Law of Space and Time
Chapter 23: Pinnacle Casino

At the moment, the transition between winter and spring was taking place, so not only was Finklan as cold as what one would expect of the north, it also had the heavy rainfall and humidity of the south, making for some very unpleasant weather.

Erwin and his group had settled into a hotel in Finklan, which he had rented out in its entirety in a show of magnanimity. The hotel was situated in the southern part of the city, but it was right next to the Fulnon River, making it a prime location. It wasn't a very large hotel, but it was a rare haven of peace in the commotion and bustle of Finklan, so Erwin was immediately drawn to the place.

The Farody Brothers naturally weren't going to stay in the same hotel as Erwin and his group. After all, they had some things that they had to do behind Erwin's back.

"Let's go out for a walk," Erwin sighed as he looked out at the rain and mist through the window while resting his chin on the palm of his hand. He had lost count of how many times he had made this suggestion in the past few days.

"Do you have a death wish?" Onean set down the magic book in her hands before giving him a cold glare.

Just as expected, the response was one of refusal.

Ever since witnessing that giant blue serpent, Onean realized just how perilous and rife with formidable figures Finklan was. In addition to that, Erwin had only just recovered from a near-death ordeal, so they had to tread with extreme caution.

The elderly man that they had encountered at the Dreambind Pavilion had already made Onean extremely wary, and she was utterly astonished after witnessing that burst of serpentine sword energy erupt into the heavens. Ever since then, she had essentially confined Erwin in his room, not allowing him to go anywhere.

"Why can't you just settle down and be content with staying here?" Theresa chimed in as she poked Erwin's cheek with her finger while resting in his arms. "There are countless different forces that have congregated here in Finklan. During this time, it's best for us to play it safe."

"You know how cautious I am. Even I'm not afraid, what are you two so afraid of?" Erwin protested with an indignant expression.

"Do you think I don't know what you're thinking? Why is a spineless coward like you suddenly so willing to take risks? Would you care to tell me?" Onean rose to her feet as she spoke, then made her way toward Erwin before giving him a cold glare.

Erwin sank back into the sofa from fear in the face of Onean's stern glare, and he raised Theresa as a shield in front of him.

"I was wondering about that myself. Why are you so eager to go outside?" Theresa asked as she turned to look at Erwin with a befuddled expression.

"It's because he wants to go and find that woman that he saw at the Dreambind Pavilion!" Onean grumbled.

An enlightened look appeared on Theresa's face upon hearing this, following which she gave Erwin a vicious pinch on the chest.

"Ow!" Erwin hurriedly swatted her hand away with a painful grimace.

"You have to have more faith in me! This is the capital city of the Fulway Empire, I wouldn't dare to do anything out of line here," Erwin said, attempting to use this unconvincing excuse to fool the two women, even though he didn't even believe this excuse himself.

Right at this moment, it just so happened that Turan came knocking on his door. He then told Erwin that he had found a good place to visit and was wondering whether Erwin wanted to come along. It seemed that Turan was also developing some cabin fever.

"Let's go!" Erwin hurriedly replied, ignoring the cold glares from the two women in the room.

In order to not attract excessive attention to himself, Erwin left Faya, Yuho, and his guards behind at the hotel, so he was accompanied only by Turan, Onean, and Theresa.

The four of them traveled quite a distance through the southern part of the city before stopping in front of a casino. Along the way, Erwin observed that the further south they went in this city, the more chaotic everything around him became. The buildings near the southern bank of the Fulnon River primarily consisted of things like art galleries and theaters, but the further south they went, the more casinos, brothels, and black markets began to appear. The streets were lined with merchants peddling magic potion ingredients, rough ore, and other magic items.

Even though it was raining, the enthusiasm of these merchants wasn't dampened at all. All they had were dilapidated thatch rooves above their heads, but they were still loudly advertising their wares, completely unfazed by the gloomy weather.

Erwin looked up at the sight above the casino's entrance to find that it was named the "Pinnacle Casino", and he found that to be rather amusing. Here in the southern part of the city, the casino really was a clear standout among all of the buildings in the area. However, that still didn't warrant such a grandiose name. Having said that, perhaps what the name actually entailed was that the casino was pursuing the pinnacle of wealth. In any case, it was certainly a name that was open to interpretation.

"This is the place you wanted to visit?" Erwin asked as he turned to Turan with a perplexed expression. "Isn't this just a casino?"

"You'll know what's special about it after you go in."

Upon catching sight of Turan, the casino employee standing by the entrance immediately approached him with a fawning smile. "It's been quite some time since we last saw you, Master Turan. Where have you gone to enjoy yourself this time?"

"Enjoy myself my arse!" Turan chuckled in response. "I've been coaxed out of retirement! Hurry up and lead the way inside." Sᴇaʀᴄh thᴇ ɴøᴠel Fɪre.nᴇt website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.

He stuffed some money into the employee's hand as he spoke.

The employee's smile widened even further, and he immediately led everyone into the casino.

At the entrance of the casino stood two lines of burly and intimidating guards.

While walking past them, Erwin could sense that they were all formidable warriors, so it was clear that the powers behind this Pinnacle Casino were not to be taken lightly.

The inside of the casino presented an extremely lively and bustling sight.

There were several dozen gambling tables of different sizes littered throughout the establishment, and each table was surrounded by gamblers. There were all types of games on offer, including roulette wheels, cards, and dice, providing a far more comprehensive and grandiose experience than the small underground casinos with very limited ranges of games.

After entering the bustling casino, Erwin couldn't help but want to give himself a pat on the back for his foresight. Prior to setting off from the hotel, he had told the two women accompanying him to dress more conservatively in order to attract as little attention as possible. In response to that suggestion, Onean came up with an idea, which was that she and Theresa should dress up as men. Thus, the group appeared to consist of Turan and three handsome young men, thereby attracting minimal attention. After all, it was a common sight for noblemen to come here for entertainment. However, if these two women were to arrive without any disguise, they would've undoubtedly drawn the attention of many scoundrels and ruffians, thereby resulting in unnecessary trouble. Erwin was completely unfamiliar with the city of Finklan, so he didn't dare to step out of line here. Of course, the best way to stay out of trouble was to stay in the hotel, but he couldn't resist the urge to go out. As for whether Onean was correct in her accusation that Erwin was looking for that woman that he had met at the Dreambind Pavilion, that was something that only he knew.

The employee leading the way knew what Turan was into, and he led the group directly to the second floor.

As it turned out, the second floor was filled with avid battle chess players. Even though they were self-proclaimed hobbyists, most of them were betting money on their games. Erwin immediately understood the situation upon seeing the bags of Loonies placed beside the chessboards. Seeing as this was a game that required much thought and brainpower, the second floor was far quieter and less rowdy than the first floor.

Erwin was somewhat familiar with the game of battle chess. Back in Sarus, it could be said that he and his friends were experts in all things that allowed them to while their time away. The battle chessboard had 10 by 10 grids, and the pieces consisted of the king, the prime minister, the magicians, the assassins, the cavaliers, the missionaries, and the soldiers. Each player had a king, a prime minister, two each of magicians, cavaliers, missionaries, and assassins, and 10 soldiers. The objective of the game was to kill the opposition king.

The rules were also quite simple. Each player could only move a single piece each turn. Among them, the soldiers could only move one grid forward, to the left, or the right. The cavaliers could move forward, backward, leftward, or rightward an unlimited number of grids. The magicians could move in any of the eight directions by a single grid and kill all enemy pieces within a three-by-three area around them in the same turn. The missionaries could move a single grid forward, backward, leftward, or rightward, and they could convince any single enemy piece within a three-by-three area around them, excluding the enemy king and prime minister, to defect to their side. The assassin could move in any direction, but the number of grids that they could cover was dependent on the number of turns of "forbearance" that they endured. For example, if an assassin remained unmoved during a single turn, then that would be one grid of movement potential accumulated. Once an assassin began to expend the moves they had accumulated, the other assassin on the same side, if it still existed, would have their move count cleared to zero, and moving one grid diagonally counted as expending two moves for an assassin. The prime minister's movement resembled the form of the "日" character, it was capable of stepping on a single occasion in which the king was cornered by an enemy assassin. However, following that turn, both the enemy assassin and the prime minister would be removed from the board, symbolizing the prime minister sacrificing itself to save the king. This ability to save the king could be activated with the assassin at any position on the board, but as aforementioned, it could only be used once per game. As for the king, it was capable of moving one grid in any direction.

"I didn't know you were into battle chess," Erwin said as he turned to Turan.

"I may not appear very smart, but I'm no slouch when it comes to battle chess," Turan said with a smug expression.

Erwin merely smiled and offered no response to this, and he wasn't very surprised to hear that Turan was a skilled battle chess player. Having written up the declaration of freedom with Turan, he was well aware of Turan's intelligence and skills. He always wore a pair of hideous glasses and never paid any attention to his own appearance, but his attention to detail was nothing short of exceptional.

"It sounds like you're planning to teach everyone here a lesson," Erwin said with an amused smile. "From the looks of it, you're not going to stop until you've won a cartload of Loonies."

Turan shook his head in response. "Pursuing money would only cheapen the experience. I haven't played battle chess at all during the entire half-year I've been in the City of Freedom, and I really miss it."

"Why didn't you come and ask me to play with you? I know how to play the game as well," Erwin said.

"What a joke! How could I have approached you when you're always busy spending all your time with women?" Turan countered in a disgruntled voice.

Onean and Theresa nodded firmly in agreement with this as they turned to Erwin with disdainful expressions.

"How about we play a few games today?" Turan asked as he sat down at a chessboard.

"For now, I think I'll just watch you play someone else and gauge your skill level," Erwin replied.

A hint of mockery appeared on Turan's face as he said, "You're clearly a terrible player. You don't even have the courage to face me!"

Erwin was constantly flaunting his women in front of Turan, much to Turan's frustration and chagrin, so he naturally wasn't going to hold back now that he had a chance to insult Erwin in front of those very same women.

Both Onean and Theresa were very amused to see Turan grilling Erwin in public. It was far more interesting to them to see Erwin being embarrassed than to see him show off.

Erwin paid no heed to Turan's insults as he made his way over to the bar before ordering a platter of snacks and some fruit beverages. By the time he returned, he discovered that many people had already gathered around Turan's table.

It seemed that Turan wasn't lying to Erwin; he really was rather renowned in Finklan's battle chess circles. The fact that so many players had gathered around his table to watch him clearly indicated that his games had to be worth watching.

As Erwin arrived beside the table with the platter of snacks, the two women immediately grabbed large handfuls of nuts such as almonds, hazelnuts, and ginkgo nuts from the platter without any hesitation. These snacks sold at the casino were very well-made and quite tasty, much to the surprise and amazement of Erwin and the two women. Of course, the snacks were also quite expensive, and this platter alone had cost Erwin five Loonies.

"How's it going?" Erwin asked as he tried to see through the crowd.

"I'm not sure how the game is going now, but Turan gained a slight advantage earlier, exchanging a cavalier for two soldiers and a missionary," Onean replied.

"You know how to play battle chess as well?" Erwin asked with a surprised expression.

"My teacher taught me," Onean replied with a nonchalant expression.

"Master Piro really was a knowledgeable man," Erwin remarked with an impressed expression.

Right at this moment, Erwin heard a nearby spectator chuckle, "It's over for you. Looks like this game is as good as over. You better prepare to fork out 30 Loonies."

"Indeed. Turan's opponent has such a massive advantage that it reminds me of when Canbad the Great attacked Orchid Water Pass," someone else remarked, and this analogy seemed to be quite apt, as evidenced by the nods of agreement from those around him.

"Oh? Then it sounds like his victory isn't sealed, after all," Erwin interjected with an unconvinced expression.

The spectators who were discussing the game immediately turned to look at him as if he were an idiot upon hearing this. However, they merely assumed that Erwin was some foolish noble who knew nothing about history, so they didn't bother to argue with him.

While it was true that Erwin had only begun studying the history of the northern dukedoms after arriving on the northern continent, he always made sure to conduct thorough research into any subject that he was trying to study, and it was clear that he held conflicting views toward the Battle of Orchid Water Pass compared with everyone else here.

At the time, the first emperor of the Fulway Empire, Canbad the Great, had led his army eastward to attack the final natural obstacle that the Reynold Empire was counting on, which was Orchid Water Pass. The army of the Reynold Empire had been defeated and forced to retreat over and over again, and by the time they made a decision to bunker down and defend Orchid Water Pass as a last stand, they only had fewer than 50,000 troops left, while the opposing army of the Fulway Empire had 400,000 troops, and as one would expect, morale for the Fulway Empire's troops was at an all-time high.

As it turned out, the Battle of Orchid Water Pass concluded in a very short time, to the surprise of no one. Canbad the Great conquered the all-important pass with unstoppable might, then easily decimated what little remained of the resistance that the Reynold Empire was able to muster up, thereby conquering the entire northern continent.

Right at this moment, an elderly man made his way over to Erwin, grabbing a handful of snacks out of the platter that Erwin was holding as he remarked, "You seem to have some different insight when it comes to the Battle of Orchid Water Pass."

"Hey!" Erwin was rather taken aback by this, following which an amused look appeared on his face. He naturally wasn't going to get mad at an old man, so he could only accept the unexpected loss of snacks. There were all manners of people in this casino, so it certainly wasn't a surprise to see the occasional oddball. Onean and Theresa had also witnessed what had just happened, and they were both also looking at Erwin with amused expressions.

The top of the elderly man's head was already completely bald, and there were only two tufts of white hair hanging down either side of his face. It was quite warm inside the rowdy casino, so the elderly man was fanning his own wet hair with a large hat while munching on the nuts that he had taken from Erwin's platter, putting on a rather amusing sight to behold.

"Tell me what you think about the Battle of Orchid Water Pass. I love hearing about stuff like this," the elderly man said with a smile while his mouth was still full of half-chewed nuts.

"I want to finish watching this game of battle chess," Erwin said.

"What's there to watch? Turan's setting a trap for his opponent, he'll win before too long," the elderly man said with a disinterested purse of his lips, seemingly already convinced that he knew what the outcome of the game was going to be.

He then grabbed Erwin by the army before dragging him over to another table, where he took a seat.

"Why do you think Canbad the Great's victory wasn't guaranteed?" the elderly man asked as he look at Erwin, and Erwin was rather unsettled by his scrutiny.

Sᴇarch the NƟvelFɪre.ɴet website on Gøøglᴇ to access chapters of nøvels early and in the highest quality.