?Chapter 1299:


    Lady Luck, it seemed, had turned her back on Corrine for the moment. She lost again.


    Resting her chin on her hand, she let out a soft sigh, her expression a mix of feigned concern and graceful resignation. It was as if she was unaffected by the loss, yet a subtle vulnerability added to her charm.


    Jonathan leaned back in his chair, his victory mounting as he surveyed the growing pile of chips before him. A triumphant smile yed on his lips. “It seems, Nate, that the northern docks will soon be mine.”


    “Is that so?” Corrine interrupted before Nate could speak. “I might win them back in the next round.”


    The dealer’s eyes shed with derision at her words.


    In the world of casinos, gamblers were like moths to a me, always clinging to the hope of aeback, never recognizing when to walk away. Corrine, like so many before her, seemed destined to fall deeper into the trap of false hope.


    The third round began, and this time, Corrine wore an expression of calm determination, watching the dealer’s every movement with a hint of amusement in her eyes.


    After a moment, she pushed all her chips forward. “All in,” she dered.


    Jonathan raised an eyebrow, his gaze sharp as ever. “Call.”


    At this point, the pot had grown to a staggering 200 million, and the stakes could not have been higher.


    If Jonathan won, not only would he take the chips, but the northern docks would be his as well.


    Jonathan revealed his cards first, his grin spreading wider. “Twenty points again.”


    The air was thick with certainty. Victory, it seemed, was his.


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    “Is that so?” Corrine respondedzily, resting her chin on her hand as she turned over her own cards, one by one. “Too bad you are one point short.”


    Her hand—twenty-one points.


    One point higher than Jonathan’s.


    Jonathan’s eyes widened, disbelief shing across his face.


    In ckjack, a perfect twenty was rare, but twenty-one? A ckjack was nearly a myth.


    And yet, Corrine had just dealt him the blow of a lifetime.


    He quickly regained hisposure, lifting his chin with an arrogant sneer. “You got lucky this time.”


    Corrine’s smile was cool, her gaze unwavering. “Not just luck,” she said, crossing her legs and reclining with the ease of someone who had nothing to prove. “I must thank this charming dealer for his… assistance in tampering with the cards. Otherwise, I’d never have won.”


    The dealer’s face drained of color, his eyes wide with fear.


    Throughout the game, the young dealer had been covertly manipting the cards, trying to ensure Jonathan’s victory.


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