Cyberpunk: 2075.

Chapter 767, Chapter 181: A High-Stakes Gamble
"Someone has bet on the number 400,000!"

"There are still 500,000 reds!"

Carl's extravagant bet attracted the attention of those around him; for gamblers who frequent gambling dens, excitement is always the most appealing thing.

The gamblers around stopped what they were doing and craned their necks to look in their direction. Several well-dressed guests even put down their wine glasses and came over with great interest to observe this high-stakes gamble.

The mechanical dealer's electronic eyes flashed an unusual red light, as if it were also calculating the anomaly of this betting game. The Ghost Hound's security personnel unconsciously took a step forward, their fingers already on the safety of their guns.

The casino's security personnel maintained professional restraint; they were not about to take action against any guests, but rather it was a conditioned reflex honed through long-term training that put them in a state of high alert.

With bets of this size, any possible unforeseen circumstances need to be prepared in advance—guests who win huge sums of chips may become targets for some, while gamblers who lose everything are more likely to resort to extreme behavior.

The casino manager in the monitoring room narrowed his eyes, tapped his fingers lightly on the control panel, and silently mobilized more armed personnel to stand by.

In this city where money reigns supreme, wealth can indeed buy the most intense sensory stimulation, but it can never buy calm judgment. At this moment, the atmosphere around that roulette table is a typical example of irrational frenzy.

Under the real-time monitoring of the Ghosthound technicians, the mechanical security system completed a comprehensive self-inspection, confirming that the gambling table equipment and dealer procedures were not interfered with by any external forces.

As the Gemstone Blue Tower is controlled by Hansen, the casino here has a reputation that far surpasses those low-class underground gambling dens on the street. This is not only reflected in the luxurious decoration, but also in the absolute transparency of its operation - the casino does not bother to tamper with the equipment.

From a probabilistic perspective, as long as the betting continues, the house will always be the ultimate winner; the only difference lies in the length of the profit cycle.

Ruin Hansen’s shortsightedness in ruining a reputation built up over many years for the sake of a single gambler’s unexpected win is not his style.

Moreover, for Hansen, who controls Dogtown, casino revenue is merely icing on the cake.

Compared to his vast arms trading network and actual control over the entire city, even the chips won by the most audacious gambler are but a drop in the ocean compared to the transaction volume of the global arms black market.

The casinos exist more to maintain the facade of prosperity in Dogtown than to be a true economic pillar.

Even so, a bet that could win a hovercar in one go would still attract some attention. Hansen had already turned his gaze over from his seat, especially when he noticed the guests at the table, the hacker twins who had made an appointment to complete a deal with him later.

That seems interesting.

Hansen gestured to his men to look at the gambling table before looking away.

It wasn't that he didn't care about the situation there, but rather that the guests in front of him were far more important to him than the gambling game itself.

As long as this deal goes through, even amidst the impending storm, he can secure a place in Night City's future power structure—especially at this critical juncture when the peace talks between Arasaka and New America are about to completely reshape the city's landscape.

The reason is simple: sitting across from him is one of the most powerful figures in the city's official circles, NCPD Director Johnson.

More accurately, they are the nominal power holders of the NCPD and its subordinate Terrorist Mobile Unit. In the upcoming political reshuffle, such an ally is more valuable than any gamble.

"I would like to continue discussing with you the possibility of a cooperative policing agreement between the Taiping State Ghost Dogs and the NCPD."

As Hansen spoke, the rolling disc on the distant gambling table began to roll.

Under the control of the mechanical dealer, this game of luck has reached its final act.

The moment the roulette wheel began to spin, the air in the entire casino seemed to freeze. The silver ball traced a breathtaking arc along the track, and everyone's eyes were fixed on that single point of metallic reflection—except for Karl.

He maintained his nonchalant demeanor and even took another sip of water.

The ball bounces and rolls on the roulette wheel, its speed gradually decreasing as it bounces back and forth between the numbered squares.

It swept past the black 26, grazed the red 32, and finally came to a trembling stop—

The red number 1 is on top.

The entire gambling table erupted in cheers, with gamblers around exclaiming in disbelief, some even knocking over their glasses in excitement.

The mechanical dealer's processor paused for a moment, then completed its self-check again, which still showed no problems.

“Congratulations,” the mechanical dealer announced. “You have won €14 million in numbers betting and €500,000 in colors betting. Total: €14.5 million.”

In that instant, countless chips, densely packed together in the virtual display, almost formed a chain and headed towards Carl's chip device, where the numbers were jumping wildly.

€10 – €110 – €1560!

In just three games, Karl turned his initial 400,000 euros into 15.6 million euros!

It increased by a full 39 times!
"verdomme (damn it)!"

Aurora looked at the empty gambling money she and her brother Emeric had won that night, and couldn't help but get excited.

Even if the money isn't much to them, losing all their winnings from tonight in one go is still unpleasant.

And just when everyone's attention was focused on Karl, and even the people behind the surveillance cameras were closely watching him, V made a move.

He seized the moment when Aurora and Emeric were both agitated from their big loss, quickly flicked the tracker into the conductive gel, and then made his move.

The tracker traced a perfect parabola in the air, landing precisely on the defect left by Aurora's genetic surgery. The nanoscale adhesion system immediately activated, and the tracker's surface instantly adhered, simulating the color of flesh.

The other tracker cleverly bypassed Aurora and landed next to the slot in Emeric's neural interface protection that was left for hard drive connection.

The encrypted confirmation signal sent by Li De flashed instantly on V's retina.

The chaos in the casino provided perfect cover—Aurora was angrily slamming her empty glass onto the table, while Emeric stared intently at the mountain of virtual chips piled up in front of Carl, constantly calculating probabilities with disbelief written all over his face.

"You did a great job, but it seems a bit too noisy over there at the gambling table. What did you do?"

Li De, who was keeping watch from a distance as backup, was unaware of what was happening on V's side, and V simply gave him a brief answer.

"We won a big one."

As for who won...
'I need to tell Johnny and the others this later, tell them Carl's struck it rich, and they've got someone to treat them to drinks next.'

(End of this chapter)