Ethan didn’t sit down.
He just stood there, jaw stiff, as if trying to convince himself that the man in front of him wasn’t the sa loser he’d mocked, bullied, and almost beaten to death a month ago.
"You’re Xavier..." he muttered again.
Xavier smiled, stacking chips one-handed, his tone cool. "Took you long enough."
"You shouldn’t be here," Ethan said. "You don’t belong here."
"Funny," Xavier said, leaning back lazily. "I was just thinking how natural I look here. Fits better than that tight stick you call your suit."
One of Ethan’s n stepped closer. A tall guy with a narrow jaw and thick neck. Probably ex-military or sothing close.
Ethan raised a hand, stopping him.
"You planned this?" he asked, eyes twitching. "You followed ?"
"I ca to play," Xavier said. "You just happened to be the welco gift."
Ethan chuckled, low and hollow. "You think this is a ga?"
Xavier flicked a chip toward the pot, calm. "Isn’t it?"
The tension snapped tighter.
The others at the table slowly backed off. One by one. They weren’t idiots. Not anymore. This wasn’t just gambling.
"You cheated," Ethan growled. "You pulled so trick. No way you win ten rounds in a row—"
"I didn’t."
"Bullshit!"
"Feeling a little raw, huh? Maybe next ti don’t bet your ego."
"Fuck you—!"
Ethan lunged.
His n moved too, fast, trained. One went for Xavier’s shoulder, another reached for sothing inside his coat.
And that’s when the room shifted.
A new voice cut through.
"That’s enough."
It was calm.
Firm.
Authoritative.
Everyone froze.
A man stepped into the circle. Impeccably dressed in white and gold, tall, sharp-eyed. His presence alone made space around him.
He flashed a badge. Not that he needed to.
"Casino law," he said simply. "No violence on the floor. No private disputes. And definitely no weapons."
Ethan’s face twisted. "Do you know who I am?"
"Yes. And I don’t care."
"Then you should care he’s cheating—!"
"We were monitoring everything," the man said, voice clipped. "No signal interference. No hacks. No ability usage. No signs of manipulation."
Xavier blinked. He wasn’t expecting that. He didn’t think they had tech that could even track that level of detail.
He glanced around. Hidden caras. Sensors. Silent watchers. Shit. How deep did the surveillance go?
Was it always like this?
Or had soone been watching him?
"You’re saying he’s clean?" Ethan hissed.
"I’m saying this is a ga of skill and chance," the official said. "And you lost. Spectacularly."
One of Ethan’s n tried to argue, but the authority snapped his fingers, and security began closing in.
"If you have personal problems," the man said coldly, "settle them outside. But here, inside these walls, we keep things civil."
Xavier folded his arms, staying silent.
Ethan was shaking now. His pride had taken the hit. In public. With no room to retaliate.
He spat to the side, glaring at Xavier.
"This isn’t over."
Xavier finally stood up. Adjusted his sleeve. "It never is."
Ethan didn’t leave.
Instead, he pulled a chair and sat down like he owned the room. His guards stood behind him. Two of his buddies took seats beside.
Xavier just tilted his head.
"You’re not done losing yet?"
Ethan’s smile returned, but this ti, it was twisted. "Let’s make it interesting. Three gas. You pick the first. Winner of that picks the next. First to win two... gets to do anything with the loser."
Xavier leaned back. "Define ’anything.’"
"Kill, humiliate, strip them, own them, whatever." Ethan didn’t even blink. "No rules once it’s over."
The crowd around them went dead silent. Even the casino host looked unsure for a mont.
Xavier snorted. "That’s a la setup, not to ntion illegal."
"Only if you lose," Ethan said.
"And what if your family tries to take revenge after I win and bury you?"
The n beside Ethan chuckled, but Ethan didn’t.
He looked Xavier dead in the eyes.
"If you win—which you won’t—then no one’s responsible if sothing happens to ."
Xavier raised an eyebrow.
"No one?"
"Not the casino. Not my family. Not my guards. No retaliation. You’ll walk free."
Xavier turned slowly, facing the room. "You all heard that?"
The cara drones zood in.
The crowd shifted closer.
"I want every witness here to rember Ethan’s testimony," Xavier said, his voice louder now, carrying through the casino. "He said it himself—no one will be held responsible if he disappears after losing."
Ethan smirked. "Big talk from a dead man."
The official stepped in again, holding up his hand. "Both parties agree to the terms?"
"I do," Ethan said.
Xavier’s voice was casual. "Sure. Let’s play."
The official nodded once and motioned for the guards.
"Escort them all to Floor Sigma. Private floor. Level 4 lockdown."
The room split open.
The players and their teams were guided through a golden hallway, lit with red neon lines running along the floor. Outside the elevator to Floor Sigma, the guards held out scanners.
"Gadgets off. Cyberware disabled. Implants logged and locked," the lead officer announced.
One of Ethan’s n grumbled. "That’s unfair—"
The scanner beeped. "Refuse, and you’re disqualified."
Reluctantly, they handed over everything.
Xavier didn’t mind. He had nothing to remove except his glasses, which he handed to the official. No cyberware. Just a smirk and his own brain.
Yelena followed beside him, her expression unreadable.
The elevator door opened with a hiss. Everything turned black and silver. Clean. Isolated. No noise except for the low hum of the systems.
"Everything will be live stread," the official said. "Standard 10-second delay for safety protocols. No external interference. No communication links. Fully monitored."
Usually, private matches like these would draw a decent crowd. A few hundred thousand viewers max.
But this ti?
The second Xavier’s face hit the cara feed—
The viewership shot past five million.
Servers staggered.
Mods scrambled.
They had to upgrade the stream on the spot to keep it from collapsing under the traffic.
Chatrooms flooded.
Superchats exploded.
s were already being made before the first round even started.
"Goddamn," Yelena muttered, watching one of the screens. "You broke the internet again."
Xavier shrugged. "They love watching win."
Ethan looked ready to vomit.
He sat across from Xavier at the round table in the center of the room. The chairs adjusted themselves automatically to height and posture. The chips were loaded into the system. No one spoke for a mont.
Then the host, a new dealer AI with a lifelike face, appeared on the table’s display.
"Player One, please choose your ga."
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