Reincarnated as the third son of the Duke

Chapter 16 16 The Gambler's Bait

William nodded.

"She wasn't made Head Maid by accident. Jordi put her there."

Hans's fists clenched. "That bastard."

William smirked.

"If I had punished her on the spot, she would've run—straight to Jordi."

"And?"

"And she would've spun the story into something entirely different. Do you really think she would've told him the truth?"

Hans hesitated.

William continued, voice cool.

"She wouldn't say a word about the budget fraud. Instead, she'd paint me as a violent, unreasonable brat who punishes his servants for no reason. And with all the witnesses present, Jordi wouldn't even have to work hard to make it stick."

Hans paled slightly. "But... but wouldn't your father—"

"That," William said, his smile turning sharp, "would be the worst possible choice."

Hans blinked in confusion.

"If I run to Father over something like this, what does it say about me?"

"That you... can't even handle your own servants?"

William nodded.

"And that's exactly what Jordi wants. He wants me to act rashly. He wants me to make a fool of myself. But..."

William's eyes gleamed.

"Unfortunately for him, I don't plan to play by his rules."

Hans hesitated. "Then... what do you plan to do?"

William's smirk widened.

"If I don't have subordinates inside the house..."

His steps slowed as they reached a dimly lit alley.

"...Then I'll just have to find them outside."

Hans followed his gaze—

And his face went pale.

"...D-Did we just walk into a gambling den?"

William grinned.

"Good. You recognize it."

Hans panicked.

The only question was when to play his trump card.

"Boss... Boss!"

Hugo's thoughts were interrupted by the urgent voice of his subordinate. He frowned.

"Didn't you just finish your report? What now?"

"It's about that fawn prince..."

"What about him? Is there a problem?"

"A... A problem? It's a complete disaster! That kid—he's cleaning out the entire gambling den!"

"...What?"

Hugo tilted his head, wondering if he had misheard.

His subordinate, wearing a panicked expression, quickly clarified.

"That young lord isn't just lucky. He's destroying the house. No matter what we do, even when the dealers go all in, they can't beat him!"

"...!"

The dealer felt like he had been possessed by a demon.

How... How was this even happening?

Was this even possible?

Clenching his jaw, he forced himself to focus.

"Crimson Rose," he announced, revealing his hand.

"So do I."

William casually laid his cards down, his tone relaxed and his movements fluid—completely unfazed.

"It's my win. The hands are the same, but my numbers are slightly higher."

The dealer squeezed his eyes shut.

Five times.

William had matched his hand exactly five times now. And each time, he had won by just the smallest margin.

It wasn't about having a stronger hand—he was deliberately toying with him.

The dealer had been gambling for decades, but he had never seen anything like this.

"I... I lost."

"Already? But this is getting fun."

William smirked as he pulled the pile of chips toward him, adding them to the mountain that had already formed.

The other gamblers, witnessing the spectacle, swallowed nervously.

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