Bluff, Break, Betray - Dead Logic

Delta, looking at Omega was thinking, " First of all, if someone refuses a dare which will cut 2 points and failing Dare means 3 points, then nobody would try to do a dare if they want to skip it. They will just refuse it thus losing only 2 points instead of 3. That also goes for truth cards. If refusing to answer a truth means -1 point and lying in Truth will reduce 5 points then nobody will bother lying in truth and just refuse it. The problem is, this is a great chance for someone like Omega senpai."

On the other hand, Omega was thinking that to push someone very down was a risk because he might swap points using power cards. Pi and Alpha were wondering why Omega asked for a freedom card? Omega then chose a black card.

Omega thought in his head, "I wonder, if someone has -3 and other has 3 points, then if the minus person uses a swap card to take other ones points then the swap card user should get a point according to rules. Should he get point after the swap or before the swap?"

The card he got was the only Freedom card. Somehow he got the exact card he wanted.

"Did he get a freedom card? What are the chances? Damn it, I can't calculate again. Also there is no zero in the theory of probability after all." Zeta thought, looking at Omega's hand.

"I pass," Omega said.

His words made everyone on the table second guess.

"What card can it be? Is it a freedom card? No. What's the chance of talking about a card just a minute ago and getting the same card?" Alpha thought.

But Delta was thinking with reasoning, "First one silence, then a swap, wild, Now I have a reverse card. That leaves 2 swap cards, 2 reverse cards, 1 Silence card and 1 freedom card. That might be a silence or a Freedom card. If he got the other card, he can just swap his points with Pi as she has the highest to rank high."

Next came Zeta's turn. The use of the wild card gave Zeta a chance again in the same round. Silence crawled over the room. Even the other players stopped breathing. He pulled a Truth Card. His lips twisted a little but not for the hope of joy. For seeing a checkmate.

"Alpha," Zeta said, calm as ever, "As per card rules, you are required to answer a personal question of my choosing." Zeta said, showing his truth card to Alpha.

"But I won't ask a question," he said. "Instead, I'll state a truth. And if it's wrong, reject it. If it's right..." He didn't finish.

Alpha's eyes widened. Slightly. Just slightly. But in this game, every twitch was a full-blown scream as everyone here was trained to scan body language. They could say, Alpha was nervous.

Zeta wrote his question and passed it to Alpha. Alpha grabbed it and after reading it in his mind, he gulped. He stood up and said a little loudly.

"Did you really forget her because of trauma… or was forgetting her your way of forgiving yourself?"

"No," Alpha said, his voice trembling. "That's a lie!" He snapped back and replied instantly to Zeta's face.

Zeta raised a brow. "Is it?"

"We will check if it's a lie or not." The teacher said, tapping something in his pad.

Suddenly, a few dozen men, all wearing the same navy blue uniform, entered in a line and circled all the tables, working like a wall. From Delta's table, the men chose Alpha and asked to come with them. He did as they said and saw other kids from other tables.

They were taken to another room, outside of the ship's main cabinet hall to test their truth. A few minutes later, the men again came and circled the tables, Alpha also returned but with a broken, sad face.

"They were taken to test their truths. Alpha, looks like you lied. Minus 5 points."

"See, told you!" Zeta stood up, pointed at Alpha and shouted."

The situation made Alpha burst into tears full of sorrow and anger towards Zeta.. The room sat in tense silence after Alpha's outburst. His eyes were bloodshot, lips quivering as he lunged toward Zeta. The table shook, cards scattered. Alpha's hand trembled midair as if he were about to strike, but Zeta remained still, arms folded, watching with cool, sharp eyes.

The mentor intervened, voice steely and exact. "–2 points for violent behavior," he declared. Alpha's name on the board dropped to –4. The room stilled again.

Then, in a surprising twist, the mentor tapped his screen and said, "Correction. A point from an earlier wild card use was not registered. Alpha, your true score is 0."

The board updated. Tied with Pi. That gave Alpha the three-point bonus for the round's top scorer. He stood at 3 again. But his composure was gone. His mind cracked from within, now a fractured mirror reflecting every doubt Zeta had handed him.

With trembling rage, Alpha picked a dare card and threw it at Delta with shaking hands. "Try surviving this," he spat.

But Delta smiled, being calm as always, she wordlessly placed a reverse card. "Return to sender," she whispered. Alpha's face twisted. The dare backfired, and his score dropped by 2 again. Delta got 1 point. Still untouched. Cold logic always won.

Then came Delta's next move. A dare card. She wrote her dare slowly and slid it to Pi. Pi read it—then clapped three times. Her eyes widened. The others paused. Why clap? Was it code? Omega raised an eyebrow.

"You two are farming points, huh?" he muttered under breath. Alpha, mind unraveling, panicked.

"A signal?" he thought. "Are they plotting against me?"

The game rolled forward. Omega refused his dare—losing 2 points. Zeta answered truthfully about his most recent exam score: 88. Then Zeta gave Alpha a dare—17 pushups.

Calculated precisely to test Alpha's known physical limits. It was a number which may seem for Alpha to reach but actually he can't. Alpha tried. 13, 14. But at 15, he collapsed.. Another –3 points. But then he pulled a reverse card. His eyes sharpened. "I swap with Pi!" he said. The mentor shook his head. "Swapping points isn't allowed with reverse cards. However, you can reverse a truth, dare or power card using it."

"Then who should I use it on? Definitely Not Zeta and Omega senpai. Delta is the only one who hasn't hurt me."

Alpha blinked for a moment. "Then I reverse Pi's score with Delta."

Omega slammed the table. "Moron! You could've passed. You gave her everything!"

And he had. Delta stood calmly. This was all part of her plan from the very beginning.

She understood that Omega will go against Alpha, the weakest one. She took it as an advantage. She also knew Alpha's emotional state from the beginning. That's why she didn't go for the weakest one like Omega did.

The amount of pressure alpha felt thanks to Omega and Zeta made him forget a simple rule that he could just skip and save the card for later. This one mistake was the only thing she needed.

That's why she gave Pi the first dare which was to team up and used her like a bank to store points only to snatch later using Alpha.

Pi snapped. "You played me?! I helped you win!" She screamed and lunged, but Delta didn't flinch. The mentor stepped in again. "–2 points for Pi. Watch yourselves." Delta's score remained untouched. Calm amidst the storm.

Next turn, Delta drew a swap card. With chilling precision, she chose Omega, knowing he still had the Freedom card from before. The swap earned her a point but stripped Omega of his best defense as he was forced to use it. Now she had both control and immunity.

Omega's turn ended. Pi reached for redemption—only to draw a silence card. Her face fell. Wrong card in the wrong moment. Alpha, still unstable, pulled a reverse but passed, brain fogged in guilt and pressure. And then—Delta pulled the final black card of the round. Swap. Her calculations had been right. She smiled.

Then came her masterstroke.

Delta drew from the new black deck. Her card: Wild. She rose, silent. The mentor read her note and issued instructions: "All players stand up. Turn around. No peeking."

No one argued. Delta walked out with the mentor. What she did outside was unknown. But when they returned, the rules had changed.

"No passing allowed anymore," the mentor declared. "This is Delta's Wild card modification. You play, or you pay."

And as if the universe folded to her will, the next two players—Pi and Zeta—each drew silence cards, as skipping turn was not allowed, they were forced to silence. Omega and Alpha. The round passed in total, strategic silence. A checkmate in slow motion. No voice, no resistance. Only Delta remained untouched, unchallenged, in control.

In reality, Delta wrote,

"Double request: 1. No one will see me doing my things in this turn.

2. Shuffling the black card like I want."

This gave her chance to grab the black deck and she placed the silence cards on top and reverse, swap cards at the very bottom. Thus changing the deck to her own will.

Delta drew a Truth Card and passed it to Pi.

Pi read the question—and froze.

It was written in seven languages: English, Latin, German, Spanish, Korean, Hindi and Japanese. Each word in a different language. A simple question:

"What is your sit Number in here?"

It was one of her strategy. There is no rule stating which language to use. Every word jumbled in a different tongue. Pi swallowed hard. She couldn't guess. She burned her Reverse Card.

Delta, instantly answered, "First."

Correct. Delta had memorized the seating numbers of their seats right after they arrived here.

The final board read:

Delta: 19

Pi: 1

Omega: –1

Zeta: –3

Alpha: –4

The moment the scores appeared, the room ignited in chaos. Zeta slammed the table. "You set the board from the start!"

Pi spat, "You fed me lies, Delta!"

Alpha didn't speak. He sat staring into nothing. Omega shook his head. "And here I thought I was the one playing."

Then came the mentor's final command.

"Enough."

Silence took over again. He gestured. "Your game is over. Now will begin your actual trial."

They were escorted to the upper deck. Wind licked at their faces. Cold. Humid. Foreboding.

Delta, after winning, was drinking a glass of lemon soda while sitting on a white cruise chair on the rooftop. Looking at the sky, a swarm of white birds went flying in their opposite direction.

Omega reached her a few minutes later.

"Hey Delta, can we have a talk?"

"Oh sure, senpai. What is it?"

"Not to ruin your victorious mood but, don't you think you won for luck?"

This question came to her as a surprise.

"Luck?" Delta asked, raising her eyebrows.

"Before the last round, there were 3 black cards. If I am not mistaken, those three were reverse, silence and swap. There was a chance that Pi or Alpha could get the swap card. Then they would snatch your points. I'm not good at math like Zeta but even I could say, your success rate was just 1/3." Omega explained.

"Also you got the wild card exactly at the beginning of last round. That's 1/10 probability. That means, your plan's total success rate is just 1/30 or roughly 3.33%. You can't say to me that's not luck." Omega explained more.

Hearing this, a smile appeared on Delta's face.

"So what? This was just plan D. I had plan A, B, E, F, G, H, I, J, K..."

"Okay okay stop!" Omega said in surprise.

"If that plan failed, I had 15 more. Failure was never in the equation." Delta explained.

omega, hearing it was still surprised, "So this is what the top subject of the organization is like? I will sure look forward to you."

The ocean stretched endlessly before them—until, after two hours, they saw it. A dark line on the horizon. An island. But she could see a tall figure standing on the island. Like a tower.

"That… is where your real test begins," the mentor said, pointing.

Delta stared forward, lips parted slightly. She had won the game. But the real one was just about to begin.

Chapter 23 - Bluff, Break, Betray