Chapter 101 Is the Brightness Sanatorium affiliated with University A or University K...?
"Here is a deck of cards, including the jokers, for a total of 54 cards."
In the tense atmosphere, Munasher neatly arranged the cards into a perfect arc and displayed them to the players. As their attention was drawn to him, he skillfully gathered the cards together with both hands, the cards fluttering and jumping between his nimble fingers, making a crisp "swishing" sound.
Everyone's emotions were firmly trapped by this voice.
With a bang, all the lights in the hall went out, and darkness engulfed everyone. Someone let out a short gasp, and the already oppressive atmosphere was now filled with fear.
"Next, I will randomly distribute these cards to each patient."
Mu Nashe's voice echoed faintly in the darkness, but it wasn't from where he had originally stood. Jiang Yang pricked up his ears to listen carefully; it seemed to be coming from behind one of them.
Before everyone could recover from this bizarre turn of events, Munashe suddenly reappeared on the second floor as if by ghost. "Then, I will tell a story about numbers."
A rustling sound arose all around, as if countless invisible hands were moving freely through the darkness.
Jiang Yang felt a chill on his neck, as if something cold had gently brushed against it. He pursed his lips and touched his back, only to find his skin already covered in a thin layer of sweat.
Just as he was about to retract it, he suddenly felt a metallic sensation in his hand.
The metal had some hard, raised lines. He calmly slid the object into his sleeve. Suddenly, a low whimper came from the corner. He turned his head to look, as if he was suppressing pain.
Munashe appeared in his ear, "I can't guarantee what will happen to you."
Upon hearing this, Jiang Yang shrank his neck sharply, like a startled fawn.
He frantically groped around, his hand grabbing at Munashe's trousers, but the hem slipped right out of his grasp.
The distinctive clatter of leather shoes faded into the distance. Jiang Yang regained his composure and his original calm expression. He judged that the person who had just gone upstairs must indeed be Mu Nashe.
The lights in the lobby came back on.
This time, however, the dim lights seemed ready to go out at any moment, casting mottled and eerie shadows on the walls. Looking out through the glass door, the entire sanatorium was shrouded in a gloomy, dark night.
Munashe cleared his throat, and all eyes turned back to him as he stood back on the round platform. "Now you may turn over the cards in front of you."
Jiang Yang's gaze shifted downwards, and he noticed the playing cards laid out in front of him. He didn't rush to pick them up, but glanced at the other people's cards out of the corner of his eye, noting that each of them had several cards piled together.
The thin sheets of paper made it impossible for him to accurately determine the exact number for each person, but judging from the thickness in his hand, he estimated that each person should have roughly the same number.
There were 11 players participating in the activity, one upstairs and one downstairs, with each player receiving an average of 4-5 cards.
Jiang Yang reached out to take the cards, and the moment her fingertips touched the cold surface of the cards, she felt as if the temperature in the entire hall had dropped even further.
The cards are gathered in my hand, and I push the top left corner of the cards with my fingertips; there are five cards in total.
In the dim light, he glanced down quickly at the cards, then turned them face down, silently calculating in his mind.
Munashe said, "This round of the game will last for one hour."
"Hiss~" Jiang Yang gasped in pain.
"What's wrong?" Mu Nashe asked gently, showing no impatience at being interrupted.
The young man suppressed the discomfort caused by the burning sensation in his wrist and asked, feigning ignorance, "Dean, I'd like to ask, how many rounds are there in our game?"
Munashe seemed particularly tolerant of Jiang Yang, saying, "The game ends when everyone has only one card left in their hand, so I regret that I cannot answer how many rounds there are, but I can tell you that we only have one round tonight."
What happens if there's only one left?
"After the game ends, your ranking in the game will be determined by the single card you ultimately keep."
In other words, each player not only needs to consider their own cards, but also their opponents' hidden cards...
Jiang Yang nodded obediently, her tone sincere, "I understand, thank you, Dean."
"It's okay. Are there any other questions? You can't ask questions once the game starts."
Jiang Yang shook his head. At his initiative, one or two people mustered up the courage to ask questions. He took the opportunity to glance at the unusual thing on his wrist, then raised his eyes and casually brushed the playing cards one by one against his cuff and the metal plate inside.
The interplay of cold and scorching heat nearly caused him to lose control and break down a second time.
Despite his discomfort, he checked each card one by one. The one that stood out from the others was the King of Hearts. The high temperature gave him an inexplicable feeling that his skin was being burned.
Then came the Ace of Spades, its chilling aura penetrating his skin and surging between his muscles, making even his upper palate tingle and numb.
The remaining three cards are the 2 of Clubs, the 7 of Diamonds, and the 10 of Diamonds. Although they are unusual, they are not as out of control as the other two cards.
Jiang Yang moved the cards further away, and the discomfort gradually subsided.
He squinted, so...the different types of cards aren't quite the same...?
He temporarily pocketed the King of Hearts as his hole card.
"So, let the story begin."
The dim yellow lights in the hall flickered and then suddenly went out with a whoosh, as if blown out by the wind.
The howling wind lashed against the glass doors, and darkness was about to engulf the hall. Just then, Munasher picked up an oil lamp, the only source of light that drew everyone's attention. He said, "At this moment, there are 39 people living in our sanatorium."
"39? Is it time to pass the card?"
Jiang Yang mentally assigned numbers to all the players from left to right. He was number five, and the one speaking was number eight.
Apart from that, Huang Er was at number nine, while Huang Si did not come downstairs.
There was also the person Jiang Yang met outside the treatment room that afternoon. He had escaped and was in room 11, but for some reason, Jiang Yang didn't see Li Sheng in the crowd. It was still uncertain whether the other person was in the room or the treatment room.
The player who shouted the loudest was the one in position one; he was the one who made the initial scream.
What could have driven a timid and cowardly player to go downstairs?
Moreover, because of his refusal, he was not accompanied by a caregiver like others.
Munashe stopped, and he didn't speak.
Jiang Yang reached into his pocket. The highest card in a deck of cards is 13, 39... Three people... Will three people lose their highest card (excluding the Jokers) in the first round?
Wait... Jiang Yang suddenly had a question...
Is it University A or University K...?
In the standard order of points, K > A, but if you change the way you play, A can also be greater than K.
Jiang Yang frowned slightly, his fingertips tracing the Ace of Spades before falling into his pocket and tracing the King of Hearts. His features, hidden in the darkness, appeared particularly conflicted.
The player in position one couldn't resist stepping forward and handing over the card. Munashe took it and said encouragingly, "Well done, good boy," before turning the card over to show everyone that it was a King of Diamonds.
The wind subsided, and the dim, swaying lights came on, stretching the tall shadow of the caregiver behind them. At the same time, except for Number One, almost all the players' figures were encircled in the shadow. Jiang Yang turned his head to try to see clearly to the side, but all he could hear in his mind was the sound of each other's increasingly heavy breathing.
"26 points to go."
Jiang Yang felt an urge to pass the cards out.
Someone was clearly more impulsive than him. The shadow and hurried footsteps prevented him from seeing who it was. He simply judged that it was Huang Er and one of the people number ten or eleven to his right.
But Munashe flipped over a card, which showed the 3 of clubs.
This means that they will never be able to reach 39 points.
In an instant, the hall fell into a deathly silence, as if even the air itself had frozen.
Angry curses erupted from the corner. Number Ten lunged at Huang Er, grabbing his collar and roaring, "It was you! Why did you do this! Did you want to kill us all?"
The cigarette Huang Er was holding fell to the ground, and the sparks burned a small patch of ash off the prayer mat. He hurriedly pushed the person away, got up, stomped his feet twice on the spreading flames, and asked, "What makes you think it was me?"
"It was definitely you, I saw it with my own eyes! It was you who walked past me!" Number Ten stepped out of the shadows, fanning the flames as he shouted, "It was him! He's playing dirty tricks, trying to kill us all!"
Seeing the situation spiraling out of control, Jiang Yang felt a headache coming on.
Pressing his fingertips on the temples, etc... "It's not him!" Jiang Yang shouted loudly.
The sound attracted everyone, including Mu Nashe. Jiang Yang's body trembled with nervousness, and he lowered his head and whispered, "I saw...the shoes..."
Although he couldn't see clearly who it was, he noticed that the shoes that walked up to Mu Nashe were different from the ones Huang Er was wearing.
"What shoes? Who knows if you're telling the truth? What if you're all in cahoots?" Number Ten asked in quick succession.
Jiang Yang took a breath. He originally disdained to waste words with such a person, but in order to maintain his image in front of Mu Nashe, he patiently pretended to be weak and said, "But this is just a game, isn't it?"
Munashe's brown eyes were unfathomable. He chuckled softly and said, "Yes, it's just a game. Don't be too nervous, everyone."
"Are you planning to continue playing cards, or end this round right now?"
"Dean, I'd like to play my card."
Jiang Yang handed out a 10 of diamonds.
-----------------------
Author's Note: The Lunar New Year is almost here, so update times will be a bit irregular. Regular updates will resume after the holiday. Wishing everyone a Happy New Year in advance! [Sprinkling flowers]
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
