go to Seongrak Tower daily and try to uproot the pillars of this tower.
—
Gu Joo-jin was looking for prey once again today. The recent economy in Sacheon wasn’t doing well, but that had nothing to do with him. He had a father working in money lending in Sacheon.
‘Heh heh, they say the waters are good these days.’
The tougher the economy, the more people flock to gambling houses. When opportunities to earn money disappear, the desperate people flock in looking for a quick fortune.
‘Feels great!’
After setting up a scene where he earned big bucks with a gambler provided by the tower, enjoying the envy and jealousy from the spectators was amusing, but lately, he found it even more enjoyable to fleece these desperate folks.
Watching their faces filled with despair when they realized they lost all their money without noticing the techniques employed by the gamblers was downright hilarious.
Who should I toy with today? With two gamblers in tow, Gu Joo-jin roamed the gambling hall.
‘Hmm?’
“…Young master. Perhaps it’s time to stop.”
“Don’t stop me, Hyang-dan!”
‘Oh…’
A woman who appeared to be an embarrassed bodyguard blushed in this situation.
“What’s the point of relying on gambling…”
In her flashy attire, with a well-toned body, she could easily turn heads as she walked by. Even her clumsy, innocent vibe seemed out of place in the tower or gambling house. She had all the elements to provoke any man.
Immediately, Gu Joo-jin sized up the man conversing with the bodyguard. He didn’t look extravagantly wealthy, but his clothing didn’t show a lot of care over the last few days. An average physique, but he seemed trained. A martial artist, perhaps?
“This is the only way our guild can survive!”
‘Was he a merchant?’
If he wasn’t a martial artist, that’d be even better. Gu Joo-jin licked his lips, thinking he would definitely fleece this guy. If he could slowly entice him into a losing streak, maybe he could deal with the bodyguard behind him.
Gu Joo-jin was one of the special customers at Seongrak Tower.
If he splurged some cash to place a special request at the Seongrak Tower tonight, he just might get a taste of that bodyguard.
Thinking of such things, Gu Joo-jin focused on the table.
“Heh heh heh… What a rookie.”
“Go back to your mama and drink milk! Or maybe ask that Miss behind you!”
“Wahahaha!”
The bodyguard trembled in anger. The young man hurriedly placed his bet.
Gold coins.
The faces of all those at the table glistened with greed at the sight of gold. They were fascinated by the enchanting lure of gold, temporarily forgetting their mockery of the bodyguard as they silently placed their bets.
And then…
“I—I won!”
“This is nonsense!”
“Must be beginner’s luck, damn it…”
The young man seated at the gambling table yelled out in disbelief as the others hurled away their old cards. The winner was the young man, who celebrated his victory in ecstatic disbelief.
“Ha ha, did you see that? I won money in an instant!”
“…”
The bodyguard merely looked at the young man with an ambiguous expression, nodding slightly.
It seems they were done with their bets as another man cursed and got up to leave. Gu Joo-jin naturally took that seat.
As Gu Joo-jin sat down, one player who had kept that seat flinched and hurriedly got up. Gu Joo-jin was somewhat of a known figure at Seongrak Tower. His gambler promptly took that seat.
Now, it was a face-off between Gu Joo-jin, the gambler, a pumped-up competitor, and the young master at the table.
“Brother Officer, can we start?”
“Ah, my bad! I must’ve gotten a bit too excited! Let’s continue!”
Gu Joo-jin smiled, sensing the attention of those who were drinking was now on them. His shenanigans, coupled with the reference to money, grabbed the attention of all the gamers, and spectators began to drift towards Gu Joo-jin as they recognized who he was.
“Hehe, today might be fun.”
Noticing the young master pull out gold coins, it looked like he was packing quite a fortune. Seeing the naive young master’s despair amidst all the attention of others holding cash and the beauty of the bodyguard behind him, Gu Joo-jin couldn’t help but smile.
Even without that, the naive young master’s horrible gambling skills were entertaining enough.
Finding the sight of others tremble while dropping their hands absurdly funny, naturally, Gu Joo-jin couldn’t help but laugh diachronically.
“Ha ha ha! Is the gambling table this amusing?”
“Get lost already!”
The crowd booed loudly. The young master, pale-faced and bewildered, shot nervous glances around him. The bodyguard, meanwhile, remained silent.
The bodyguard, Yeo Il-ye, felt a shiver down her spine.
‘…What a terrifying person.’
Yeo Il-ye knew of Ho Cheon-an’s genuine gambling skills. The prodigious hand that toyed with two peak experts right in front of her.
However, Ho Cheon-an was acting in a way that could confuse even Yeo Il-ye.
Facing the main enemy’s lair, he was expressing anxiety. Emotions built on rage from facing the outright sexual harassment she had never experienced.
At this moment, Ho Cheon-an, with a level of ease that could easily fleece anyone in the tower merely wanted to endure the flood of mockery while pretending to be terrified.
‘How can he do that?’
Just by showing a bit of those skills, everyone at the table would start praising him. They would send gazes filled with jealousy, awe, or even respect. Ho Cheon-an had those skills.
Yet, he chose not to.
Even with skills overflowing in fulfilling his目的, he sought perfection while subject to ridicule.
With her incessant losses in her past, Yeo Il-ye felt Ho Cheon-an’s rational demeanor stand out all the more.
“What luck!”
“Ha ha ha! Look at that rookie! Even after winning, he looks scared!”
Even for someone like Yeo Il-ye, who had no understanding of gambling, looking through Ho Cheon-an’s schemes struck discomfort into her heart.
As the young man continued trading wins and losses, gold was piling up in Ho Cheon-an’s possession while none seemed to consider him a threat.
Instead, they were merely annoyed at Ho Cheon-an’s good fortune, mocking the opponent’s mistakes, attributing it to irrational beginner’s luck.
‘…Is this the difference in caliber?’
Ridicule. Contempt. Insults. Ho Cheon-an paid no mind to any of it. He was merely stepping through the motions like a machine, focused on achieving his goal.
“Gold coins! Let’s raise it ten! Damned fool!”
Gu Joo-jin hollered, veins popping, while Ho Cheon-an feigned joy over good luck and fear of Gu Joo-jin’s bluster, maintaining an act of being the greedy fool.
“Uaaaaaargh!! This is absurd!”
The loser was Gu Joo-jin. He glared at the gambler beside him, who was sweating profusely with embarrassment. The gambler could barely be considered a gambler at all, lacking actual skills, as he had merely relied on the gamblers assigned by Seongrak Tower.
Not wanting to blame the gambler in front of the crowd, Gu Joo-jin wildly smashed nearby objects.
As Gu Joo-jin caused a riot, the crowd’s laughter erupted.
“Ha ha ha! Look at that pathetic display! How could a guy like that call himself a master of gambling here at Seongrak Tower?”
“Gu Joo-jin’s fame was just a joke!”
Ho Cheon-an pinched his cheek while grinning haphazardly, embracing the gold coins.
“Babbling away, did you see that? Hyang-dan! I really did it!”
He quickly began counting the coins once more. The crowd observed in puzzlement at Ho Cheon-an’s behavior. He had managed to win a staggering thirty gold coins.
Even if he knew nothing of gambling, he wouldn’t be an idiot. He would likely enjoy his good fortune today before running away.
Suddenly, Ho Cheon-an’s expression turned sorrowful.
“I’m a single coin short of paying off our guild’s debt…”
With a conflicted look on his face, Ho Cheon-an clutched the gold coins tight. The guests in Seongrak Tower crowded around him, eyes filled with greed.
‘That fool probably spent all his luck and is foolishly trying to push his luck even further!’
‘Heh heh, looks like a big catch today!’
Honestly, Yeo Il-ye was skeptical about the current plan. They would wreck special customers and shake Seongrak Tower to its core. Would simply having one person at the gambling table really be enough to hurt that huge establishment? She couldn’t shake this thought.
But now it seemed possible.
One special customer had lost dozens of gold coins and yet the rest approached without caution.
“J-Just a little more, and I can pay off the debt…!”
“I’ll sit there!”
“What nonsense! Get lost! My party and I will take that spot!”
It wasn’t just a lack of caution; they were literally fighting to be first in line to jump into the tiger’s den.
In the midst of this brawling, Ho Cheon-an acted like he was trembling while clutching the coins tightly.
‘Truly…’
If this continued for days. If this scene felt more a part of a farce than reality, with Ho Cheon-an’s schemes falling perfectly into place.
‘Could it really be possible to bring down Seongrak Tower?’
Thinking this, Yeo Il-ye gazed at the worthless back of Ho Cheon-an, who was trembling as he acted scared while clutching the gold coins, executing a performance that made one want to lose all affection for someone they’d long awaited for a decade.
But to Yeo Il-ye, Ho Cheon-an felt grander than anyone else.
That day, Ho Cheon-an won over a hundred gold coins.
Yeo Il-ye returned, turning dozens of assailants into mere jelly.
