When it came to luck, Orin and I were complete opposites.

I had the worst luck imaginable, cursed by fate itself, or at least that's how it felt. Meanwhile, Orin? She was like a walking four-leaf clover. Ever since she joined our team, our fortune had skyrocketed. More loot, rarer drops, even Gravelurker dropped both of its special items at once.

And then there was the Cursed Mimic incident.

Miraculously, she had managed to obtain a Soul Fragment from that accursed monster. I still didn't understand how, but one thing was clear. Orin's luck was unmatched.

Now, as we stood around the gambling circle, that same luck was about to be put to the test.

Odori stepped forward first, her expression unreadable but her posture relaxed.

"I'll roll first," she announced casually, her fingers flicking the die into the air.

We all watched as it tumbled, spinning midair before bouncing twice on the packed dirt ground. When it finally settled, four black dots faced upward.

"Not bad," Odori murmured, a small smirk tugging at her lips.

Orin bent down, picking up the die without hesitation. Her fingers gripped it lightly as she gave it a little toss. The die soared, flipping rapidly before landing with a solid six.

Muradin immediately let out a loud cheer, pumping his fist. "Yes! First round, we're two points ahead!"

Odori, still unfazed, simply chuckled. "Lucky shot."

Orin grinned, brushing imaginary dust off her shoulder. "Oh? You think so? Let's see if luck sticks with me then."

The second round began.

This time, Orin rolled first. The die landed on a five. A strong roll.

Odori followed, rolling her die with practiced ease. Another five.

I felt a bit of tension ease from our side. Darwyn clapped Orin on the back. "Nice one! We're still ahead by two."

But as the third round approached, I noticed something subtle.

Odori's fingers flexed slightly before she picked up the die. Her casual demeanor remained, but there was a glint in her eyes. She was calculating something.

She rolled.

The die bounced three times before landing on a five.

Orin followed, tossing her die with her usual confidence.

It spun, bounced, then settled on a six.

The Ironwood team surged even further ahead.

For the first time, I saw Max's expression shift. Normally unreadable, his lips pressed into a thin line, and his eyes flicked to Orin. His shoulders tensed ever so slightly. A sign of unease.

Odori, however, remained untouched. If anything, her smirk deepened.

And then, in the next round, she finally made her move.

She picked up the die, rolling it between her fingers, as if testing its weight.

With a flick of her wrist, she sent it flying.

The die hit the ground, tumbled, and landed on five.

Orin rolled next.

The die bounced, then stopped on four.

Odori's smirk widened.

Then, she threw her hands up in exaggerated triumph. "Finally! Now we're talking!" she cheered, a dramatic fist pump emphasizing her excitement.

"You got this, sis! We're still ahead by two points. You can do it!" Elena's encouraging voice rang from behind, full of energy and confidence.

The final round had arrived.

Our team stood at 21 points, still maintaining a narrow two-point lead over the opposing team. This was it. The decisive moment that would determine the fate of the Staff of Verdant Might.

Odori stepped forward, taking a slow breath as she picked up the die. Without hesitation, she tossed it high into the air.

For a split second, time seemed to stretch, the die flipping over and over as everyone held their breath.

Then, thud.

It landed.

Four black dots stared up at us.

"Yes! That's it!" Muradin cheered, his voice booming with excitement. His enthusiasm was quickly joined by Darwyn, who let out an excited whistle.

But before we could celebrate too soon, a low, steady voice cut through the air.

"The game isn't over yet," Max said coldly, his deep voice carrying weight.

This tale has been unlawfully lifted from Royal Road. If you spot it on Amazon, please report it.

And he was right.

While the odds were heavily in our favor, there was still a chance, a tiny sliver of a chance, that things could go horribly wrong.

Orin, seemingly unaffected by the tension, grinned as she bent down to retrieve the die. She rolled it between her fingers before tossing it into the air with the same confidence she had maintained throughout the game.

Everyone's eyes locked onto it.

It bounced. Once. Twice. Then settled.

The air grew deathly silent.

Muradin's face twisted in disbelief. His fists clenched at his sides as if refusing to accept what he was seeing.

Darwyn and Elena, sensing the rising tension, immediately stepped in, their hands lightly gripping Muradin's shoulders in an attempt to calm him down before things escalated.

I let out a long, heavy sigh, shaking my head in disbelief.

This… wasn't supposed to happen.

But the worst reaction came from Orin.

She stood frozen, her bright eyes wide with shock. Then, slowly, tears welled up in them, spilling over her round, flushed cheeks.

Her lips trembled.

"No way…" she whispered, her voice barely audible.

She had always been the lucky one. Always. And yet, in the most critical moment, the very luck she prided herself on had betrayed her.

The die showed one.

We lost.

Final score: 22 to 23.

The weight of it settled over us like a cold shadow.

Odori, completely at ease, stepped forward and picked up the Staff of Verdant Might, twirling it lightly in her hand before turning to us with an easy smile.

"That was an amazing match," she said warmly, offering her hand to Orin. "You're a tough opponent, Orin. That could've gone either way."

Despite her tear-streaked face, Orin forced herself to take a deep breath, blinking rapidly to push back the lingering disappointment. Slowly, she reached out and shook Odori's hand.

To her surprise, she felt genuine sincerity in the gesture.

Odori wasn't mocking her. She meant it.

A small, shaky smile found its way to Orin's lips.

"Thanks…" she muttered, voice still unsteady.

Odori let out a small laugh. "And as promised, these Mana Stones are all yours. Consider it a consolation prize." She gestured toward a neatly stacked pile of glowing crystals.

I crossed my arms, exhaling slowly before nodding.

"You won fair and square," I admitted. "No tricks. No foul play. Just pure luck."

Muradin, who had finally cooled down, rubbed the back of his head awkwardly before stepping forward.

"Sorry about that," he muttered sincerely.

Max and Odori exchanged glances before Max simply shrugged. "It's fine. Losing isn't easy."

Odori grinned. "Yeah, and honestly? I kinda like you guys. Let's play again sometime."

Despite everything, that made Orin laugh, just a little.

And just like that, the tension dissolved.

Even in defeat, we hadn't lost everything.

***

We were stuck here for a while.

The final curse left behind by the boss, Verdant Curse, had locked us inside Verdant Glade for an entire hour before we could proceed. Not that it really mattered, though. This place was our final destination anyway.

"What was that half-panda, half-sloth creature called again? It was absolutely adorable!" Elena suddenly blurted out, her eyes sparkling with excitement.

Odori chuckled. "Oh, you mean Drowlax? Yeah, it looks like it sleeps 90% of the time, but don't be fooled, its barrier skill is ridiculously strong."

"No kidding," Orin added, still clearly impressed. "That earthquake should have sent me flying, but thanks to Drowlax, I barely felt a thing! The ground literally split beneath my feet, and I was just… standing there like it was nothing!"

While the girls excitedly discussed the cute creatures summoned by Odori, we—the guys—had our own fun.

Muradin and Darwyn were on fire, exchanging jokes and ridiculous stories like a well-rehearsed comedy duo.

"Alright, alright," Muradin said, rubbing his hands together and leaned forward with a smirk. "Let me tell you the tale… about the time Darwyn here almost got killed by a chicken."

Darwyn's face instantly darkened. "Muradin. I swear to the gods..."

Too late. Muradin was already grinning.

"So, we were on a quest in a small village south of the city, right? A simple request. Get rid of some bandits. Easy. We clear them out, and as a reward, the villagers throw us a feast."

Orin nodded along. "Sounds normal so far."

Muradin pointed at Darwyn. "Right? Except someone here decided to pick a fight with the wrong opponent."

Elena tilted her head. "Wait… the chicken?"

Muradin burst out laughing. "YES. This absolute genius tried to grab a roasted chicken off the table, only to find out it was still alive. And let me tell you, this was no ordinary chicken. This was a warrior chicken. The second he touched it, it screamed, jumped into the air, and ROUNDHOUSE KICKED HIM IN THE FACE."

Orin gasped. "Wait, wait, wait… you got kicked by a chicken?!"

Darwyn crossed his arms. "I WAS CAUGHT OFF GUARD!"

Muradin wiped a tear from his eye. "It didn't stop there. The chicken chased him around the entire village, flapping and pecking like it was on a mission from the gods. Darwyn was running for his life, and everyone—villagers, children, even the village chief—was just watching, eating their food like it was part of the entertainment."

By this point, I was laughing so hard my stomach hurt. Even Max, ever the serious one, let out a small, amused huff.

"And the best part?" Muradin continued. "The village elder told us later… that chicken? It was their pet. A battle-hardened war chicken. It fought in a legendary war before retiring to that village."

Orin was in tears from laughing. "A battle-hardened… war chicken…?!"

Darwyn groaned. "I hate all of you."

Muradin patted him on the back. "It's okay, buddy. At least you survived. Barely."

For that one hour, while we waited for the curse to lift, our loss didn't seem so bad anymore.

***

As soon as the curse lifted, we exchanged brief farewells with Odori Cadmus and Maximus Daenerys.

An interesting duo, to say the least. Odori's lively energy made it easy to talk to her, while Max's silent but intimidating presence balanced things out. I would've loved to uncover more about their extraordinary abilities, but they were tight-lipped on the subject. Prying too much would have been rude, so I let it go.

We each exited through the same paths we had entered. The glade fading behind us as we stepped back into the previous area.

Just as we started walking, Orin's voice cut through the silence.

"Hey, Elena… do you think we still have time?" She sounded hesitant.

Elena glanced at her wrist device, checking the time. She tapped her chin thoughtfully. "It should be possible if we hurry… What do you think, bro?" She turned to Darwyn.

He nodded. "As long as we run. Non-stop."

Orin's face lit up instantly. "Then let's go! I can't wait to test out my new Soul Fragment!" She was practically bouncing on her feet, excitement radiating off her.

Elena chuckled. "Same here. I'm really curious to see what mine can do."

Muradin groaned dramatically. "Ugh… Do I have to run too? Can't I just… stay here? Maybe take a nap?"

Orin turned to him with a grin. "I'll treat you to an all-you-can-eat feast when we get back to town."

Muradin's eyes sparkled with new motivation. "Say no more. Let's move."

I sighed, shaking my head with a small smirk. "Alright, enough stalling. Let's not waste any more time."

With that, we took off running, dashing through the countless glades, racing against time to reach our next destination.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.