Chapter 870: The Enemy Has Slipped Among Us

Several rounds passed with wins and losses. The man beside Lynch seemed unlucky, losing several hands in a row.

His temper wasn’t great either, muttering curses under his breath.

This was surprising since most successful people improve their manners quickly after gaining wealth and status.

When poor, people focus on survival; once basic needs and surplus are met, they turn to refining their behavior and character.

The Federation has agencies that coach clients on acting like high society figures rather than dressed-up country bumpkins.

So, swearing openly in public is almost never seen at this level.

Soon, the dealer rotation ended, and it was the foul-mouthed man’s turn to deal.

After a while, the girl grew bored of gambling and began yawning.

Lynch also didn’t want to stay; he disliked gambling and found no enjoyment here.

He pushed his chips forward, leaving a thousand-Sol tip to the chip girl.

The young girl, dressed simply and carrying the tray, had stood nearby a long time; no gentleman would be so stingy as to do nothing.

In less than an hour, she earned a thousand Sol—much better than a day’s work. She repeatedly thanked Lynch for his generosity.

“Mr. Lynch has bet ten thousand Sols…” the dealer reminded the table, part of his duty.

Minimum bets don’t require reminders, but maximum bets do.

Ten thousand was nothing to these people. As a somewhat famous person, Lynch’s bet commanded respect, so others matched it.

Six other players at the table quickly raised their bets to ten thousand.

The man dealing beside Lynch pulled out a handkerchief, wiping sweat from his forehead; his face looked pale.

“Feeling unwell?” Lynch asked kindly. “Need a doctor?”

The man grabbed Lynch’s raised hand, looked at him fiercely, then softened. “No, no. Just hot. It’s stuffy here.”

He tore at his collar, accidentally popping off a button.

Lynch withdrew his hand. “Alright.”

The man forced a smile and let go.

Seeing no issues, the dealer began dealing. Surprisingly, when Lynch revealed his hole card, it matched his face-up card.

Without hesitation, he flipped the card over. “Split…”

He placed another ten thousand chips on the table.

When dealt pairs, you can split, doubling the bet and playing two hands.

Both hands were decent. Lynch glanced at the uninterested girl and tossed another twenty thousand chips in. “Double down.”

Doubling meant getting one more card but then standing.

Two cards arrived—no bust, neither particularly good nor bad—fifteen and seventeen. Such hands were easily beaten.

His play seemed over, but the foul-mouthed man looked even hotter.

Sweating profusely, his handkerchief soaked, eyes panicked, Lynch couldn’t understand what was wrong.

Maybe he felt unwell or… afraid of losing?

It seemed likely. His subtle gestures showed fear as his gaze darted between his cards and others’, clearly anxious.

Lynch found this amusing. Someone who spent millions customizing top-tier Corleves worried over losing a few tens of thousands?

Perhaps that’s a rich person’s quirk.

Lynch knew a wealthy guy who loved cards but only played five-Sol hands, never bigger.

Some said he didn’t know how to play; others said he was stingy.

The truth came out later: he once lost his tuition money gambling and had to drop out, becoming a tycoon.

That day haunted him like a mental illness. Losing triggered his heart racing, the bigger the loss, the faster it beat. Yet he loved gambling, so he stuck to small bets.

A strange condition, likely psychological. This man seemed similar.

When others stood, it was the foul-mouthed dealer’s turn.

He nervously flipped his hole card repeatedly, showing inner conflict. His hand was probably mediocre—likely to bust if he hit, but not strong enough to stand.

No one pressured him. After a minute or two, he made a hard choice. “Hit…”

He looked at the dealer as if placing all hope on him.

Even if he busted, he’d only lose ninety thousand, no need to be so tense.

The dealer placed a card on the shoe, dealt it to him. He took it slowly, glanced at it, then paled dramatically.

“Show your cards, gentlemen…”

In the Federation’s blackjack rules, the dealer reveals cards first during the dealer rotation, but last during a regular game.

Everyone watched the foul-mouthed man closely. His face had turned pale, and he looked completely dazed as he slowly placed his cards on the table and flipped over his hole card.

“Twenty-three—dealer busts, everyone wins.”

“Sir, you don’t have enough chips on the table to cover the payouts. How would you like to settle?”

“Cash or check?”

The sweaty man’s lips trembled as he muttered, “Check.”

By this point, Lynch was tired. People get exhausted when forced to do something they don’t want to.

After her initial excitement, Penny was starting to lose energy too.

“Convert the whole amount to a check. As for the rest…” He picked up about three thousand five hundred Sol, divided it into two piles—two thousand tossed to the chip girl, one thousand five hundred to the dealer.

Both thanked Lynch for his generosity and promised to deliver his check to his room promptly.

“Let’s go, time to rest.”

Winning big money hadn’t excited the girl. She let out a soft oh and leaned half her body against Lynch as they returned to their room.

They said nothing all night, mainly because they both slept deeply.

At 9:30 the next morning, there was a knock.

Lynch was awake, but the girl was still asleep.

At nineteen, she was still growing, and with her intense work schedule, feeling tired and oversleeping was normal.

Lynch closed the bedroom door, went to the cabin door, and opened it.

“Apologies, Mr. Lynch…” His personal manager bowed sincerely and apologized.

Lynch was surprised and smiled, “What’s wrong? Me or you?”

The manager straightened and handed Lynch a check.

“I should have come last night.”

Lynch glanced at it, frowning slightly. “This is one hundred thousand. I remember it should have been eighty thousand.”

The manager’s face flushed with embarrassment and shame.

“That’s also why I must apologize. The guest who sat with you last night was not invited by us.”

“We don’t know where he got his invitation. We only realized the issue when he couldn’t pay his debt.”

“We sincerely apologize. I know this doesn’t make up for even a fraction of our mistake. If you have any requests to help fix our error, please tell me.”

The female manager’s earnest willingness to sacrifice for work amused Lynch. Everyone knew Lynch and the other guests wouldn’t make unreasonable demands, yet they insisted their manager act as if they’d agree to anything.

These people were cunning, which is why their business was so successful.

“You’ve already compensated me…” He flicked the check. “You gave me twenty thousand more than expected. I hope this is the only incident on this trip. Honestly, it’s lowered my opinion of you.”

The manager bowed deeply, low enough for Lynch to imagine pulling down her zipper.

“My sincerest apologies, Mr. Lynch.”

“Just joking,” Lynch said, shaking his head as he looked at her. “Alright, I need rest now.”

“Sorry again, Mr. Lynch. If there’s any way to make up for our mistake, please let me know.”

“I won’t disturb your rest. Goodbye!”

After the door closed, the manager sighed with relief but also clenched her teeth in hatred toward the scoundrel below decks who had fooled her and many others.

That man was not doing well either, as he faced the constant greetings from the company’s security team.

In the boiler room below, a shirtless, scarred, muscular man held a kettle filled with boiling water.

In front of him was a bruised man—anyone who knew Lynch would recognize him immediately.

He was the foul-mouthed, sweaty man from last night.

“I admire your endurance. I hope you’ll keep impressing me…” The muscular man tilted the kettle, pouring scalding water onto the other’s calf.

The intense pain fueled a scream, but this was far from over.

After the boiling water, the muscular man pulled out a wire brush meant for rust removal and scrubbed the half-cooked flesh hard.

Within thirty seconds, the bone was clearly visible.