Steampunk: Sixth Era Epic

While waiting, Shard found an empty single-seater sofa to sit down, with a group of men who seemed to have just met each other by his side, gathering together over current political issues.

Shard also listened in and discovered that they were discussing the possibility of a full-scale war breaking out again between the Northern Kingdom of Draleon and the United Kingdom of Carsonrick in the south.

However, it wasn't long before the topic shifted to maritime trade and piracy between the Old Continent and the New World. One of the men involved in the conversation, a middle-aged, overweight man who seemed to be a manager at a trading company, was very familiar with the situation in the New World. He believed that as long as adventurers had the courage to sail there, they could always win wealth.

The New World was rich in resources, and although there were no natives, many relics of civilization could be found. Coldwater Port City, the most important port city in the western part of the Kingdom of Draleon, served as a connection point between the Old Continent and the New World, and opportunities were never lacking there.

After the middle-aged man was called away for appraisal, the conversation finally switched to Roder Cards. The men, who did not know each other, compared their card decks, boasted about their newly acquired special cards, or laughed together at the comical stories of local Roder card collectors.

The conversation was dominated by a middle-aged man with a mustache, who wore a black top hat and placed a gold-inlaid cane beside the sofa. He owned more special Roder Cards, including one that depicted "the Northern City of Arts, Atak City" with a value of 13 and even had a special rule:

"When used, roll a 20-sided die, and if the die shows a 20, you can redraw without conditions."

This was a genuine card as verified by the Prophet's Society; hence, although the effect was fairly ordinary, it was still excitedly praised by the Roder card enthusiasts.

Mustache man introduced himself as Mr. Lavende. Seeing the atmosphere warming up and having nothing else to do at the moment, he suggested:

"Why don't we play Roder Cards using the simplest rules. If I win, you need to pay me 5 pennies, and if I lose, I'll give the winner 10 pennies. Oh gentlemen, let's amuse ourselves this dull morning."

The so-called "simplest rules" involved each player drawing three consecutive cards and determining the winner based on the rules of 21. If both sides busted, they would draw another three cards each until someone won.

The stakes weren't high, and indeed, idle chitchat was boring here, so the troublemakers gathered around Mr. Lavende to watch the excitement.

Shard also came closer to see what was happening, but deeply despised gambling, so even this small wager didn't tempt him; thus, he only watched.

Three men were willing to play cards with Mr. Lavende.

First was Mr. Luke, who worked at a tobacco company in the south of the city. He had just mentioned the tobacco trade and tax issues between Draleon and Carsonrick but unfortunately busted out immediately with 25 points.

The second was Old Mr. Ponton, who lived off rent from local real estate. His large-knuckled fingers, bespectacled squinting right eye, but expert Roder card skills, pitted him against Mr. Lavende for three rounds before he finally won 10 pennies, earning applause from onlookers.

Last was Captain Seville, a burly man whose vessels plied the waterways of the Old Continent, mainly engaging in inland water transport. He was a regular here and known to many, including Mr. Lavende.

Unfortunately, Captain Seville was out of luck; his first two cards already exceeded 21, thus, he could only regretfully give up five pennies.

"Anyone else wants to play?"

Mr. Lavende, now on a roll after defeating the third opponent, invited the onlookers to join. He was a well-known card player in town, often visiting the local Prophet's Society and various Roder Card Clubs, so the gathered men cheered, but no one was willing to step forward.

After all, five pennies were still money.

Mr. Lavende looked around and finally noticed Shard's unfamiliar face in the crowd, also noting that it seemed to be his first time in such a place:

"Sir, would you like to play cards with me?"

The middle-aged man extended the invitation kindly.

"Sorry, I don't gamble."

Shard shook his head, but Mr. Lavende didn't get angry, instead, he smiled and said:

"Then we won't bet money, just one game, how about it? I'm number 21, it's almost my turn, we're just playing one game to try it out."

The people around also joined in, pushing Shard to the front.
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Shard thought about it, and since there was no betting, he figured playing one game could be a way to pass the time for entertainment. So, he took a seat on the single sofa opposite Mr. Lavende and handed his business card to the wealthy gentleman:

"Shard Hamilton, Detective."

"The profession of a detective, I've heard, is very adept at card playing."

Mr. Lavende took the card and was surprised when he saw the address of the Detective Agency, clearly not expecting the young detective to afford an office in such an area.

"But I've hardly played before."

Shard said, while taking out his own deck, the one he had picked up when fetching Mia. Each shuffled the other's deck and then drew three cards from the top of their own.

Mr. Lavende, with an excited expression, unveiled his cards. Among them were several beautifully designed special cards, and one of the three he drew was:

"Look, Sun 5, Silvermoon 8, Stars 4, 17 points, my luck is really not bad."

The people behind him whispered congratulations as well.

Since there was no money involved, Shard felt no pressure; he flipped over the first card and laid it on the table, it was the Sun 13, which immediately elicited sounds of pity from the crowd. Under the rules of 21, drawing two more cards, the chances of busting were quite high.

Shard revealed the second card, which was Stars 7, making a total of 20 points already. But under the simple rules, he couldn't stand; he had to draw all three cards.

The crowd, caught in the atmosphere, swapped views about the detective's last card.

Shard too was curious about what his luck would be like today, so he picked up the last card and carefully looked at the numbers on its face. The people behind him also leaned over to check, and then they all exclaimed in unison; even the lady in his mind chuckled lightly, reminding Shard she had always been there.

Shard's face broke into a smile, as if all the stress from last night's events had vanished in that moment; playing cards indeed was a good way to relax.

Laying down the Stars 1 on the table, the Mr. Lavende sitting across immediately leaned forward to see, then showed the same astonished expression as the onlookers:

"Oh, 21 points. Beginners always have such strange luck, but Detective Hamilton, would you like to play another round? It has been a long time since I've been beaten by 21."