Optimal Strategy and the Element of Luck

"The Rule of the 'Miner Rat Game' are very simple. As you can see, I have eight bowls and eight miner rats in my hand."

"Before each Game begins, I put two mine rats in two bowls, one mine rat in four bowls, and two bowls empty—then I shuffle all the bowls and number them."

"In each Game, you can ask me questions such as: the sum of the number of mine rats in any two bowls, the comparison between the number of mine rats in any combination of two bowls and the number of mine rats in any combination of two bowls, whether the number of mine rats in any two bowls is equal, and the difference in the number of mine rats in any two bowls."

"You can only ask one of these questions per round, and you can only ask a total of three questions. I will definitely give you the correct answer. Then you need to choose any bowl—an empty bowl—and that counts as a win."

"One mining rat, and I win."

"Two mining rats... It's a draw."

After the skeleton finished speaking, it detached the bone arm that held the lever, leaving it there to continue cranking the lever on its own.

Zao scoffed unhappily, "What a fair Rule! We only have a one in four chance of winning, while you only have a fifty."

Before the skeleton could speak, the fern poked the algae.

"Stop embarrassing yourself!"

The algae looked at the fern. "You're not on my side?"

"We're in cahoots, that's why I'm reminding you. This Rule is in our favor, don't let this skeleton change it," Fern lowered her voice. "You're right, but that's a one-in-four chance even if we just guess... Three questions, even in the worst-case scenario, can rule out two bowls that would force us to choose a losing situation, and if we want to, securing a draw is easy."

As the fern spoke, the skeleton spoke again, "Hey, hey, I can hear you."

Zao scratched her head. "Why can't even the worst-case scenario rule out two guaranteed losses?"

"It's normal that you don't understand, after all, you're just a thug and a charlatan. Leave this situation to me," Fern said, looking at the skeleton sitting cross-legged. "As long as this guy doesn't cheat, he can't beat me... and I think, since we've gone to so much trouble, there's really no need to cheat."

After all, they were in someone else's dream. If they simply wanted to kill them, why not just have the skeleton blow up the passage or send some monsters to attack them?

"That's true, this kind of street stunt is a perfect fit for a 'Liar' like you," Zao said, placing her hand on Fern's shoulder. "Then I'll keep an eye on him to see if he's cheating!"

The skeleton laughed, "Gentlemen, I'm honest and fair, I never cheat."

As it spoke, it turned eight bowls upside down on the board in front of it.

Then...

The skeleton used its hand, still attached to its torso, to pull two mine rats from under the two bowls, then tossed them under the other two bowls.

"Then-- the Game begins."

As the skeleton spoke, it began to move the eight bowls with one hand.

Surprisingly, the skeleton's speed was almost terrifying!

There wasn't even a gradual acceleration process; the moment its hand moved, the eight bowls instantly turned into afterimages.

The sound of the metal bowl scraping against the iron plate at the bottom of the Mine Cart rang out continuously, as dense as the sound of stir-frying.

As Fern watched this scene, she couldn't help but sigh.

"This mining rat seems pretty resilient; its fur must be quite tough."

If an ordinary mouse were moved at this intensity, it would probably have been shaken to death long ago!

After you lift the bowl, you might find that all those mice have already been evenly smeared all over the inside.

Zao also chimed in with a comment.

"Not only is their fur very tough, but their willpower is also incredibly strong... These little guys didn't utter a single sound."

"Maybe it just doesn't know how to bark?"

Fern also said.

About ten seconds later, the skeleton stopped.

Eight bowls were arranged from left to right, and the skull spoke again in a sharp voice.

"Gentlemen, let's begin the questions and selections—number one starts to my left, and Number Eight starts to my Right Hand!"

"Hmm...I see," Fern stroked her chin, looking at the bowls, then said, "Then let me ask, what is the total number of bowls seven and eight?"

"Inside the two bowls, number seven and eight, there are a total of three mine rats."

Upon hearing this, the fern's eyes crinkled into a smile.

"Wow, I've won the jackpot! There are three of them!"

Even the algae reacted.

If there are three, it means that bowls number seven and eight must contain a combination of two and one.

"I'd like to ask, compared to the sum of numbers two and Number Eight, which is more?"

Fern asked, and the skeleton immediately replied, "There are the same number of mine rats in both sets of bowls."

"Aha, now we can confirm that none of these four bowls are empty."

The fern chuckled and looked at the algae, "So, is there still one question left?"

The problem is, we've already increased the probability of getting an empty bowl to fifty percent.

"Now... we can take a gamble on the last question."

She said this, and then asked her final question.

"I'd like to ask, what is the difference between bowl number two and bowl number one?"

The skeleton looked at the fern in astonishment.

"Your strategy isn't optimal, but you're lucky... there's a difference of two mine rats in the two bowls."

Fern smiled and said, "Sometimes you need a bit of luck—this time I'll choose bowl number one."

The skeleton lifted the lid of bowl number one—and sure enough, the bowl was empty.

"Congratulations on winning this round. Now... your Mine Cart need to speed up."

As the skeleton spoke, the freestanding hand beside it, which was cranking the lever, increased its speed.

"Bang!"

The car carrying the skeleton crashed into the car carrying the ferns and algae, and then accelerated while still propelled by their car!

"Click--"

The railway tracks beneath our feet emitted a sharp whistle as the speed gradually doubled.

"Now, there are only six hours left of the journey," Fern said optimistically. "Azhao, if we win five more rounds, the time will be about ten minutes—each round takes about two or three minutes, and then we should arrive at the station directly."

She said optimistically, and Zao pursed her lips. "Then you can win three rounds, and then slow things down a little each time—this guy won't rush you."

"If that's what you're saying, then we might as well drag this out for twelve hours," Fern said, pursing her lips. "But didn't you hear what that skeleton said earlier? There's another one at the end that's controlling it and can play a new Game."

"I believe that Moss will definitely find a way to win this Game, and if Grass can convince Moss, the two of them might already be at the end."

"The next Game might not be the type that moss is good at—since we don't know what grass is good at, we'd better hurry over there!"