As soon as the concert was over, Karina and May headed to the gaming room. But this time, they didn't play anything; instead, they observed the people there. May knew there were things you could only understand once you looked from a certain distance.

  "It's a lot fuller than yesterday. I guess it will be easier to blend in with the crowd."

  "Right. I hope we don't attract unnecessary attention..."

  "You worry too much, May. With the number of people here, it would be hard for anyone to focus on us."

  They watched from afar groups of people who enjoyed card games at the table. At the roulette, May noticed that the cheering hadn't stopped. But this time, she didn't see Victor among the crowd.

  "I know who you are trying to find..." Karina teased, and May scoffed in response. Karina could think whatever she wanted.

  "What do you want to investigate? Anything in mind?" May whispered to her friend, but Karina raised her shoulders. "Let's hang out around here, maybe try hearing some of the talking."

  They passed over various groups of people. Some were obviously tourists who wore aberrant clothes and funny hats. They seemed drunk, and one of them almost crashed into Karina. There were also groups of men wearing casual attire in pastel colors; they all seemed relaxed, and sometimes their laughter could be heard from across the room.

  But what caught the attention of Karina the most were the groups of women in shiny and revealing dresses. They were like exotic birds in the glimmering light of a thousand stones. They were all smiles, and they gravitated towards some of the people playing.

  "I would never imagine how many people come here to play, it's insane."

  "Right? And the politicians keep talking about a crisis. Where's this money coming from, May?"

  Out of nowhere, Karina felt someone pulling her shoulder. When she looked back, she saw a middle-aged woman with short and shiny yellow hair.

  "Hey, young lady, I hope you're not talking shit about the Preacher. That man is going to be the salvation of this city. Did you hear his speech at that famous podcast? You might be too young to understand, but do believe me, he is indeed what this city needs."

  "Oh, I'm s-sorry. I wasn't talking about any politicians in particular..."

  "Yeah, right. They say the younger generations don't like him. I tell you that, bullshit. His popularity is increasing day by day with teenagers and young adults."

  Karina and May listened to the woman rant; they answered once or twice with an "ah" or a "hum". And the woman was satisfied with that; she probably looked for someone to listen to her. As soon as she turned around and left. Karina stared at May wide-eyed.

  "They are everywhere, I can't believe it!"

  "She looked a little insane. We did our best not to engage in any discussion or conflict. Remember, K, we're here for the mission."

  "I know, but sometimes... ugh, I get so frustrated."

  "Just don't let it get to your head, ok?"

  The girls walked to a table that was surrounded by a group of people. They played a card game, but May couldn't identify what it was exactly. But apparently, one group was winning, as they cheered at every round. The people who played with them didn't seem too pleased about it, as their chips and coins rolled to the other side of the table.

  Karina tried to pay attention to their conversation and what they said.

  "...and this is how you play it. Got it? Good! I wouldn't bet against me if I were you, you know I'm on a roll." One of the men playing said.

  "I just hate when you get arrogant like this." A woman next to him answered. "You know I'm putting all my funds into it. I would like to say for you to go easy, but even I don't feel like it."

  The people around them laughed. But there was something strange about their laughing. It didn't feel natural; it felt forced. Karina observed further, and even though the woman had a smile on her face, in her eyes there were tears.

  May watched as they played round after round. The game was interesting, although she couldn't grasp the rules just by watching.

  "But if we lose, we'll need to recover. Recover it all. But how? I don't know, I don't know." Another man said as he wiped the sweat that formed on his forehead.

  "Hey, May. Do you understand anything that is happening? Have you ever seen this game before?"

  "I don't think so, K. It's new for me too. It doesn't seem hard, but I don't understand the rules completely yet." May looked puzzled.

  "Do you think... Ugh, never mind."

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  May decided to use a little magic, so she could see if anything would happen. Like the day before, the girl wanted to test if there was anything magical tied to the game. But this time, something strange happened. As soon as May started using her magical power, she saw in the corner of her eye the guards moving in their direction. Karina must have seen it too, because she pulled May closer to the table. They started laughing with the people who played the game, like they were entertained by it. She didn't dare to look behind her. Karina tried to listen and distinguish the different footsteps.

  The guards looked around the crowd and at the people at the table. They stood there for a moment. And soon, they departed just like they had come. May let her breath out in relief. Still, Karina and her stayed at the table, because they weren't sure whether the guards were watching or not.

  A woman touched May's arm and smiled coyly. It was almost like May was part of the game from the beginning. She wore a pearl necklace and a sleek green dress.

  "It's just a matter of knowing when to play the right cards. I'm Sylvie, by the way."

  "I'm May. It looks a little hard."

  "Oh, it's not, I swear. Is it your first time here?"

  "Yeah, is it too obvious?"

  Sylvie's smile got bigger. The woman was content and satisfied with the gaming and talking.

  "Just a little. I also found it hard when I started. But now... I would say I can't get enough of it."

  The Casino lights dazzled, and for a moment, everything seemed to move. The laughs blended with the sound of the machines and of the chips and coins. There was also screaming, but it was a scream of joy. At the table, the people kept playing, laughing, winning, and losing. Sylvie apparently was winning a lot, if May had understood it right.

  "See it? It's easy. There are no secrets about the game, you know? You play the cards, you put the money, you win. Do it again." She took a sip from a glass of champagne.

  "I think I'm starting to understand..."

  Karina pulled May's arm, making her friend turn to her side.

  "Hey, what are you doing, K?"

  "I'm the one to ask, May. Why are you about to play that game you don't even understand?"

  "I wasn't about to play it."

  "Yes, you were. Why would you have coins in your hands if not for playing with them?"

  May looked at her hands, and sure enough, she held some of the coins she had in her purse.

  "I-I don't remember for sure..."

  The girl was confused, and Karina frowned her face in worry.

  "I mean, I looked away for a minute, and suddenly you're fully immersed in the game."

  "I wasn't. I was just talking to..." And May looked back to Sylvie, but the woman was immersed in the game again. And now that May paid attention carefully, she noticed that Sylvie's eyes were a little too focused on the game. In a way that the girl didn't like.

  "We should be extra careful. There is something about it here that is affecting everyone." Karina got closer to May and whispered in her friend's ear. "And those guards... It can't be a coincidence. They are suspicious about something. And just as you were about to use magic!"

  "Do you think they can feel magic? I'm not so sure. If they are able to, why didn't they approach us yesterday?"

  "Maybe, and just maybe, they can feel it, but they can't be sure who's using it."

  "That makes sense, because then they would be right on our throats."

  May tried to be discreet while she looked over. For the first time, she took notice of how many guards the place had. And they were in various places, sometimes almost blended in with the crowd.

  "I must say, it would not be wise to fight here. Not with everyone watching."

  "It would ruin the mission completely. So what do we do?"

  "Let's keep our discretion, maybe pretend we're engaged in the game. We can't know for sure if they're watching. Because some of them might be looking in other directions, but the others might have an eye on us."

  Karina and May decided to bet on people and teams at the table. They didn't try to think too much about it, especially because they weren't betting a lot of money. It was more of something to distract the guards from them. They were both surprised when they noticed that they ended up winning some money from the movements they did.

  "That was easy, I liked it. Not a lot of pressure."

  ***

  The girls decided they would have a drink or two before ending the night. Even though they wanted to be careful, they also needed to blend in with everyone. Especially now that the guards were suspicious.

  "If and when the guards come after us. What will we do?" Karina sipped a little on her champagne.

  "I don't know for sure. I mean, imagine something like that: they are sure we're into some shit. Will they come trying to fight us or anything? In this case, we should fight back. If not, I guess it would be better to prioritize laying low."

  "Yeah, yeah. The mission always comes first, I know all that. One thing, call it hunter's instinct or whatever, but I'll tell you that: they'll come after us. If not tonight, soon."

  "As soon as we're back in our room, I'll try to look into the future again. Maybe if we know they're coming, we can act first."

  May drank a little from her glass of wine. It was strong, but she preferred it like that. She looked over her shoulder; the gaming room was full. People were enjoying themselves.

  "Hum, I know we should focus on the mission, May, but this champagne... You should taste it, it's really good." Karina said casually.

  "Hey, K, do you think they're watching us now?"

  "I don't know. Maybe they are, maybe not. If they're watching, I guess we're confusing them a lot."

  May saw a crowd that gathered in the entrance of the gaming room. She pointed it out to her friend.

  "Look over there. It seems that someone famous just arrived."

  "Oh. Who would be here at the Casino?"

  Karina got up and tried to look who had arrived; she was on her tiptoes.

  "I can't quite distinguish who he is, not with everybody in front of him."

  But then, the man's bodyguard got in front of the crowd and pushed the people to the sides. Instantly, May recognized the face she had seen on the TV and billboards a hundred times.

  "K, I can't believe it! It's the Preacher! What is he doing here?"

  "I don't know. Do you think we should investigate it?"

  "Ideally, yes. But I guess it would put the spotlight on us. Let's just watch it from here."

  And the girls watched as the man crossed the room before he turned back to where he came.