The Hunter's Game - Chapter 4

The town was exceptionally quiet at night. Standing by the window, I lit a cigarette and carefully replayed the rules the dealer had announced.

Snake Nine was treacherous and untrustworthy, but he had been right about one thing: superior numbers made this game easy to win.

But could the house really have overlooked such an obvious loophole?

Of course not.

In my experience, the most obvious loopholes were usually dangerous traps. Somewhere in the game, the house would have installed a second rule—a patch that closed the loophole. Finding that patch would be the true key to victory.

I took a deep drag, pulled a voice recorder from my pocket, and switched it on. The dealer’s mechanical, uncanny voice filled the room.

The game studio prepared these explanations in advance. Not one line was wasted. That was why I had come prepared this time.

I was certain the patch lay hidden in his words.

I pressed replay and began reviewing the rules word by word.

After listening four times, I identified two major anomalies.

The first was the Black Goat card.

According to the dealer, one Black Goat card could be exchanged directly for ten game coins.

It was practically a cheat code.

But obtaining that cheat required triggering a hidden quest.

Hidden quests were apparently random. Finding one took luck and keen observation.

Snake Nine had paid little attention to the Black Goat cards. Depending on a randomly dropped cheat was not his style.

Yet the dealer had emphasized observation. That meant the game had to contain clues. Anyone attentive enough could follow those traces to a hidden quest.

The second anomaly was the Black Goat Shop at the top of the clock tower. Its very existence was strange.

It served two functions: exchanging cards for game coins and selling support items for the shopkeepers’ quests.

At first glance, that sounded reasonable. A moment’s thought revealed that both functions were nearly pointless.

Why build a separate shop on the western edge of town merely to exchange cards? The house could do that at the villa after the game. The whole arrangement was redundant.

Selling support items made even less sense. Game coins were what everyone was trying to earn, and each one was worth ten thousand US dollars. Even if the cheapest item cost a single coin, who would spend ten thousand dollars on it?

Worse, the initial fifty coins were only a loan. They had to be returned when the game ended, and any shortfall became debt.

I would bet that many players would not dare touch a single one of those fifty coins before the end, much less spend them freely.

The image of everyone clutching their purses made me laugh.

Viewed that way, even the fifty-coin loan seemed unnecessary.

Unnecessary?

My eyes narrowed.

Why lend the coins in advance when the house knew players would be afraid to use them? Why go to the trouble?

Or rather, why had the designers needed players to start with game coins?

What became impossible if that rule were removed?

Triggering hidden quests.

My eyes flew open. Lightning flashed through my mind, illuminating every neglected corner.

Of course.

All the inexplicable details and bizarre rules tumbled through my thoughts, then gradually aligned into a clear path.

Why lend players game coins? Because the designers wanted the money spent.

Spending it was the key to triggering hidden quests.

But naturally, no one wanted to risk falling into debt.

The game was designed to run counter to human instinct.

That was why the seemingly useless Black Goat Shop existed.

Once I understood, my mind flooded with light. It was as if a blocked channel had opened and every puzzle had solved itself.