Somewhere between chance and inevitability lies the perfect hand, and Nathan never believed in just luck. His world was one of calculated risks, where the cards on the table told as much of a story as the faces of the players around him. But even Nathan, a man of measured decisions, couldn’t have predicted the arrival of a certain letter.

Its envelope was aged, as though plucked from a forgotten era, sealed with an intricate crest that seemed to breathe its own dark history. There were no details, just an invite to a location, an ancient palace, and the promise of a poker challenge like no other.

The palace itself remains an enigma to this day, a looming structure nestled beyond the city (read Prequel Story). Whispers of its past travel like smoke through the circles of those daring enough to speak of it. Some call it cursed. None speak of what happens to those who lose.



Nathan’s curiosity burned brighter than his caution, a flame fed by unanswered questions. Who had sent the letter, and why him? What stakes could warrant such an elaborate, almost theatrical invitation? And why did the very name of the palace seem to chill the air as he whispered it to himself?

Every story has its players, and every game its stakes. For Nathan, this was no ordinary game: it was a test of more than skill. As he made his way to the mysterious destination, one thought lingered in his mind: what lies beyond the cards?

The answer awaited, cloaked in shadows, somewhere deep within the labyrinthine halls of the palace. But in a place where whispers of the past entwined with the weight of the present, Nathan would learn one thing for certain: when the stakes are this high, every choice is a gamble.