Mechanical Alchemist

Chapter 181: Leader of the umbrella

First come, first served.

Su'en made his way to the Wilderness Hunters Guild.

Perhaps because he was a solo hunter, no one greeted him, but for the others, any team was approached by some butler-looking individuals inquiring continuously.

Upon arriving at Storm Manor, the scene was even livelier.

The previous screens mostly displayed private tasks or small-scale recruitments.

Now, the screens were filled with "Legion Recruitment" notices.

The inner city tycoons, with their deep pockets, spent a fortune to pin their messages at the top in bold, dazzling the eyes.

Entry fees, settlement fees, paid rest... The conditions offered by the major families were better than the next, all vying to recruit experienced and capable wilderness hunters and teams.

It was just like a job fair held by major corporations.

On ordinary days, those inner city folks looked down on the commoners who risked their lives hunting in the wilderness, but now they became the "talent" eagerly sought after by the tycoons.

Although the equipment and combat power of the wilderness hunters might not match the elite teams of the inner city, their hunting experience was solid. Especially in the perilous Dawn Relics, experience meant survival rate.

Su'en couldn't squeeze in, so he just watched from a distance.

The ranking of the pinned information on the screen was basically the ranking of the inner city families' strength.

The wealthier they were, the higher they were placed.

The Reyes family occupied seven slots, with all seven branches that had split off earlier present, the main house ranked first.

Then there were the likes of Oliver, Clark, Rockefeller... twenty to thirty top-tier tycoons.

Behind them were slightly smaller fonts for the second and third-tier tycoons... several hundred entries.

The messages were more or less the same, with all the major tycoons recruiting various wilderness hunting teams, those with strength and experience.

Anyone with discernment could see that the Duke's mansion had a clear purpose in issuing this universal hunting task, and it certainly wasn't for these big tycoons to just go through the motions.

Bringing so many inner city experts, they were definitely going to hunt.

When the time came, if there were mandatory assignments, the young masters and misses of the tycoon families might even be forced to "explore the relics."

Risking one's own life and direct family members for an adventure was clearly not worth it, better to recruit some hunters.

Although it would cost some money, in the face of danger, the losses would be smaller, and the survival rate higher.

...

Su'en's eyes flickered rapidly as he scanned the information on the screen ten lines at a time.

He analyzed the recent trends in hunting lies.

Clearly, the pace of wilderness opening was accelerating.

In the central area of the relics, there were already third-tier powerhouses leading teams...

But the resistance they encountered seemed significant too, not to mention that some of the large hunting teams that had been at the forefront had disappeared from the list.

Such a situation meant that they either earned enough to return or were wiped out.

Then, as he watched, Su'en actually saw a coded message in the advertisement column.

"Is Mr. Black looking for me?"

Su'en noted that the message was posted a day ago.

Without using any other contact method, it didn't seem too urgent.

Su'en deciphered the content, which only listed one address: White Elephant Gambling Den.

"Huh... Meeting at a gambling den doesn't seem like Mr. Black's style..."

That kind of old gentleman would definitely not go to certain places, like brothels and casinos.

He thought he had decoded it incorrectly and looked again, but it was still that address.

Could it be a code mix-up?

No, that's not right, this wasn't a universal code, but a prearranged cipher.

Su'en didn't understand but decided to check it out anyway.

Every day in the Dawn Camp, "nouveau riche" were made, so places like gambling dens, natural gold sinks, were never in short supply.

Su'en had no interest in gambling, and since there was no arena here, he had never visited.

He didn't know why gambling dens liked to be underground, but the owner of "White Elephant Gambling Hall" had dug ten meters into the ground to create a large underground casino.

When Su'en arrived, the place was bustling with noise.

The not-so-spacious gambling den was crammed with nearly a thousand people.

In the semi-enclosed space, smoke curled, and the air was filled with the strange smell of sweat, cigarette smoke, and hallucinogenic potions.

It was no different from the gambling dens on Green Street, with slot machines, pachinko machines, roulette... various machines filled every corner of the gambling den.

The machines were occupied by gamblers, the clinking of coins, the "clang" of pulling levers, all sorts of noisy sounds merged into one's ears.

In the central area, there were also poker tables...

And, of course, the scantily clad gambling den girls.

Su'en exchanged some chips at the front desk surrounded by iron nets, pretending to be a gambler as he blended into the crowd.

He didn't act like he was looking for someone; those who didn't look like gamblers were the least welcome in the gambling den.

He watched as a gambler just left his seat, so he sat down at a slot machine with interest, inserted some chips, and casually pulled the lever.

"Clang~"

The reels spun and then stopped on several fruit symbols.

Su'en had spent quite some time on Green Street and was a mechanic himself, so he was familiar with the construction of these machines.

These programmed machines seemed random, but there were certain tricks to them.

After a few bets, he even made a small profit.

But he wasn't here to gamble.

Under normal circumstances, Mr. Black, with his ability to appear and disappear unpredictably, should have noticed him by now and come to meet him.

But unexpectedly, he had won a large pile of chips, and no one had come.

Su'en felt puzzled; perhaps the message had expired?

Thinking it over, he still got up from the slot machine and decided to wander around the gambling den.

In the hall, there were several blackjack and dice tables, crowded with a large number of gamblers.

"Nine points, nine points, nine points..."

"Haha, twenty points, I'm sure to win!"

"..."

The gamblers were shouting hoarsely for the good cards they wanted.

Su'en wandered around casually, not seeing any familiar faces, but he did catch some exceptionally well-behaved fellows.

"People from the Umbrella Organization, huh? Seems like they're not low-ranking..."

He bet discreetly, forming some speculations in his mind.

He had learned a lot about the Umbrella Organization's internal codes and recognition methods from Sabina.

Observing those Umbrella Organization professionals, Su'en didn't think they were there to catch him. If there was an operation, Sabina would have warned him.

"Could it be because these people are watching, Mr. Black hasn't shown up?"

Su'en thought so.

However, it wasn't long before he was immediately proven wrong.

Because he saw a familiar face.

...

Next to the basement hall, there were several smaller halls, which were VIP rooms for big clients to gamble. Although the doors weren't closed, screens blocked the view of the gambling tables, and one needed a certain amount of chips to enter.

Su'en didn't see anyone at first, but he was drawn over by a familiar voice.

"All in!"

"Call!"

"Four Aces! Haha, your full house is nothing compared to this!"

"..."

Su'en recognized that voice all too well.

He muttered to himself with a strange expression, "Sister Qian?"

It turned out that it wasn't a code left by Mr. Black, but that gambling addict miss.

At this moment, Su'en's confusion was immediately clarified.

No wonder they chose to meet at a gambling den...

No wonder he had waited so long without anyone showing up...

It turned out she was enjoying her gambling, waiting for him to find her.

Su'en was both amused and exasperated as he made his way over, tossing a chip to the doorman with the ease of a seasoned gambler.

Even without showing enough chips, he smoothly entered.

Behind the screen, the gambling table was playing Texas Hold'em, with seven gamblers in total.

When Su'en arrived, he saw the gambling addict joyfully raking in the chips on the table.

Judging by the amount, it was at least several million.

Such high-stakes games did not allow spectators, and as Su'en approached, the girl pulled back a seat for him, inviting him to sit down.

Su'en sat down naturally, then slipped a chip as a tip to the girl and said, "Change three million in chips for me."

The blonde girl smiled sweetly, "Of course, sir."

Suddenly, with an additional person, the others at the table glanced at Su'en, but no one spoke, fiddling with their chips.

Only that thick-skinned gambling addict seemed to still be immersed in the joy of winning money, apparently not recognizing Su'en, who had changed and now had a "charm value of 12."

Su'en knew Qian liked this kind of excitement and didn't plan to spoil her fun by accompanying her.

He was planning to gamble a few hands, but just as he sat down and glanced at the back of a middle-aged man, Su'en immediately realized that the situation might not be good.

"It can't really be that guy, can it..."

Su'en kept his composure, but his mind was already considering strategies for dealing with a potential conflict.

With anyone else, he probably wouldn't be so concerned, but it just had to be this person.

If it really was who he thought, then it would be very tricky.

At that moment, the room girl came over with a tray.

She leaned over to place the chips on the table, smiling at Su'en, "Sir, your chips have arrived..."

Su'en turned his head towards the girl and gave her a playboy smile, "Thank you."

While speaking, he handed her another chip, slipping it into her low-cut neckline. The action seemed frivolous, but his gaze inadvertently swept over the third person on his left, the middle-aged man with glasses.

Top experts all have extraordinary perception, and any change in emotion when you look at them can be easily captured.

After seeing the man's face clearly, Su'en was glad he had been cautious, his heart sinking, "It really is him! He's not here for me, could it be for Qian..."

The girl giggled, throwing a seductive glance at Su'en before leaving the table.

...

The other players at the table didn't seem to mind waiting for half a minute.

The dealer shuffled the cards, and a new round began.

Su'en acted completely normal, occasionally observing the other players at the table, which was a normal gambler's scrutiny of opponents.

Although a "troublemaker" had appeared at the table, he wasn't panicked at all.

After observing for a while, Su'en realized that the man wasn't there for him.

He didn't deliberately warn the gambling addict across from him.

Qian might seem careless, but her combat instincts were incredibly sharp.

Su'en knew she had recognized him.

And very likely, she had also noticed something was off.

Things seemed to be getting complicated.

Su'en felt that they were probably caught in an "accidental incident."

The game continued,

Su'en had harvested various miscellaneous abilities, and his card skills were not bad.

After a few rounds, the three million quickly turned into four.

That's the temptation of Texas Hold'em, "all-in" can make one quickly rich, but also empty one's chips at any moment.

Today, Qian's luck didn't seem bad either, with nearly ten million chips piled up in front of her.

Those who gambled this big were not simple.

In a few rounds, Su'en had roughly identified the identities of the players at the table.

Apart from a few who were obviously rich inner city businessmen, the most suspicious were the middle-aged man with glasses and a gold-haired man in suspenders and a white shirt.

Despite his fancy clothes, he couldn't hide his street thug demeanor.

He might pass outside, but not at a table of this caliber.

The guy seemed to be unlucky, not getting good cards and losing all his previous chips in a few rounds, even adding five million.

But this round, Su'en noticed a problem.

The middle-aged man with glasses seemed to be targeting the gold-haired man specifically.

After the blind bets, the pot had already accumulated several hundred thousand chips.

The dealer dealt the cards, and the three community cards were the Spade Jack, Spade Three, and Spade Ace...

Three spades, it was obvious someone would play for a flush.

The chance of bluffing was very small.

After casually following a round, Su'en, Qian, and the others folded.

Only two players were left, the middle-aged man with glasses and the gold-haired young man.

Gold-haired man: "One hundred thousand."

Su'en glanced at the gold-haired young man and knew from the slight furrow of his brow that he probably wasn't playing for a flush. The guy's card skills weren't great, and when he got decent cards, he would unconsciously make this micro-expression.

The man with glasses, however, was very composed, calmly raising the bet: "Five hundred thousand."

The gold-haired man hesitated for a moment, "Call."

Su'en guessed that the gold-haired man probably had a two-pair hand, which is why he knew the opponent was playing for a flush but couldn't bear to fold.He must have been betting on a "Full House" with "AAABB."

Just then, the dealer dealt a Diamond 4.

The wrinkles at the corner of the blond young man's eyes tightened, clearly indicating the card was of no use to him.

At this moment, the middle-aged man with glasses became aggressive, raising the bet: "One million."

His tone was steady, betraying no emotion, suggesting a flush.

This put the blond young man in a difficult position.

He had already invested nearly a million in this round; folding now would mean a loss.

But to see the fifth card, he would need to put in at least another million.

He looked at the man across from him and said discontentedly, "Hey, hey, hey, uncle, are you trying to scare me?"

The middle-aged man with glasses responded indifferently, "See the cards, raise the bet."

"..."

With that, a look of frustration flashed in the eyes of the blond man.

Then, the wrinkles at the corner of his eyes suddenly relaxed, and he pushed forward nearly three million in chips, "All in!"

...

First provoke, then go all in...

A bit of cunning, but not exactly a masterful trick.

Su'en watched this unfold, glancing sideways, thinking: "This is getting interesting. But what's this guy counting on to win? Cheating?"

At that moment, he suddenly realized something and focused his attention on the gold coin the man was fiddling with.

Although the blond man had been playing with the coin, the change in his demeanor matched the rhythm of the coin perfectly...

He took a closer look.

Tabard's Lucky Coin

Description: You've gained? No, you've lost everything.

Cursed Trait: Using the cursed power within the coin can bring you good luck; however, after using this good fortune, the person closest to you will suffer misfortune; moreover, the user will become increasingly dependent, and without it, their luck will worsen;

Details: This is a cursed ancient coin; once, during the mythological era, a god created this coin of misfortune to punish a gambling descendant;

Seeing this, Su'en's pupils narrowed slightly, and he chuckled to himself: "He really is cheating... tsk tsk, if this guy knew who he was up against, he'd probably regret his actions."

Cheating with sleight of hand is naturally out of the question in this gambling den, as there are experts around.

But cheating with a cursed object, that's something you can't guard against.

The middle-aged man with glasses remained calm: "I'll call."

Then, the dealer revealed the last card, a "Club J."

Since it was an all-in, there was no final round of betting, and both parties showed their hands.

The middle-aged man had a Spade K and a Spade 9, indeed a flush.

The blond man excitedly threw down his hole cards, a J and a 3, which, combined with the community cards, made a "Full House" with JJJ33.

He seemed very pleased, ready to rake in the chips in front of him, "Haha, I didn't expect my luck to be this good... to actually hit a Full House."

The middle-aged man lost money but didn't seem to care at all; a smile suddenly appeared on his sickly face: "Yes, quite lucky, Blanco..."

"You..."

His name being revealed, the blond man's face changed drastically.

He didn't even attempt to argue, and without any hesitation, he quickly pressed a pocket watch at his chest.

In that instant, it seemed as if time slowed down for him, everything around him moving in slow motion.

He swiftly rose from his seat, attempting to flee the gambling den.

...

"An A-class... oh, no, a newly promoted S-class fugitive, Blanco?"

Su'en finally knew who this person was.

This guy had been committing crimes frequently, assassinating a young master from an inner city tycoon's family and a wealthy merchant, and then made it onto the S-list.

And in that instant, in Su'en's field of vision, he suddenly felt the blond young man's speed surge, as if he were a ghost about to vanish.

This speed was beyond what even a second-tier full agility assassin could achieve.

Su'en wasn't amazed by the speed, but by the silver pocket watch the man had just taken out.

Watkins' Pocket Watch

Quality: Gold

Description: The consequences of disrupting the order of time are severe, do you want to try?

Cursed Trait: Pressing the pocket watch, the user can gain 2 to 5 times acceleration of their own time; but if you don't master the laws of time, using it will randomly shorten your life, perhaps by a second, or perhaps by a hundred years;

Details: A proud creation of an ancient alchemist named 'Whit Watkins,' it was originally a family heirloom meant for his descendants;

Su'en thought to himself, "This guy's got quite a few treasures..."

Those who make it onto the S-list naturally have some tricks up their sleeves.

However...

It's a pity.

If the pursuer were someone else, with this ability to accelerate time, Blanco might have actually gotten away.

But... he's up against someone who doesn't stand a chance of living.

Because the man with glasses is none other than the leader of the Umbrella OrganizationSeverus Gerald!