Chapter 310: Trap Within a Trap

Chapter 310

Trap Within a Trap

After the synthesized voice went silent, strange question gradually appeared on the stark white wall in front of them.

“Question 1: If 3 Naemorhedus can produce 3 offspring in 3 days, then how many offspring can 12 Naemorhedus produce in 12 days?” On the white wall, the letters that they could read appeared. The hunters of the Setter family, who had prepared for a life-or-death battle, were immediately driven mad upon encountering such a situation.

"W-What is this!? What kind of question is this? Why do we have to answer this nonsense? This isn’t right at all!"

"Who cares how many offspring those Naemorhedus have! Do we really have to answer these kinds of questions?"

"Are Naemorhedus really that easy to breed? No wonder there are so many of them."

"Forget about the Naemorhedus for now. Right now, we should be fighting. Is answering these questions really necessary?"

"But if we don’t answer, it seems we can’t get out of here. And that voice just said that if we answer even one question wrong, we won’t be able to proceed and we’ll be killed."

"Is this a new way to kill us? They don’t have to do anything, just wait for us to get the answers wrong!!" The hunters, who had trained hard and prepared themselves for this deadly challenge, could only feel frustrated.

They didn’t know that many other races had previously lost their lives trying to answer these questions as well.

“Even if we don’t understand what they’re testing us for, we have to answer,” said one of the elders.

"Answer? What should we answer? Should we just guess? One day, they produce 3 offspring...No! They produce offspring in 3 days. That means 3 offspring in 3 days, right? Wh-what is this? I’m totally confused. Why are there 12 of them now? So, they don’t tell us how many days the 12 produce their offspring in? Why must it be 3? Ugh! My...my head hurts!!”

"Uh, I, I don’t get it either. Or maybe they produce 12 offspring? Yes, that’s got to be it. It must be 12."

"Don’t talk nonsense. If we guess wrong, it means death!!"

“Then who will answer? Who would be willing to die over something like this? I came here to fight honorably to the death. Dying without reason like this is unacceptable to me.”

“Don’t worry too much, everyone. Let’s try to figure it out first. I’ll let you represent 1 Naemorhedus. Come on, you all be the 12 Naemorhedus. You can produce 3 offspring in 3 days, so...uh, what do I do next?”

The elders and hunters were all in a flurry of confusion. Ellie looked at the problem, which was straightforward and simply required multiplication and division. But in this world, without secondary education, this question must be extremely difficult for them.

"It’s not that hard. Let’s start with 12. If we get it wrong, we can try 13, 14, or 15. There’s no limit on how many times we can answer."

One of the hunters came up with an idea. However, upon reconsideration, he realized this approach wasn’t correct at all. The more they tried to answer, the more lives they would loss. Meanwhile, the tower’s creator, secretly observing the test, was eagerly anticipating the spectacle of these fools dying one by one.

Other races had done the same, sacrificing their own members one by one to pass this test. In the end...according to the creator’s calculations, the number of answers and the number of lives would ultimately belong to him. Unless someone smart enough to outwit him appeared.

“Don’t lose your minds. Think carefully and stay calm. We’ll definitely find the answer.” Aman felt a bit annoyed at the reckless idea. Did they really think it would be that easy? If the next question didn’t involve numbers, wouldn’t it mean they would have to sacrifice everyone here?

“48.”

“Hmm?” Aman paused slightly upon hearing Ellie’s soft voice.

“The answer is 48,” Ellie repeated. Aman still didn’t understand how Ellie came up with the answer. Was she just guessing? But that didn’t seem likely...Ellie wasn’t that kind of person. Her eyes showed she wasn’t joking at all.

“you, go answer it.” Owen didn’t hesitate like Aman. As soon as Ellie provided the information, he was ready to take the risk and answer the question. The man in the cloak, very obedient to his master, didn’t understand why it was 48, but in the end, he stepped forward to present the answer for everyone.

“W-Wait! Is this a good idea? I think it would be better for us weaker ones to answer. We have no idea what the next test will bring. If all of your people are gone, wouldn’t that be bad for us?”

“Indeed, even now we don’t know what the answer is. Duchess Ellie just blurted it out. Maybe we shouldn’t trust her so readily,” the Setter family’s people quickly argued. Their eldest young lord seemed too hasty.

However, their voices didn’t reach the ears of the eldest young lord and his people. Their senseless words were easily dismissed. Only the deep voice of the man in the cloak replied, his heart trembling.

“I answer 48.”

“Oh, that is indeed the correct answer. You may claim your reward,” the synthesized voice announced. An ancient rune character was bestowed upon the man in the black cloak before he could react.

The eyes of the hunters from the family widened in shock. Did the other side just receive the reward all by himself?

“Y-You, what power did you receive? That voice just gave you a reward immediately?”

“I should have been the one to answer. Then I would have received the blessing.”

“Bring on the next question. I will answer it myself!!” All the hunters were excited, as if they had forgotten the consequences of answering incorrectly. Owen narrowed his eyes dangerously; it seemed this test wasn’t as simple as he had thought!

Starting with pressuring people to sacrifice themselves to answer the question, but rewarding those who answered correctly with a great prize—wasn’t this like luring moths to a flame? Many people, especially those from the Setter family, sought strength above all else. They were willing to do anything that didn’t involve killing each other, even if it meant risking their lives.

If this continued, they will certainly threw their lives away here out of greed for power!

The one who designed this test understood them completely. People tend to shirk when it came to sacrifice because they didn’t know if they’d get anything in return. Or if they didn’t sacrifice themselves, they’d still benefit, right? So why should it be them?

Just like before, when no one dared to step forward, Owen ordered his people to go first to resolve this issue. He knew his people were truly trustworthy. Just his command, even if it meant going to their deaths, they would do it without hesitation. This display was meant to make the hunters of the family aware, but he didn’t expect there would be another hidden danger after answering!

Even though it was beneficial, gaining power so easily was something everyone dreamed of. However...only 12 people would receive it. This meant the number of casualties would be vastly disproportionate to those who gained.

Besides...if Ellie hadn’t confidently spoken earlier, Owen wouldn’t have risked sending his people either! But it seemed not everyone thought that way!

"Do these people want to die so badly? If you had gone to answer just now, how many times do you think you’d have died?!!" One elder of the family reprimanded those with such thoughts.

"But if we answer correctly, we’ll be stronger next time."

"Yes! Maybe we’ll even be chosen to be followers of the eldest young lord."

"This is the reward that made us come here, isn’t it? We were already prepared to risk our lives. So...if taking a risk can bring us something in return, isn’t that good?"

"Good, my foot!! Do you think it’s that easy? Are you still sane!?"

"You, elder, might not expect to gain more strength due to your age, but we are different. I want to gain even more power."

"Yes, yes, me too." As the discussion continued, it ultimately led to internal strife within the family. Aman, hearing everyone speak, laughed mockingly. He was never one to speak kindly. So, when he finally spoke, everyone was rendered speechless immediately.

“When asked for someone to answer earlier, no one cared. But after finding out there would be a reward, everyone scrambled to answer. Is this...the way of those seeking power in the Setter family? I feel truly ashamed to share the same name as you.”

“Second Young Lord, it’s easy for you to say that because you...”

“Earlier, starting with 12, it would have meant 36 lives sacrificed for 1 person to receive the reward. Are you willing to be one of those 36...or will you let your friends be among them? It’s quite amusing to think of stepping on your comrades’ lives, isn’t it?” Aman pointed out the harsh reality, causing everyone to pause slightly.

Upon reconsideration, it became clear that the one who prevented any loss was Duchess Ellie, their future young lady of the house. If they had answered the question themselves, it would have been impossible to get it right.

“Then...then how did Duchess Ellie know the answer?”

“Exactly. None of us knew. How did you think of it, my lady?” Many began to regain their composure and turned to Ellie, hoping to learn her reasoning, understanding that there might be similar questions ahead, and wanting to be the ones to answer next time.

Ellie sighed. The people of the Setter family also had some issue that could cause a headache, driven by their intense desire for strength, willing to risk their lives and thus becoming rash.

“I’d like to know as well,” Aman said. If given a little more time, he might have figured out the answer too. The question wasn’t overly difficult, but Ellie was very quick, and Aman wanted to learn her swift thinking process.

“Mmm, I figured that 1 Naemorhedus produces 1 offspring in 3 days. So, in 12 days, it would produce 4 offspring. With 12 Naemorhedus, each producing 4 offspring in 12 days, that makes 48 offspring in total,” Ellie explained. Many gulped in astonishment, still not fully grasping the logic despite her explanation.

Aman looked at the 12 members of the Setter family, starting to piece it together in his mind. Although he was using a counting method, he could still calculate it quickly.

“I understand now,” Aman said, causing everyone to be stunned. They focused mainly on fighting, with only a few having any head for calculations. If they asked merchants, they might get better answers, but would merchants dare to take on this challenge?

Having the eldest young lord bring Duchess Ellie was indeed a great advantage for them! But new questions had started to appear. Before they had time to fully understand the previous problem, new questions began to line up, giving them another headache!

“Spraze is Jarol’s father, but Jarol is not Spraze’s son. How can this be?”

“What belongs to you, but others use more than you do?”

“2 fathers and 2 sons have eggs for breakfast. Each eats 1 egg, but only 3 eggs are used in total. How is this possible?”

These successive questions made the Setter family members feel breathless. Shouldn’t the next test be about how many offspring the Naemorhedus have? Maybe asking how many they would have in 40 days, or something else they might know. But what was this? What were these questions even about!?!

“Damn it!! What does it mean, not his son? It’s clear Spraze is the father.”

“What is this question? My belongings should be used more by me. Why would others use my things more!? If that’s the case, I’ll make sure they lose their heads.”

“Ah, I get this one! It must be something I give to my lover. I often buy clothes for my lover, so it’s my money, but others use it.”

“That doesn’t seem right. I think it might be a book. It’s my book, but I let others borrow it.”

“What’s with this one? Why did they eat only 3 eggs in total? This isn’t funny. Did they just split the eggs in half?”“Where are the Naemorhedus questions? I was just starting to understand those!! This is, this is too much bullying!!”