About five years ago, one of the maids engaged in a gamble against Jasper.

I couldn't recall her name, but she was a new hire and, despite the warnings by the rest of the staff, had requested a game against Jasper. She was pretty famous in East Genise in the gaming circles and perhaps had some pride in her gambling skills.

She knew of Jasper and thought herself clever by using a set of loaded die. What she didn't account for was how useless such a trick was against him.

The game was simple. Each side would toss a die three times, and whoever had the highest number of total sides, won. She had her set of three, and Jasper was given his own by her.

When she tossed her loaded die, it somehow hit the ground at such an angle that a part of it chipped, causing it to flop unremarkably at a three. On the other hand, Jasper's chipped and landed a solid four.

They moved locations for the die toss to avoid more chips, but that didn't help her. She tossed her second die, and it managed to adhere to a rather stubborn crumb of sticky cheese. The die read an unfavorable two. Jasper's die also found some sticky residue but had landed a good five.

They moved yet again, this time tossing the die into a pot, thus avoiding any surprises. However, it appeared their die had switched, for she landed a one, while Jasper got a perfect six.

His luck in gambling could bend the very fabric of reality.

Or so was the saying. It wasn't until the Character Checker for him showed his Luck stat that I came to believe that to be a very literal case rather than just a saying.

I still remember the maid's expression when the third die fell. It was the same expression on Elian's face now.

"That isn't possible," Elian muttered.

He had been the first to reveal a card, and the card atop the deck was none other than the Fool.

"That isn't possible," Elian said again, his eyes turning to the dealer. The first utterance had been a gasp of disbelief, but the second was an assertion.

It was impossible to make out the dealer's expression, concealed behind the full-cover black mask. One could only imagine her internal turmoil, for she had shuffled the cards in a manner that should have guaranteed Elian's victory. Yet, with the very first card turned, he found himself facing the cruelest of defeats.

"Shall I do the cutting, or do you prefer it yourself?" Jasper asked. "It might prove too difficult to cut your own finger off."

"Wait, wait," Elian stammered. "I need to prepare—no, why would you want my finger? I can get you something more valuable, right? The original bet was 350 Phoenix eyes, so—"

"Oh? Is your finger worth just 350 Phoenix eyes?" Jasper exuded a bit of shock. "Are you saying that for the mere price of 3,500 Phoenix eyes, you'd sell all your fingers?"

"No–no, of course not," Elian said. "My fingers are worth much more than that."

He gazed down at his long fingers with their many colorful rings.

"How valuable is one finger to you?" I asked.

Elian's masked face turned toward me, his light gray eyes piercing through the white mask, locking onto mine. "What is it that you desire? My finger is a prized possession, but surely there's something of greater worth to you."

"The mage your father won at auction," I replied.

"HA!" Elian's mouth moved into a scowl, and he leaned away from the table. "I'm afraid that wouldn't be possible. My father has only just won that mage, and he wouldn't give him up for anything."

"Not even one of his son's precious fingers?" I asked.

"No," Elian replied. His voice was tinged with bitterness. "You have to ask for something else."

"Very well, in that case, how about just a meeting? I'd like to see the mage I lost up close, in private."

Elain's gray eyes blinked behind the white mask, and a broad smile extended over his face.

"That," he said. "I can arrange."

He extended his right hand out, and I accepted the handshake.

If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

"This concludes the game," the dealer said. "A colleague of mine will attend to this table shortly if you wish for another game."

She was quick to leave, eager to avoid Elian's potential anger about the incorrectly shuffled Fool.

"Elian, I trust one of your healers can reattach these?" Lady Shuzen collected her severed fingers, enclosed in a green goop to prevent further bleeding. She wore a pained smile on her face.

"Ah, yes, they'll stitch them back in place. Just go to my quarters. There should be one on standby there," Elian waved her off.

"Please excuse me. I trust you'll enjoy the remaining festivities then," Lady Shuzen bowed toward us and walked away with a level of grace I don't think most could have exuded after having several of their fingers cut off.

Elian wore a smile on his face as her figure walked away. "She's truly remarkable. You know what, I've decided; I think I'll marry her."

If I had a drink in hand, I was confident I would have a coughing fit hearing this from him.

What a lunatic.

I watched Lady Shuzen's large feathered mask disappear into the crowds.

But the craziest part was that I suspected she would accept the proposal.

"From what I've heard, here's a couple of interesting rings coming up in the artifacts auction. Perhaps one would be a worthy gift for your future fiancé?" Jasper suggested.

"I was thinking the same," Elian said, caressing his chin.

He appeared to be in good spirits despite his loss to Jasper. Or, at the very least, he was in an upswing of his unexpected mood swings.

"The next auction will begin in an hour, but in the meantime, I can take you to meet that mage you lost to my father." Elian stood up from his seat and motioned for us to follow.

<< Ridley, we're moving to Fin's and Leona's location. >> I used the power of my necklace to communicate the message to the old mage.

He couldn't communicate back, but he was in a position that could track our position, and I trusted that he would have everything ready for what was to come.

* ~ * ~ * ~ * ~ *

Four years before the original game's start, huh?

Grandov finally arrived in the capital city of Adovoria, Genise. He had to go afoot most of the way from the secluded mountain and hitched a ride on a horse-drawn buggy once he made it down to civilization.

A lot can change in four years.

BlueLizard took the time to read up on what Grandov knew of this time, but seeing all the changes was another matter. He jumped off the wooden buggy and gazed around the bustling streets of Genise. On his right was West Genise, and on his left was East Genise, and down the middle was the road that separated these two regions.

The Summer Festival was in full swing today. For one of the rare occasions, the buildings of the East and West were connected by long strings of colorful banners that stretched across the enormous road and were even helped to float mid-air by magic devices.

Standing by the roadside, more flags and banners fluttered in the wind, with depictions of a radiant yellow sun on them. The city was decked out from head to toe, and the warm sun bathed Genise in a golden glow, giving the festivities a dream-like quality.

Grandov turned left and walked through the cobblestone streets of East Genise, with laughing children running past him. Their faces were covered in the classic festival masks, and in their hands, they were clutching colorful wooden toys won at one of the festival games.

The air was filled with the aroma of sizzling meat and vegetables, and street vendors peddled their wares with infectious enthusiasm. He searched his pockets and quickly found some coins to pay one of the food vendors.

He bit into the large bird leg that tasted like a cross between a chicken and a turkey. If he had to guess, it was unlikely to be either. This was common in East Genise. Breeds of birds and livestock were found that wouldn't ever grace the tables of those living in West Genise.

But it tasted good, especially with the hot sauce full of Ember Spice over it, so Grandov didn't really care to know what it actually was. After once having to eat the larvae of a Manklipper to survive, BlueLizard's tolerance had grown astronomically for unusual food.

He walked through the festival grounds, one of several set up in Genise. The square was bustling with activity. Acrobats and jesters performed daring feats, drawing gasps of awe and laughter from the onlooking children. Musicians played tunes on their instruments, creating a lively backdrop to the festivities.

I guess four years ago, they had more funds for this sort of thing.

He bit into the bird's leg again. He chewed the juicy meat as he took in the sight before him, comparing it to how he remembered the Summer Festivals after the game's original start.

They were still great deals of fun, but the impoverished East Genise couldn't pull together the sort of funding needed to host the Summer Festivals in the same way as in years past. The celebration was one of the key events that Adovoria's useless rulers defunded.

Grandov's attention was drawn to a grand procession winding its way through the city streets. Knights in gleaming armor rode magnificent steeds, with banners of the yellow sun fluttering proudly in the breeze. Behind them, adorned with flowers and ribbons, a lavishly decorated open-top carriage rode through the streets.

Oh? Did Queen Naomi come to this district at this time?

Grandov took another bite of the bird's leg and watched the carriage come into full view.

His eyebrows furrowed. The one sitting in the carriage was a woman with long crimson red hair, who was clearly a princess, given the crown on her head. Still, it wasn't Princess Naomi, or rather Queen Naomi, as Grandov knew her.

"Princess Evelyn! We love you!" The cheers of the crowd sounded while she waved graciously to her subjects.

Evelyn? The one that died?

Grandov tossed the remaining bone into a trash bin and licked his fingers clean of the spiced sauce.

Interesting. Could she perhaps be the other Player, having possessed the princess's body with her demise?

However, another character's appearance caught his attention. A handsome blonde man dressed in all white moved from one of the alleys into the procession, with the guards stepping aside for him. He jumped up into the carriage beside Princess Evelyn and kissed her on the cheek to a loud roar and applause from the crowds.

Grandov froze.

There was only one person who could be.

Micah Frey. That's another person who should have been dead by now and one who had a rather complicated relationship with my character.

Grandov licked his lips.

"Just who could this butterfly be?" he muttered.