Chapter 91 - Loose Mouths

Hecathe didn't waste any further time as he got out of the house and asked people for directions to the gambling den. 

Just as the name suggested, it was a place where people would usually group together to gamble with their money, betting on their luck without knowing that it wasn't about luck at all. 

When Hecathe reached the place, his face immediately cringed up in dislike as he looked at the group of people huddled together to watch the current gamble. 

Hecathe tried to find the boy that he was looking for and it was only now that he had realized that he had forgotten to ask the old lady for his name. Even the photo he had seen was old and he felt that he would probably not be able to find that boy with just that one childhood picture of him. 

Hecathe sighed as he pushed through the crowd and his eyes glanced at the face of every person present there as he tried to see if there was someone even remotely looking like that kid from the photo. 

"Awesome! One more!" A man exclaimed and managed to catch Hecathe's attention with his loud voice. 

Surprisingly enough, Hecathe seemed to have really found the guy he was looking for. 

There were only three players left competing and he was one of them, having the highest bet on the table. 

Although the child from the photo had grown up to become a full-on adult, his face had certainly changed but at the same time, it was still recognizable, making Hecathe recognize the man immediately. 

Hecathe folded his hand as he watched the game patiently and tried to understand what they were playing. 

The other two players who were playing against this man looked to be much older than him and his enthusiasm and confidence had certainly managed to make them frown, however, Hecathe could feel that although they were a bit intimidated they weren't going to let this young man win against them today. 

They were planning on cheating and Hecathe could see it on their faces. It was a type of confidence that came with worry and fear. 

The young man looked to be completely unaware of the trap that had been set up for him and as he saw that he was winning, he started placing more money on the table, almost making Hecathe want to face-palm himself as he saw this foolish gambling addict who wasn't even good at the game. 

"Old man, you better get ready to sell your house. I'm not going to let you leave unless you pay me," The young man confidently spoke with a chuckle as he mocked the other player who sat in front of him. 

"How can you be sure that you'll win?" The old man clicked his tongue as he placed a card down and spoke, "The game is unpredictable and the mistress of luck is ever-changing. You'll never know who wins until the very last card is placed." 

Hecathe sighed as he heard this and this statement from this old man had made it more clear for him that the man was planning to cheat. He clearly had something up his sleeves because if he didn't then he would have never said such a thing with so much confidence. 

The young man looked to be completely oblivious as he heard the old man and laughed, almost looking as if he was mocking the man. 

"Old man, I hope you don't go back crying to your daughter!~ Hahaha...!" The young man exclaimed, teasing the other, and Hecathe couldn't help but feel pity for this oblivious fool. 

The young man placed his card down and once again seemed to have the upper hand and he laughed happily as if this game had made the man lose his sanity today. 

"The last hand," The Old man smirked as he stated, "It all depends on this." 

The young man nodded his head happily as he took out a ring from his finger and placed it down on the table, "I'm going all out!" 

The Old Man laughed as he heard this and looked down at the ring, "That looks important, are sure your wife won't mind you gambling off your wedding ring?" 

The Young Man laughed as he heard this and informed clearly, "I'm not married yet so which non-existent wife are you talking about?" 

The third guy who was competing looked to be a little surprised as he looked at the ring and asked, "But it looks like a wedding ring. Did you steal it or something?" 

The Young man shook his head as he replied casually with a chuckle, "It's my grandfather's wedding ring. The Old man is already dead and The Old Hag is also getting ready to go to him. Why would they need these anymore? It's better off with me." 

The two other players looked to be a little shocked as they heard this but in the end, instead of saying anything, they simply laughed it off as one of the usual jokes. 

However, Hecathe clearly didn't find this funny at all and there was an apparent frown on his face as his eyes narrowed down on the ring. 

It looked to be expensive and there was no doubt that the old couple had certainly saved up a fortune to pay for it and here their adopted son was carelessly gambling it off at such a place. 

Hecathe wasn't really here to pick a fight with this man. He was here to ask a few questions and nothing more. 

He needed to give some data to Kelly in order to prove that he had actually tried to find the one who spread the rumor. 

But at this moment, Hecathe couldn't help but feel the need to punch this young man who clearly deserved a good punch right now.

"You're ambitious and impulsive. You're going to make it big someday!" One of the guys complimented the young man who looked to have believed these empty words. 

"Of course, I will!" The young man exclaimed proudly as he clicked his tongue, "I'll be rich enough to make the three willows of spring lick my boot! Even the great Alphius would be my bellboy, running at my beck and call!" 

Hecathe couldn't help but cough as he held back his instinct to laugh at such a ridiculous statement. 

This young man wasn't ambitious and impulsive. He was nothing more than a fool who didn't have control over his own mouth and this was surely going to get him into trouble sooner than he would expect. 

"Tch- Why are you bringing up that bastard?!" One of the old men frowned as he clearly showed both his dislike and disgust, "He's not even worthy of being a bellboy! Having him clean my shoes would be too good of a job for him." 

"You're right!" The young man laughed as he agreed, "He's not even deserving of being a servant. Rodents like him should be exterminated from birth. His mother must surely be disappointed." 

Hecathe sighed as he heard this. They were all clearly badmouthing Alphius but since he was the one currently inside Alphius's body, all of these insults were indirectly aimed at him which really made him want to laugh and teach them why they should learn to control their mouths. 

It seemed that Hecathe was a little misinformed about this city. Back in the underground city, the boy had told him that his name wasn't famous in Ocasia since he had never personally come here, however, it seemed that not only was he well known but he was also well hated by everyone. 

Even Zail had clearly shown his dislike towards Alphius when the topic was brought up and with these guys trash-talking Alphius, Heathe could be sure that the boy was not well-informed, and if that wasn't the case then he was probably too embarrassed and afraid to tell Hecathe all this in fear that it might anger him. 

"You're talking about his mother's disappointment?" The Old man scoffed as he commented, "Just imagine how much his Father must have regretted it." 

The young man laughed as he eagerly nodded his head and responded, "That's right! That's right! He regretted it so much that he thought being eaten by a Dorgon was better than watching his disgrace of a son! That disgusting half-mutant bastard should have also followed his father to the afterlife!" 

"He doesn't even dare show his face around here because he's a coward who knows we can beat him into a pulp!" 

As the conversation went on, it seemed that the people got more and more excited. Bad-mouthing a certain person and trash-talking seemed to be a hobby for them and Hecathe could confidently say that such a hobby was thoroughly disgusting for him. 

"If it weren't for his mecha-suits protecting that little brat, he would have long been beaten to death!" 

"Killing his father was the last straw for him. I was a fan of him when he started showing his talent, but I realized that he's nothing special." 

"You can find a lot of rodents like him." 

Hecathe chuckled out loud and slapped his hand on the table as he interrupted the lovely conversation.