Chapter 44
The connection between Etal and the other two surrounding star systems is deep in the gray area where the government has no official jurisdiction.
There stood a magnificent building quietly, with countless suspended vehicles flocking to it.
"Are you really ready?"
Elaine looked nervous and asked three times in a row. He knew he was too nervous, but he couldn't calm down at all.
Although he had begged and pleaded with everyone and even used the connections of his female father to get the invitation, he still hoped that the male insect would not put himself in danger.
Squeak——
The suspended car just arrived at its destination and parked steadily in the corner of the underground parking lot. Sporadic light shone into the dim interior of the car, outlining the quiet outline of the figure in the back seat.
"yes."
Yael opened his eyes silently, and raised the corner of his lip slightly when he heard the words.
The extreme light and shadow are broken between his eyebrows, like a black and white frozen painting, and every stroke of the brush interprets the thrill.
"After all, there's no other way, right?"
He coughed. He should have been the most nervous, but he was still trying to comfort Elaine, "I'm somewhat confident. You don't have to be too nervous."
Before Elaine could ask again, the waiter stepped forward, opened the door, and respectfully asked them to get out of the car.
Forget it, we're already here, there's no point in retreating. Elaine took a deep breath, steeled herself and got out of the car.
The underground parking lot was directly connected to an exclusive passage. The waiter took them around a few corners and across a long corridor covered with red velvet carpet, and they arrived at a special lounge.
"Please come this way...S101, this is your room."
The waiter bowed slightly and said, "The party will start at 11 o'clock sharp. Please arrive on time."
Yael hadn't said a word the whole way, but now he nodded and reached out to push open the luxurious and heavy door of the lounge.
"I understand. You can go down now."
The lounge is almost as spacious and luxurious as the presidential suite.
The room was shrouded in a tipsy dim light, like a small projection leaking out from the glamorous world of fame and fortune, which almost made Chong intoxicated.
"Okay, the first step has been successfully completed."
Elaine also calmed down a lot. "So that you don't forget me to repeat the auction rules again."
“The auction here is different from the traditional model. It does not rely on competition to compete for the auction items, but is conducted through gambling.”
"Participating insects convert their own funds into weights. The auctioneer stipulates that the capital doubled after winning is equal to the original capital. The higher this value is, the higher the priority of selecting the auction items."
“This is the second time we have held this type of auction. The first time, the first-place winner multiplied his capital 500 times to win the first prize, while many buyers lost everything.”
Elaine handed the nano-optical computer that she had prepared to Yael.
"As we have discussed before, our initial capital is temporarily set at 2 million Star Coins, which should be a very low number among buyers."
"If it's not enough, call me again, but we have only reserved 10 million in funds for turnover. If the situation is not good, you... remember to stop in time."
Although he said so, he was still very uncertain. The casino was like a huge abyss. Once you entered, it would be difficult to get out until you threw all your assets in and then were smashed to pieces.
"Okay, I understand."
Yael took the laptop and responded briefly. He had heard Elaine say these words countless times and could almost memorize them.
He scanned the room briefly and finally opened the closet next to him.
There were several evening suits inside, all of which were exquisitely made and of great value. Elaine took a look and felt that a tie alone was worth more than one million Star Coins.
And they only came with a measly 10 million star coins, which was all their fortune that they had managed to scrape together... Elaine sighed sadly.
Is this the game of the dragon worm? These working worms really don't understand.
Yael flipped through the dresses and finally took out a white fox mask from the hook. He checked it for pinholes and placed the mask on the coffee table.
He sank into the extremely soft sofa, and suddenly remembered something. He took out his laptop and opened the takeaway software.
That thing was unfamiliar to the insect tribe. He spent some time communicating with the store owner and quickly placed the order. He closed his computer and continued to rest.
Time passes by little by little.
10:37…10:45…10:59…
Click, it’s eleven o’clock.
Yael's eyelashes trembled slightly, and he opened his eyes silently.
At the same time—knock, knock.
"Sir, the time has come. Are you ready?"
Yael touched the exquisite white fox mask with his fingertips, picked it up and gently covered his face with it.
The precise buckles snap in place automatically, fitting tightly with the undulating contours of the face.
The gold threads on the mask shone brightly, and the intricate branches spread out wantonly, almost like a vast expanse of blazing sunset, with a suffocating and heart-pounding beauty.
But the beauty that was deliberately created was not as good as the pale texture revealed under the mask, which almost instantly absorbed all attention in the extremely dim light.
"Let's go."
*
After passing through a long and narrow corridor, they came to an extremely luxurious door.
The ferocious beast head grinned bloodily, and a glimmer of light faintly shone through the two black eyeballs.
Yael raised his head slightly and stared at the door in front of him, his expression unclear behind the mask.
"If you can really get it, he will be free again and no longer belong to you."
Elaine suddenly spoke up.
“Is it really worth it?”
"Of course, I..."
Yael chuckled, but the next words were drowned out by the muffled sound of the door opening.
In a hurry, Elaine could only see the pale thin lips under the mask, which were curved.
The door opened.
Brilliant crystal lamps hang from the ceiling of the tall hall, reflecting the sparkling light and enveloping every corner, leaving almost no place for hidden shadows.
Yael narrowed his eyes slightly and took the lead to walk into this surging silence and bustle.
This is a veritable den of money and a place of fame and fortune where drinking and chatting are rampant.
Elaine had attended several aristocratic balls with her father-in-law, so she didn't feel out of place here because of the cramped environment.
But what surprised him most was Yael, who was wearing only an ordinary black wool coat without any identity tags or other high-end decorations, but he blended into the scene perfectly.
He was tall and slender, with a thin coat that made his features look neat and clean. He went straight to the hot casino.
Uh, that's not right.
Elaine has heard her fair share of "rednecks" insults.
This is the bottom floor of the auction house, where all kinds of people are mixed together in a chaotic situation, and it is natural for groups to squeeze and bully each other.
"Gee...wait for me!"
Two million in funds could only be exchanged for a handful of weights. The worker worm made a sound when pouring it out. He might have never seen such a shabby gambler before.
"That's great. I don't even need a basket to carry it."
Yael laughed, picked up one and played with it for a while, then motioned for Elaine to hold the weight.
"Let's start now."
He suddenly loosened his grip, and the weight fell into Elaine's pocket, colliding with the other weights, making a crisp sound.
…
At first, Yael only played in the smallest venues. He didn't talk much and wasn't excited. Even the way he took the cards seemed awkward, so he was not noticeable.
But game after game, from inexperienced to skilled, from losing to winning, it seemed like just a blink of an eye.
Obviously, he doesn't seem to be that amazing. He doesn't always have superb luck, nor does he have any thrilling comebacks. But he can always maintain a certain frequency and gradually increase his weight.
Before the other insects could react, the weight in front of them was quietly swept away and fell into a hand as clean as white jade.
Two million.
In a flash, the money doubled to eight million, ten million, forty million... or in just one round, he lost all but five hundred thousand, and there was even one time when he was left with only one weight.
But when he stood up again, all the losses had been made up, and he continued to rise along the initial trend, from being a small fish that was eaten, to being a shark that swallowed all the weight in the pond in one gulp.
Then go to the next table and experience the advanced process that challenges your heart again.
Elaine followed behind him, her expression going from extremely nervous to shocked to numb, and she could even pretend to be calm and composed to fool other insects when they came to test her.
"Sir... have you ever played this before?"
During another transition, Elaine quickly walked to catch up with Yael and asked, trying hard to suppress her excitement.
“Not really.”
Some unpleasant scenes appeared before his eyes. Yael frowned, but his expression was not caught by the mask. He just said lightly, "I hate gambling."
These two words almost enveloped his childhood, symbolizing a man who was addicted to gambling and drunk, with endless hunger and pain, bringing countless suffering and even despair.
But despite this, he still remembered those gambling rules that he hated, and even used them to benefit himself... Things are so unpredictable.
Elaine was stunned for a moment, a little at a loss, "Ah? Then...then should we continue?"
"Of course, I haven't got the thing yet."
Yael looked for the next venue. "There's nothing I can do about it, I'll just have to endure it for now."
He suddenly thought of the takeaway he had just ordered. He wondered how the food was prepared and whether it had been delivered to his home. Caesar should have eaten it by now, right?
I don't have time to watch the surveillance tonight. I hope the female insects don't stay up late...
But he didn't have time to wander away for long before he was involved in the next gambling game and had no time to think about anything else.
“繼續吧，争取不通宵就搞定。”
……
耶爾雙手輕輕交叉放在賭桌上，脊背挺直但仍顯得松弛。
那黑呢大衣的袖子下露出一截清瘦白皙的腕骨，分外幹淨漂亮。
在一衆輸紅了眼的賭徒、故作深沉互相算計的賭客，和獲利後眯起精明狐貍眼的莊家完全不同，輕易就能吸引無數明處暗處的視線。
他漫不經心地掃過面前的牌，沒有打開來看。
這已經是輸的第五輪了，如果這次還輸，他們剛贏來的資金就會損失大半，饒是伊萊恩已經快要麻木，也不由捏了把汗。
“怎麽樣啊，這位閣下？”
旁邊一位身段優美的賭客撐着下颌，視線在那只吝啬地露出一點的肌膚處梭巡，幾乎掩不住露骨的垂涎之意。
他顯然也明白耶爾目前的處境不太好，但還沒到窮途末路的地步。
所以也不必急于出手，争奪的家夥太多，笑到最後的一定是最能沉住氣的。
“應該還不錯，我想。”
耶爾卻彎了彎唇，他看都不看一眼，直接将牌面掀開輕彈了出去。
賭桌上的空氣凝滞一瞬，然後是一陣嘩啦啦的聲響，那些五顏六色的砝碼如流水般傾瀉而下，在他面前堆積成一座財富的小山。
瞬間暴富的誘惑讓無數蟲眼熱無比，但他仍然沒有多看一眼。
不是故作的鎮定或不屑，甚至連些許得意都沒有，那點漆似的眸底沒有容納進任何一場輸贏，包括眼前這些各色的賭客。
明明是紙醉金迷的名利場，偏偏擠進來一朵格格不入的小白花。
但又不是真的小白花，而是吃蟲不眨眼的一朵霸王花。
被狠狠咬了一口的賭客幾乎目瞪口呆，但居然沒什麽惱怒的情緒，面面相觑了一會，甚至能感覺到自己的情緒也從泥潭中拔了出來。
“真稀奇啊……”
那之後，耶爾又花了兩個小時，在中層的圈子裏循環打轉。
一輪又一輪地贏下來，終于引起了一些高高在上的視線的注意。
“閣下。”
一位侍者撥開圍觀的蟲群，來到耶爾面前，恭敬地彎腰傳達上層的意思。
“就在剛才，您已經贏得了前往上層的資格，是否需要即刻前往？”
——這時他的資本已經足足有二十億。
耶爾隔着蟲群和伊萊恩隐秘地對視一眼，都在彼此眼底看到了一線微光。
“走吧。”
他彎一彎唇，将把玩着的砝碼随意扔在桌上，站起身來。
*
很安靜。
這是耶爾進入其中的第一印象，相比一個賭場，這裏更像是一處精致奢華的舞會現場。
裏面的蟲要麽側身和同伴小聲交談，要麽安靜地倚靠在賭桌前，看着無數的砝碼随着輸贏被移來移去，偶爾露出一絲神秘莫測的笑意。
但卻像是在刻意攀比，想讓自己看起來更像是一名真正的貴族，而非底層和中層那些行為粗魯的暴發戶……
一眼能看到盡頭的無趣。
耶爾略掃了兩眼，沒什麽興致地垂下眸子，翻開侍者遞過來的拍賣物品圖冊。
前面都是一些珍稀珠寶，往後翻可以看到一些很難得的資源，在市面上基本不怎麽流通，就算有也是有市無價，其中甚至混雜着一瓶貴族雄蟲的高濃度信息素。
他勻速翻過每一頁，終于在功能奇特這一欄看到了想要的東西。
圖片上看起來是一小塊芯片狀的東西，功用被标注在下方。
耶爾不動聲色地快速浏覽了一眼，确認不會認錯之後，繼續往下翻頁。
一直到翻到了壓軸，他的視線才微微一凝——
【萊米爾戰争，蒙特上将犧牲後，探尋者在戰場尋找到的機甲之心。】
圖片上的黑色海綿中心處，懸挂着一條鏽跡斑斑的項鏈。
最為堅硬的材質鑄就的鏈條已經斷裂成幾截，足以顯示出那次戰争的慘烈程度。
而中心處是一塊冰晶似的結構物，在燈光下流轉着深邃的藍色光澤，美得像是墜落隕星的一角，透過這一眼仿佛可以窺見整片宇宙。
耶爾有些微微出神。
餘光瞥見下方的注釋，才明白這玩意怎麽會出現在一個偏遠星系的拍賣場，而不是被供在主星的博物館。
【鑒定中心無法鑒別其真實性，嘗試了各種方法後仍然無法喚醒，此物身份和價值皆存疑。】
這也還是在賭。
賭這東西真的是蒙特上将的遺物，抑或是……一塊好看點的廢鐵。
沉吟半晌，他合上圖冊，遞給跟随在一旁的伊萊恩。
“走吧。”
他此行的目标不是壓軸，沒必要摻和進這些明争暗鬥中，最後反倒不好脫身。
叮叮。
細微但清脆的鈴聲突兀響起，其中似乎蘊含着一絲精神力，瞬間吸引了場中的所有注意。
耶爾看向伊萊恩，得到了一個微微的點頭。
猜想得到驗證，他面具下的眸光凝重了些。
最大的一場賭局，開始了。
嗒、嗒、嗒。
靴底磕在冰冷地板上的清脆聲響，慢條斯理地一步步靠近。
原本還充斥着竊竊私語的大廳逐漸安靜下來，所有的目光不約而同地看向中心處的旋轉樓梯。
扶梯上撫上一只蒼白修長的手，再往上是繁複精致的袖口。
璀璨的金發被玉環束起散落身後，随着步伐的走動微微搖晃。
“天啊……！”
“什麽風把艾尼克斯子爵也吹來了？明明這裏只是他名下一處再普通不過的地方……”
極致的安靜過後，掀起了一波更為熱切的小聲讨論。
凡是有點名氣的家族都躍躍欲試起來，盤算着在這位列一流的貴族面前混個臉熟。
耶爾也跟着衆蟲看了一眼，但很快就收回了視線，看向大廳中心處升起的巨大賭桌。
“開始吧。”
那位子爵似乎興致不高，在主位坐下後就簡短道，而後再沒有多說一句話。
“……最後一場拍賣賭局的規則實行車輪戰，所有有資本的賭客都可以上臺進行混戰。”
“每一輪中途不允許替換蟲員，位置不允許争搶，直到淘汰出空位才能上前替補。”
“輪賭期間，輸光資本或者及時止損自願下臺都可以，但一旦下臺便沒有再次上臺的機會，按照最終的資本和原本資本的比例排名。”
“只有一種玩法和一個池子，便是大廳中央的這個，大家認準不要走錯了。”
主持拍賣的蟲開了個玩笑，下面響起一片附和的笑聲。
“賭桌上禁止出千，這一點已經強調了很多遍，但這裏還是要重複一句。”
“一旦被發現，不僅是您，還有您的家族，都将被終生拉進黑名單。”
将新的規則和慣常的禁制都念了一遍，主持拍賣的蟲也不再拖延，直接示意旁邊的警衛開放池子。
在流動的蟲潮中，耶爾突然擡起頭，看了那位端坐在池子上方的子爵一眼，又在被注意到之前及時斂眸。
……
賭局上方設立着一個視野極好的包廂，能夠将下方的景象一覽無餘地收入眼中。
艾尼克斯百無聊賴地看着下方，突然側頭示意一旁的陰影，“皇室那邊還沒有消息傳出來嗎？”
“還沒有，閣下。”
“我雌父那邊呢？”
“讓您繼續在這裏住一陣子，避避風頭。”
“……”
艾尼克斯深吸了一口氣，勉強保持着貴族的涵養，沒有直接對那些蠢得像豬卻熱衷搞事的酒囊飯袋，發表某些驚世駭俗的下水道言論。
他原意是想拿拍賣打發一下時間，畢竟邊緣星裏可沒有什麽賭術高明的家夥，全都是一眼能看到底的算計和愚蠢。
在漫不經心地揪出幾個膽敢出老千的家夥，并且當衆驅逐出門後，下面的賭局變得更為漫長而無聊起來。
但看着看着，艾尼克斯的視線逐漸凝聚，撐着下颌的手放了下來，甚至入神到微微前傾身體。
——“那是誰？”
順着他的喃喃和視線，隐藏在一旁的親衛往賭場裏看了一眼，注意到了一抹極為低調的玄色。
……
賭局每一輪進行的時間極快，幾乎每隔幾分鐘就會篩出一批空位，然後又有新的賭客填補而上，然後繼續循環。
耶爾一開始并沒有坐上那個位置，但也沒有僥幸的撿漏心理。
在觀察了将近五輪之後，他選擇了一個空位坐上去。
這個算法有點複雜，但還算不上難解。耶爾沉吟不語，指腹無意識摩挲着光滑的牌面。
之前伊萊恩介紹拍賣會的背景時，曾說過它隸屬于主星中的某位貴族名下，看情況應該和剛才出現的子爵有關。
而又因為這位貴族對規則有着異乎尋常的執着，由拍賣衍生出的賭場居然不怎麽黑，并沒有調整過那些機器和數值的參數，不然計算起來還要麻煩一些。
一開始，耶爾的存在并沒有引起多少注意。
賭局的形勢變幻莫測，且速度極快，稍有不慎便會遭遇慘敗，甚至導致後續完全崩盤、血本無歸。
賭客幾乎一分鐘就會大換血一批。
After the inferior ones were eliminated, it was the turn of the noble children with some fame. They had been preparing for this auction for a long time and thought they had some luck.
But after an hour, this group was basically wiped out. They retreated behind the cordon unwillingly, reviewing in disbelief why they had failed.
The third group is the experienced gamblers who are well versed in the rules and have been in the casino for many years. At this time, the elimination rate has slowed down.
There were still about twenty gamblers left in the pool, most of them familiar faces, some even friendly with each other, working together to eliminate the other bugs.
“Stand back!”
The guards further set up a cordon, pushing back the gamblers who wanted to take advantage of the situation and squeeze in, clearing a large area of the venue.
At this moment, the strange white fox mask was finally exposed to countless gazes.
The author has something to say:
Start showing off (?)
As for why Ye Ye understands these rules, it is because of his high IQ. I will add some reasons later.