Chapter 28: Ignorance is Bliss

The questions' difficulty will changed when all of the participants reached the third room. From easy to average. That's when Mathematics come in. Riddles about Math.

"In an odd little town, there was an odd little stream, WIth odd little fish in an odd little team. A stranger approached a local fisherman, And asked him how much his odd little fish weighed. The odd little man replied: All the fish in this stream weigh exactly 1/2 of a pound plus 1/2 of a fish. Isn't that odd? How many pounds does an odd little fish weigh?"

"Aren't these questions a little too easy?" Mana said. She was putting their answer on the phone. It took them a minute to solve the question. Haruka glared at her. "Oh, stop looking me with those eyes. I'm just spitting facts here." She raised both hands. Sometimes, Mana can be really confident mix with a little bit of arrogance. There are times. "There!" The answer was one.

On the wall, the instruction was different. Written on the wall was, "People who haven't tasted failure and Always win tends to become ignorant. Success could be blinding."

The two went inside the next room. There was another sentence written on it. "Stay observant and always remember, that the answer to your question has long been answered."

Kaneko-kun could see everything inside the room where Mana and Haruka were. He's been reading all of the signs written on the wall. He's being careful not to miss any hints that they might need to use.

"A small number of cards has been lost from a complete pack. If I deal among four people, three cards remain. If I deal among three people, two remain and if I deal among five people, two cards remain. How many cards are there?"

"This question too." Mana mumbled to herself. "Let's finish this test quickly."

"47."

***

"What is the smallest whole number that is equal to seven times the sum of its digits?"

Mana wasn't answering the question. She got bored of it. She said it was too easy for her. And she would step in if the questions are worth her attention and time.

"The answer to this math riddle is 21. You probably just guessed to answer this math riddle, which is fine, but you can also work it out algebraically. The two-digit number ab stands for 10a + b since the first digit represents 10s and the second represents units. If 10a + b = 7(a + b), then 10a + b = 7a + 7b, and so 3a = 6b, or, more simply, a = 2b. That is, the second digit must be twice the first. The smallest such number is 21." Mana was talking to Haruka. In contrast to what she have said, she answered the question. She's bored. And she wants to end the test immediately.

"Sometimes, the answer you were seeking was in front of you, yet you blindly ignored it."

***

"It says here that there are only two rooms left! And there's another quote written..." Mana was excited to leave the building. "I wonder how the other pair was doing? I hope we will be the first one to leave."

Haruka was typing the answers to the phone. She's not talking to Mana ever since they entered the building. Her focus to the test will shift if she talks. She does not want to lose the easy test.

"What is the smallest number that increases by 12 when it is flipped and turned upside down?" It was the question. It took Haruka a few minutes to answer the question. The door creaked open.

The answer is 86. When it is turned upside down and flipped, it becomes 98, which is 12 more than 86.

"All right! We are now inside the last room! Yeah!"

Mana after entering the room right away looked for the paper and the phone. However, only a piece of paper was there and there was no phone on the basket.

"Please enter the passcode to the electric door lock." Mana glanced at Haruka's direction. "That's all it says. Where the hell is the question?! How are we suppose to enter the passcode when we don't have one?!"

"Calm down and look around. There might be something in here." The electric door needs a 7-digits passcode. "Give me the paper."

Mana gave her the piece of paper and began looking around for clues. She examined the paper, turning the paper to see if there's something written behind it. There was nothing. They can't put the passcode if there is no passcode.

"I give up, hah!" She sat down on a single sofa. "There's really nothing except for that sentence."

'Now comes the time where you will seek for nothing after ignoring the answer.'

"We can always ask our leader." Said Mana. She sat comfortably on the sofa, staring blankly at the ceiling. "He might have a say to this."

The two asked for leader intervention. The school allowed it and Kaneko's earpiece became online. They could now hear what Kaneko would be saying.

"You two sure give up easily, huh." He said dryly. "Haruka, I thought that you're observing things inside the past rooms. Let me explain it to the two of you." Kaneko cleared his throat and continued what he was saying: "People who haven't tasted failure and Always win tends to become ignorant. Success could be blinding." He repeated the first quote. "It clearly depicts Mana. Sometimes, the answer you were seeking was in front of you, yet you blindly ignored it. Remember all of the past math answers? Lastly, Now comes the time where you will seek for nothing after ignoring the answer. It's happening right now. You two don't know the passcode because you two were so ignorant. The answer is 1 4 7 2 1 8 6." And with that, their leader intervention ended.

They knew it now! What those quotes were saying. Mana punched in the passcode and the door unlocked! The two immediately leaved the room and the building. The two were looking around if the other four leave the building first, but there were no signs of them.

"We have a winner! It's class F again!"

~