The Daily Life Of A Cyberpunk Magician

Chapter 411 - 237: Magic Duel: Guess the Coin_2
Chapter 411: Chapter 237: Magic Duel: Guess the Coin_2Red Clo had been imitating the former Black Kler all along, employing some inferior methods.

Even though he could easily play the part of Black Kler’s neurotic persona, acting was after all just acting. In front of an audience of Jiang Shu’s caliber, it wouldn’t take long for him to be defeated.

After all, all of Black Kler’s techniques were nearly irreplaceable, and he almost never did anything meaningless.

And now, Red Clo, just to get a meeting, pulled off this kidnapping stunt, seeming like a supercriminal, but in fact, quite low-end.

”What game?” The smile on Red Clo’s face disappeared in an instant, and he calmed down, feigning ignorance in his response.

”The game of imitating Kler,” Jiang Shu continued, unabashedly exposing him, ”You are not Kler, even if your face, your lines, and your behavior patterns resemble him very closely.”

”I don’t understand what you mean.” Red Clo was stubborn, still unwilling to face the facts.

”So what exactly are you trying to prove?” Jiang Shu’s words were in the form of a question, but his tone was declarative, ”It seems you’re always comparing yourself to Kler, but you know very well that you simply can’t beat him.”

At this, Red Clo was momentarily stunned, apparently shaken by Jiang Shu’s words.

And Jiang Shu’s verbal onslaught continued: ”You see, whether you change your name to Ya or Clo, you’ve never stepped out of the shadow he’s cast over you. So what are you trying to prove?”

”I’m imitating him?” Red Clo, as if having touched a sensitive spot, suddenly exploded in rage, roaring back, ”It was him who descended upon me when I was just born, him who occupied my body, my name, all my time, and in the end, he wanted to use my body to die, to make a name for himself!”

”He has left?” Jiang Shu understood the implication of Clo’s words in a very short time, so he asked quickly, this answer being very important to him.

Red Clo’s emotion seemed to be interrupted by the question, and after a moment’s pause, he replied: ”Yes, so what? Do you also think that guy is better?”

”Better? Are you referring to that Kler?” Jiang Shu shook his head, amused, and said coldly, ”If life could start over and I really could meet him, I might kill him without hesitation at the onset of his war.”

From Black Kler’s perspective, the war he waged was a necessary experiment.

To him, this world was just a copy to be conquered, all people merely game characters, and he only held special emotions for a very few.

But for the civilians of Thirteen District at that time, it was a catastrophe.

And Jiang Shu certainly detested such acts of war.

Hearing this, Red Clo’s anger gradually subsided, and then he suddenly said something Jiang Shu hadn’t expected, ”I want to challenge you in magic.”

”What?” Jiang Shu too was taken aback by this sudden turn, not expecting Kler to come up with such an idea.

A magic competition?

Was he out of his mind?

”Yes, after much thought, I’ve realized that you can only completely overcome him in the field of magic,” Red Clo continued, his face full of competitive arrogance, ”He studied magic for a long period, but he was nowhere near as good as you. To beat him in every aspect, I’ll start with magic. If I can beat you here, then it’ll prove that I’ve beaten him in magic as well.”

”Um.” Listening to this, Jiang Shu didn’t know if Red Clo was complimenting or demeaning him; was he saying that he could only beat Black Kler in the field of magic?

Hmm, that does seem correct...

No wait, did Black Kler have a stunning and wealthy beauty from the Research Sequence as his wife?

Clearly not.

Realizing this, Jiang Shu ended the comparison quite contentedly.

But since it was about magic, there didn’t seem to be too much to worry about, so Jiang Shu nodded in agreement, ”How do you want to compete?”

”As long as you win, not only will all the hostages live, but I’ll also submit to your judgment,” Red Clo added, ”So now, let’s begin.”

Although there were suspicions of backtracking, because Red Clo had previously said that all hostages would be released if Jiang Shu just attended the meeting, the moment he made his statement, the hostages on-site collectively breathed a sigh of relief.

The reason was simple; they were all fans of Jiang Shu, so it went without saying they believed Jiang Shu would win.

Even if they were his detractors, they would think the same.

Could there possibly be anyone in Lonely City more skilled in magic than Jiang Shu?

”What do you want to compete in?” Jiang Shu gave Red Clo the choice, indeed knowing that no matter what, the competition would be on Clo’s terms.

But it didn’t matter.

This was the confidence of a top-tier magician.

”Which hand,” Red Clo seemed able to predict that Jiang Shu would say this, so he replied almost the moment Jiang Shu asked.

And upon hearing this English phrase, Jiang Shu’s face seemed to darken a bit.

”Which hand” is the coin-guessing game that most people have played before—guessing whether the left or right hand holds the coin.

It is almost the simplest form of magic—treat it as a magic trick, or assume it’s not magic at all.

Ordinary people rely on luck, having a fifty percent hit rate by pure guessing; experienced players would use the opponent’s body language to help with the guessing; and even better players would employ verbal tactics or psychological strategies to make their guess.

But Jiang Shu’s heart suddenly sank.

Because this magic trick was too difficult.

Without using special prop coins, no guessing technique could guarantee a hundred percent accuracy.

Even for him.

The process of guessing a coin is short and straightforward. Even he couldn’t interfere with it, and without the ability to cheat, he was merely ”a more skilled player.”

Red Clo would certainly not be a regular spectator, and Jiang Shu couldn’t rely too heavily on methods that might fool an average person. Thus, the competition ultimately became a psychological duel.

A mere psychological duel?

Even if it wasn’t Black Kler that he was facing, Jiang Shu felt uneasy because winning a psychological duel did not guarantee victory; chance was a completely uncontrollable factor.

He, as a top magician, lacked confidence.

Would he have to use mind reading and prediction?

Wasn’t that too amateurish?

A magic duel and you play with real magic?

Even though using less sophisticated methods would be quite satisfying, Jiang Shu still had some pride as a top magician.

Of course, if the situation really became uncontrollable, he would have to cheat using mind reading.

After all, saving lives was critical, and he was not that pedantic.

”The rules of the contest are simple. We each guess the coin, you guess three times, and I guess three times. The person who guesses correctly more times wins.” Red Clo quickly announced the rules of the contest and then he swiftly took out a coin and threw it to Jiang Shu, ”This is the coin we’ll be guessing. You can check it first.”

Jiang Shu caught the coin flipping through the air, glancing at it casually.

It was just an ordinary coin from Lonely City, with no possibility of being fake.

If only he had brought a magic coin today, he could confidently swap it out right before Red Clo’s eyes. With a prop, he would have a hundred percent accuracy rate.

Unfortunately, that wasn’t an option.

Who could have predicted Clo would pull such a move on him?

The coin rolled along a staircase formed by the knuckles on the back of Jiang Shu’s hand, then he flicked it with his little finger, sending it arcing beautifully through the air, landing back in Clo’s hand.

Win or lose was uncertain, but he couldn’t drop any part of the act.

If he didn’t keep up appearances, then what was the point of all those grueling practices he had gone through countless times before?

”Then I’ll hide it first.” Red Clo hid his hands behind his back before stretching both clenched fists out in front of Jiang Shu.

One fist held the coin concealed within it, and finding this coin would secure victory in the first round.

Jiang Shu began observing closely.

Firstly, Red Clo’s hands weren’t small, so even if concealing a coin, both looked the same size.

Secondly, Red Clo had extended both hands at the same time.

Generally speaking, the hand that comes out later is more likely to hold the coin.

The angles of the shoulders were nearly identical, showing no signs of a defensive stance.

So...

Which one was it?