God's imitator

Chapter 209 Disastrous Failure
The layout of the battle room is very simple, with just a "battle platform" in the center that we saw in the previous rules introduction, and nothing else.

He Xiaojun reconfirmed the height of the "battle platform". This height should be specially designed so that when players stand in front of the battle platform, the black barrier will just block the area near their chest, while the area for placing cards is located at the back of the platform.

This means that players have no way of knowing exactly what cards their opponents have played.

Even if both players raise their hands to show the cards they are about to play, their hands will still enter the other player's blind spot during the process of lowering them, giving them many opportunities to exchange cards from their pockets or the table.

The rules simply require players to place their cards in the designated area before the notification sound ends, and they cannot temporarily change cards, play cards too late, or put in multiple cards.

However, this "temporary card swap" should refer to the card swap after the prompt tone begins, rather than saying that you cannot swap cards from beginning to end.

Clearly, the copycats who designed this game did not want a situation where "players show each other cards and then cooperate throughout the game" would appear, which is too simple and mindless.

Players can choose to cooperate, telling each other exactly what cards they will play, but whether the other party will betray them is unverifiable and can only rely on mutual trust.

"Why am I thinking so much!"
"It's a fair game of luck. The more you think about it, the more oxygen you consume. Doesn't that mean you lose out the more you think about it?"

He Xiaojun, nicknamed "Grey Wolf," looked at his opponent, a female player wearing a "rabbit" mask.

"Hello."

He Xiaojun, nicknamed "Grey Wolf," heard his own voice change; his oxygen mask also had a built-in voice-changing function.

Han Mengying, nicknamed "Rabbit," nodded politely and said, "Hello."

Ever since entering the battle room, she had been carefully observing 'Grey Wolf's' movements.

The first thing 'Grey Wolf' did was observe the battle arena, probably thinking about whether there was a simple cooperative strategy.

Then, he eagerly stood on the other side of the battle stage. Although his expression was not visible, one could still sense his excitement.

Clearly, such game rules will excite players who have suffered greatly in typical strategy games.

Because it's fair.

Rock-paper-scissors, a game that doesn't seem to offer much room for strategy, makes luck the decisive factor in winning or losing.

Although each person has five cards, these cards do not have to be used up.

The game rules state that players must destroy any excess cards when they return to the lounge.

This means that players can choose to play only one or two games, or even choose not to play any games at all.

Of course, since both sides will trigger an additional benefit of 'minimum guarantee' when they only bet 1000 chips, this game becomes a game where the expected return is definitely positive.

The simpler a player's mindset, the more they tend to start as soon as possible to test their luck.

But these seemingly insignificant actions have allowed Han Mengying to gather enough information.

Each player bets 1000 chips.

The first stage is the 'practice stage' for two-player battles. You cannot place bets freely, but you will automatically trigger an extra 1000 chips.

Both sides were dealt the "Fool's Hand" cards, but neither knew it.

After considering it, Han Mengying took out the only "Wise Man Card (Paper)".

He Xiaojun, nicknamed "Grey Wolf," looked at the three cards in his hand: three "Fool's Cards (Rock)," one "Paper," and one "Scissors."

He thought for a moment and then took out a "Fool's Card (Stone)".

Because this type of card is the most common, playing one of these cards first ensures that you still have one rock, paper, and scissors card in your hand, giving you ample options for the second round.

After all, five cards can be played five times, and with extra rewards, the more you play, the more worthwhile it is.

This battle arena provides different sound effects based on the outcome of the game, has grooves for placing cards, and automatically detects whether both players' card plays are compliant. It can be said that every detail has been perfected.

After placing the cards, both players press the "Start" button, and the battle arena automatically emits a "beep, beep, beep, beep" sound.

Both players played their cards in accordance with the rules, so with a final "beep," the black partition opened. The two cards were simultaneously flipped over by the mechanism on the battle platform and collided.

The Rabbit's Wise Man (Paper) destroyed the Gray Wolf's Fool (Stone) and won the game.

Then, both cards were retrieved from the battle arena.

Han Mengying's coin slot dispensed three chips worth 1000 each, including the original bet of 1000 and the winnings of 2000.

Meanwhile, the 1000 chips that the Grey Wolf had originally invested were swallowed up.

"Ok?"

He Xiaojun, nicknamed "Grey Wolf," felt that his luck was not good and that his mission had not gone well.

However, this was only the first round, and both sides quickly invested 1000 chips each to start the next round.

This time, Han Mengying, the "Rabbit," won with her "Thief's Card (Scissors)" against the "Grey Wolf's Card (Paper)."

"Hey? What's going on?"

Grey Wolf was puzzled. He looked at the cards in his hand and then at his opponent, the female player wearing a rabbit mask.

They were both wearing masks, so the other person shouldn't have been able to see his expression.

The battle arena is also fair.

This outcome seems to be solely due to luck.

The "rabbit" quickly took out a card and placed it on the playing table without saying a word or urging the player to hurry.

Therefore, He Xiaojun, nicknamed "Grey Wolf," subconsciously wanted to choose another card to continue the game.

He looked at the three cards he had left in his hand: two Fool's cards (rock) and one Thief's card (scissors).

But just as he was about to lay down his cards, he suddenly realized something.

No, we can't play anymore!

If the previous two rounds were due to luck, then this round is no longer about luck.

He Xiaojun, nicknamed "Grey Wolf," has already used one rock and one paper, so he has two rock and one scissors left.

Where is the 'rabbit'?

If she also has the "Fool's Hand" deck, and has used one paper and one scissors, it means she has 3 "Fool's Hand (Rock)" cards left in her hand.

He Xiaojun realized that no matter what he did, he was bound to lose.

Of course, the opponent might also be holding the "Sage's Deck," in which case there would be two cloth cards and one stone left.

Should we use scissors to bet on the other person choosing paper?

No, absolutely not!

If the opponent also has a "Fool's Hand," then you're essentially handing them chips.

He Xiaojun suddenly realized that he could no longer continue playing the game.

Fortunately, he realized his mistake in time; otherwise, he might have lost another game.

"Stop playing."

He Xiaojun, nicknamed "Grey Wolf," chose to give up and stop placing bets.

(End of this chapter)