I pulled up the corner of my freshly dealt cards slightly higher than necessary, flashing a two-seven nothing to the spotter. Or at least, that was what Azure made him see. Off-suite, it was possibly the worst hand a person could have in a game of Hold ‘em. To dissuade any notions of too-good-to-be-true, I paired them as double-diamonds, opening up the possibility of a flush.

“This would be a lot more interesting if I understood what was happening.” Talia grumbled in my mind. "From my perspective, the two of you are doing little more than shoving clay circles and throwing uniform pieces of parchment around.”

“Even if you understand the rules, that’s what they’re doing.” Azure pitched in.

“Cut the chatter. I need to focus.” I quieted them.

Across the table, Stuart looked at me with something approaching sympathy. My temporary hesitation and his knowledge of my cards probably made for a sad sight.

Doubly so when we reached the flop.

An ace of spades, a four of hearts, and a jack of clubs.

“Before we continue, I will allow you to walk back your bet, if you wish.” Stuart said. From anyone else, that would have been trash-talk, or goading, but he seemed to have an authentic sense of honor about the whole thing. An honorable cheat. I could respect it, even if the rationale behind it was beyond my understanding.

I let the silence ring. Recalling a childhood memory of a talent show I was forced to perform in on repeat, focusing on the most uncomfortable, agonizing aspects until a bead of sweat dripped from my forehead.

Instead of answering, I shoved a pile of chips forward. Enough that The Steward would end in the lead if he won the hand without forcing him to commit everything he had left.

Disappointment flashed in his expression. “To this point, you have played a cautious game. More cautious than most. It would be unfortunate to see this ethos you’ve presented tossed away at the last possible moment, for the sake petty of haste.”

I brought a hand down on the table with an audible thump. “Little late to talk trash.”

His mouth worked. “I was not—”

“Then call. Or fold. Do something, for fuck’s sake.” I let full-fledged irritation into my voice.

The Steward’s eyes hardened, and the finger that idly tapped on his face-down cards grew still. If I was right, I’d just crossed the threshold from an odd stranger to a fool who needed to be taught a lesson.

Carefully and methodically, he collected chips into uniform columns and pushed them into the center. “I look forward to uncovering the face you are so committed to hiding that it is obscured from even the gods themselves.”

The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

I crossed my arms and waited, tapping the table to signal no further bets as The Steward dealt the last two cards—internally breathing a sigh of relief as he did not raise the pot further. The fourth card was a king of hearts, and the ultimate card, five of spades. To his credit, he didn’t so much as twitch when the card dropped, waiting until I tapped my last check, officiating the end of the round.

A satisfied expression broke the stoicism on his face, as he revealed his cards face up. A two and a three, giving him a straight. “Let this be a lesson. No matter how clever one might be, it is impossible to bullshit through every obstacle.”

I sighed, steepling my hands beneath my chin. “Disappointing.”

Stuart did a double-take. “You’re taking this well.”

“It’s fine. Just seems anti-climactic. All that build up…” I flipped my cards, revealing an identical hand. “To end it with a draw.”

The table jostled as Stuart stood upright, bashing his thigh against the table and sending piles of neatly stacked chips clinking into an orderless mess. “How did—” His anger faded quickly, as he realized the situation he was in. He knew, definitively, that I had cheated. But voicing that accusation would be the same as admitting he’d done the same. The Steward fell back into his chair and looked at me. Now that he was over the initial shock, bemusement had taken its place.

Why cheat a tie, when you could cheat a win?

Other than the clinking of chips, his already quiet men grew quieter as we divided up the winnings. There was a sense of tension that grew more palpable as we tallied the total.

I held my breath as Stuart recounted his total, murmuring to himself with a frown. Then counted them again.

A boisterous belly laugh ripped out of him, honest as it was deafening, startling everyone in the room. He laughed until there were tears in his eyes. “It appears that I have lost.” He exploded in another fit of laughter, then scowled, waving away what I assumed was his patron. “Help is no longer needed in this matter. Begone.”

I sent The Steward an in-depth description of Squelch, and where in the feat list most classes could find it. His eyebrows shot up, and he whistled. “This will solve… many problems for us.”

He fiddled with his UI, and a prompt popped up on my screen.

“Now, I would advise you to be careful,” He leaned forward conspiratorially. “This is not technically arbitrage, but if you leave the Guild within a month, the system will consider it so, your bounty void.”

“Perish the thought,” I said.

The Steward nodded. “And should you leave and return, I could not offer you another stipend.”

Damn. This was the closest I’d come to a loophole for the “Gifting Selve” restriction. Good to know, but a shame it was so limited.

“Interesting.” I smiled. “And your judgment?”

“You are a good man to know, and a terrible one to play cards with.” He cocked his head. “And while I cannot not definitively speak to where in our home your quarry lives, I can certainly guess. Though this feels a bit… uneven… as you will absolve problems for me as well.”

I shrugged. “If it’s that much of a bother, I’m already a temporary member of the guild. Just make a quest only for experience.”

It would also allow The Steward to set parameters for our stay within his walls, a fact that surely wasn’t lost on him.

Soon enough the quest was created and accepted. The Steward assigned us an armed escort, and as they directed us towards the Galleria proper, my mind was miles away, reliving memories of a bloodstained tunnel. A long-burning ember within me caught fire. He’d threatened my family. Killed a teammate. Kidnapped my friend.

No matter what happened, if Sunny was here, he’d finally pay for it. In full.

Tonight.