A Different World? Trading Between Worlds - Ch 2, Ep 38 - Evaluation of the Three by the Sailor, Part 1

Evaluation of the Three by the Sailor, Part 1

Masques retrieved the tools necessary for playing dice from the captain’s cabin and headed toward the passenger cabin.

In the cabin, Watari and his two companions were waiting.

‘But who is this woman? According to William, he’s a traveling merchant of unknown origin. Is that stunning woman his wife or lover? They seem close from the atmosphere. Oh, that beastman Ea is observing. What an incredible warrior…and she’s with them.’

As a captain, Masques had commanded countless battles against monsters.

He wielded a scimitar himself, having defeated hundreds of monsters.

The intuition he had accumulated through practical combat allowed him to sense Ea as a formidable opponent.

How much gold did it take to employ such a warrior?

Although Masques was curious, he suppressed his interest as a host for the time being.

“This here is the gear we use for dice games. Inside this box are five dice. When you press the button, the dice are automatically rolled, and the result is displayed.”

“Wow, that’s convenient!”

“It’s custom-made to prevent cheating. With these dice rolls, you create hands. The hands are One Pair, Two Pairs, Triple, Full House, Straight, Quadruple, Quintuple.”

“I see. So it’s like poker.”

“Poker? Is that what it’s called? We call them One-Eye through Six-Eye Cyclops Vulcan.”

Masques showed the dice rolls and explained the hands, but Watari quickly understood.

He seemed to already know a similar game.

Although it was surprising to the captain, the game was rather simple, so it wouldn’t be strange for it to be widespread.

“You can keep the good dice rolls and reroll once more.”

“So it’s easier to get good hands. What happens if we have the same hand?”

“The higher numbers win. But just competing for dice rolls isn’t fun. It would be just a simple game of luck.”

“Indeed. There’s no element of negotiation.”

“That’s why you hide the dice rolls and reveal them one by one. And then you bet chips.”

“Gambling, huh?”

“Not a fan?”

“It’s just that I don’t do it much. But in this case, with Mariel and Ea here, wouldn’t the conditions be unfair?”

“On the flip side, there’s a chance all three of you could lose big, you know?”

“That might be true… Well, alright then. Let’s set a maximum bet limit. No matter how much I lose, it’ll be just one gold coin. If I were to participate in today’s gamble, that would be my limit.”

“Huh, coming in big, huh? Alright then.”

Masques laughed ferociously.

With a bet of one gold coin, this could turn into a big gamble.

He wasn’t planning to set them up or make a fortune from this, but for these sailors, dice was something they had invested a lot of time and money into.

Negotiation was their forte.

Gambling accompanied by negotiation revealed people’s characters.

Masques inviting passengers to play dice was largely to assess them.

It was easy to see if they were suitable for doing business together.

Winning was better, but losing didn’t matter.

It was accepted as an upfront investment in assessing the opponent.

If there were those who got carried away when winning or those who tried to cautiously maintain their lead, or those who lost track of when to stop when losing and sank, Masques observed them, trying to minimize the damage, or those who brilliantly turned the tables, or those who didn’t want to upset their steady rhythm whether they were winning or losing.

Many types of people emerged.

“Ea! I lost again!”

“Haha, Ea is quite transparent.”

“Is that because he’s your master? At least, I can’t see through it.”

“Alright, let’s hide the dice. Press the button simultaneously and roll.”

At Masques’ command, everyone set up a partition in front of the dice and hid the results.

When they pressed the button, there was a click and a clatter, and they couldn’t manipulate the results.

‘This beastwoman is surprisingly easy to bait.’

“Hmm hmm~♪ Next is my turn to win!”

“Complacency is the enemy of success.”

“Oh, I might have a good hand too?”

“Hey, seriously? What should I do…”

For Masques, negotiating with beastmen like Ea was familiar territory.

They used their far superior extrasensory perception to read their opponent’s emotions.

Deception wouldn’t work on them.

However, Masques played on the flip side of those abilities.

When he had a good hand, he recalled memories of major business failures, and when he had a bad hand, he vividly remembered battles on board the ship, slightly masking his physical reactions.

Whether consciously or unconsciously, beastmen placed great trust in their abilities, so they easily fell for Masques’ bluffs.

Confident they could win the bet, they naturally increased their stakes, making the losses even bigger when they lost.

‘But I can’t let my guard down, they sometimes show flashes of heightened extrasensory intuition out of nowhere.’

What was terrifying about Ea was her ability to casually reroll the dice, even when they would probably have made a good hand like One Pair.

It was like precognition. She rerolled dice that, according to conventional wisdom, should be kept, following her instincts.

As a result, they often got the highest hands.

However, Masques could usually maintain a seven to three advantage against Ea.

“I’ll win this time for sure!”

“Haha, do your best. But I won’t lose either.”

“Neither will I.”

“Grrr!”

Although the three of them were competing in a friendly manner, Mariel was also not to be underestimated.

Whether she had a good hand or a bad hand, she remained calm and composed, never entering into high-stakes bets.

However, just when you thought she was only playing small bets, she could unexpectedly pull off a massive bluff.

This type wasn’t a formidable opponent, but they had a strong and steady presence that could secure a foothold.

Masques held an upper hand against Mariel as well, with a six to four ratio.

But, based on experience, he expected it to settle into a fifty-fifty matchup with Mariel.

‘Well, she’s a woman with no room for carelessness or openings. With such a woman as an assistant, business is bound to go smoothly.’

A supremely strong warrior, paired with a strong assistant.

It was sure to elevate Watari’s evaluation as well.

‘But the one I understand the least is this guy, Watari. What on earth is up with him…?’

Though he maintained a poker face, Masques was inwardly quite anxious.