Chapter 215: PMS vs. AA
The room fell silent for a second.
Sheldon was the first to speak.
"This is a classic game theory problem."
As he spoke, he walked over to the whiteboard and picked up a marker.
"Let's assume the warrior's survival probability is P, while the team's overall survival rate after the healer leaves formation is Q..."
Howard immediately raised a hand.
"Hold it, hold it."
"If that warrior keeps charging off on his own and never listens to instructions, then probability doesn't matter."
He spread his hands.
"He's just a terrible teammate."
Raj quickly typed something on his phone and turned the screen toward everyone.
[Maybe the warrior knows something the rest of you don't.]
"Or," Leonard continued in his usual calm tone, "maybe he has a reason he can't avoid doing it."
Without even turning around, Sheldon continued writing equations.
"The rational choice is always to maximize the group's overall benefit."
"If saving one person causes the entire party to wipe, then abandoning that individual is the optimal solution."
Several voices erupted at once, and the room quickly descended into chaos.
"Alright, alright."
Ethan stood up and raised his hands.
"How about this?"
"Each of you gives me one solution."
"We'll treat this as a purely theoretical exercise."
---
Leonard's Proposal
Just as Sheldon opened his mouth, Ethan immediately stopped him.
"Sheldon, you'll go last."
Sheldon frowned.
"Why?"
Ethan answered with a perfectly straight face.
"Because I want to save the best for last."
"Oh."
Sheldon nodded, instantly satisfied.
"Very well."
"That is a perfectly reasonable arrangement."
"I shall go last."
Leonard cleared his throat.
"My solution is fairly straightforward."
"Talk to the warrior first."
Howard immediately burst into exaggerated applause.
"Wow."
"What an amazing idea."
"What next?"
"Suggest everyone should 'understand each other'?"
Leonard ignored him completely.
"If he always charges ahead, then he obviously has a reason."
"Maybe he believes he has no choice."
"Maybe he thinks not doing it would make things even worse."
"So let him explain."
"Then everyone discusses it together and agrees on a maximum distance he can move away from the group."
"If he exceeds that distance, he has to retreat."
"Both sides compromise."
"At least everyone reaches a consensus."
Ethan nodded.
Communication and negotiation...
Sounds perfectly reasonable.
...Except John Wick doesn't retreat.
---
Howard's Proposal
Howard grinned confidently.
"As the only person here who can actually turn theory into hardware..."
"I believe the solution is technology."
He started counting on his fingers.
"Put a tracking device on the warrior."
"Give him a portable remote medical module."
"And throw in a drone for real-time surveillance and aerial support."
He spread his hands proudly.
"Who says the healer has to stand still?"
"Technology solves everything."
Sheldon commented dryly,
"You sound like the scriptwriter for a low-budget science fiction movie."
Howard fired back.
"At least I don't reduce my teammates to probability functions."
Ethan actually considered the idea.
Could I somehow relay healing magic remotely?
Or store healing in advance?
Like a healing potion?
Or a Warlock's Healthstone?
A Priest...
Didn't really have anything like that.
He sighed.
If I could heal people remotely like that...
I could lie in bed and heal the entire world.
At that point...
I'd practically be God.
---
Raj's Proposal
Raj picked up his phone again.
After typing for a moment, he held it up.
[Why is the warrior charging ahead?]
[To win?]
[Or to punish himself?]
Ethan froze.
He honestly didn't know how to answer.
Raj continued typing.
[If it's the latter...]
[Then you're not saving him.]
[You're stopping him.]
"...?"
Raj added another sentence.
[If someone insists on accomplishing something alone, they've already made their decision.]
[The rest of the team must decide whether they're willing to bear the consequences alongside him.]
[The healer shouldn't make that decision for everyone.]
[The healer should simply follow the team's final choice.]
Ethan fell silent.
It sounded cruel...
But there was undeniable logic to it.
At the very least...
Not every responsibility would fall on his shoulders alone.
---
Sheldon's Proposal
Ethan finally looked toward Sheldon.
Sheldon let out a dramatic sigh of relief.
"At last."
"My turn."
"My solution is very simple."
"Establish a leader."
He walked back to the whiteboard.
"The leader is responsible for calculating, evaluating, and controlling the team's overall survival strategy."
"In other words..."
"Establish rules."
Leonard looked at him.
"And naturally, the leader is you?"
Sheldon nodded as if it were obvious.
"Naturally."
"The leader should be the individual with the highest intelligence, the greatest judgment, and the best chance of maximizing the team's survival."
"If the warrior is the leader..."
"...then charging ahead becomes the team's decision."
"Everyone follows."
"But..."
"If the healer is the leader..."
"...and the healer determines that the warrior's actions endanger the team..."
"...then regardless of what anyone else thinks..."
"Everyone—including the warrior—must obey the healer."
That was...
Peak Sheldon.
Oddly enough...
Ethan found himself agreeing.
Who was the true core of the clinic?
Without question...
It was him.
So why...
Whenever major decisions had to be made...
Did he always feel like his voice carried less weight than everyone else's?
Not in medicine.
When it came to saving lives, the final decision had always been his.
But whenever it involved dealing with outsiders...
The High Table.
Powerful businessmen.
Government officials.
He instinctively assumed someone else was better suited to handle it.
Maybe...
It wasn't that they were more capable.
Maybe...
He simply never believed he was qualified.
Lost in thought, Ethan remained silent.
All four looked at him.
Leonard asked,
"So?"
"What would you do?"
After a long pause, Ethan finally answered.
"My original instinct..."
"...was to chase after the warrior."
"Even if it broke the formation."
"Even if it disrupted the entire team."
"I'd drag him back."
Sheldon immediately shook his head, words firing out like a machine gun.
"Emotional decision."
"Inefficient."
"Extremely high risk."
"And completely unsustainable in the long run."
Just then...
The person who had spoken the least suddenly opened her mouth.
Penny hugged a cushion and leaned back against the couch.
"Can I say something?"
Sheldon instinctively prepared to object.
Then stopped himself.
"...Go ahead."
Penny looked at Ethan.
"Honestly?"
"I didn't understand a word of Sheldon's probability or game theory stuff."
Sheldon immediately chimed in.
"That is entirely unsurprising."
Penny rolled her eyes.
"But I've been playing Age of Conan."
"If one warrior keeps running off by himself..."
"...isn't that exactly what the enemy wants?"
The room suddenly fell quiet.
Leonard frowned.
"You mean..."
"Even if the tank pulls aggro and has to leave the formation..."
"...that's exactly the situation the enemy is trying to create?"
"Of course."
Penny nodded.
"Isn't that the oldest trick in every game?"
"Lure one player away..."
"...then have everyone gang up on them."
She shrugged.
"So if I were the enemy..."
"...this would be my dream scenario."
"The tank charges ahead."
"The healer stays behind."
"The rest of the team doesn't move."
"Perfect."
"You've split the party."
She continued,
"So the solution is actually pretty simple."
Holding up her fingers, she counted.
"Option one."
"The warrior doesn't charge."
"Everyone stays together."
"Option two."
"If the warrior absolutely has to charge..."
She looked directly at Ethan.
"...then everybody charges together."
Howard blinked.
"Everyone?"
"Everyone."
Penny nodded.
"Either the whole team stays together..."
"...or the whole team moves together."
"Just don't let one person get isolated."
She added one final sentence.
"Because that's exactly what the enemy wants."
The living room fell silent for two full seconds.
Leonard slowly nodded.
"So basically..."
"Avoid being divided and surrounded."
Howard rubbed his chin.
"It sounds suicidal..."
"But it actually makes sense."
"Either everyone lives..."
"...or everyone dies."
"We all go crazy together."
Raj immediately typed another sentence.
Then held it up.
[Never split the party.]
Sheldon suddenly turned around and wrote a single line on the whiteboard.
Avoid Local Numerical Disadvantage.
After a brief pause, he added,
"From a game theory perspective..."
"The enemy's entire strategy revolves around creating local superiority."
He turned toward Penny.
"And your solution..."
"...eliminates that possibility at the strategic level."
He paused.
Then nodded once.
"...Unexpectedly correct."
Howard laughed.
"My God."
"Sheldon just complimented Penny."
"I did no such thing," Sheldon immediately protested.
"I merely stated an objective fact."
"And pointed out that it happens to align with one of the most fundamental principles of team tactics."
Penny leaned back into the couch and shrugged.
Ethan quietly mulled everything over.
Either everyone stays...
Or everyone advances.
Leave no one behind.
A new image suddenly flashed through his mind.
John walking alone into the darkness.
While he remained at the clinic...
...only able to watch from afar.
Ethan murmured quietly,
"So the problem isn't the warrior..."
"...or the rest of the team."
"It's whether the team is willing to advance and retreat together."
Penny tilted her head.
"Was I wrong?"
Ethan slowly shook his head.
"No."
"You were absolutely right."
It had started as nothing more than a casual question.
He hadn't expected to gain anything from it.
Yet the discussion had given him far more to think about than he'd imagined.
Over the following days, Ethan seriously considered everyone's suggestions.
Surprisingly...
Some of them were genuinely useful.
Unfortunately...
The same people who had passionately argued that "the team should always stick together" quickly fell apart themselves.
The moment Sheldon enthusiastically started planning the team's name and uniforms, Leonard handed him a Batman cookie jar...
...and calmly informed him that he'd been kicked off the Physics Bowl team.
Sheldon froze.
"...Why?"
Leonard sighed.
"Because you've made everyone lose interest in competing."
Sheldon immediately objected.
"Excuse me."
"Is the winner of the Physics Bowl determined by which team is most enthusiastic about the Physics Bowl?"
Leonard paused.
Then decided to stop being diplomatic.
"Fine."
"I'll be honest."
"You're impossible to deal with."
"Nobody wants to be on your team."
Silence filled the room.
Sheldon looked genuinely hurt.
Moments later, he proudly announced...
That he would simply create his own team.
And his first recruit...
...was Ethan.
Under relentless pressure from Sheldon—who somehow produced a clause from the infamous roommate agreement Ethan had unknowingly signed years earlier—Ethan was forcibly transferred.
He went from being the backup member of Leonard, Howard, and Raj's PMS Team (Perpetual Motion Squad)...
...to becoming an official member of Sheldon's AA Team (Army Ants).
PMS was now short one member.
So they recruited Leslie Winkle.
The moment she heard their opponent would be Sheldon...
She agreed almost instantly.
Ethan couldn't help sighing.
Years ago, he'd proposed what he believed was the perfect money-making scheme.
Set up a booth on campus.
Put Sheldon on a dunk tank.
Charge people to throw balls at the target.
Hit the bullseye...
Sheldon falls into the water.
"The Sheldon Dunk Challenge."
Just imagining it...
He knew people would line up around the block.
Sheldon had actually considered the idea seriously and, after Ethan's relentless persuasion, had almost agreed.
Only for Mary Cooper to veto the entire plan immediately.
As for Team AA...
With only Sheldon and Ethan left, Sheldon recruited the university's security guard and one of the cafeteria ladies as his third and fourth teammates.
---
Competition day.
Penny and Ethan both arrived at the venue.
Penny sat in the audience as an enthusiastic cheerleader.
She honestly didn't care who won.
Ethan, meanwhile...
Was technically a competitor.
One with almost no purpose.
His only responsibility...
Was to sit there.
He wasn't allowed to answer questions.
He wasn't even allowed to touch the buzzer.
Presiding over the event was the department chair, Dr. Gablehauser.
"Good afternoon, everyone."
"Welcome to this year's Physics Bowl."
"Our opening match promises to be an exciting one."
"Team AA..."
"...versus Team PMS."
The audience applauded.
Dr. Gablehauser nodded.
"Very well."
"Let's begin."
"First question."
"Worth ten points."
"What is the spin-singlet partner of the neutral pion?"
Leonard slammed the buzzer almost instantly.
"Team PMS."
"The eta meson."
"Correct."
Sheldon immediately raised his hand.
"I object."
Dr. Gablehauser looked at him.
"On what grounds?"
Sheldon spoke with complete seriousness.
"The Velcro on my cuff got stuck to my sleeve."
"It slowed my reaction time."
"Objection overruled."
Dr. Gablehauser continued.
"Question Two. Ten points."
"What is the lightest element found on Earth that has no stable isotopes?"
Sheldon slammed the buzzer.
"Team AA."
He straightened proudly.
"Without question... Technetium."
"Correct."
The competition continued.
Question after question flew by.
The contestants traded answers at lightning speed.
Meanwhile...
Ethan onstage and Penny in the audience had both begun nodding off.
Finally, Dr. Gablehauser announced,
"Ladies and gentlemen..."
"I now have the final question."
"Worth one hundred points."
"The current score is..."
"Team AA — 1,150 points."
"Team PMS — 1,175 points."
"In other words..."
"Whoever earns these one hundred points wins the match."
The projector lit up.
An equation so horrifyingly complicated appeared on the screen that it seemed designed to crush the human spirit.
"Solve this equation."
The room instantly fell silent.
Every pair of eyes locked onto the screen.
Silence.
"Damn..."
Howard muttered.
"What the hell is that thing?"
Leonard tried to rally the team.
"Come on, everybody."
"Think."
"Leslie?"
Leslie stared at the projection.
"Leonard..."
"Panicking won't make me solve it any faster."
"You'll just have to wait."
Leonard couldn't help groaning.
"Do you really have to phrase it like that?"
Dr. Gablehauser reminded them,
"Ten seconds remaining."
Unable to bear the pressure any longer, Leonard slapped the buzzer.
"Team PMS."
"...Sorry."
"I panicked."
Howard whispered urgently,
"Just guess!"
"Uh..."
"...Eight?"
The host remained expressionless.
Leonard hurriedly amended,
"...Eight point four?"
"Incorrect."
Dr. Gablehauser turned toward Sheldon.
"Team AA."
"If you answer correctly..."
"...you win the match."
Sheldon stared at the equation.
His face slowly began twitching.
Howard suddenly shouted,
"Wait!"
"He doesn't know!"
"He actually doesn't know!"
The moderator prompted again.
"Team AA."
"I need your answer."
Just then...
The elderly campus security guard sitting beside Ethan lazily glanced at the screen.
Then...
He casually pressed the buzzer.
"The answer..."
"...is 8πα."
The entire hall fell silent.
Sheldon whipped around.
"Wait!"
"That isn't our answer!"
He glared at the security guard.
"What do you think you're doing?"
The old man shrugged.
"Answering the question."
"And winning the Physics Bowl."
Sheldon looked utterly incredulous.
"How could you possibly know physics?"
The security guard replied calmly,
"Here..."
"I'm a security guard."
"But in the former Soviet Union..."
"I was a physicist at the Leningrad Institute of Technology."
He smiled faintly.
"Go, Polar Bear."
Now that's a true hidden master.
Sheldon's face remained perfectly blank.
"What a touching story."
"But we had an agreement."
"You sit there."
"You don't say a single word."
"I answer the questions."
The guard shot back immediately.
"But you didn't answer this one."
Ethan quickly stepped in.
"Sheldon."
"We're a team."
"What if he's right?"
Sheldon shook his head.
"That doesn't matter."
"We agreed."
"I rule this team with an iron fist."
Ethan sighed.
"Didn't you tell Leonard before..."
"Winning the Physics Bowl isn't about who cares the most?"
"So now..."
"It's about who rules with the strongest iron fist?"
Dr. Gablehauser interrupted again.
"Team AA."
"I need your final answer."
Sheldon folded his arms.
"Whatever it is..."
"It isn't his answer."
Ethan continued persuading him.
"Just try it."
"What if he's right?"
Sheldon shook his head.
"Impossible."
Ethan thought for a moment.
"Alright."
"Let's settle this the way we always settle disagreements."
"If he's wrong..."
"I owe you a gift."
"If he's right..."
"You owe me one favor."
Sheldon considered it for exactly one second.
"That agreement is unfair."
"It should be this."
"If we use his answer..."
"...you owe me a gift."
"Whether he's right or wrong can be discussed afterward."
Ethan nodded without hesitation.
"Deal."
He raised his hand.
"We'll use his answer."
The moderator looked toward Sheldon.
"Can you confirm?"
Under Ethan's unwavering gaze...
Sheldon gave the tiniest, most reluctant nod imaginable.
The moderator smiled.
"Congratulations."
"Because..."
"Your teammate..."
"...gave the correct answer."
Thunderous applause erupted throughout the auditorium.
"The winners of today's match are..."
"Team AA!"
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