"Does your club have Oreos?"
At the gambling table, Teddy stopped a waiter who was delivering drinks.
"If you do, please bring me three boxes."
Waiter: "???"
She had seen plenty of gamblers who drank, smoked, and groped women while playing cards.
But someone eating Oreos while gambling?
That was a first.
There really were all kinds of strange hobbies these days.
The club didn't normally stock Oreos, but that didn't stop the waiter from running to the nearby grocery store to buy some.
As soon as she stepped outside, she ran into Luca and John walking toward the casino floor.
Luca reminded her casually,
"Buy me a whole case of Oreos."
Waiter: "…"
Damn it!
Luca looked around the card room and noticed that, besides Teddy, One-Eyed Elle was also sitting at the table.
That woman was a gambler too.
"Elle, how much did you win today?"
"i lost all my money!!"
Elle looked annoyed.
"Your casino is so irritating! One day I win, the next day I lose. I've been playing here for a month and I still haven't made a single cent!"
Her complaint made many gamblers nearby envious.
At least she hadn't lost money.
Most of them had been bleeding chips all week.
"Sounds like you need a newbie like me to play with you," Luca said.
He pulled up a chair and sat down.
"How much you win from me today depends entirely on your luck."
Elle's face immediately brightened.
She pulled out her little notebook and wrote down Luca's name.
"Dove, I love your generosity!"
After saying that, she glanced at John standing silently beside him.
John didn't say a word, but his presence alone was enough.
She knew who he was.
John often came to the club and liked to sit beside the Silver Queen with a drink in hand.
Sometimes he stayed for half the night.
By now, plenty of people recognized him.
---
Luca called Teddy and Jimmy over.
Soon the five of them sat around a table.
It was a pity Mike had gone to the hospital for treatment.
Otherwise they could have had another skilled player.
Except for Worm, of course.
That cheating lunatic definitely didn't deserve a seat at the table.
"Wait, let me call another friend," Luca said.
He pulled out his phone and called Jordan, inviting him over to play cards.
"A table full of brothers and sisters."
Jordan didn't believe that for a second.
Brothers and sisters?
More like a room full of monsters trying to scam him out of money.
"There's business to talk about too," Luca added.
Jordan had contributed to the gasoline-tax operation. Not much, but he still owned a small share.
This time Jordan believed him.
"I'll be there right away."
While Jordan was on the way, they set the table rules.
No betting limit.
But a minimum pot of $25,000 had to be reached before the cards could be revealed.
Meanwhile, Luca quietly buy a minor skill.
__________________________________________________________________________
[Criminal Reconstruction: Increases the probability of discovering clues during investigations by 15%]
[Skill Added]
[Remaining Skill Fragments: 168]
__________________________________________________________________________
It wasn't as useful at the poker table as "Seeing the Big Picture from Small Details," but it would at least sharpen his observation skills.
After learning it, Luca blinked.
Suddenly he noticed far more details than before.
For example—
A small scar hidden beneath Elle's eyepatch.
A faint white knife scar on the back of John's hand.
Jimmy had more gray hair now.
And Teddy…
That guy had already started eating Oreos.
__________________________________________________________________________
[Character Card: Teddy KGB]
[Rank: C]
[Source: Rounders]
Skill:
[Oreo:
- Delicious Oreos can temporarily distract others and interfere with their judgment.
- Each time you eat an Oreo, other players find it harder to read your intentions and are more likely to misjudge your thoughts.
- Their judgment accuracy decreases by 20% for 1 minute.
- When playing cards, the effect is doubled.]
[Learning Requirements: Friendship or higher; 50 Skill Fragments]
__________________________________________________________________________
Luca's lips twitched.
Teddy really was Mike's natural enemy.
In the original story, he repeatedly disrupted Mike's judgment simply by eating Oreos.
Mike misread his hands more than once because of it.
This skill was basically the direct counter to "Seeing the Big Picture from Small Details."
In other words—
another deception skill.
Did this mean Luca would have to carry Oreos around with him from now on?
Teddy noticed Luca staring at the cookies.
He casually handed him a fresh box.
"Dove, want some?"
"Yes, thank you," Luca said.
"When I was a kid, Oreos were my favorite snack."
He opened the package and sighed.
"Eating these reminds me of my childhood."
"My father used to buy them for me all the time."
The story was vivid and emotional.
Combined with Luca's already high trust among criminals, the gangsters and assassins around the table were surprisingly moved.
So the Peace Ambassador had such a past.
John, however, didn't react much.
He had been an orphan raised by an assassin organization.
Snacks were never part of his childhood.
Teddy shared his own story too.
"When I was a kid, the thing I envied most was seeing other kids eating Oreos."
"But my family couldn't afford them."
"So when I started making money as an adult, the first thing I bought was a box of Oreos."
Luca laughed.
"Don't say that while you're literally eating one."
I don't believe you.
You're clearly trying to confuse me.
---
Soon the cards were dealt.
None of the people at the table were short on money.
After a few rounds, the pot had already exceeded $50,000.
In the end, Elle won.
Pure luck.
A full house.
Skill had nothing to do with it.
But the next few rounds didn't go so well for her.
Teddy showed his expertise, winning over $100,000 through skillful play.
Then he quietly lost it again in the next few rounds, carefully keeping himself from going into the red.
One expert.
Four amateurs.
Teddy managed to stay roughly even.
After about an hour, the quietest player at the table—John—had won the most.
But in the next round he lost a huge pot to Luca.
John slammed the table and cursed in Russian.
"Ты, проклятый ублюдок! Фулл-хаус!"
(You damn bastard! Full house!)
Luca blinked in confusion.
John…
What exactly did you learn from Tarasov?
I understand Russian!
Just then Jordan arrived.
"My dear Dove! Your good friend has come to win your money!"
Jordan rushed forward and hugged Luca enthusiastically.
He almost kissed him.
Then he saw Elle sitting there.
Instantly he became far more gentlemanly.
He extended his hand politely.
"Hello, my name is—"
A black mamba suddenly slid out of Elle's sleeve.
"I'm not shaking hands with that venomous thing."
Jordan withdrew his hand instantly.
Then he chuckled awkwardly.
"Your snake is cute."
"Her name is Beatrice."
"Great name!"
Luca nearly choked on his Oreo.
Jordan…
you'd better hope the Female Bruce Lee never hears you say that.
With Jordan joining, the table now had six players.
The game continued.
---
Not long afterward, in the evening, Brian arrived with Mathilda, who had just finished school.
"Luca!"
Mathilda ran over happily.
Luca waved at Brian.
"Come sit down and play a few rounds."
Brian had a bad feeling.
The small fortune he earned through street racing probably wouldn't survive many rounds here.
With two more SSR characters joining, the game became even livelier.
"Luca, don't fold. Call," Mathilda whispered beside him.
Luca looked at his cards.
Three face-up cards.
All singles.
No pair.
No straight.
"Can I really call that?" he muttered.
Luca was a complete beginner at poker.
Mathilda leaned closer and whispered,
"Uncle Jimmy and that Oreo guy are bluffing."
"They don't have strong hands."
"They just want to scare you into folding before the turn."
"I think you'll get a good card later."
Luca: "…"
Why does it feel like you understand this better every day?
Are you secretly doing your homework at the casino?
Still, Luca trusted Mathilda's luck.
Sure enough—
The fourth and fifth cards completed a straight.
Luca won the round.
"That's amazing!"
He rewarded Mathilda with an Oreo.
"Haha! You really are my lucky star."
"With you here, winning is easy."
Mathilda snorted proudly.
"Hmph! Only realizing that now?"
"Listen to me more often and I'll teach you how to fight too."
Everyone else at the table stared at Luca in silence.
Especially Jimmy.
He was already preparing to quietly escape.
He knew exactly how terrifying Mathilda was at poker.
Her luck was monstrous.
No matter how recklessly she played, she always got unbeatable cards.
Jimmy had lost count of how many times he had lost to her.
Five dresses.
Seven pairs of shoes.
A game console.
Three Transformers DVDs.
Two bicycles.
From that day on, Jimmy made a decision.
Never challenge Mathilda unless she folds early.
---
The next hour became a nightmare for everyone else.
Even Teddy, with his exceptional card skills, couldn't gain an advantage against Mathilda's terrifying luck.
Lose more.
Win less.
Teddy was stunned.
In New York he had been nearly invincible at poker.
He had even become the boss of a Russian casino because of it.
Yet today…
he was getting bullied by a little girl.
This kid was born with the physique of a gambler.
Luca was extremely satisfied.
He had won four to five hundred thousand dollars.
John and Elle contributed the most to that total.
One-Eyed Elle was especially depressed.
Mathilda tried to cheer her up for a long time but failed.
In the end Luca secretly slipped her a handful of chips.
Elle rolled her eye and gave Luca a disdainful look.
"Who wants your charity?"
"Your card skills are terrible."
"If Mathilda hadn't helped you, would you have won?"
Luca: "…"
After saying that, Elle dragged Mathilda away to bully the other amateurs.
[Bond: Friends]
Luca smiled with satisfaction.
He had gained more than money today.
Ding! New Skill Unlocked [Snake Kiss] .
The Peace Ambassador now has a pet.
First raise a snake.
It can be used for sacrifices and also to attack enemies.
Once John unlocks his pet skills…
(TN: Which is the Dog)
The combination will be incredible.
__________________________________________________________________________
[Snake Kiss: You have a stronger affinity with snakes. Snakes will not attack you unless provoked. You can control venomous snakes to a limited degree. Snake venom resistance +40%.]
[Skill Added]
[Skill Fragment -40]
__________________________________________________________________________
Outside the casino, Teddy walked out with his last $5,000.
Originally he only wanted to give the Peace Ambassador some face and break even.
Instead he ended up losing money.
Oh well.
Only $20,000 lost.
Just then Jimmy caught up with him.
He handed Teddy $25,000.
"This is the money Mike and Worm owed you."
"The Dove said he'd give you an explanation."
Teddy froze.
He was deeply moved.
"But earlier you already took all my chips…"
Jimmy smiled.
"The chips were hospitality from the Dove."
"But the $25,000 was Mike's debt."
Teddy nodded emotionally.
"I'll accept it."
"Please thank the Dove for me."
"If he ever visits my casino, I'll treat him like my best friend."
[Bond: Friends]
Ding! New Skill unlocked [Oreo] .
---
Upstairs in his office, Luca watched Teddy leaving the club.
Then he picked up another Oreo and tossed it into his mouth.
Not bad.
They actually tasted pretty good.
The gasoline-tax profits exploded in the following week.
Luca and Abram made a fortune.
They had so much cash they could practically sew it into blankets.
Even Mariggio was extremely satisfied.
His election as the Underboss was now practically guaranteed.
Among all Mafia businesses, nothing made money faster than this.
Not even drugs.
Unless Jordan somehow pulled off another miracle and made tens of millions in three hours again.
But those miracles were rare.
Jordan had wisely toned things down after Luca warned him about the SEC and FBI.
The huge profits also made Viggo Tarasov look at Luca in a completely new light.
At the same time, Viggo felt a faint sense of crisis.
His younger brother Abram was earning several times more money working with Luca.
After thinking carefully, Viggo invited Luca to visit his club hotel.
---
The Red Circle.
"This hotel is really nice."
At the entrance, John noticed Luca's strange smile.
Something felt off.
They entered the lobby.
Luca scanned the surroundings.
For a brief moment, he seemed to see the future—
John tearing this entire place apart.
The two crossed the dance floor and took the elevator up to the top floor.
There they entered a luxurious reception room.
Inside waited Abram and his brother.
Viggo Tarasov.
__________________________________________________________________________
[Character Card: Viggo Tarasov]
[Rank: A]
[Source: John Wick Series]
[Skills: High-Value Bounties; Missions Imposibble]
[Bond: Attention]
__________________________________________________________________________
When Luca saw the second skill, his eyes narrowed slightly.
Mission Imposibble.
In the original story, Viggo gave John an impossible task as the condition for retirement:
Destroy all of the Tarasov family's enemies in a single night.
John actually completed it—with help from the Italian Mafia organization Camorra.
Luca felt a chill run down his spine.
Wait a second.
Who exactly were the Russians' enemies in New York?
Wasn't it the Five Families?
Luca suddenly thought:
Does this old fox want John to wipe out the entire New York Mafia?
That would be… very entertaining.
The Five Families were already tearing each other apart internally.
Now imagine throwing a angel of death like John Wick into the middle of it.
New York would be absolutely thrilled.
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