Sender: Cyrene
Recipient: ■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■

*This page of the story comes from the 6,269,299th Eternal Recurrence, an unexpected inheritance of divine authority. Imagine if it were Zagreus who received the divine authority of Law, and the swift-footed feline thus ascended to the pinnacle of power…*

The Law Titan, Talanton, happened to fall on the Spirit Day, and the Trickster Titan seized this opportunity to usurp divine authority. They proclaimed their laws to the world — “Gambling.”

“A ruler wants to expand their territory? Put power and land tot he bet! A mortal seeking divine authority? Go roll the dice with the gods!”

And so, the mountains, rivers, cities and people of Amphoreus all became mere stakes in the game. Overnight, countless aristocrats fell from grace, while nameless figures began to rise to prominence.

Among them, the Followers of Zagreus became the agents of the gods, acting with absolute impartiality and neutrality. The followers established gambling houses across different city-states, faithfully executing the Law with he authority of the Titan.

Among all followers of Zagreus, at the pinnacle stands the demigod known as “Wind of Dolos” — Cifera.

Legend has it that Cifera once gampled against Kephale and won everything they bore. After that, Okhema became the world's largest gambling den. Countless gamblers climbed Dawncloud with hope in their hearts, trying their luck at winning precious metals, jade, and territories… only to leave disappointed.

“Cifera always has the last laugh” — people took these words as gospel.

… On that day, a little blonde girl in tattered clothes knocked on the door of the Dawncloud Casino.

“Hey Cifera, wanna make a bet?”

Despite her misfortune, the girl carried herself with extraordinary grace. “I am Aglaea, the last noble heir of Okhema. I have come to reclaim everything that is rightfully mine from your hands.”

A breeze swept by, and Aglaea knew the curious cat hat perked up its ears. She pointed to the bath beside her.

“The water here flows constantly. Let's make a bet about this outlet on whether a golden laurel leaf will float by within 30 seconds… I bet there will be.”

A gentle breeze lifted the hem of Aglaea's tattered dress as a giggle was heard, “Then I bet it won't happen.”

Neither had placed their wager, and Cifera hadn't even shown up, yet the gamble had already begun. The onlookers at the grand baths held their breath in anticipation, while Aglaea slowly lowered herself to sit by the water, as if knowing exactly what was to come.

“… 25 seconds… 24 seconds…”

A golden laurel leaf appeared in the bath above the water outlet, spinning with the flow, as if still hesitating.

“… 15 seconds…”

The golden laurel leaf suddenly drifted downstream with the current, quickly approaching the water outlet.

“… 5 seconds… 4 seconds…”

A sudden gust of wind stirred up ripples, and the laurel leaf that was about to fall into the drain vanished into thin air before everyone's eyes. At the same time, Cifera appeared in front of Aglaea with a playful smirk.

“… 3 seconds… 2 seconds… 1 second.”

Aglaea plucked off the golden laurel leaf on her head — the only valuable thing she carried — letting the water from the outlet wash it away.

“Zero seconds. I win.” Aglaea said with a straight face.

“What's the point of winning a gamble with no stakes?” Cifera didn't even bother pointing out the girl's “cheating.”

“At least you showed up.”

“Heh… Tell me, little girl with nothing to your name, what could you possibly bet against me?”

“I'm not empty-handed. I can bet 'myself'. And what I want… in that same vein, is 'you'. Fair deal, wouldn't you say?”

“Hahaha, interesting. I have no reason to refuse, but before we start a proper gamble… you'll need to dress up properly. Tsk tsk, came her barefoot? Here, take these boots. Consider them a welcome gift.”

Then, Cifera scooped up the small girl like picking up a kitten and walked deeper into the baths.

…