198: Hitting the jackpot

After exchanging the chips, the golden, heavy circular chips felt cool in his hand, making a crisp and pleasant "clink" as they collided, sounding like an enticing melody.

Lin Luo's gaze didn't immediately turn to the gambling table; instead, he was firmly drawn to a massive circular screen in the center of the hall. Erina followed his gaze and couldn't help but hold her breath.

The screen scrolled through a dense array of ingredient images and names, ranging from common vegetables, fruits, poultry, and meat to rare, Phantom Ingredients with strange glows and bizarre forms, covering almost everything.

Even more eye-catching was the blatant inclusion of many high-risk Poisonous Ingredients that would never be publicly provided or were even strictly regulated within the IGO. However, unlike the purely lethal poisons in the black market outside, these provided Poisonous Ingredients had been specially processed to be edible.

"What a... crazy place," Erina murmured.

Just then, out of the corner of her eye, she caught sight of Lin Luo—he picked up a golden chip he had just received and casually popped it into his mouth, biting off a piece with a crunch, just like biting into a biscuit!

"Lin Luo! You... that's edible?!" Erina was so startled she almost dropped the chips in her hand.

Lin Luo chewed a couple of times, a hint of surprise and appreciation appearing in his eyes: "The taste is actually quite good; it's a concentrated cream cheese flavor with a nutty aftertaste."

Erina looked skeptically at the golden chip in her hand, which was also marked with a face value of "one hundred thousand." After a moment's hesitation, she followed Lin Luo's lead and cautiously took a small bite of the edge.

Crunch.

After a slight cracking sound, an indescribably rich aroma instantly exploded in her mouth!

It was by no means the taste of ordinary food; it perfectly fused the richness of Advanced cheese, the oily and toasted fragrance of top-tier nuts, and a faint, almost wine-like fermented flavor. The layers were so rich it was staggering, and her taste buds felt as if they were being gently and luxuriously caressed.

"Mmm...!" Erina couldn't help but let out a soft hum of praise, her purple eyes widening slightly. This wasn't just a chip; it was clearly an exquisitely made Advanced snack!

Machi walked over to them at some point. Seeing their reactions, he explained as if it were nothing unusual: "In the Gourmet Casino, there's nothing that can't be 'eaten,' especially these chips. Their value lies not only in what they can be exchanged for; their flavor is also directly linked to their face value—the higher the value, the more delicious and rare they usually are. Many gamblers are addicted to this, not even entirely for the sake of winning ingredients, but just to constantly taste higher-value, more delicious 'chips'."

"Where's Kobayashi Rindō?" Lin Luo looked around but didn't see the red-haired figure.

Machi pointed to a card table not far away and said, "She went to that card table over there. My men are following her; she'll be fine."

Lin Luo nodded, absentmindedly tossing the golden chip in his hand. The metal traced a faint arc in the air, making an enticing soft sound.

This unintentional movement stirred an imperceptible ripple in the shadows of a corner. A hooded figure moved, like a hyena scenting blood, suddenly lunging from an angle, aiming straight for the chip about to fall into Lin Luo's hand.

However, his fingertips failed to even touch that glimmer of gold. An invisible but powerful force slammed into him the moment he was about to succeed. The hooded man's movement suddenly distorted; he let out a muffled groan and fell back even faster than he had come, tumbling clumsily into the edge of the crowd.

The entire process was so fast that almost no one saw it clearly. Machi didn't even turn his head, merely giving an almost imperceptible nod toward a certain dark spot.

Immediately, two ordinary-looking but agile figures quietly appeared beside the hooded man. One on each side, they seemingly casually propped him up, attracting almost no attention as they quickly dragged him away from the bustling Casino hall, disappearing into the shadows of the passage leading to the side door.

It was as if nothing had happened. Only the chip in Lin Luo's hand continued to be tossed up and caught, reflecting the hall's brilliant but cold light.

"What happened?" Erina hadn't even clearly seen the brief disturbance just now; she only felt as if something had flickered before her eyes.

Lin Luo smiled and naturally changed the subject: "Nothing. So, is there anything you want to play?"

Erina's attention was immediately diverted. Her purple eyes scanned the noisy hall and soon locked onto a target—the massive Slot Machine in the center, so large it was impossible to ignore.

"That one!" She pointed her finger.

Machi followed her gaze and introduced it: "This Slot Machine has 100 vertical faces and 100 horizontal faces, rotating at a speed of 100 to 150 meters per second. There are a total of 60 types of images. No one has been able to line up all one hundred faces yet."

"Want to try?" Lin Luo saw that she was already walking over, eager to give it a go.

Erina sat down in front of the massive machine. Her petite figure formed a sharp contrast with the gargantuan object, immediately attracting many curious or spectating gazes.

"Oh? That Young Miss wants to challenge it?"

"No way, she looks like some high-born Young Miss here to experience life..."

"Hey, the one standing next to her... isn't that Leader Machi of the Gourmet Gang?"

"It really is! This combination..."

"This machine isn't something you can play just by luck; it's too fast, you can't see the patterns at all."

The surrounding discussions buzzed. Erina, however, acted as if she hadn't heard, picking up a chip and inserting it into the slot, then pressing the start button without hesitation.

Vroom—!

A low, powerful starting sound came from inside the machine. Immediately after, the hundred columns of patterns, as if caught in a violent vortex, began to spin frantically at a terrifying speed that the naked eye couldn't capture! The colored lights and shadows stretched into a blurred, kaleidoscopic band, and only the whistling sound of the patterns rushing past at high speed could be heard.

"Too fast! How can anyone see that?!"

"I'm going blind!"

"Every column has to stop on the same pattern to win. It gets faster toward the end; it's simply impossible!"

Onlookers exclaimed in amazement and doubt.

However, the speed that was dizzyingly fast to others was like a slow-motion film to Lin Luo, who had quietly spread out his Divine Sense; every frame was clearly discernible. He was interestingly preparing to "watch the show" when he saw that Erina had already made her move.

She didn't seem to "look" at all. Her slender fingers, carrying a certain wonderful rhythm, lightly tapped the first column's button.

Click.

The first column stopped abruptly, the pattern fixed clearly—a bright red, plump "apple."

"Yay!" Erina let out a small cheer herself.

Immediately after, the second column stopped—apple.

"Great!"

Third column, fourth column... Erina's movements looked almost casual, as if she were just tapping along with her feelings. But with every tap, the frantically spinning array would stop obediently, showing the "apple" pattern without exception.

Click, click, click... The stopping sounds rang out rhythmically, and the apple patterns lit up column after column.

The discussions of the surrounding crowd gradually quieted, turning into incredulous gasps and low exclamations.

In the blink of an eye, it had reached the 58th column.

Click.

The 58th column stopped—apple.

A full 58 columns, all bright red apple patterns, were lined up perfectly on the massive screen, creating a shocking visual impact!

"My god! 58 columns in a row?!"

"How is this possible! How did she do it?!"

"Luck? No, this is definitely not luck!"

The crowd instantly erupted, the cheers almost lifting the roof. Many people crowded forward, wanting to get a clear look at this mysterious girl.

Standing behind Erina, Lin Luo also rubbed his chin in some astonishment. He didn't even know how Erina was doing it; it felt like she was just pressing randomly, but every time it somehow stopped at the corresponding position.

Erina herself seemed very excited, her cheeks slightly flushed. Looking up at the row of glorious "apples" on the screen, her purple eyes sparkled. She turned back with a bit of pride: "Lin Luo, look, aren't I amazing?"

"Amazing doesn't even begin to describe it," Lin Luo shook his head with a smile, his tone full of unreserved praise. "This of yours is simply Heaven-Defying."

Having received affirmation, Erina's enthusiasm grew even stronger. Her purple eyes focused back on the screen, and her fingertips fell once again.

Click, click, click... The crisp stopping sounds rang out in succession, carrying a rhythm that made people hold their breath.

Column 98—apple.

Column 99—apple.

Column 100—apple!

When that bright red pattern on the final column fixed steadily, perfectly joining with the previous 99 columns, the entire massive screen seemed submerged in a sea of apples. The visual impact reached its peak!

"Whoa—!!! She hit it! She hit them all!!"

"Hiss... I've been gambling here for over a decade, and this is the first time I've seen all hundred faces being perfectly matched with my own eyes!"

"So, so powerful! What on earth is this girl's background?!"

"..."

The crowd erupted into a mountain-shaking roar of cheers and discussion. Countless gazes focused on Erina's petite back, filled with disbelief and fanaticism.

Clatter, clatter, clatter—!!!

At the same time, the special outlet on the other side of the Slot Machine opened like a floodgate. A massive amount of golden chips poured out like a golden waterfall, instantly piling up into a dazzling small mountain at Erina's feet. The clinking sounds were crisp and pleasant, drowning out all other noises.

"God! I remember she only put in a hundred thousand in bet money! The apple pattern are... a million to one?!"

"Which means... in this one round, she earned a full hundred billion in chips?!"

"Hiss—!!! This, this is too terrifying!"

"At this rate, the Casino's stock of ingredients might be completely cleared out!"

"..."

"Wow, wow, wow! Lin Luo! Did you see that?! Did you see?!" Erina completely ignored the almost frozen air around her and those horrified gazes. She suddenly turned around, her hands tightly grabbing Lin Luo's sleeves, shaking him excitedly. Her purple eyes were filled with pure excitement and a sense of accomplishment, her cheeks even more flushed from the thrill, like a child who had just won her favorite candy.

"I saw, I saw, my Young Miss." Lin Luo was shaken slightly backward by her, but his lips held a permissive smile, letting her vent this sudden, massive joy. "My Young Miss is indeed amazing; you make a world-shaking move as soon as you act."

The pride in his tone was undisguised, as if it were he who had won these hundred billion chips rather than Erina.

This blunt praise made Erina calm down a bit, but the light in her eyes grew even brighter. She let go of his hand and couldn't help but look back at the mountain of glinting golden chips and the spectacular screen full of apples. She murmured softly, "Actually... I didn't expect to hit them all either. I just felt like... it was time to press, so I pressed."

Hearing this, Lin Luo shrugged helplessly with a "just as I thought" expression: "See, no matter how great the calculations and skills are, they seem pale and weak in the face of some 'unreasonable' intuition." His tone carried a smile; he didn't doubt her at all, but rather marveled at her luck.

Machi, who was nearby, also recovered from his initial shock. The scar on his face twitched slightly with a sincere smile, and his gaze toward Erina was filled with undisguised amazement: "Indeed... an eye-opener. Miss Erina, you are truly extraordinary."

He had been in Gitar for many years and had seen all sorts of characters running rampant in the Casino using Cardsharping, violence, or even special abilities. But someone like Erina, relying on a nearly "natural" precise intuition to achieve a perfect sweep on such a nearly unsolvable machine, was a first.

Erina was a little embarrassed by the two men's praise. She turned her face away slightly, a faint pink tint rising on her earlobes, but that small, proud curve at the corner of her mouth could not be suppressed.