Ragna chuckled. “Don’t be silly. I may be greedy and selfish, but I’m not egocentric. Even I have my limits. Although, if it were for her, I might just…”

The pitmen didn’t react. In all the years they had worked in Heorot, they had to have met countless lunatics with delusions of grandeur. For them, these two gamblers had to be the same.

What insolent fools they were. These idiots didn’t see just how much Ragna Griffin was worth. That they regarded Ragna Griffin as common madness proved their arrogance. But oh well. Even if the world laughed at her, he wouldn’t. He recognized her value. Yes, it was him.

Him and her.

Together they would usher a new era of delight and eradicate the disease called apathy.

“So, how much do you want to bet?” Sahyir asked her.

“How about “everything”?” She grinned, her eyes reflecting the greed and insanity. “One final round where we put all we have on the line.”

“Do you know just how much money I have?”

“You want to see the world fall to chaos so that we can appreciate life, but it wouldn’t be fair if everyone had to suffer but you. Isn’t that just entitled?”

Sahyir widened his eyes.

She was right. He wanted to see what a person like Ragna would accomplish if she reached her goal of going to Avalon. Whether she would plunge the world into chaos or bring forth a new era of peace, she would bring forth change and confusion. And confusion and change would create conflict that could beget greater friction. But the powerful were the likeliest to maintain their power. Even in a war, he would keep his luxury. He couldn’t learn to appreciate life and wouldn’t become happy. So, if this game could bring Ragna closer to changing the world, he would have to ensure that he had nothing in that new world. He had to struggle and despair and no other choice but to discover the value and joy of life. For that, he had to bet everything.

He looked at the pitman. Their faces still showed apathy, and Sahyir ground his teeth.

His stomach started to turn. He had never experienced such disgust before. Nothing had ever compared to the repulsion that ravaged his body when he looked at them. Even if Ragna would carry out his plan, he had to punish them. They would falter in the face of the insanity. But no, that couldn’t be enough. He had to ensure that society would collapse.

Sayhir took his phone out his pocket and placed the plastic on its screen. He tipped on it for a minute until he put the phone back in his pocket and the card on the table. “Just for your information. I just transferred thirty billion Wert on my account.”

Both pitmen raised their eyes. “Thirty billion? The bank would never allow this.”

Sahyir laughed. “You idiots, I am the bank.”

They had never encountered such a sum. And how? No one could earn such amounts of money. Even he couldn’t.

“Thirty billion.” Ragna giggled. As she licked her lips, the light in her eyes sparkled. “I could protect my treasure without worry. Yes, bet everything.”

Her breaths increased, and a red streak flashed over her face.

“You…You can’t do that.” Both pitmen looked at him. All calmness was gone from their faces, displaying terror. If they hadn’t been pale already, they would have lost all color the moment, they heard Sahyir’s proclamation. They had realized the consequences of his actions.

“Didn’t you listen?” Sahyir’s eyes gleamed in gold. At the pitmen, he flashed a grin and waved his card like a fan. “I control the Njord Bank. With my credentials, I can easily transfer all the Wert in its possession.”

“People would notice.” One of the pitmen slammed their hands against the table, leaving behind a dent in the metal.

“Yeah, eventually.” Oh, how great. They saw the horror unfold but couldn’t do anything to stop him. “So, let’s go through both scenarios. Let’s say I win. I’m going to keep the money, transfer it back, and delete all evidence. You may’ve pissed in your pants, but if that’s the worst that can happen, it ain’t so bad. And you, Ragna Griffin, owe me thirty billion.”

With her hand, Ragna went through her pigtails. Her eyes showed that she didn’t believe a word he had said. “You don’t really expect me to repay that.”

“Of course not. But you’ll pay. You’re going to dance to my tune, and I’ll lead you towards the end of the world. I’ll even allow you to protect your treasure, whatever that is. But every night, I expect you to entertain me. And if you don’t, I’ll simply behead you. How does that sound?”

“That’s not how you treat a woman. I’m afraid that I’ll have to decline. What good is a treasure if one can’t spend it? If I can’t enjoy it, it might not exist at all. No.” Ragna leaned over the table. Millimeters separated the two. If she wished, she could kiss him any second. Instead, she flashed her fangs. “I want everything from you.”

Sahyir’s heart thudded, beating against his rib cage, and his blood rushed throughout his body.

By Raa, he had never felt so hungry, but he knew no matter how much he would eat, he would never fill that emptiness unless he got her. One round separated him from the collapse of the world.

“If you win for sure. But let’s talk for a sec about the consequences of your victory. Since you’re a fugitive, your bank account is probably decentralized and hidden. I would obviously delete any traces that could lead to you. Which would mean that thirty billion Wert are gone.” Sahyir widened his arms. “Just imagine what would happen. It would be the worst. I would throw the world into the biggest financial crisis it had ever experienced. If you owe the bank, thousand Wert, it’s your problem. If you owe the bank a billion Wert, it’s their problem. Owe the bank thirty billion Wert, and it’s everyone’s problem. With our fucked-up Madconomics, everything will collapse.”

Oh, what irony. When the world burned to ashes, the survivors created a new currency and a new economy of dependency. By intertwining the economic relationships of the individual kingdoms, the world economy had turned into a fragile and undecipherable entity that prevented kingdoms from going to war without them and the rest of Aes collapsing. If one couldn’t profit, who would go to war? But what these corpses didn’t realize: What if one wanted to destroy for the sake of destruction and wager war without wishing to win?

“Companies and private households will be out of money. Stocks and bonds will become worthless. Even more will lose everything, and the governments will be in serious shit. People will start to fight over natural resources. Over food, and water. And soon, the governments will attack each other. We’re going to throw all of Aes into chaos. And I will hide like some rat and live off from garbage until I can claim something by my own merits. Isn’t that wonderful?”

“We can’t allow it.” The pitmen reached for their pockets, but a blob of water appeared and submerged their hands. Both turned blue with shock.

“One move, and I’ll freeze your hands.” Ragna leaned back without losing her grin. “Let’s start this final round.”

And thus, they started to roll again. There was no need to write down their predictions since both would bet on winning the round. Nothing else would make sense.

The die rolled over the table. Sayhir had glued his eyes towards the ivory sides as they changed with each rotation. They stopped at a Two, and Sahyir threw again: Four, One, Five, Five, Three, Two, Two.

His chest ached. It ached so much: The throbbing and pounding revibrated in his body and brain. The desires went into overdrive, compelling him to act. It was amazing. With each passing roll, he would get closer to his goal. Whether he would win or lose, he would get what he wanted. Ragna Griffin would make him happy.

One. One. Five.

Just a little bit. Just a little bit. He was close.

Four.

“Stop. And just so you know. I haven’t rolled a six. One of us has to win.”

Sahyir laughed, and Ragna continued to roll.

His heart skipped a beat whenever Ragna’s eyes looked at the table.

How long did he have to wait? How long, how long, how long? Was she teasing him? Was she greedy? Just what was this woman intending? Was she about to win or on her way towards loss? He couldn’t wait. He just couldn’t. They were close to the climax, but this woman continued to tease him.

“She…She had a Six.” One of the pitmen dropped his shoulders. The fear was gone. “She has lost the game. All the Honey she has collected goes to you.”

“That’s not quite the debt she owes me.” Sahyir smirked.

Even if he couldn’t see society collapse immediately, he still had won. Now, Ragna was his. And he would lead her towards the world’s ruin. It might take some time, but he would exert patience.

“We could never allow this amount of money to trade owners,” the pitman said. “The bet is void and null. She’ll give you all the Honey in her possession. You will transfer the thirty billion back to the bank where the money belongs. Furthermore, both of you are prohibited from gambling here again. This is an official order from the government of Heorot.” Somehow, he must have been able to contact officials. When he fumbled in his pocket, did he just want to activate a loudspeaker, or he had notified them through some listening device hidden on his body while they had focused on the die rolls. “So, please leave this building. Now.”