Chapter 46: The Cat and the 7 of Spades (Part 2)

(a)

"Casi-Joon", a large entertainment city in Hito-no-Sato, is famous in the town for its state-of-the-art facilities imported from outside.

It's a neon city that never sleeps, at odds with Gensokyo's quaint style, with a 55-storey building rising from the ground and towering into the sky, standing out from the crowd in a town dominated by bungalows and low-rise buildings, like a phantom of the Tower of Babel.

Its interior and exterior decoration can be described as "white jade for the hall of gold as a horse", the golden light shines everywhere, and it is so luxurious that it makes people dizzy. The owner of this place seems to be very deliberately flaunting his wealth, and the gold, silver, and jade are set and set and set as if they did not need money, until there is nothing left to set them. The interior and exterior of the whole building have no style and beauty, but because of the excessive stacking of luxury decorations, it looks bloated and tacky, and it is useless except to show the owner's financial resources.

In a word, it's more Vegas than Vegas.

Now, Orange was holding Sir Charkolos in his arms, standing at the door of the building, on the bustling street. As she lifted her head to the limit and tried to look at the top of the building, she could hear the crunch of her spine breaking. Unlike those who have been to the outside world, it was the first time Orange had seen such a magnificent building.

"Too ...... It's so ......," she exclaimed, leaning her neck, "it's so--spectacular!"

"This building, a few years ago, obviously didn't exist! I remember very well, this used to be a big mansion, and a wealthy merchant lived in it. Later, the guy somehow fell into the middle of the family, the money was scattered, and he sold the property to pay off the debt, and the house was abandoned after that...... But ......"

Orange hugged Sir Sciakros tighter in his excitement, making him a little uncomfortable. He saw her eyes full of Venus and exclaimed, incoherently:

"Why...... How did such a building come to be built in such a short period of time? and how it was built so ...... Such a ...... This must be relying on the power of the gods! The owner of this shop is definitely not a human being!"

"Calm down, little girl. ”

Sir Chakolos adjusted his position as he lay between her trembling arms, to make it easier for him. Then he said:

"In the outside world, such buildings are everywhere. It has been more than 2,000 years now, and the power of human beings has reached a new level...... Although, here, it's still a little naïve. ”

"That being said," he continued, "to be able to open such a modern casino in Gensokyo, the owner of this place is probably very promising...... Of course, none of this has anything to do with us. ”

"Your goal and my goal is to take one or two of the casino owner's fortunes, and it doesn't matter who she is, whether she is or not. ”

"Let's go, little girl. He glanced up at Orange, "It's time to make a lot of money." ”

Orange did as he said, and took a step in the direction of the casino gate, and then froze in place, unable to lift his hind foot. Shakolos pressed against her chest, and through the barren breast, he heard the sound of a pounding heartbeat—it sounded like she wasn't walking steadily.

"Really, really......" Orange stammered a little, "Do you really want to go in?"

"If Lord Lan knew that I had been to such a place, she would be angry. ”

"Are you her cat or what?" said Sir Charkoros, glancing at her with disdain, "Listen, little girl, no one can decide where a cat spends the night. ”

"If you want to eat chicken until you are happy, and count the money until you are tired, then go forward boldly. If you're content to be a good baby who comes home on time, don't tell people you know me. Choose one or the other and tell me your answer!"

"I ......"

Orange hesitated, and then, finally, stepped out of the hind foot.

In her bones, she is still a wild cat after all.

"Yes," Sir Chakolos smiled deeply, "that's what a cat should be." ”

(b)

There are as many people in this casino as there are people outside, and there are as many people during the day as there are people in the middle of the night. There is no day or night, no leisure, just the endless struggle between heaven and hell for gamblers.

If you win, you will climb to the sky, and if you lose, you will fall into the abyss. The greedy nature of humanity, and the price they paid for it, has made this evil El Dorado, the land of gold, from which there is no turning back.

Along the way, Orange walks in a dream. Her feet were on gold, her blood was flowing with champagne, and her lobes were filled with nicotine. All around was filled with cheers and lamentations, and she watched those who won or lost, watching them rise or fall, as if watching a wonderful dance of angels and demons. She knew that soon, she would be joining the crowd as well.

"That's it. ”

She heard the white cat in her arms say this, and stopped. In front of her was a row of strange machines she had never seen before. It was a large iron box that was one man tall and half a man wide, and it was printed with colorful patterns. There is a TV-like screen installed on the iron box, and a long control lever is erected next to it, as long as you throw a coin into the coin slot, and then pull the lever, the pattern in the screen will start to beat, and then according to the combination of patterns, determine whether you have won the lottery and how big the prize is.

She looked at the people sitting in front of the machines, the fools who thought they had been lucky, as they threw their money into it one by one, and then waited with bloodshot eyes for Lady Luck to come—she didn't. So they sigh, roar, and curse, and then go on, like domesticated animals, mechanically pulling out more money until there is nothing left to pay.

A machine that couldn't be simpler could keep these people chained to a screen for an entire day, and eventually drain them of everything. For a young orange, this is a little too incredible.

If she grows up and looks like her master, Yakumo Blue, then she will understand that this is human nature.

And gambling is just a game of human nature.

"Slot machines," Sir Sciakros said the name of the machine, "the simplest way to gamble, and the only way to bet on a dollar. ”

"Our first pot of gold has to be pried out of these machines. ”

"But, what do we do?" asked Orange, "You can play for a dollar, but we only have a total of one dollar, right?"

"Just once, isn't it?" Sir Chakolos asked rhetorically, of course, "how many more chances do you want?"

"But ......"

Orange stopped talking, and out of the corner of her eye, she quickly glanced at the gamblers in the neighborhood - none of them lost more than they won. She really didn't have the confidence that she could use this small dollar to win the big prize enough for her to stay here in one of the only one chances. She didn't know where Sir Chakolos got this confidence.

But she chose to believe him, although, from a rational point of view, he was simply looking for a reason for himself to go home.

"Be at ease," said Sir Scicolus with a smile, "and if I hadn't had the ability to hit once, I wouldn't have picked up a dollar and run to a place like this to be embarrassed." ”

"If the black cat is a symbol of misfortune, then the white cat is a messenger of luck...... Just kidding, I don't believe in 'luck' and 'fate'. ”

"All I believe is what these two cat's paws can touch. Now, the claw was calling for me to grab my riches and glory, and for the first time in years, it had gotten so hot. ”