Due to the "shared suffering" nature (which essentially boils down to "every man for himself") of the Relations Team, my entire staff flees straight to the Mundane Realm to enjoy their paid leave. As a result, Nanao—the only one who stays behind because I threatened him—automatically receives a special pass to the Final Round without breaking a sweat. The calico cat sits perched on his chair, licking his paw with a look of resigned triumph.

  In stark contrast to the emptiness on our side, the Security Team's area has turned into a miniature Roman Colosseum.

  Under the strict supervision of "Referee" Zhen Shan, the security staff organizes a knockout tournament with a fighting spirit no different from when they hunt Anomalies. The sounds of slamming tables, the growls of beast-deities, and curses in various ancient languages ring out ceaselessly.

  I prop my chin on my hand, my fox eyes narrowing as I observe the most dramatic semi-final match currently taking place.

  Only four players remain at the table, but the spotlight focuses entirely on the duo making waves: Xiaolang and Chen Jun.

  You already know Xiaolang, an enthusiastic werewolf lad with ash-grey fur that stands on end whenever he gets excited. As for Chen Jun, he is an interesting case. He is one of the few deities with a human form in the Security Team. He has a tall, toned physique, and his long black hair is tied neatly in a ponytail. He wears a stylized tactical outfit, a blend of Eastern tomb guardian armor and a modern bulletproof vest, capturing the perfect "Royal Guard" style. Chen Jun is famous for being quiet and reserved, but extremely decisive when he acts.

  "These two are playing 'pack' tactics," I mutter under my breath.

  Just as I predicted, Xiaolang and Chen Jun are secretly allied.

  When it is Xiaolang's turn, the wolf boy bares his fangs in a grin and throws down Two Pairs.

  "Activate effect: Attack! I don't draw, and the next person must draw twice!"

  The next victim, a massive bear god, winces. He has no cards to block (Shield), so he tremblingly reaches into the Draw Pile.

  First card: Safe. He sighs, wiping sweat from his forehead.

  Second card: PANDORA.

  BOOM!

  An illusory explosion booms, and the bear is eliminated from the game amidst the raucous laughter of the crowd.

  It is Chen Jun's turn. He coldly pulls out Three of a Kind.

  "Effect: Oracle,"

  He says briefly. His eyes glow as he scans through the top five cards of the deck. Then, he glances at the fourth player, a leopard goddess, and plays a Pair.

  "Skip."

  This action forces the turn onto the leopard goddess. And naturally, the card sitting right on top, which Chen Jun just saw, is a ticking time bomb. The leopard goddess tearfully draws the card and bursts into confetti.

  The table is cleared. Only Xiaolang and Chen Jun remain. The alliance breaks; now it is time for brotherhood to turn into fratricide.

  The atmosphere becomes tense. The Draw Pile is now razor-thin, and the probability of drawing a Pandora card is extremely high. Neither of them has a "Guardian Spirit" (Joker) left in their hand to save their lives.

  Xiaolang looks at the cards in his paw, his wolf ears drooping in worry. The boy turns to look at his teammate.

  "Brother Jun..."

  Chen Jun looks at Xiaolang, then down at his own hand. I can faintly see a Straight in his hand. If he plays it, he triggers the Shuffle effect, reshuffling the entire destiny of the deck and gaining a higher chance of survival.

  But Chen Jun does not do that.

  He sighs, a faint smile passing over his handsome but perpetually serious face. He places his cards face down on the table.

  "I'll go ahead, Xiaolang," Chen Jun says, his voice deep and full of resolve. "Bring glory to the Security Team."

  After saying that, without a second of hesitation, he reaches out and draws a card from the pile.

  He flips the card. PANDORA.

  BOOM!

  Chen Jun is eliminated. Xiaolang becomes the champion of the Security Team's qualifier, his eyes welling up with emotion at the noble sacrifice of his senior. The entire room (except me) applauds thunderously.

  "Wow," I smack my lips, dabbing the corner of my (dry) eye with a handkerchief.

  "So touching. Camaraderie is truly sacred. He would rather commit suicide than lay a hand on his junior. A true man."

  "Cut the act, boss," Nanao whispers from beside me, his whiskers twitching in disdain. "Chen Jun does that because he knows if he wins this round, he has to enter the finals and face you directly."

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  I freeze. "Huh? What do you mean?"

  "He says he would rather draw a bomb and die than sit at a card table with you. He is afraid you will scam him out of his armor without him even noticing," Nanao replies flatly.

  I look toward Chen Jun, who just steps out of the play area with a look of relief on his face, as if he just escaped a tribulation. He catches my eye, gives a slight nod, and quickly disappears into the crowd.

  Wonderful. It seems my reputation as the "Scamming Card God" reaches further than I imagine.

  I tear my eyes away from the tear-jerking fratricidal drama over at the Security Team and glance toward the Analysis & Strategy Team's competition area.

  In stark contrast to the chaotic marketplace over there, the atmosphere here is tense and unnervingly silent. There is no shouting, no table slamming, only the faint click-clack of fingers tapping on stone tables and the hum of processors whirring inside these gods' brains. This is a battlefield for data addicts. Most of Alethea's employees are humanoid gods wearing thick glasses, their foreheads beading with sweat as they constantly mutter about statistical probability and game theory.

  I narrow my eyes, focusing on the final table. A fairy with an ethereal appearance, dressed in a pale blue stylized Hanfu, observes her opponent calmly. That is Xuan Ji, the Vice-Captain of the Analysis Team, and also Alethea’s close confidante. Don't let that transcendent look fool you; this woman has a brain colder than permafrost.

  "Xuan Ji is calculating something," I mutter, my tail wagging slightly. "A risky move."

  In her hand, Xuan Ji holds four cards of the same suit (a chance for a Flush) and a pair of 8s. Her opponent, a Math God, controls the flow of the game. Xuan Ji needs a specific card to turn the tables.

  And just as my intuition predicts, she makes her move.

  Xuan Ji draws a card from the pile. It is not the one she needs. But she doesn't flinch; she immediately plays the set of five suited cards.

  "Flush – Steal."

  She points at the Math God. "I take the second card from the left in your hand."

  The god turns pale and reluctantly hands the card over. It is an 8 of Spades.

  Xuan Ji smiles, a smile as sharp as a scalpel. She combines the stolen 8 with her existing pair of 8s to form Three of a Kind. But instead of using it for Oracle like the normal rules, she combines it with another odd card to form a hidden Two Pairs (thanks to the clever steal).

  "Attack," she says softly. "I don't draw. You draw two cards."

  The Math God, who just lost his guardian card, reaches out with a trembling hand.

  First card: Safe.

  Second card...

  BOOM!

  The Pandora card explodes. The Math God slumps over the table (metaphorically), eliminated in bitterness.

  "Tsk," I shudder. "This girl is going to be extremely tough. She plays cards like she performs brain surgery."

  And so, after the bloody (and sweaty) qualifiers, we find three champions representing three teams to enter the Death Finals with the Board of Directors.

  

  
1. Cat God Nanao: Representing the Diplomacy Team (thanks to a pity pass).


  
2. Wolf God Xiaolang: Representing the Security Team (thanks to his teammate's sacrifice).


  
3. Fairy Xuan Ji: Representing the Analysis Team (thanks to supreme calculation skills).


  

  The three of them approach the round marble table in the center of Room 1031, where Zhen Shan, Alethea, and I are waiting. Six spots, six styles, a hotpot of chaos.

  I stand up and clap to attract attention (actually to show off my newly groomed fur).

  "Congratulations to the survivors! However..."

  I grin, a smile Nanao later describes as 'punchable'.

  "To make the final worthy of the massive prize pool we put up, we do not play by normal rules."

  I raise a finger.

  "We apply the rules of PANDORA POKER: CHAOS EDITION."

  Xuan Ji puts a hand to her forehead and massages her temples.

  "Good heavens... Why this demonic rule set? I knew that fox wouldn't let things go smoothly."

  Zhen Shan sighs, but his hands already shuffle the cards with professional skill (I suspect he practices this while waiting for anomalies to appear).

  "The new rules are as follows, listen carefully," I declare loudly.

  "First: The Full House combination. It is no longer a boring passive shield. Its function is now Counterspell. Anytime, even when it is not your turn, if someone uses a skill (Attack, Steal, Oracle...), you can throw a Full House to render that skill meaningless. It cuts off the opponent's combo instantly!"

  The crowd gasps. The right to interfere with turns? That is too overpowered.

  "Second: Three of a Kind. It's not just peeking at 5 cards anymore. It is now Super Oracle. You get to see the top 5 cards of the deck AND you are allowed to pick 1 card you want, then shuffle the remaining 4 back into the deck."

  Xuan Ji’s eyes light up. This is heaven for calculators.

  "Third: Flush. It doesn't just steal from the living anymore; it can dig up the dead. You are allowed to draw a random card played from the Graveyard (Discard Pile) to reuse. Recycling saves the planet, you know.."

  "Fourth: Four of a Kind. When used to Revive an eliminated player, the reviver must shuffle the entire Draw Pile. This wipes out all memories of card positions."

  "And finally," I lower my voice, flashing a devilish smile. "Special Mechanism for Four of a Kind. If you don't want to revive anyone, you can use Four of a Kind as a Spatial Shift attack. The player has the right to designate a random player and force them to swap seats to the spot right next to you (or any desired position) to become the next victim receiving an attack."

  "In other words," I conclude, looking around at the pale faces (except for the stone-faced Zhen Shan), "with Four of a Kind, we can drag an enemy hiding in a safe corner out to be a meat shield for us."

  The space falls silent as a grave. This rule set... it turns the card table into a real battlefield, where allies become enemies, and the dead can rise from the grave to ruin the fun at any moment.

  "Now," I sit down and smooth my suit. "Deal the cards, Boss Tiger. I can't wait to empty everyone's pockets."