The Archon...

"Zhou Yun." Cicero forced out a stiff smile and looked at Zhou Yun, who sat across from him.

Zhou Yun had just forcibly dragged him over to a booth beside the baths, then sat there smiling at him.

"How is your debt situation coming along?" Zhou Yun asked as if it were merely a casual question.

Cicero's expression stiffened further. Zhou Yun's tone made it sound as though the matter he had just mentioned had nothing to do with him.

When it was clearly Zhou Yun who had cheated with sorcery and caused Cicero to rack up such debts.

"I have a few friends. They helped me postpone the due date, so you needn't trouble yourself over it." Cicero took a deep breath before replying.

"Oh! Having lots of friends is nice—but it seems you've forgotten about me, your friend. How many times have I come here? Yet I never see you." Zhou Yun sounded mildly aggrieved.

Who the hell would dare see you? After that senator saw the ashes covering the floor, he had told Libo and Cicero to keep their distance from Zhou Yun.

These past few days, Cicero had even been afraid to use the toilet, terrified that it might suddenly collapse beneath him.

Cicero took several deep breaths in a row before barely suppressing the uncomfortable feelings in his heart.

"Haha, I'm not as well-off as you are now." Cicero waved a hand, trying to end the subject.

"And because of that, you've abandoned pleasure? Do you remember what I told you?"

Zhou Yun frowned and looked at Cicero with an almost reproachful gaze.

"Money lost in gambling does not disappear. It is merely being kept by someone else for the time being. Refusing to gamble is what truly means losing it."

"I don't have your gambling skills. I'll only end up owing more and more." Cicero ground his teeth and squeezed out the words through his throat.

"So what if you owe even more?"

"When you gamble, doesn't your heart pound wildly with excitement?"

"As long as you enjoy yourself, you've already won."

"My friend, I suggest you enjoy life while you can. After all, we might die tomorrow."

Listening to Zhou Yun, Cicero suddenly froze. For some reason, Zhou Yun's words felt strangely familiar... Were these not the exact words he had once used to persuade Zhou Yun to come gamble at the baths?

His body trembled slightly. He had indeed spoken those words from the bottom of his heart back then, but now that he was hearing them directed at himself, why did they feel so awkward? So hard to accept?

After falling into debt, it was not as though he had never considered indulging himself and gambling again. Yet whenever money left his hands, he would feel restless. Even the pleasure he had once gained seemed to have become somewhat hollow...

"It seems those debts have really put you through the wringer." Seeing that the time was right, Zhou Yun finally revealed his true purpose. "Want to make some money?"

"What do you mean?" Cicero's expression turned wary.

"I want the witch's ashes, or the ashes of the other sacrifices from that time. Can you get them?" Zhou Yun tapped the table before him, using the sound to plant a suggestion in Cicero's mind and guide him toward agreeing.

"Bastard, what the hell are you thinking?" Cicero could not help cursing aloud.

Did this sorcerer have some kind of bizarre fetish? Did he like collecting the ashes of people he had burned to death?

Zhou Yun was in no hurry. He merely smiled. Greyfax had once told him that the ashes left behind after the Astronomican burned psykers were excellent anti-Chaos materials.

The witch and the sacrifices had been reduced to ashes by a wisp of flame flowing down from the Golden Throne. In theory, their ashes should have similar effects. Zhou Yun wanted to get some.

"Five thousand Denar. One box will do." Zhou Yun gestured to indicate the amount he wanted.

"..." A conflicted look appeared on Cicero's face. Five thousand Denar would be a godsend to him right now.

Besides, Libo had not assigned anyone to guard that altar strictly. He had no intention of collecting or destroying the ashes either. In fact, the followers of the God of First Cry now treated the sacrificial site and the ashes upon it with wary avoidance.

If Cicero wanted to steal some ashes, it would not actually be difficult...

"I can get them for you, but you have to pay me first." Cicero nodded at Zhou Yun. "The day after tomorrow, when we go to apply for positions at Marcus Guilliman's home, I'll hand them to you myself."

"Fine." Zhou Yun waved a hand. "But wait for me a moment. I only have a little over a thousand Denar on me right now. I need to win five thousand Denar over there for you."

Cicero's mouth twitched at those words. This bastard truly treated the casino like an ATM. He watched Zhou Yun rise and head for the gambling table.

"High." Zhou Yun pushed more than a thousand chips onto the table.

Half an hour later, the chips piled beside Zhou Yun had risen to more than five thousand Denar.

After Zhou Yun's psychic abilities had improved, the effects of his Strange Luck psychic technique had improved as well. With his current luck, it was almost impossible for him to lose in this casino.

"Interesting, interesting." A voice suddenly sounded behind Zhou Yun.

Zhou Yun raised his head slightly.

He saw a handsome man standing behind him, his eyes gleaming as he watched Zhou Yun gamble.

For some reason, Zhou Yun found the man exceptionally familiar.

The man naturally exuded confidence and the aura of someone accustomed to authority. As he walked past Zhou Yun, the noisy crowd around them abruptly fell silent and made way for him.

"How amusing. I heard people upstairs saying there was someone here with remarkably good luck, someone who won every bet. I couldn't resist coming down to take a look."

The man smiled and signaled for the dealer to step aside before sitting across from Zhou Yun.

"You know, I have always been a rather lucky person myself. Fate always seems to stand by my side. I'm curious—if the two of us gamble once, who will emerge victorious?"

"How about a game? If you win, I'll give you... ah, would fifty thousand Denar be suitable?"

"If I win, you only need to give me one chip as a keepsake. How about it?"

As Zhou Yun studied the man's face and tried to recall where he had seen him before, he spread his hands. "How do you want to play?"

"I don't gamble often... How about a simple comparison of dice totals?" The man casually handed Zhou Yun three dice and a dice cup.

"Fine." Zhou Yun took the dice and cup and began shaking them.

"I'll reveal mine first." The man smiled confidently as he placed the cup upside down on the table and lifted it gently.

Three sixes.

The man gestured for Zhou Yun to reveal his.

Zhou Yun lifted his dice cup. He had three sixes as well.

"To think you're evenly matched with me! Your luck truly is excellent." The man laughed heartily.

There was no trace of psychic sorcery... Zhou Yun stared at the man. This man could actually rival his Strange Luck through pure fortune alone. Who exactly was he...?

"Lord Jarlan! Why have you come down here? Everyone is waiting for you." A gentle call rang out.

An elderly but still handsome man with long gray-white hair strode over. Beside him stood a swordsman whose face was covered in scars, his lowered eyes filled with ferocity.

As the gray-white-haired man approached, Zhou Yun caught a strong scent of perfume.

"Caepio, my friend, I encountered an opponent whose luck matches mine. I got carried away for a moment." The fortunate man rose and patted the gray-white-haired man on the shoulder several times.

Then he looked at Zhou Yun and said, "My friend, sorry, but I have something to attend to. Let's count that round as my loss. Go give my name—Archon Jarlan—and the counter here will give you fifty thousand Denar."

Zhou Yun nodded slightly and watched the man head toward the upper level of the baths.

Archon Jarlan... Zhou Yun quietly repeated the name in his heart.

One of the two faces on the Denar, the Archon who stood alongside Macragge and Conor...

And the man who would one day murder the foster father of the Primarch Roboute Guilliman.