A bitter victory.

This is my own painting- The Winner. I created it in 2024. It was inspired by one Holozing creature and main character from anime One Outs.

“How much are you betting?” asked the blackjack Dealer.

“Everything I have. The whole hundred thousand Hive,” answered Felix.

After he spoke, the whole crowd went silent. This man sounded like a crazy, completely possessed by gambling idiot. Like many others who lost all they had and left the casino with empty pockets. But there was a difference. All those people before him were just pitiful losers who simply wasted their last pennies in the hope of getting rich. But Felix was already an insanely rich person. For him to make such a bet made no sense at all. And yet he did it. And was damn smug and confident while doing it. He did not look crazy or afraid while risking that mountain of money. No.. For a more observant person, Felix would have looked even too calm. If anything, the card Dealer was the one who was nervous in this bizarre situation.

“Are you sure, sir? Perhaps you should clear your head before making such a bet...”

“Don't worry about it. It is not like I am betting my life. Money is just paper in the end,” responded Felix. “As I said, I am going all in.”

“So be it...” gave in the card Dealer. After that, he dealt the first card to Felix. It was a six. After that the Dealer got an open card. It was an eight. Then the gambler received his second card- a king. The Dealer placed another face-down card for himself and announced:

“Sixteen against eight.”

Felix slowly placed his hand in a pocket, took out a cigar and placed it in his mouth. After that, the gambler lit the cigar up. For a while, he stared at some spot on the wall while smoking. It seemed that he did not even hear the crowd shouting in the background. A good few minutes passed. Finally, Felix returned from his thoughts.

“I hit.” He said. His voice did not reveal either fear or excitement.

The crowd leaned closer and wanted to see the outcome of this crazy gamble. The card dealer's hand was trembling from nervousness. After that he spoke and, his voice was trembling even more.

“The player has...twenty-two. The player has gone bust.”

The crowd went nuts. Everyone was very disappointed by this result. Some people were cursing others, shaking their heads in disbelief. But Felix's reaction was so unexpected that the entire crowd became silent once again. The gambler was...satisfied after losing all his money?! He jumped from his seat and started laughing and clapping.

“Sir, you went bust. You lost. You understand that, right?” asked the blackjack dealer, who could not make sense of this situation.

“I know, I know.” Felix finally regained his composure and was smoking his cigar once again.

“In that case, could you please explain why you are so happy?” inquired the Dealer.

“It is no secret, and the story is quite simple,” Felix answered while raising a glass. ”You see, I have been married for fifteen years. Now my wife wants a divorce. She claims that the reason is that I am rarely at home and gamble too much. She is probably right...anyway, after a few hours, her representatives will come to collect half my wealth...And now my total wealth is zero...”

“I see. I suppose that makes a bit of sense why you are not sad after losing your bet.” The dealer.

“Even before we sat for a gamble, I knew that I would win either way. If I had won the gamble, I would have doubled my wealth, and even after giving my wife half, I would still have the same amount I have now. I lost, so I no longer have to give away half of my wealth. A bitter victory is still a victory.” Felix completed his explanation and put his glass on the table.

“A twisted logic, but I suppose it is still logic...” The card Dealer seemed a bit relieved.