I Don't Feel Like Losing Today (Part 2)

Sakayanagi Arisu reached out towards the covered playing cards, her mind racing with calculations.

Turn over the card in a position that is memorable to you... its orientation, its distance from yourself, its distance from your opponent, and its position on the table. This is generally a Concentration method for memorizing cards that are arranged in a chaotic way.

From a memory perspective, playing cards arranged in neat rows and columns are actually easier to remember.

With a total of nine rows and twelve columns of one hundred and eight cards, Sakayanagi Arisu had already mentally constructed the entire table into the shape of a chessboard.

[E5, Three of Hearts], [F8, Five of Spades]

While noting the cards that Kitagawa Ryo flipped over, he flipped over the card he had chosen.

[E8, King of Clubs], [A2, Nine of Diamonds].

Both of them moved very quickly, as if they didn't want to give each other much time to remember, flipping over one deck of cards after another like lightning.

The television screen was divided into three images: one on the left and one on the right showing the facial expressions of Kitagawa Ryo and Sakayanagi Arisu, while the large image in the middle showed a neat array of 108 playing cards.

In no time, thirty cards had been turned over, and it seemed that the first pairing was about to be successful.

"Aside from the cards they flipped last round, I can't remember the positions from before."

Matsushita Chiaki's mother quite decisively abandoned her thinking and began to focus intently on commenting on Kitagawa Ryo's close-up facial features.

"I... I only clearly remember the positions of ten cards; beyond that, I only have a vague impression."

Matsushita Chiaki also covered her head and looked distressed, because she had been looking at them for so long that the 108 identical playing cards were starting to spin in her eyes.

Seemingly anticipating that this part might deter some viewers, the production team carefully interspersed the program with exclusive interviews with the guests and short on-site interviews.

"Memory ability is indeed an important criterion for judging intelligence level, and according to research, children actually possess memory ability as early as two years old."

Piaget, holding a deck of cards, smiled and said:

"In my research, children in the preoperational stage, which is the age range of two to seven, have already been able to internalize sensory-motor interactions into mental images, gradually establishing symbolic functions and enabling them to think using mental symbols, thus achieving a qualitative leap in their thinking."

"However, brain development takes time, so I'm very curious to see how far these two children can go."

As he spoke, he exaggeratedly clutched his head and exclaimed:

"Because this project gets more and more difficult as you go on, oh my god."

Just as Piaget's interspersed interview ended, Kitagawa Ryo's hand happened to flip over a playing card.

[Three of Hearts]

A "ding-ding" sound effect accompanied by a close-up of a face, while subtitles at the bottom of the screen indicate that this card has appeared before.

"Huh? Has it happened before?"

Mr. Matsushita, too lazy to answer his bewildered wife, turned to Matsushita Chiaki and asked:

"Does Chiaki still remember?"

"It seems to be... in the middle of the fifth row—I can't remember exactly, but it's probably one of these cards."

While struggling to recall, Matsushita Chiaki ran to the television and pointed to a small area of playing cards in the center of the screen.

At this moment, the production team also conveniently highlighted the previously seen [three of hearts] card in the viewer's perspective.

Can I open it?

Slow motion, flashback to Sakayanagi Arisu's facial expression, then Kitagawa Ryo quite easily flips to another [three of hearts].

Ayanokoji Atsuomi immediately stood up and applauded, and his brief interview was quickly interspersed with upbeat background music.

"Liang is the most outstanding student in the White Room, so his memory is naturally exceptional."

In the picture, Ayanokoji Atsuomi is smiling kindly.

"We started intentionally cultivating his talent in this area very early on. Whether it's short-term memory and processing ability or long-term memory, he's an exceptional child."

"So I think Liang will definitely win this game of Concentration."

Kitagawa Ryo, having achieved his first successful pairing, put away the two threes of hearts, and the staff next to him immediately stepped forward to replace them with two blank cards with identical patterns on the back.

Even though the cards had just been drawn, Matsushita Chiaki felt that the two blank cards had almost seamlessly blended into the entire hand, and she could hardly remember their exact positions after just a slight distraction.

This is where the project truly becomes more difficult than it originally was.

There are always 108 cards on the table. You need to remember not only the cards that appear, but also the blank cards that have become traps.

Kitagawa Ryo's luck wasn't so good after his first successful pairing. The first card he flipped was the [King of Hearts], which appeared for the first time, while the second card was the [Nine of Diamonds], which had appeared once before.

Without changing his expression, Kitagawa Ryo put the cards back in his hand, showing absolutely no regret.

But before his fingers had completely left the Nine of Diamonds, Sakayanagi Arisu had already touched his fingertips, then casually flipped the Nine of Diamonds back to its original position, and quite effortlessly found the previous one, completing the pairing.

"Arisu little, she wasn't very healthy, so she spent a lot of time alone in the hospital room. Back then, she was very good at playing these kinds of games by herself."

The screen cuts to a short interview with Sakayanagi Narimori, the father wearing a proud smile:

"Furthermore, I think Arisu's mindset is better than the children in the White Room. She is less affected by external factors and can concentrate more on memorizing."

One to one.

Both sides simultaneously completed a successful pairing.

"I didn't expect Arisu to still be willing to say those cringeworthy lines."

As the situation on the field gradually became tense, Kitagawa Ryo smiled and Sakayanagi Arisu opposite him.

The rules do not prohibit conversation between the two sides. In theory, both sides have the right to interfere with each other's memory through language. However, since neither of them can wear headphones or microphones during the duel, the camera can only capture the scene of the conversation taking place, but cannot hear the specific content.

This is also why Kitagawa Ryo dares to speak so frankly.

"Didn't Liang say that too?"

Lazily propping her cheek Sakayanagi Arisu answered without looking up. Although she was already feeling a bit tired, seeing Kitagawa Ryo's relaxed demeanor and the time he had to strike up a conversation with her, Sakayanagi Arisu couldn't show weakness.

Kitagawa Ryo turned over two more playing cards that hadn't appeared before, looking relaxed.

"In this game, there's actually a possibility of winning in one fell swoop later on."

"All it takes is the right timing and a little bit of luck."

Sakayanagi Arisu rubbed her temples. Neither of the two cards she flipped over were ones that had appeared before. The four extra cards in this round had already caused her some memory confusion.

"Does Liang think he can do it?"

"Certainly."

Kitagawa Ryo suddenly smiled, and even at this moment, his smile inevitably made Sakayanagi Arisu's heart skip a beat.

"Actually, I've always felt that this project would have a hard time showcasing Arisu's excellence, but it's passable as a down-to-earth start."

"Therefore, I hope that Arisu can demonstrate his abilities in the next project."

"... Although the script previously suggested a 1-1 tie between today's two projects, I'm sorry."

Kitagawa Ryo lowered his eyelids, concealing his dark, deep-pool-like eyes:

"I really don't want to lose today."

His fingers flipped over a card, the [King of Clubs] that had appeared before. Almost without hesitation or thought, Kitagawa Ryo easily flipped over another card.

Then, as if by magic, Kitagawa Ryo completed eight pairings in one go amidst the gasps of the audience.

The allure of Concentration lies in the fact that the more information that appears as the condition progresses, the more likely such a miracle is to occur.

There are a total of 54 pairs in the game. That means that as long as you complete 27 or more pairings, you will win.

The current score is nine to one.

After flipping over a new card, Kitagawa Ryo unceremoniously flipped over an old card that had already been flipped over.

"When I saw this, I knew Liang would win the match. He knew exactly what he should do at every step and made no mistakes. Just from that point of view, he has already reached the level of a genius."

Mr. Koenji's brief interview consisted of only this one short sentence.

Because the situation on the field has suddenly changed rapidly.

Sakayanagi Arisu's luck seemed to be bad; the first card she flipped over was a new card. To be on the safe side, she also chose to flip over an old card that she could barely remember as her second card. This was partly to avoid giving her opponent any useful information, and partly to try and recall the card.

With new cards becoming increasingly scarce, after several rounds, Kitagawa Ryo drew another old card, and then proceeded to successfully pair nine times in a flash.

The score is now 18-1.

The scales of victory appear to be tipping in Kitagawa Ryo's favor.

However, Sakayanagi Arisu still retains a chance to turn things around, as there are very few new cards left.

Sure enough, during her turn, she flipped over a [Ten of Hearts] that had appeared before.

[The Ten of Hearts should be around here...]

Recalling past memories, Sakayanagi Arisu's hand suddenly paused, because Kitagawa Ryo, sitting opposite her, seemed to have a slight upturn at the corner of his mouth.

Is it wrong?

A moment's hesitation turned into anxiety, and the desperate attempt to recall things only fueled more anxiety.

But then I remembered, this is the place.

Even Sakayanagi Arisu herself didn't notice that her fingertips were trembling slightly.

It's a ten of hearts.

Sakayanagi Arisu a sigh of relief, regained her fighting spirit, and with this momentum, turned the tide in one fell swoop.

But when I came to my senses, my mind suddenly went blank.

There were still 108 cards neatly arranged, but 20 pairs had been taken away, meaning 40 blank cards had been mixed in.

The images that were once clear in my memory suddenly became blurry.

The momentary anxiety followed by joy and relaxation caused a slight collapse of the palace of memories, which then began to crumble little by little.

In the final moments of the countdown, Sakayanagi Arisu flipped over an old card from her memories, hoping to use this corner as a starting point to repair her past.

It's a blank card.

A commotion was heard.

Then, under the Sakayanagi Arisu, Kitagawa Ryo successfully paired up eight more times.

A blank card skips one turn.

Kitagawa Ryo continued with the pairings, and he was getting more and more successful.

In fact, the competition was already over when he completed his twenty-seventh successful pairing.

However, the cruelty of Concentration lies in the fact that the side that gains control of the game in the later stages will snowball infinitely.

The final score was 48 to 6.

Kitagawa Ryo stood up and greeted the audience in the audience and in front of the television, and Ayanokoji Atsuomi also gave him a warm round of applause.

"That's amazing..."

When Kitagawa Ryo started endlessly pairing characters, Matsushita Chiaki had already lost his ability to use language and rhetoric, and could only dryly repeat the name of Sukuniichi one sentence after another.

"I'm now a member of the White Room Faction."

Mr. Matsushita took a sip of the now-cold tea and sighed.

"I already have."

Mrs. Matsushita rolled her eyes at her husband, then continued knitting while watching television.

"Oh dear, I wonder if the production team could help receive the gifts. Liang is dressed too lightly; he looks cold."

Matsushita Chiaki's lips twitched; she felt she was about to fall out of favor because of a stranger.

"Alright! The first round of the competition is over. Congratulations to Ryo for defeating Sakayanagi Arisu."

The host entered the stage with a microphone:

"But Arisu shouldn't be discouraged, because there's still a second round in today's match, which means there's still a chance to win back."

"Um."

Sakayanagi Arisu took a deep breath, composed herself, and smiled at the camera.

Only she noticed that at the moment the duel ended, Kitagawa Ryo didn't greet the audience below the stage, but instead looked clearly in one direction.

It's as if they're showing off only to that one person, as if they're winning only for that one person.

Xue clapped her hands, raising them high above her head.