Apocalypse: I'm Bound to a Mobile Lottery Shop

Chapter 23: Chapter 23: Gabe Donovan

While scratching furiously at their tickets, they glanced over with envy and began to mutter amongst themselves.

"How is Great Hero Shaw’s luck so good!"

"Why can everyone else get food from these things, but not me!"

"Have you guys noticed? Frost Shaw wins every single time!"

"Seriously, what’s the deal? How can anyone’s luck be *that* good?!"

"Could it be... he’s hooking up with Boss Hart?"

The moment he said it, Chester Carter smacked him on the back of the head. "Watch your mouth!"

The man was about to fly into a rage, but when he turned and saw it was Chester Carter, he reconsidered. ’I couldn’t beat him last time,’ he thought, so he just nodded with a sheepish grin.

Meanwhile, Lily Hart was curious. "Why don’t you try for something else?" she asked. "You could get clothes, shoes, that sort of thing."

Frost Shaw froze. He’d been scratching for food to make sure Easton and Diana Sharp had full stomachs.

But on second thought, their clothes were nothing but patches on top of patches. And their shoes? Don’t even mention them. They’d all been scavenged from the dead.

He chastised himself. ’I’ve been so thoughtless!’

"Which kind gets you clothes and shoes?" Frost Shaw asked.

"Instant Riches," Lily Hart said.

Every type of scratch-off ticket specializes in certain products. For example, the "Big 7" has a high probability of yielding food.

"Instant Riches" specializes in apparel; you can even get earrings and necklaces, though it seems no one really needs those.

The "lucky charm" tickets specialize in weapons, while "Dragon’s Fortune" has a random mix of everything.

Hearing this, Frost Shaw immediately picked out a few "Instant Riches" tickets. Just as he was about to start scratching, he heard Gabe Donovan snort heavily beside him.

"What is this junk? Every single one is a loser!" Gabe Donovan slammed five tickets down on the table, his face a mask of frustration as he cursed.

’Your luck is what’s junk!’ Lily Hart cursed inwardly.

’A normal person would win at least once in five tries. It doesn’t matter what the prize is, but at least they’d get *something*. This Gabe Donovan’s luck is truly rock bottom!’

A smile spread across Lily Hart’s face, her dimples making a brief appearance. "It’s alright," she said soothingly. "Try another five. You’re bound to win!"

Her voice seemed to hold a magical charm. Gabe Donovan found her words quite reasonable and nodded seriously. He tossed two more Yellow Crystal Cores onto the table with an untamed, arrogant air.

His attitude thoroughly annoyed Frost Shaw. ’When he leaves,’ Frost Shaw mused, ’I’ll follow him and freeze him into an ice sculpture. For a whole day.’

Gabe Donovan picked out five more tickets with lightning speed and scratched them just as fast. Another angry roar followed. "A refund! You have to give me a refund!"

Lily Hart took a look. Only one of the five was a winner. It really was the lowest possible probability she had in mind...

But as for the prize... well, it was a mug.

’Who could he blame for that but himself!’

Just then, Frost Shaw finished scratching his ticket and went to claim his prize. The Lucky Cat spat out a clear plastic container of fresh nectarines, about six of them.

Each one was bigger than a fist and looked incredibly juicy. Gabe Donovan watched, his mouth watering with envy. His sense of injustice flared. ’Why him!’

Fortune, ever the astute announcer, broadcast: "Congratulations to Frost Shaw on winning six nectarines. Congratulations to Gabe Donovan on winning one mug."

To Gabe Donovan’s ears, this was blatant mockery. Someone even laughed out loud without trying to hide it. He whipped his head around to see who it was—Frost Shaw, the King of Luck himself!

Hearing that grating laugh and seeing Frost Shaw’s shoulders shaking slightly, Gabe Donovan saw red.

’That’s it, I can’t take it anymore!’

Gabe Donovan’s expression turned vicious. Without a moment’s hesitation, he swung a punch at Frost Shaw, the force of it stirring the air. The fist was about to connect with Frost Shaw’s face.

With a mere thought from Lily Hart, Gabe Donovan froze mid-swing. He was stuck as if hit by an immobilization technique, the fierce, frowning expression plastered on his face now looking utterly ridiculous.

He remained in the pose of throwing a punch at Frost Shaw, the veins on his hand and forehead bulging from the extreme effort he was exerting.

Frost Shaw slowly unclenched his fist as a flicker of a smile passed through his eyes. ’Is Boss Hart standing up for me?’

"MMGH... MMGH..." Gabe Donovan couldn’t even move his mouth, only able to produce muffled grunts. His eyes widened in terror. ’What is this mysterious power?!’

After a long moment, Lily Hart released Gabe Donovan from his invisible bonds.

Suddenly free, Gabe Donovan collapsed forward as if reborn, coughing violently and gasping for breath. It was as if he needed to prove to himself that he was still alive.

"It was you!" Gabe Donovan gasped after a moment, finally realizing what had happened. His sharp eyes glared at Lily Hart, but his body showed no desire to attack.

He was scared. The terror of being controlled, the feeling of his body no longer being his own to command, was deeply unsettling.

Lily Hart spread her hands and broke into a smile. Her face was the very picture of gentleness and friendliness, but her words could plunge a person into an ice-cold abyss.

"If you try to start a fight on my turf again, you’d better think twice."

Her expression was perfectly friendly, but her words were enough to drench Gabe Donovan in a cold sweat. He let out a heavy snort and grumbled, "I want more scratch-offs!"

Lily Hart smiled. ’That’s more like it,’ she thought. ’Only a fool would go looking for trouble here.’

She’d seen him pull out red Crystal Cores before, so his level couldn’t be low. ’If Frost Shaw had actually fought him just now,’ she mused, ’it’s hard to say who would have come out on top.’

’They’re both good customers. It’s best if things like that don’t happen.’

To soothe Gabe Donovan’s shattered ego, she opened a new book of "lucky charm" tickets. ’There’s no way one person’s luck can be *this* bad!’ she thought.

"Pick from these," Lily Hart said.

Gabe Donovan didn’t understand why, but he was being very obedient. Maybe it was fear of her mysterious power, or maybe he’d decided to behave himself. In any case, he was thoroughly cowed.

He obediently began to choose from the brand-new book of tickets when a somewhat pale hand suddenly reached over and snatched the entire book.

Gabe Donovan’s eyes widened. He followed the hand up to its owner and saw the profile of Frost Shaw, calmly selecting tickets. The brim of his hat was pushed up slightly, revealing the bridge of his fine nose and his tightly-pursed lips.

"You!" Gabe Donovan snorted sharply through his nose again, his face a picture of someone fuming but not daring to speak out. The corners of his mouth turned down in extreme displeasure.

Frost Shaw paid him no mind and continued his selection. Lily Hart watched the two with a sense of helplessness. The contest had barely started, and Gabe Donovan was already on the back foot.

’Oh, well. It’s not my problem,’ she decided. ’My job is just to watch the show.’

But then, Gabe Donovan started complaining to Lily Hart. "Boss Hart, look at him! You opened that new book for me, so why does he get to pick first?!"

Hearing this, Frost Shaw’s hand, which held the tickets, tightened unconsciously. He subtly perked up his ears to listen, though his posture remained perfectly still as he feigned indifference.

Lily Hart felt a massive headache coming on. ’A grown man who looks to be almost thirty is acting like a three-year-old, tattling on someone?’

’Truly, in these apocalyptic times, you can’t judge a book by its cover.’

She took the stack of tickets from Frost Shaw’s hand, split it in two, and gave ten to each of them. "There, all settled!"

The two men looked down at the divided tickets in their hands, a bit resentfully, but neither said a word.

Frost Shaw said, "I’ll take them all." With that, he pulled out his Crystal Cores and placed them on the table with an imposing air. Then, two pairs of eyes—his and Lily’s—turned in unison to look at Gabe Donovan.

Gabe Donovan: Sweating bullets...