The Hero Becomes the Duke’s Eldest Son

Chapter 160

The Pleasure District, Ternian Casino.

This was the name that encompassed the enormous casino established within the Holy Kingdom and the thirteen districts surrounding it.

Aden and Elise’s group arrived at this pleasure district.

In truth, the rigid Priest Bali had fiercely opposed coming here.

His reason was that Elise, a saintess of the church, and Aden, an apostle of prophecy, should not set foot in such a vulgar place.

But Aden persuaded him.

“Priest Bali, aren’t casinos places where people live? The purpose of a pilgrimage is to gain various experiences, right? If you avoid dirty places and only visit clean ones, what kind of pilgrimage is that? This is all necessary experience. Ha, isn’t this the real pilgrimage?”

“…Lord Aden, haven’t we had a similar conversation before?”

As expected, Priest Bali couldn’t help but concede to Aden’s nonsense, even though it was difficult to refute.

Of course, revealing their identities openly while entering was impractical due to various circumstances, so they used Cassie’s alchemy potion to change their hair and eye colors to something different from their original appearances.

Hehe, Dragon Slayer King. Seeing you like this brings back old memories.

‘Well, it’s always comfortable to go with something familiar.’

Aden transformed his appearance to have blond hair and blue eyes, just like when he was “Albireo” in his previous life.

Although he had grown accustomed to his black hair and black eyes as Aden Remes, this look brought back different emotions.

“Cassie, your skill is impressive as always. No one would know this is dyed.”

“Hehe, thank you, my lord. But I do wish Nine could have come with us.”

“That guy has other things to do.”

“Wow! Everything is sparkling! It’s as bright as day even though it’s night!”

Woof woof!

Elise, who had accompanied the group to the casino district, marveled at the sights she saw for the first time.

Aden nodded slightly.

“It’s definitely a place that could leave one in awe.”

Ternian Casino was like a tumor that had grown, feeding off the Holy Kingdom.

It was so splendid that it seemed as if all the wealth and vitality of the kingdom had gathered there.

Brilliant, colorful magical lights dazzled the eyes, and the streets were as bright as day, even at night, with crowds of people everywhere.

Most of them were foreign nobles who had come to visit the Holy Kingdom.

Numerous crowds roamed the city, enjoying themselves.

Aden, observing the scene, summed it up in one line.

‘Hmm, it’s a mess.’

The streets were as glamorous as they were shadowy.

“Please, just a coin…”

“I’ll do anything, please, just a coin…!”

Beggars who had lost all their wealth to gambling.

“Hey, handsome, want to have some fun with us?”

“Kahaha! Tonight, I’ll play with you all night!”

“Kyaa, it’s embarrassing to do this here!”

Women in seductive attire lured customers in front of entertainment establishments.

The darker side was as large as the street’s glimmer.

Surprisingly, Elise didn’t seem to pay much attention to those aspects.

“There were a lot of beggar uncles and sisters like that where I used to live!”

Come to think of it, Elise grew up in the black market of Makellan City.

He had forgotten, but this was probably a familiar sight to her.

The pleasure district was full of grandeur, but a building that stood out above all else caught their eyes.

The casino, Ternian Casino.

The place where the actual power that manipulated the Holy Kingdom at will resided.

‘Well then, shall we go?’

Aden headed towards the casino.

In the room on the highest floor of the casino.

“Everything is going smoothly as planned.”

Someone was watching Aden enter the casino from beyond the window.

This person was standing in a dimly lit room, making it difficult to see his face.

As he stepped closer to the window, his appearance was revealed under the moonlight and the lights from the street.

A very handsome man with pure white hair and violet eyes.

However, his violet eyes held a strange, chilling aura.

Under his right eye were three black star tattoos.

The owner of the casino, the gambling den master, let out a chuckle.

“To dare hinder the boss’s grand plan, the only atonement for such a sin is death and eternal suffering after death. You worm.”

Of course, the opponent was the youngest Sword Master who had killed the Thunder Knight.

Moreover, he was suspected to be a contractor of Baalzebul, the Lord of Gluttony.

“But once he’s stepped into this place, my own kingdom of pleasure, the game is already over.”

No matter how strong the opponent was.

Even if they were a Sword Master who had reached the pinnacle of superhuman strength, once they fell into this trap, there would be no way to survive.

He found it amusing that the man had walked into the spider’s web, unaware.

“Enjoy your last moments in my kingdom. Despair and pain will be all that await you in the end, Aden Remes. Khuhuhu.”

A cruel smile spread across his face as dark, menacing magic oozed from his body.

Everyone who entered the casino was required to wear masks provided by the staff.

‘Forget your original status and spend money extravagantly!’—that was roughly the meaning behind it.

Originally, entering this place required a hefty admission fee, but Aden and his group could use all the facilities for free thanks to an invitation sent by the gambling den master.

‘Well, let’s enjoy this for a bit.’

They could freely use the casino until the gambling den master called for them.

Once everything was over, this place would be permanently shut down.

Even the staff were told to enjoy themselves until they were summoned by the gambling den master.

Instead of money, chips were used for betting within the casino.

Each gold coin was worth ten chips.

Aden and his group each received thirty chips as the basic allocation.

Afterward, they dispersed to enjoy the entertainment facilities and games of their choice.

“To think I would come to such a place as a knight, Lord Aden…”

“Enough, try to think a bit more flexibly, Lowe.”

“I agree with the young master. Cute knight, come with me. Will you escort me?”

“C-Cassie! Wait!”

Lowe was dragged off by Cassie, disappearing into the crowd.

“Oh my, Lord of the Sacred Fire. Please forgive me for coming to such a filthy place…”

“Uncle Bali! Stop that and come over here with me!”

Woof woof!

Priest Bali, still muttering laments, sat on the ground with his face buried in his large hands, unable to move.

Elise patted his broad back and urged him to get moving, while Choco simply barked.

Could dogs even be allowed inside the casino?

Well, whatever.

Aden decided to keep an eye on his group from a distance.

“Wow! Look at those marbles rolling! I want to play that!”

Aden couldn’t help but let out a wry smile when he saw the first game Elise chose.

Roulette.

The first game Elise picked was roulette.

It was a game where a small metal ball was rolled onto a roulette wheel, marked with numbers and painted black and red.

The objective was to guess the color or number where the ball would stop.

With numbers from 1 to 36, divided between black and red, the odds of winning were 1 in 72.

It was a game with particularly abysmal odds, even for seasoned players, who could only rely on luck.

There was no way Elise would win.

‘Hmm. Come to think of it, this must be Elise’s first time at a gaming table.’

He hoped she wouldn’t end up crying or feeling down after losing all her chips.

But two hours later, Aden realized that his concern was unnecessary.

“Haha…”

Aden let out a hollow laugh.

The sight before him was that unbelievable.

People had gathered around the roulette table like a swarm of cockroaches.

“Number 13, red!”

“Number 7, black!”

“Mmm, 32. I’ll go with black again!”

The small metal ball rolled and rolled, finally stopping on a number.

“Unbelievable!”

“She hit it again!”

The onlookers erupted in astonishment.

The ball had landed on number 32, black, just as Elise had chosen.

“Yay! I got it again!”

“Waaah!”

“This is crazy! She hit the number five times in a row!”

“How can a little girl do that? This is absurd!”

The crowd around her was ecstatic.

Winning five times in a row.

She had beaten the odds of 19,349,176 to 1.

It was nothing short of a miracle.

But Elise’s luck didn’t stop there.

When she played a poker game…

“Good grief! A full house!”

“I’ve never seen that with my own eyes before!”

When she pulled the lever on a slot machine, powered by mana stones…

“Dear me! Lucky Seven!”

“I never thought I’d see those numbers in my lifetime!”

When she played a high-low game…

“This is insane! It’s even again! She hit it again!”

“Ten wins in a row!”

At every gaming table she touched, Elise created a new legend in the gambling world.

Aden had an exasperated expression.

‘This is completely nuts…’

Wasn’t her luck way too good?

Someone muttered in awe, staring at Elise with reverence.

“Amazing… She’s like a child loved by the God of Gambling!”

She may not be loved by the God of Gambling, but she was indeed a saint loved by God.

At this point, one would think someone might suspect foul play and challenge her, but no one dared, thanks to the imposing presence of Priest Bali, who stood by her side with his massive shoulders and bulging chest muscles.

“Hehe! This is fun! Uncle Bali, let’s play that one next!”

“Yes, ma’am! Hahaha!”

Priest Bali, who had been trembling with guilt while begging forgiveness from the Lord of the Sacred Fire, was now laughing heartily as he pushed a cart loaded with the chips Elise had won.

He had completely succumbed to the thrill of gambling.

‘As expected of our saint! Elise’s greatness can’t be hidden! Hahaha!’

To be precise, he was completely captivated by Elise’s winning streak.

“That girl, no, that lady is truly the goddess of fortune…”

“Let’s follow the Goddess of Fortune!”

“Ah! Please bless me with a big win too! I’ll believe in you for the rest of my life!”

Before they knew it, some strange followers had started to gather around Elise.

At this rate, the saintess of the Sacred Fire Order might end up founding a heretical cult.

There are no traces of magic, holy arts, black magic, or spirit magic. In other words, that young saint is winning purely on her own, Dragon Slayer King. Haa… How can this be?

“Well, maybe it’s because she’s a saint…?”

If all saints were as lucky as that child, this world would be far more interesting, Dragon Slayer King.

Hmm.

That was hard to argue against.

Aden simply gave up trying to understand.

By the way, Dragon Slayer King.

“What?”

At this rate, even if you don’t take down the gambling den master, this casino might go bankrupt just because of that saint.

“…The thought that you might be right is what scares me.”

Aden glanced at the rapidly growing pile of chips in the “cart” and thought that might actually be the case.

Aden sat at the casino’s bar, watching Elise’s incredible streak while sipping on a drink.

You have consumed the deadly poison, ‘Death by a Thousand Silent Steps.’

Hmm, it seemed the drink had been poisoned in advance.

Death by a Thousand Silent Steps.

This was a colorless, odorless poison that showed no immediate effects upon ingestion.

However, after roughly the time it would take to walk a thousand steps, its effects would kick in, paralyzing the body and causing death.

A martial artist who had reached the level of superhuman could resist it to some extent and might not die, but they would be paralyzed and have difficulty speaking.

This was a rare and expensive poison capable of poisoning even a Sword Master—quite a thorough preparation.

Not that it mattered.

Due to the ‘Immunity to All Poisons’ trait, you are unaffected by the poison.

The proficiency of ‘Poison Blood’ increases.

Thanks to the ‘Immunity to All Poisons’ trait, which he had acquired after consuming the heart of a basilisk, the poison had no effect at all.

However, the gambling den master wouldn’t know this.

After some time…

“The master awaits you, Lord Aden Remes. I’ll guide you to him.”

It was time to meet the gambling den master.