Chapter Text
Paperwork was never Chance's favorite.
Even after he got his casino as a gift from his parents, he always tried to avoid it. His usual way of doing that was walking around the place aimlessly until they found an interesting game to play. Most of the time, he would be found sneaking around the bar and the slot machines, but you could also find him next to the card games.
Much to their dismay, he would've been dragged back to work by his parents, but they would sometimes help him with harder paperwork, which usually was about the debtors to the casino.
You would think that after escaping that hellhole he would've had an easier time with these things.
Chance was now sitting at his desk in their office, trying to figure out how he should get back the money people owed the casino, which was stacked way higher than it was in the meantime he was gone.
The room was a mess, with countless papers scattered around the desk and next to it, containing names, personal info, and the amounts of money that people owed them. Three mugs of coffee were standing on a shelf nearby, the only thing helping them from falling asleep. A small desk lamp lit up the room; barely visible moonlight shone through the window.
Chance scanned over the papers for the last time for the night, deciding it's not worth pulling an all-nighter once again over the same thing. With a sigh, they stood up from their seat, grabbing his fedora and coat from the hanger on their way out. He went to the casino's bar, planning to grab some drinks before clocking out for the night.
They sat down at the counter, one of his employees already there. "The usual boss?" They asked, and Chance looked briefly at the nametag saying their name, Clint. He nodded quickly, the bartender walking away to pour them some wine. They started to aimlessly look around the room, watching how some gamblers were lamenting over their losses that day, trying to wash away all their self-pity with massive amounts of alcohol.
They reminded him of their past. How they used to do the same thing after a big loss, how their concerned workers had to help him get back home, and how they tried their best to not worry their boss' parents from just looking at their blacked-out drunk kid.
The employee called their attention back to them, serving him his drink before leaving to attend to more customers. Chance looked back at the crowd, noticing an all too familiar face entering the place.
The man wore a black fedora with long, black rabbit ears sticking out of it. Even though the fedora cast a shadow over his eyes, they still recognized the scar on his face, stretching from his right cheek to under his left eye. He had his usual black suit on; a large, black coat with thick white fur on his shoulders.
It was Mafioso.
After escaping the Spectre's realm, all survivors and killers made it back to Robloxia. Even the people who were once dead now had a second chance at life, such as 007n7, Chance, and Guest 1137. The killers also have been set free; banished ones like 1x4 have also got the chance to walk freely after the Admins decided on a truce between them and their once killers, with Chance helping to get them out of Banlandas by temporarily giving them the key and immediately getting it back afterwards.
The survivors kept contact with each other pretty well; their trauma helped them build an unlikely friend group, but even if some still held grudges from before being forsaken, they managed to make a truce to at least try and be civil. (007n7 was still blacklisted from the pizza place Elliot worked at, but he could get in only if their group decided to hang out there as a compromise.)
The killers and survivors also kept in contact, but it wasn't exactly great. Shedletsky has been trying to fix his relationship with 1x4, since they're his creation, but they didn't want to hear the others excuses. They couldn't easily forget the others betrayal.
007n7 went back home with C00lkidd, Bluudud, and Pr3ttypriincess, since the other two didn't have a place to stay anymore. He and Noli have been trying to rebuild their old status as partners, and even if it wasn't working out perfectly, at least 7n7 didn't need to raise three kids alone.
Chance and Mafioso weren't really keeping in contact. While being stuck in the Spectre's realm, they both learned what their occupations in the real world were. After their escape, Mafioso offered them an opportunity to help with debtors to their casino, but Chance refused it, confident that he could manage it alone.
Nowadays Chance had some problems with his debtors, most of them trying to avoid paying them at any cost. It was starting to become a bigger issue, but they didn't want to ask Mafioso or anyone else for help anytime soon.
Which is why he was pretty surprised about the man suddenly appearing in their casino.
However, the closer the other man got to him, the more he noticed that he wasn't alone. Next to him were three people, two of whom they already recognized as members of his gang.
One wore a black ushanka hat, with a long scar stretching across his face, while the other had a white top hat with a black ribbon. Both had matching black suits and a serious look on their faces, but they never dared to walk in front of Mafioso and the other person.
All three men walked slightly behind a woman with long, well-kept blue hair, who wore a blue dress with a white apron and a crown on top of her head. Her skin was gray and metallic; a kind smile stayed on her face.
The four approached Chance sitting at the bar. He had barely even drunk their wine before they stood up, placing money on the counter next to their glass, before walking over to the small group, meeting them halfway.
"Welcome to the Golden Ace Casino. Is there anything you're looking for this fine night?" The gambler asked, scanning their faces as he greeted the four.
"Thank you for the welcome, Chance, right?" The woman said, looking directly at them, catching them off guard before they quickly fixed their poker face.
"Depends on who's asking and why they're looking." They shot back, their smirk not falling at any point, although they were curious why she was asking.
"Don't get too cocky when talking to Princess Eunoia, gambler." The mafioso threatened, but the blue-haired woman cut him off by raising her hand before he could add anything else.
"Mafioso, don't worry, I can handle it." The girl—who Chance now learned was named Eunoia—calmed him down and looked back at them. "We're looking to propose a deal that could benefit both you and our own group. Are you willing to hear it?"
"What are you offering exactly?" He answered after a short pause, already skeptical about the whole thing. What could they need from him? Maybe they've figured out that they have the Banlands key? But what could they need it for?
"Now, I don't think the middle of the establishment is a good place to talk business. Do you perhaps have a more secluded place?" She asked, looking around slightly. Chance did the same thing, noticing multiple faces watching them, some who looked stressed, others curious. Maybe the group's reputation was more known than he originally thought.
"Would you like to do that in my office? It's kind of a mess, but no one should hear us there." They proposed, observing as Eunoia tilted her head back to look at Mafioso, who after a moment gave her a short nod, and the other two men behind them as well.
With that, Chance started leading the way to their office, noting that, even though he could barely see the taller man's eyes, he still saw that he was on high alert, his sword slightly hidden out of view, ready to attack if they try to do anything, ears perked up, listening for any people following.
As soon as the group reached their office doors, Mafioso signalled something to the shorter mafia members, and they nodded quickly, standing in place on both sides of the door.
Chance opened the door, letting Eunoia go through first, stepping in themself after Mafioso followed her inside. The two noticed the large amount of papers that have littered the floors, reading some of the info on them, but they mostly focused on the amounts of debt that have been written in big red letters. Mafioso judged the other man's ways of organizing things, if he could even call it that, in his mind, but he chose not to speak up.
Chance moved a spare chair from the wall, placing it next to the pair before sitting in their own seat across from them. Mafioso helped the princess to the seat before sitting down himself.
"So, going back to the previous conversation, what exactly are you offering?" Chance spoke first, repeating his earlier question. Mafioso reached into his massive coat, pulling out a stack of papers as Eunoia started to answer.
"Well, as far as we have seen, especially looking at the papers here, you have some problems with getting people to pay you their casino debts; is that correct?" She questioned them, gesturing over to the closest papers on the desk.
"I don't know what you're talking about. I'm doing just fine on my own in my opinion!" They retorted, refusing to accept any kind of criticism. "Just because I prefer to do it mostly without much violence doesn't mean I can't do it alone! Besides, what's it to you lot anyway?"
"We think that both you and us could use each other's help, since we have similar issues as of late." The taller man answered, placing the papers he took out in front of Chance, giving them a moment to look them over. He saw multiple names that they recognized from their own debtors, some of them even owing the mafia more than him. "Since we both have similar targets and goals, we would like to propose a deal."
Chance, who was still reading the documents, looked up at the pair with a smirk. "You have convinced me to listen. What do you mean by that exactly?"
"Some of your debtors have borrowed massive amounts of money from us, mostly spending it at your casino, from what we saw, either to try to win it big or to repay their own debts here." Eunoia continued. "We offer that if you could help us get the information on them, including the casino's records, the camera footage, and more private areas of the casino so the job can be done and hidden easier, we could trade that for yours and your casino's protection, while also getting your debts paid quicker and more."
Chance listened intently, considering the proposal while focusing on the mafia members before them. Mafioso had a blank expression, eyes hidden as always, and his rabbit ears stayed unmoving as well. Eunoia had a perpetual smile on her face, looking straight at Chance while she explained. They were still suspicious of it; no way a deal like that wouldn't come with a catch. "What's the catch then?" He questioned after a short pause.
"Well, we might be a rich organization, but when it comes to taking out hits or just tracking targets, it might cost a lot of money to compensate for potential financial risks, such as destruction of our property, or, in the worst cases, loss of members. You also have a pretty good reputation, despite being a casino owner." The princess added.
"That's what having one of the only fair casino's does to one's popularity." They interrupted, crossing their arms and legs at the same time. The taller man's ears flicked once with annoyance, but Eunoia's smile didn't falter.
"We could use some financial help from you, as well as your reputation and wealth to bribe any witnesses to stay quiet or for other more useful tasks." She carried on, ignoring their remark.
"Will I have to do any dirty work then?" He asked, not really minding if they do. After all, they weren't exactly innocent either.
"You don't have to, but it would be useful for you to be on some missions for a better chance of success." Mafioso responded.
An idea came to Chance's mind. Could they ask the mafia to take out specific people? Most of his enemies were debtors to them anyway, so it wouldn't be a far-fetched idea. The thought of getting revenge on his past enemies alone made him grin. They decided to ask about it.
"Say, what if I wanted specific targets to get taken care of? Could I ask for your guys' help with that?" Their smirk turned into a smile while he spoke, the pair taking note of that change.
"We can assure you that this whole offer won't be only very beneficial for us, but for you too. Once we make a deal, your enemies are our enemies." Eunoia responded, the other man nodding as she said the last words. Chance noticed the glint in her eyes, but he couldn't exactly say what it was.
"Do you accept?" Mafioso questioned on behalf of the princess. He could see that they were still hesitating.
"What if we first made a test trial? That way we can see how we could help each other in the long run, and then I can agree to a more permanent business exchange." Chance bargained. They didn't trust them enough yet. Even if he loved taking risks, this kind of deal had a chance of destroying his buisness and reputation.
"Only if you agree to a blood pact when you feel satisfied afterwards. You also won't learn any more private details about us until that happens." Eunoia said, her voice clearly leaving no space for any other objections. "Do we have a deal?"
The blue-haired woman reached out her gloved hand for a handshake. After a moment of consideration, he did the same thing, looking straight at her. "Deal." Chance swore he saw Mafioso's lips twitch into a slight smile.