Round 2: Riddles... right?

Macro, the brilliant and enigmatic creator of this intricate test block, introduced a riddle that was notably unconventional.

He crafted this riddle with a myriad of possible answers, ensuring that each participant had to think deeply and creatively.

Indeed, Macro's intent was not merely to find the correct answer but to assess the participants' worth and potential. He wanted to observe how they approached problem-solving rather than eliminate them based on a single failure.

In his block, all you needed to do was attempt to answer the riddle, and the process itself was revealing.

The closer the answer was to the correct one, the more points others would receive... for a secret gift!

Whether the answer was right or wrong didn't matter until participants reached the third door.

"11"

"Couple"

"W"

"Ontyone"

"T.W.O"

"Two ones"

Macro and others, observing the proceedings closely, saw various participants offering different answers. Despite the variety, doors opened for everyone.

"What is happening?" Vito asked, his face contorted in a frown. He could not believe that Macro was allowing every answer to be accepted. But then Macro sneered and responded, "You can place the keys on the cliff; so why can't I do that?"

Vito shut his mouth and decided to stay silent. He turned his attention to the other monitor, which was pointing to each individual.

"What's the correct answer, Professor Macro?" Aadya asked, her curiosity piqued, making everyone else equally curious.

Macro grinned a hint of mischief in his eyes, saying, "The riddle's correct answer is actually quite simple... to those who have worked in the Magi-tech department. But these newbies wouldn't even know what those are."

Suddenly, Aadya's eyes widened as she realized what Macro was talking about. She was just about to voice her realization when,

"The answer is 10"

Everyone turned their gaze to the monitor and saw a golden-haired 18-year-old boy named Alexander. He stood with a proud expression, radiating confidence.

Alexander had known these details from the game storyline; the "10" meant it was a binary value, not a numerical one. He also knew every detail of the admission test, so for him, this test was a walk in the park.

However, in the back of his mind, he thought, 'Tsk, where is that fox girl? I haven't encountered her... My plan has now been set back again. Tsk, I guess something is bound to change in the real world...' He thought this as he opened the door.

Meanwhile,

"He is the chosen one..." Macro mumbled to himself with a profound expression, thinking Alexander was a genius to have figured that out.

Not only Alexander but also a fox girl and a green-haired girl managed to answer perfectly.

Then Macro's attention shifted to the reddish-black-haired man who was still struggling to answer.

"Hehehe... Looks like Rock's favourite one is struggling to even answer," Macro teased, but Rock's glare made him gulp.

'I-I was just teasing,' he thought, nervously looking at Eli.

Meanwhile, in the second block,

Eli furrowed his brow, deeply pondering the riddle, '1+1 but not 2... What could it be?'.

There were lots of answers, similar to others, that logically appeared, but Eli shook his head, thinking there was no way the examiners from this place would ask something so simple.

As he continued to think, he couldn't help but clench his fist in frustration. Then... he remembered something... something soft.

He clenched his fist a few more times.

'Would they....?' He pondered for a second before saying,

"Ass!"

".... Pardon?" The mechanical voice suddenly paused before speaking again.

Eli, with a profound expression, said, "Ass." He placed one hand on his left side and the other on his right side, then joined his two hands to form an ass-like curve and said, "1 + 1 is 1 ass, not 2 asses."

"...." The mechanical voice suddenly fell silent, contemplating Eli's unconventional answer for almost a minute. Upon realizing that "ass" was indeed one entity,

Thud

An unlocking sound echoed through the room. Eli nodded with a proud expression. If not for the fox girl's soft-ass sensation still lingering on his hand, he might not have remembered. He decided he needed to reward her later.

Meanwhile,

Eli's answer was not only the system but also the creator!

"WHAT THE HELL!!!" Macro shouted when he saw Eli's points shooting up on the leaderboard, even topping everyone else as if the system had malfunctioned.

"T-There is something wrong!! We need to repair this old system!!" Macro shouted, his face turning red with frustration.

According to others, it was Macro who had designed this block, so by logic, he was responsible for the possibility of that answer. No one was going to believe it was anything but his doing.

Macro gritted his teeth, fuming at the lack of response. Vito and Falcone giggled quietly, not wanting to aggravate him further. They turned their focus back to the monitor.

Rock had an amused expression while Aadya, unsure how to react to this absurdity, watched in silent fascination.

At the second door,

Eli entered, moving from the dark room into a space completely opposite in nature. He found himself surrounded by a white void, starkly contrasting the previous room. Before him stood another door, also pure white.

The mechanical voice sounded again,

"Second Riddle: I am a flower that blooms only at night and is used in love potions, what am I?"

This question was tougher. Not many people connected with potions, so some struggled to answer. And as if that wasn't challenging enough,

"You have only 1 minute!" the mechanical voice announced as the white floor began to slowly swallow Eli, resembling quicksand.

But this time, Eli answered without hesitation, "An Affair's secret invitation."

Thud

Eli smiled, pulled himself toward the door, and escaped just as the floor seemed about to consume him.

"What the fuck!!!" Macro screamed, looking at the others, "The answer was supposed to be a Moonflower... You know! MOONFLOWER! The one used in love potions!"

Vito and Falcone nodded in agreement. This was totally wrong. No matter how one looked at it, Eli's answer was definitely incorrect, and yet the system was accepting it.

"I suppose we need to check the s—" Before they could conclude that the system was broken,

"I don't think he's wrong though... He's metaphorically correct," Aadya stated, looking at Eli with an amused expression.

"Pardon?" Macro asked, incredulous.

"I mean... The question is, 'I am a flower that blooms only at night and is used in love potions,' right?"

"Yes," Macro affirmed.

"Actually, you might not know this—"

"Daughter," Rock interrupted, shaking his head. He could not allow his daughter to say what she was about to.

Instead, he said, "Listen, if you have an affair and she calls you, what will you think first?"

Hearing this, the trio's faces turned slightly red.

Of course, love... making! But they could not say it out loud.

Rock grinned, nodded and continued, "That's why he used the term 'Affair's secret invitation' rather than just referring to a woman."

"What about the flower then?" Vito asked, curiosity piqued.

"In some villages, women secretly invite a man using flowers they gather. If a flower is given, it's a secret invitation to... you know what," Rock explained, his face turning prideful. "You know, even I recei—"

"Ahem." A single sound was enough to make Rock shut his mouth.

Everyone then turned their attention back to the monitor, eager to see what would happen next.

But,

'So he must be from a village...' Aadya thought to herself, 'A villager had an old technique... interesting!' she smiled.

Of course that wouldn't escape from Rock's eyes.