[D11, LA] The Betting Hall, Day 1

[Cearnach]

A short distance back from the stands, a temporary building has been constructed. It has plenty of natural light, but the smoke from a dozen kiseru-toting gamblers has rather put paid to hopes for real visibility. While the wall opposite the door is home to a bar (the proprietor of the Old Man's Stump having lost his bid to prevent Steel-Eyed Goro from cutting into his business), the real attraction is the wall-to-wall slate hung on the south wall. It's surface is already host to a large bracket featuring the archers, each with a label denoting their name and a stab at the odds of their victory, though most know that any wager exists solely on its own terms--the "official" odds being a thin veneer on a massive system of speculation. It is a cesspit, this building, but it is the heart of the Wager, and the whole town knows it.

A quartet of youths stand in the open air outside, their role to run between this den of iniquity and the competition grounds with the latest news.

This is a roleplay area for people interested in placing and taking bets. It is not a formal event.

[Yasuki Ryoichi]

Yasuki Ryoichi was in the crowd milling about in the Betting Hall that afternoon. The slim Crab wore his second-best kimono and looked a little ragged, probably from the drinking and carousing at last night's banquet, but he put on a cheerful expression as he placed and won or lost bets.

Ryoichi joined the crowd in cheering for a local favorite, Kitsu Sayomi, as she turned in an excellent performance. "Oh, well done," he said to no one in particular. That victory would be worth a few bu at the end of the day, he thought. Though most of his coin was actually wagered on a dark horse candidate.

[Kasuga Izumi]

Kasuga Izumi sits in the back, her own servants running as she bids them, pouches of coin moving back and forth.

[Yasuki Ryoichi]

"Ahh, Kasuga-sama," the Yasuki said as he recognized Izumi. "How is your wagering going? If I may ask - are you more of the type who makes safer bets on the favorites, or the type who bets on long shots to get the big payoff?"

[Kasuga Izumi]

Izumi nods a greeting and grins.

"That would be telling, Yasuki-san," she says, and she gestures to a seat near her. "But I'm surprised you're not competing, yourself. Tales of your exploits have already been spreading."

[Yasuki Ryoichi]

"Ahhh, you're kind to say so, but I'm afraid that I'm a very poor shot," Ryoichi said grinning as he waved away the praise. "Anyway, the real action is in here, in the betting house."

"Myself, I prefer to bet on the long shots," the Yasuki confided. "Maybe you don't have as good a chance to win, but if you do win, you get richly rewarded."

[Kasuga Izumi]

"You're not wrong," Izumi says, taking a drink. "So, who do you think's the long shot at taking long shots?"

[Yasuki Ryoichi]

"I'm putting my money on the ronin, Tatsuya," Ryoichi declared. "He's not well-known here, but I think he'll surprise some people."

[Kasuga Izumi]

"I see," Izumi replies.

She takes a drink and considers.

"You've been putting a lot of money behind him, haven't you, Yasuki-san?"

She raises a hand, holds up three fingers, then two, then five, and points to the door.

[Yasuki Ryoichi]

"Yes," Ryoichi said simply. "He's an unconventional choice, it's true; but the oddsmakers are criminally underrating him. Even if Tatsuya does not win the whole event, I expect he will place high."

[Kasuga Izumi]

"I'm intrigued," Izumi says. "Why do you have such faith in him?"

[Yasuki Ryoichi]

"I got a bit of the measure of the man, when we brought him back from Ryoko Owari," Ryoichi confided. "There is a certain steely determination in his character that I find admirable. It is not merely ambition; he has focus. Some of the competitors here think they will do well just because of who they are, and what their training was like. Tatsuya told me, 'I must win, or die.' "

"He won't be the best at tea ceremony, or poetry," the Yasuki conceded. "But if the contest comes to a martial activity - like this..." he waved generally towards the archery range. "I'm confident that he'll do well."

[Kasuga Izumi]

"Is it enough to be good with a bow or a sword, though?" Izumi asks. "What is it that makes a samurai a samurai, rather than just a man or woman with a bit of sharp metal?"

[Yasuki Ryoichi]

"I'm not a master of bushido," Ryoichi admitted. "But in my mind, a samurai has a sense of duty, and is prepared to lay down his life for his lord, or his people. When the assassins came last night, I saw Tatsuya step in front of his son to protect him, even at the risk of his own life."

"Perhaps a lot of the people here would do the same, to protect a member of their family or clan," he said. "I think we all know that, when put to the test, some of them might not."

[Kasuga Izumi]

"Even peasants will protect their children," Izumi says. "Think more of who ran out to help a ronin resist attack--and who paid with their lives for doing it. Is being good enough with a bow enough for good men and women to die?"

[Yasuki Ryoichi]

"No, not solely," Ryoichi conceded. "A man's character and birthright is of greater importance. Well, perhaps not for the archery competition - but for other matters." He grinned sheepishly at how far they had wandered from the original allegory.

"One hopes that more good men and women won't need to die over this contest," he said. "But if it comes to that, I think it would be good to have Tatsuya-san at your side."

[Kasuga Izumi]

"Hm."

Izumi shrugs.

"Such a man, familiar with the underclasses, would have a different perspective," she says. "Maybe I ought to go pray at the Temple before long.

"But for now, let's see how he shoots, eh? How much will you wager on him with me?"

[Yasuki Ryoichi]

“Yes, I’m up for betting,” Ryoichi said, eyes alight with interest despite his knowledge that the Kasuga was a sharp operator. “Do you have someone you’re wagering on? Or are you thinking of betting Tatsuya against the whole field?”

[Kasuga Izumi]

A runner enters, reporting the state of the field as it closes.

"Well, that's a shame," Izumi says.

"I guess we'll have to see how the next round goes. Tomorrow, Yasuki-san?"

[Yasuki Ryoichi]

Ryoichi chuckled good-naturedly as he lost his wager. “It looked close, at least,” he said as he passed the coins over. “Kitsu-san and Hiruma-gunso have clearly carried the day, though.”