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Translator: Vine
Chapter Title: A Christmas That Will Never Come
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The woman who grabbed Daniel's hand introduced herself as Reph.
She didn't reveal anything beyond her name, but Daniel wasn't particularly curious, so he didn't press her.
After introductions, the two headed to a nearby general store. Daniel had suggested buying a deck of cards after hearing Reph mention the game was a type of poker.
Reph, somewhat bewildered, followed Daniel and paid for two decks of cards before they returned to the front of the pub.
"…Hey."
Unable to understand what was happening, Reph looked up at Daniel.
"Why did you buy playing cards? Two decks, no less."
"Didn't the lady say that they're cheating? If we want to beat them, we won't be able to do it by conventional means."
Daniel opened one of the card boxes, took out the cards, and carefully selected a few.
He put the remaining cards back in the box and handed it to Reph.
"Keep this. Consider it a token of good luck."
Reph, looking puzzled, took the cards. Daniel, meanwhile, slipped the cards he had set aside into his sleeve.
As Reph watched, still confused, Daniel gripped the pub's doorknob and pushed the door open.
The raucous interior of the pub unfolded before them.
Daniel, smelling the subtle scent of alcohol mingling with the savory aroma of various bar snacks, stepped inside.
Reph followed him, and one by one, the patrons turned to look at Daniel.
They were wary of the unfamiliar outsider who had just entered with the woman who had caused a ruckus and been kicked out earlier.
The pub owner approached Daniel, who was observing them through his sunglasses.
"What brings you here? If you're some kind of mercenary hired by that young lady..."
"A glass of rum, please. Ah, if you have tequila, I'll take that instead."
Daniel's nonchalant order for a drink left the pub owner speechless.
Daniel turned to the pub owner and offered a genial smile.
"Don't worry. I haven't come to cause trouble. I'm just here to have a drink and gamble."
'Did she hire a player?' Realizing this, the pub owner looked into the crowd and called out.
"Pramkol! This customer here wants a game!"
From a table in the corner, Pramkol, who had been leaning against the wall, stacking chips, raised his head.
Pramkol, gaunt and thin, glanced at Daniel and offered a faint smile.
"A sucker is always welcome. Come on over."
Daniel, having received permission, approached, pulled out a chair, and sat down.
The pub owner also followed Daniel, moved to the table, and took a seat.
"First off..."
the pub owner said.
"I don't know if you've heard, but the gambling in our establishment is essentially poker. Also, there's no limit to the betting. Nod if you understand."
Daniel nodded, and the pub owner thumped a thick pouch, which had been hanging from his waist, onto the table.
A quick glance inside revealed it was full of worn chips.
"Decide how much you want to gamble with. I'll exchange it for chips."
"Ah, the lady behind me will be paying for that."
Reph, singled out, flinched.
She had known this would happen, but now that it was actually occurring, she felt an unacknowledged displeasure.
"...How much do you need?"
"Bet as much as you trust me."
'How can I trust someone I just met?' Reph found it absurd, but since she'd come this far, she decided she had to see it through and opened her wallet.
"Fine. I'll bet it all."
Reph took all the bills from her leather wallet and handed them to the pub owner.
The pub owner was startled by the considerable amount but soon calmly accepted it.
He then rummaged through his pouch and placed dozens of chips on Daniel's table.
"Here you go."
Daniel nodded and put his hand in his pocket.
"Ah, by the way, may I ask a favor?"
"What is it?"
Daniel took a deck of cards out of his pocket and handed it to the pub owner.
"The lady here wants a fair game. It seems she suspects cheating. I don't really believe it myself, but just in case, I'd appreciate it if you could replace the deck of cards."
There was no particular reason to refuse, so the pub owner took the card box.
The pub owner opened the box, checked the cards once, and nodded.
"Looks like you bought it from the shop next door. I've confirmed they're not rigged, so we'll use these. Pramkol, you have no complaints, do you?"
At the pub owner's question, Pramkol playfully shrugged.
From his reaction, Daniel could tell that the "cheating" Reph mentioned wasn't about rigged cards.
If he had been playing poker with pre-rigged cards, he would have tried to prevent them from being replaced.
'So what kind of cheating is it?'
There was no need to rush. He would figure it out now.
"Then let's begin."
The pub owner, announcing the start of the poker game, dealt two cards each to Daniel and Pramkol.
After the initial betting, they went through the flop and the turn, reaching the river.
With all five cards dealt, Daniel checked his hand.
'Two pair.'
The probability of getting two pair in poker is quite low.
It meant it was a hand worth betting on.
Just as he was contemplating, Pramkol shouted, without any thought of psychological play.
"Raise."
He meant he was raising the stakes.
Daniel, after a brief silence, called and revealed his hand.
Pramkol's hand was 'three of a kind'.
Daniel, with two pair, lost, and Pramkol laughed as he collected the chips.
"I thought you were a player, since that young lady brought you. Disappointing."
Daniel simply offered a faint smile in response.
They played five more rounds consecutively, but Daniel didn't win a single one.
At this, Reph began to grow anxious.
'What is he doing? This idiot...!'
She wasn't sure if he was just carelessly spending someone else's money, but watching Daniel call even with just one pair, instead of folding, made her stomach churn.
Daniel's mind, however, remained calm as still water.
He had figured out Pramkol's trick.
'He's using a shallow trick.'
Pramkol had won all five rounds by a hair's breadth.
It was easy enough to spot someone cheating with sleight of hand at a gambling table, but always winning by just a hair's breadth?
That suggested Pramkol had an accomplice among the spectators.
'His accomplice must be signaling my cards.'
Seeing this, Pramkol was orchestrating wins by the narrowest margin to avoid suspicion.
Now that he knew how his opponent was cheating, all he had to do was turn it against him.
"Your skill is impressive."
Daniel, throwing out a backhanded compliment, started the sixth round with Pramkol.
Receiving cards from the pub owner, who was acting as dealer, Daniel played poker until they reached the river, the final round.
The five cards in his hand showed no pair.
It was a trash hand, one where folding would be the normal course of action.
However, Daniel calmly pushed all his chips into the center.
"All in."
This startled Pramkol, and the spectators began to murmur in surprise.
Reph, who had been watching right behind him, was equally shocked.
'You lunatic! What are you doing!?'
Just as she wondered if he was sane, Pramkol snickered.
'He must be trying to bluff. Too bad for him, I can see all his cards.'
Thinking it was a shame, as he had almost considered letting Daniel win once out of pity, Pramkol spoke.
"Call."
Pramkol pushed most of his chips into the center.
At that moment, Daniel concentrated mana in his central nervous system, accelerating his nerves.
In the slowed time, Daniel slipped his hand into his sleeve, quickly swapped the cards, and ceased the neural acceleration.
It happened so fast that Pramkol, who hadn't even suspected Daniel had swapped the cards, revealed his own hand.
"Two pair. And you?"
He already knew, but asked out of politeness.
Daniel, fully aware of Pramkol's intentions, casually revealed his hand.
"Royal Straight Flush."
Pramkol's eyes widened at the sight of the highest possible hand in poker.
'What? When did he...?'
To Pramkol, who hadn't even seen Daniel's hand move, it felt like he was possessed by a ghost.
Pramkol, who had been staring blankly at the cards for a while, slowly raised his head, a cold sweat beading on his forehead.
Daniel was smiling, as if this had been his plan all along.
"What? Is this your first time seeing a Royal Straight Flush?"
At Daniel's taunt, Pramkol gritted his teeth.
"You bastard...! Where do you get off cheating like that!"
"Cheating? Where's the proof that I cheated?"
"Don't play innocent! You clearly...!"
Pramkol, in his excitement, was about to expose Daniel's original hand but stopped short.
He realized the spectators' hostile gazes were fixed on him.
If he revealed Daniel's original hand now, Pramkol would be admitting that he had been cheating at poker all along.
In the settling silence, Daniel picked up the glass of tequila the owner had provided and took a sip.
Even as he drank, his gaze remained on Pramkol.
'He must have cheated others just like he cheated me. Isn't that right, Pramkol?'
Just as Daniel expected, there were quite a few people in the pub who had lost money to Pramkol.
As a result, Pramkol's image within the pub lately was practically on par with garbage.
Look now.
Even though some of the spectators had belatedly realized Daniel had swapped the cards, weren't they staying silent?
That's how much the spectators wanted Pramkol to lose.
In such a hostile atmosphere, admitting he had been cheating all this time by exposing Daniel's original hand could very well get him beaten to death.
Pramkol's pupils trembled slightly as he realized he had made a self-defeating move.
"Oh, Pramkol."
Daniel looked at Pramkol with a seemingly concerned expression.
"If I were you, I'd quietly accept the outcome. If you don't..."
Daniel leaned forward, resting his arms on the table.
Daniel, a smile playing on his lips, continued softly.
"You're going to end up half-crippled here today."
At that chilling tone, Pramkol swallowed a sob and had no choice but to nod.
*
While Daniel was enjoying himself at the gambling table, Lucy was spending busy days working at the General Staff Headquarters.
After long hours of overtime, Lucy finished all her tasks and organized the documents.
"Lieutenant Colonel. It's time to go home..."
Lucy's voice trailed off as she almost reflexively looked toward the desk.
Daniel wasn't there.
He had been dispatched to Bellanos as a diplomatic envoy.
"..."
With Daniel, who always made trivial remarks when it was time to leave, absent, she felt a certain emptiness.
Lucy, blinking slowly, shook her head and stood up.
He would be back soon anyway, so there was no need to get sentimental.
Lucy, grabbing her briefcase and about to leave the office, paused.
Footsteps were approaching from the corridor.
Just as she wondered who it was, the office door opened, and Ernst entered.
"Chief of Staff, Operations."
Lucy saluted, and Ernst returned it with difficulty.
Sensing an unusually somber atmosphere, Lucy, puzzled, lowered her hand.
"Chief of Staff. Is something wrong?"
At Lucy's question, Ernst gritted his teeth and nodded.
Ernst took a moment to compose himself, then looked at Lucy.
"Lieutenant Lucy. I'll only say this once, so listen carefully. The diplomatic vessel that Lieutenant Colonel Daniel, your superior, was aboard..."
Ernst lowered his gaze, perhaps unable to look Lucy in the eye as he spoke.
"...has been sunk by a terrorist attack."
Sunk.
The power of that word brought Lucy's thoughts to a halt.
Lucy, who had been motionless for a while as if unable to comprehend, questioned in return.
"Is that... certain?"
Ernst, as Chief of Staff, Operations, would never lie about something like this.
Lucy's rational mind knew this premise very well.
Nevertheless, asking was like a defense mechanism to deny reality.
As Ernst exhaled a trembling breath and nodded, Lucy's lips parted slightly.
In the heavy silence, Lucy, choosing her words, bowed her head to Ernst.
"...I'll be taking my leave now."
Ernst, fully understanding her feelings, did not stop Lucy.
Lucy left the office and walked down the corridor, her heels clicking.
In her mind, various memories mingled, sometimes coalescing, sometimes scattering.
As the stream of thoughts flowed moment by moment, Lucy's breath grew increasingly shaky.
'Why...?'
Why was the vessel Daniel Steiner was on sunk?
Why hadn't she known?
Why was she only finding out this news now?
Lucy, throwing unanswerable questions into her mind, descended the stairs.
'I need to ask...'
She wanted to contact an intelligence agent operating in the capital to find out the full story of the incident.
Lost in thought, Lucy, who was rushing down the stairs, stumbled.
Her ankle twisted sideways, and her body swayed.
Lucy quickly grabbed the stair railing, lowering her body to maintain balance.
She didn't fall, but her breathing was more ragged than before.
Her urgency had caused her to make a mistake she would never normally make.
Lucy, half-lidded, breathing heavily, slowly closed her eyes.
In her confused mind, Daniel's words to her in front of the General Staff Headquarters came back to her.
"—If you have time on Christmas, you can come with me. If you want to, that is."
Daniel's face, playfully suggesting they eat stollen together, was vividly clear.
But Lucy knew.
That a Christmas where they would eat stollen together would never come, not with Daniel dead.
Unconsciously biting her lower lip, Lucy slowly opened her eyes.
The emotion reflected in her moist, red eyes was closer to rage than sorrow.
Because she felt she knew who was behind the order to sink the diplomatic vessel.
'If the Allied Nations truly attacked the diplomatic vessel Daniel was on...'
She would no longer be able to trust Count Kaledra.