She was right! She did regret it! She regretted it massively!

  "Bahahaha! Looks like my win! Better luck next time, stranger."

  It turned out, there was no such thing as a sane Otherworlder. Or if such a thing existed, Oren definitely wasn't one of them!

  "Again."

  "Huh? Really now, don't you think you should quit while you're behind? You can always lose more, friend. Is it really worth it?"

  Cards. That was the third option. She'd shot down outright thievery, and Amberwell wasn't big enough to have a fighting pit… but it was big enough to have a few different taverns, some seedier than most. Right now, they were in the seediest of all of Amberwell's taverns, taking part in a card game. Ugh, gambling… it set Sophia on edge. There was no wisdom in gambling. Not much equity either.

  But even if her domains weren't causing her to itch like nothing else and leaving her in intense discomfort, Sophia would still be very, very unhappy right now. Why? Because Oren was LOSING!

  "I'm not your friend. And I haven't lost everything yet. Let's go again… unless you're scared."

  They'd been here for what felt like hours, truth be told. Sophia had been against this from the very beginning of course, but in the end it wasn't like she'd had any choice in the matter. Oren was the only thing standing between her and a grisly demise so whether the Minor Goddess liked it or not, she was hitched to Oren's wagon at this point.

  "Well… alright then. Let's see if the cards are more in your favor this time, eh?"

  Sophia shivers as the cards are dealt once more. If Oren is afraid, he doesn't show it. In fact, he seems completely unperturbed even now. But then, that's how he's been since he sat down at the table. Stone faced and standoffish.

  He'd started out facing off against other denizens of the tavern. It wasn't all bad, she was forced to acknowledge. He'd won some games and lost others. Ultimately, he'd won enough to attract the attention of one of the biggest, fattest humans Sophia had ever seen. He'd introduced himself as 'Gentleman Grays' and invited Oren to join him at a table in the back of the tavern where the 'better' players could be found.

  It was obvious almost immediately, at least to Sophia, that this was all a trap designed to siphon Oren's winnings. She should have told him to refuse the offer. They'd probably had enough already, though she wasn't too sure. Either Oren hadn't thought so… or he was a gambler at heart and couldn't resist the thrill of trying to win it big.

  Ugh, Otherworlders. Just when she'd thought maybe she'd found the one good one, he turns out to be a degenerate after all. Gambling was… perhaps one of the lesser vices. Indeed, there weren't even any hard rules against it in Law's Court. But it was distinctly frowned upon all the same, and Sophia would certainly never be caught dead taking part herself.

  Gentleman Grays takes one look at his newest hand and grins wickedly, his eyes twinkling as he doesn't even try to hide his amusement or excitement.

  "Ah… bad luck, stranger. You should probably bow out now… out of the kindness of my heart, I'll let you know I have an unbeatable hand this time around."

  Sophia swallows thickly. Ever since Oren had been invited to join this table, the other players had started chipping away at his winnings. Not that they hadn't suffered their own losses for it. But… if she compared it to something like a battle, then it would be accurate to say that they were bleeding Oren dry by a thousand little injuries. He or Gentleman Grays had knocked everyone else at the table out of the running at one point or another. But those who had been removed from contention had rarely done any damage to the Gentleman's stockpile of wealth. Instead, they'd taken bits and pieces from Oren, only to fall and have their own earnings added to his or Grays' piles. Except most of the time… it was added to Grays and not Oren's.

  Sophia's sapphire earrings can even be seen glittering brightly among Gentleman Grays' pile of coins and treasure. Her necklace, meanwhile, is still within Oren's much smaller stash. He'd needed all of her jewelry just to get his foot in the door with the initial games, and truth be told, Sophia wasn't so attached that she didn't see the necessity.

  Still, if he didn't win soon, the fat mortal in charge of this establishment was right. They just might lose everything. Especially since this hand was apparently already a bust-

  "All in."

  Sophia's eyes bulge out of her head as Oren suddenly pushes his meager pile of wealth into the center of the table, seemingly completely unperturbed by the Gentleman's boasting. To be fair, she's not the only one. Those at the table still watching also go bug-eyed… and so does Grays himself, his beady eyes widening in disbelief at Oren's arrogance. Then, his jowls shake as his lips curl back into a wide, wicked grin that sends a trembling shiver down Sophia's spine.

  "Oh my… you think I'm bluffing, don't you? Your loss, friend."

  "Not your friend. And why not make this truly interesting?"

  A silence falls over the room. Gentleman Grays had been in the middle of using one of his fat, meaty hands to push forward a share of his wealth that was equal to the entirety of Oren's smaller pile. He pauses though, tilting his head to the side.

  "Oh?"

  Still completely calm and collected despite the fact that he should have been sweating bullets, Oren nods.

  "Everything you have against everything I have. One last hand."

  There's some murmuring around the room at that. Some tittering and snickering. Gentleman Grays, for his part, chuckles and shakes his head.

  "This is already your last hand at this point, stranger. I don't have to bet anymore than this to take you for everything you have… unless you're offering something of equal value to the vast amount of wealth sitting in front of me."

  Much to Sophia's revulsion and horror, the Gentleman's beady eyes dart over to her at those words and his tongue slips out to lick along his lips for a moment. She pulls her cloak tighter around herself and averts her gaze as a shudder of disgust runs down her spine. By this point, everyone knew she was Oren's 'woman'. She'd only been allowed to watch because of that fact. But Oren had been very specific about doing her best to hide her features and keep the cloak on no matter what.

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  Unfortunately, while the piece of black cloth he's given her to wrap around herself is quite large… it's not large enough. It hugs her curves in a way that hides much of her divine majesty but still reveals more about her figure than Sophia would have preferred. On top of that, it's hard to keep her face completely hidden from all angles twenty-four seven without just straight up standing in the corner staring at the wall, and obviously she's not going to do that.

  As such, over the length of time they've been here, Sophia knows she's been caught out by a few men… and she recognizes that they've been murmuring to one another about her beauty for a while now. Long enough that even the proprietor has caught wind of it apparently.

  "Yes."

  Sophia's eyes snap to Oren, widening in disbelief yet again. W-What? Surely he wasn't going to-!

  "I bet myself. One year of service as your sworn sword if you win. More than equal to the value of everything in front of you right now."

  That… was better than Sophia had thought he was going to say. For a second there, she'd thought he would actually offer HER up as collateral o-or something! Even still… his words were the understatement of the century. An Otherworlder, for all that they were abominations and aberrations on the fabric of Creation itself, was a force multiplier. They were one-man armies if they were allowed to grow for long enough. And Oren had already proven he was capable of slaughtering entire groups of trained men without taking so much as a scratch.

  A whole year of Oren's services was worth ten TIMES the amount of coin and treasure currently sitting in front of Gentleman Grays. And yet… looks could be deceptive, couldn't they? Just looking at Oren, with his scruffy appearance and worn clothing, you wouldn't know he was a scary, powerful Otherworlder. So it probably shouldn't have been all that surprising when, after a moment, Grays throws back his head and laughs, causing the rest of the men in the room to laugh as well.

  "Bahahahaha! Oh man! You crack me up, friend, you really do! I wish I had half of your confidence, honestly!"

  Sophia fidgets nervously as she watches Oren's reaction to everyone just laughing at his expense. Otherworlders were notoriously short tempered and while he'd seemed fine with her earlier, she couldn't forget that he'd killed those God Hunters without batting an eyelash…

  But in the end, he doesn't stand or draw his blade or slaughter anyone. He just sits there silently, as composed as ever, and waits. When everyone finally starts noticing that he's not joking, nor is he even reacting to them laughing at him, they all start to peter off, looking at one another somewhat uncertainly.

  Gentleman Grays, meanwhile, scowls at Oren's incredibly calm demeanor. Then… he smiles and looks at her.

  "You do have one thing I want, friend. Your woman. Wager her and we'll do it the way you want to do it. Everything we both have on one… last… hand."

  Sophia stiffens, her lips thinning out. Of course he would demand that. But Oren wouldn't go that far. Surely he wouldn't-

  "Deal."

  Her jaw drops open as Sophia stares at Oren in horrified disbelief. How could he… what did he think he was… she wasn't just some treasure to be gambled away! She wasn't some trophy to be won d-damn it! She was her own person… no, more than that, she was a goddess! What did he think he was doing?! What if he lost again? The Gentleman certainly seemed to think he had a good hand!

  "Alright then. Your funeral."

  Gentleman Grays uses both of his big, meaty hands to push everything on his side of the table forward into the middle with Oren's much smaller pile. Then, without missing a beat, he reveals his cards.

  "Read 'em and weep. Seriously, if you want to cry I won't mind. Boys might think less of you for it, but-!"

  Oren just wordlessly reveals his own cards and when the Gentleman's beady eyes dip low enough to see them in the midst of his gloating, he cuts himself off mid-sentence and just stares. Now, Sophia doesn't know this card game. She's not a gambler, and mortal games aren't exactly something she learned up in the Heavens… nor did she pay them much attention whenever she was down here visiting the Mortal Planes.

  But judging by the hush that falls over the room and the way Gentleman Grays gets progressively paler as the seconds drag on… did Oren win? Was it possible that his hand was somehow better than the Gentleman's?

  That certainly seems to be the case, because the next thing Sophia knows, Oren has risen from his seat and is collecting his winnings wordlessly. Her breath hitches as she watches him do so methodically, not really rushing. Some of the other men in the room look at one another for a second before stepping forward… but Oren just drops his hand to the pommel of his sword in a silent promise, making them back down.

  In that moment, Sophia knows they're not going to get out of here without a fight. Not if she doesn't do something. So, reaching out to her meager divine power, Sophia leans on one of her domains. Specifically, she leans on equity. After all, while gambling might be the opposite of fair in most cases, it WAS fair that the winner got to take their winnings.

  Efficiently but not too quickly, Oren packs away all of the coins they'd just won along with her jewelry… and steps away from the table as everyone in the room hesitates for a brief moment thanks to the power of Sophia's domain. A glance thrown her way has Sophia rushing to join him from where she'd been watching off to the side and then they just walk out. Nobody stops them, much to Sophia's relief.

  As soon as they're outside though, Oren takes Sophia by the hand and begins power walking them down the street. Given she's not sure how long the effects of her small use of divine power will last on the men in that room back there, she doesn't protest the fast pace. However… she does protest the rest of it.

  "I-I can't believe you bet me like that! What if you'd lost me! What if you'd lost everything?!"

  Oren doesn't pause as they turn a corner. Sophia thinks she might hear the sound of shouting coming from the tavern rapidly vanishing into the distance behind them and swallows thickly. For a moment, she thinks the Otherworlder isn't going to answer at all… but finally, he does.

  "The outcome was never in doubt. I knew I would win."

  Sophia blinks, caught off guard by the utter certainty in his voice.

  "W-What?"

  "They had a thing back in my world called 'card counting'. It was for a different game, but the principle is largely the same. What I can do goes a bit beyond 'card counting' though… or did you forget what I am?"

  She definitely hadn't forgotten THAT. Still, what did his status as an Otherworlder have to do with anything?

  "My eyes are sharp enough that I can pick up on the imperfections in each card. Basically, by that final hand I knew what every card in the deck looked like, front… and back. I knew his hand and I knew mine. That's how I knew I could win no matter what. I didn't risk you for even a moment… it was a sure thing."

  Sophia's mouth opens and closes wordlessly a couple times before the Minor Goddess finds her voice again. He could pick out the minute imperfections in the playing cards?! Just how good were his eyes?! Not even most gods and goddesses could do that, not unless keen eyesight was tied to their domains or something!

  But even still…

  "And if they'd pushed the issue even after they won? What if they'd attacked us? What then?!"

  Oren finally takes a moment to spare her a glance, having taken her through multiple back alleys and around half a dozen corners as he brought them further and further away from Gentleman Grays and his tavern.

  "… Then I would have killed every last one of them to protect you. But it didn't come to that. I guess they were smart enough to know better. Either that or shocked into a stupor long enough to let us walk away before they could recover."

  Sophia swallows hard, her mouth suddenly dry as she's reminded of just how dangerous a man her current 'protector' really is. She doesn't bother telling him that she'd used the dregs of her divine power to influence the encounter. Suddenly, it just doesn't seem that important.

  "Either way, we're not staying long enough for them to track us down. We'll get new clothes for you and supplies for the road and then we'll head out of town."

  Right. She had to keep her eye on the prize. They were one step closer to making it to the refuge now. One step closer to safety.

  A/N: Admittedly, I don't know as much as I should about high stakes card games like Blackjack or Poker. So I kept the card game vague and wrote it from Sophia's POV since she doesn't know either!

  Still, do they really think Gentleman Grays is done with them just yet? Hmmm...

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