Could every even number greater than 2 be written as the sum of two prime numbers?
That was the Goldbach Conjecture.
You want us to answer that? Are you the Devil?
The experts and scholars looked at one another, unsure what to say.
You're a Demon straight out of myth and legend. Shouldn't you be asking, "What creature walks on four legs in the morning, two at noon, and three in the evening?" Instead, you ask about the Goldbach Conjecture? A math problem? That's completely shattered my expectations.
Did you spend the thousands of years since you vanished from human sight in the Middle Ages studying mathematics? Come on, tell me which school taught you and which teacher introduced you to the Goldbach Conjecture. When I get back, I'll tear that school down and make the teacher teach gym instead.
The experts and scholars who had just been feeling rather knowledgeable pressed their lips together and counted silently: One, two, three. I'm a statue.
Sure, we know a lot, but asking us to solve the Goldbach Conjecture is going too far. We might be called experts and scholars, but we're Folklore Experts and Theologians, not Mathematicians. Ask us to verify a mythical event or identify a Demon or God from legend, and we can talk your ear off, with evidence from novels and local folklore to back it up. But solve the Goldbach Conjecture? Sorry. Even experts can't do that.
The Presidential Palace grew quieter still. Nobody spoke or made the slightest sound, afraid the Lion Sphinx might mistake it for an attempt to answer.
After several minutes of staring at the people in the Presidential Palace, Lion Sphinx lost patience. He opened his mouth and asked:
"Humans, which of you will answer my question?"
Seeing the lion grow impatient,