Chapter 117: Charanko's Rollercoaster of Emotions
"Whew, it's my turn to be the banker."
King let out a soft breath, having skipped the part where Bang was being shameless.
"No, I'll continue as the banker."
Bang smiled and shook his head.
King frowned slightly. "The rules clearly state that we take turns as the banker."
"That's right, the rules clearly state that everyone takes turns, but I'll concede the round where you would have been the banker."
Bang smiled faintly.
"Concede?"
King was very surprised, but he also understood. If Bang conceded a round, it would naturally be his turn to be the banker again.
"Sensei, if you concede, you must still accept the punishment according to the rules."
Charanko was equally astonished that his teacher was conceding, but as the referee, he righteously declared that Bang must be punished.
"Of course."
Bang, still smiling, took off two socks.
Damn!
King was dumbfounded. This old geezer, Bang, was wearing three pairs of socks? No, looking at his bulging ankles, who knew how many pairs he was wearing? This old man really came prepared!
"Heh, hehe..."
Charanko chuckled dryly at the scene before him, pretending he knew nothing while acting as the righteous referee.
"Continue, continue!"
Bang gestured for the game to go on, shaking the dice cup.
This time, he didn't do anything different, still using five dice. He held the dice cup, a glint of light flashing in his eyes. With a flick of his hand, the dice cup swayed unsteadily in the air like a gourd. The dice inside continuously struck the cup, emitting a clear, crisp clattering sound.
*Clack!*
After a moment, he slammed the dice cup down on the floor, still keeping his distance from it.
"King, please guess the total."
King had long given up on relying on skill to predict the number. Now, he was just throwing caution to the wind, guessing whatever he felt like.
"Fifteen!"
He shouted the number fifteen with conviction.
Charanko immediately stepped forward and gently lifted the dice cup, a look of realization flashing in his eyes.
On the floor, five dice were lined up. The die in the middle was propped up by the dice on either side, standing tilted. It had no proper upward-facing side, only two slanted faces, much like a coin standing on its edge, making it impossible to tell which side was up.
According to the rules, a tilted die like this is considered invalid, and its number is not counted.
In this situation, only the other valid dice are counted.
"A scheme!"
Those two words immediately surfaced in Charanko's mind. This was his teacher scheming against King, deliberately shaking one die to stand tilted to muddle the situation and affect King's judgment. As expected of his teacher; the older the ginger, the spicier it is.
"Hmm, wait a moment, the sum of the other four numbers is..."
The other four dice were all sitting perfectly flat, no problem. The numbers were 2, 3, 4, and 6. Added together, that's...
Fifteen!
King won again!
Charanko stared blankly at the dice on the floor, shocked to his core. King had completely seen through his teacher's scheme and accurately predicted the numbers. Was this a showdown between masters? A battle of wits and courage!
"Huh, I guessed it again?"
King looked at Bang doubtfully. Was this old geezer throwing the game?
Bang's brow furrowed. He hadn't managed to fool King. It seemed King's hearing was exceptionally sharp; he would need to try some other tricks to test him!
He was very familiar with all the games at the dojo, so naturally, he also knew all the ways to win them.
"Sensei..."
Charanko awkwardly reminded his teacher that it was time to accept his punishment.
"I know."
Bang remained composed and took off another two socks.
"I forfeit again."
He grinned and forfeited again, taking off two more socks. At the same time, he picked up the dice cup again. It was glaringly obvious he had no intention of giving King a chance to roll the dice.
King looked at Bang's feet, which were still wearing socks. Damn, he was speechless. This old geezer was completely shameless.
Charanko looked at his teacher, who was blatantly acting like a sore loser, and his face turned red. He turned his head aside, unable to watch any longer.
Bang, feeling no shame for cheating, picked up the dice cup and shook it rapidly a few times before slamming it on the floor with another *clack*. He then backed away and looked at King with a grin.
"Keep it coming! King!"
King was helpless. He said offhandedly, "Fifteen!"
"Still fifteen?"
Charanko looked at King in shock.
King chuckled. "Yep, just trying my luck. The number doesn't really matter."
"Luck?"
Bang stared at King with deep eyes. King had used luck as a shield several times now.
Charanko cautiously lifted the dice cup, his face showing a hint of shock. Among the five dice, one had been turned to powder.
Another scheme!
He exclaimed internally. King's superhuman hearing allowed him to judge the dice's movements by their collision sounds, which was staggering. But his teacher's methods were also extraordinary. With superb technique, he had shattered one of the dice to alter the collision patterns and sounds, thereby confusing King's judgment.
Every move a master made was indeed filled with profound meaning. Every second was an intense battle. If either side relaxed even slightly, they would be defeated immediately.
King was equally shocked by Bang's technique. This old man had some skills! It looked like he was going to lose this round.
He was very frustrated. Running into an expert dice player, it was too hard to keep winning by guessing randomly.
Charanko took a deep breath, suppressing his excitement, and began to carefully count the points on the dice. 2, 3, 4, 6, which added up to...
Fifteen!
He froze, staring blankly at King. The Strongest Man's title was definitely not just for show. Even with his teacher's tricks, he still couldn't fool King!
"The winner is... King!"
"Huh? Wait a second, I won again?"
King was stunned. He stared dumbly at the four remaining dice on the floor. "My luck... is second to none."
"Luck, it's luck again! That excuse could be used for ten thousand years!"
Bang's face twitched.
"Cut the crap and let's continue!"
He pulled off his four remaining socks, directly skipping King's turn to be the banker. After pushing the powdered die aside, he added a new die, picked up the cup, and began shaking it furiously.
*Clatter, clatter, clatter!*
After a burst of crisp sounds, he slammed the dice cup onto the floor.
"King, it's your turn."
This time, King was truly in a bit of a bind. He had already guessed "fifteen" correctly three times in a row. As the saying goes, a thing can't happen more than three times. Would Bang have changed the numbers on the dice?
His brow furrowed, and he hesitated for a long time without giving a number. *Sigh, I'm dead, I'm dead.*
Seeing this, a smile touched the corner of Bang's eyes. *King, I don't believe you can accurately determine the numbers on the dice this time, because this round, even I don't know what they are. To fool you, I must first fool myself.*
Charanko watched King fall into deep thought, curious as to what new trick his teacher had used to put King in such a difficult position.
"Eighteen!"
*To hell with it, let's just go with eighteen.*
King forced himself to come up with a reason to support his chosen number.
After stating his guess, his mind began to wander. As for winning or losing, it didn't matter. Besides, taking off a piece of clothing was no big deal. He had plenty of clothes on and wouldn't end up completely naked.
"Reveal!"
Charanko lifted the dice cup. *Clink, clink,* several small stones rolled out from inside.
He stared, dumbfounded. *Despicable! My teacher is too despicable!* He had actually taken advantage of everyone's inattention to mix stones into the dice cup, using the sound of the stones colliding to confuse the listener and mask the original sounds of the dice, causing King's judgment to be off.
He looked at the composed Bang with admiration. He truly was his teacher. Even after using such a despicable tactic, he wasn't blushing or out of breath. A true master indeed!
"Huh? Wait a minute."
When his gaze returned to the dice, he was slightly stunned, and his whole body began to tremble slightly. 2, 3, 3, 4, 6, which added up to... eighteen! My God, it's eighteen! King was completely right!
Charanko looked at the calm and composed King in shock. It was clear he was confident from the start! Everything was within King's grasp. There are always heavens beyond the heavens, and people beyond people. In the end, his teacher was a step behind.
The Strongest Man truly lives up to his name!
This astonishing hearing alone was enough to look down on the whole world. Compared to King, the gap between us is as wide as heaven and earth.
(end of chapter)