Chunas Kolger, his eyes deep blue verging on black and his hair cropped short — a length seldom seen among the upper crust — walked over to Dawn Dantès with a glass of champagne and said with a faint smile:
"Your luck tonight has been splendid — and your courage as well."
If by that he meant the way Klein folded outright the hand after taking the "bribe", preferring to lose the blind, then that wasn't luck — it was knowledge... As for the rest, a single game with you lot has just about burnt through all the luck "Winner" Enuni had piled up these past few days... Klein swirled the pale-golden liquid in his glass and replied with a sighing laugh:
"For someone who doesn't care about the outcome, there's of course nothing to fear in how one plays.
"Heh, praise the Goddess!"
This was his Loenish-style understatement, a roundabout way of letting it be known that he had come tonight primarily to lose money — that the extraordinary luck was the gods' favour and had nothing to do with him.
Chunas hadn't lost much tonight, only a hundred or two — though, measured against his official salary, that was already considerable; but for a major general and deputy chief of
"Mortals can never see through the arrangements of fate.
"You're an interesting man. A pleasure to meet you."
His last line was half compliment, half courtesy — a signal that the conversation was at its end.
But Klein had "performed" all evening precisely to make the acquaintance of this Black Emperor pathway demigod — there was no question of giving up here. He first answered, "the pleasure is mine", and then, as if in passing, asked:
"Major General, would you happen to know much about estates on the outskirts of
According to the intelligence Klein had received from Miss "Justice", Chunas Kolger, the major-general deputy chief, whether owing to temperament or to the particular nature of his post, neither cared to host dinners, balls or salons at his own home, nor accepted such invitations very often.
His preferences were extremely simple: first, he loved cigars, especially "Chieftain Cigars" produced in the East Bayrum-Mikont region — universally hailed as the finest cigars in the world; second, he was fond of cards, mainly Texas Hold'em; third, he enjoyed hunting, often going to the outskirts of Backlund in autumn and winter, and even as far as Ahowa County and East Chester County.
Klein had originally planned to buy an estate simply to ease his way into high society, without this in mind; meeting Chunas Kolger tonight, however, he tacked on the relevant requirement on the spot, hoping it would catch the man's interest — so that, in time, he might invite this deputy chief of MI9 out hunting in the countryside for a pleasant weekend, and find his chance to act.
Chunas Kolger took a sip of champagne, thought a moment, and said:
"I'll keep an eye out for you. If something suitable comes up, I'll send someone over — Birkland Street, isn't it? Mm, I'll have word brought there."
"Many thanks," Klein replied with sincerity.
At the same time, in his heart, he spared a thought for
And now that Klein had adjusted his requirements on the spot, all of Richardson's previous work, beyond any doubt, had to be thrown out and begun again.
Damned clients... well, once this is over, I'll have Tanya raise his annual salary by five pounds; a butler's assistant ought to earn a touch more than a personal valet... five pounds — in tonight's game one or two raises would have eaten that... a whole year of Richardson's wages, in this hand, is good for only a few rounds of cards... mid-soundless lament, Klein suddenly became aware of a gaze fixed on him.
He looked back without dissembling and found that it was Admiral Aemilius Levitt watching him.
The stern, old-fashioned middle-aged officer gave a slight nod, drew his gaze back, betrayed no intention of speaking with Dawn Dantès, and made no move to summon anyone to arrest a wild Beyonder — for after all, this counted as a partner of the military, and a merchant-adventurer with broad connections in the Southern Continent picking up a potion now and then was not unheard of.
Just then, Colonel Galvin and Councillor Macht, each with their own glass, walked over to Dawn Dantès.
"How did that happen?" Galvin asked under his breath, looking quite put-upon.
Because Dawn Dantès had won close to a thousand pounds, he and Councillor Macht, in order to keep Admiral Aemilius from losing money, had had to change tactics on their own — from caution to recklessness — and each had dropped several hundred pounds, which stung.
Combined with what the others had lost, Admiral Aemilius came out ahead by two or three hundred.
At this Klein spread his hands:
"I didn't even look at my hole cards!"
What he meant, between the lines, was that this was nothing but the favour of the deities of the realm of fate.
As of now, those with authority in the realm of fate — gods, angels, and "Hidden Beings" — included, but were not limited to, the "Goddess of the Night", the "Fool", the "Mercury Serpent"
"This is a thoroughly distressing business," Councillor Macht said, shaking his head with a wry smile. "Galvin and I have lost so badly we hardly dare go home."
What they had lost amounted to roughly half of their declared annual income.
Dawn Dantès, his hair greying at the temples, looked at them in genuine surprise:
"When did you lose anything?"
He then pointed at the heap of chips piled before his seat:
"I've barely managed to hold on to the thousand pounds I bought in with. The rest is all yours."
Colonel Galvin and Councillor Macht stared blankly for a moment, exchanged a glance, and one after the other broke into smiles.