Pokémon Detective Case Files

Chapter 184 The Magician on the Clock Face

Chapter 185 The Magician on the Clock Face

"The game has only just begun"—people often ignorantly proclaim this when they first start to lose. But as a seasoned gambler, you should know that it is often these seemingly insurmountable gaps at the beginning that determine the final outcome.

The game entered a phase similar to a halftime break. Perhaps feeling that the dealer was too slow in transferring chips, Vio took the initiative to start a conversation.

The old man acted in two ways: firstly, to save face for his uncoordinated subordinate; and secondly, to continue influencing the gamblers on the ship through his live-broadcast speech.

"The reason casinos can profit, and why bookmakers can continuously drain gamblers' wallets, is because compared to the gamblers' bets, the casinos' funds are almost unlimited. With ample funds, bookmakers have countless opportunities to recoup their losses, while gamblers only have a handful of chances, making them completely unable to bear the risk commensurate with the odds of winning..."

"Therefore, trying to recoup losses through more gambling is as foolish as covering a burning fire with dry wood in an attempt to extinguish it. Why is such a basic principle—that you lose ten times out of ten and win by not gambling—not gambling is winning? Don't you think so, King of Blueberries?"

Is the casino legend from the Plasma Cluster trying to use mathematical principles to dissuade people from gambling?

Lingju found it amusing, but he couldn't let the other person continue, so he decisively changed the subject.

"So, you mean you now have enough chips to take the risk of betting against me? Do you have enough timber to form an impenetrable raft to smother the burning flames?"

His gaze swept back and forth across the black and white ends of the gambling table, the uneven purple hills gleaming in the indoor light: "With just this one-third difference? You think you can accomplish what casinos can only do with huge sums of cash?"

"The improved clock calculation theory can do many counterintuitive things."

Vio picked up a purple chip, squinting as he studied the Poké Ball pattern on it. A bet worth a million dollars was as insignificant as the smallest unit of currency in this game.

"To this day, I am increasingly glad that I did not write this gambling technique into my thesis. The modified clock face theory can not only be applied to the outcome of gambling, but also to financial crises."

Mr. Moneybag, who controlled the Plasma Group's finances, spoke with growing contempt, continuing—

"To be honest, compared to the uncertainties in financial transactions, these calculations in casinos are child's play. Stock price fluctuations, exchange rate volatility, price changes, commodity inventory, insurance claims, consumer psychology, and endless off-exchange factors interfere with investors' judgments... The flapping of a butterfly's wings thousands of miles away can cause the stock market on the United States Exchange to crash or hit its daily limit. Don't think this is an exaggeration; the real world is indeed that fragile and unstable."

"I can't deny it," the evil king nodded in response.

"But if we introduce an improved clock theory into trading, the situation becomes very different. It's like a natural phenomenon called 'lone waves'—splashes caused by the movement of ships or Pokémon that neither disappear nor change shape, but travel straight through the waves unimpeded, sometimes for distances of several kilometers—and such phenomena can be calculated and reproduced based on initial conditions. Even in such a chaotic ocean of probability, people can still rely on mathematical calculations to anchor a predetermined fact that will occur in the future."

"Predicting the future? No, it's more accurate to call it predicting the future." Yueju pondered the other person's words with a belly full of suspicion.

"However, even if I saw what you call the 'lone wave' phenomenon in the water, I'd probably think it was just a wild Pokémon playing a prank. And even if such a phenomenon truly exists in nature, it doesn't mean it can be perfectly applied to the field of economics, does it?"

The dealer had already arranged the chips on the table, but hesitated to deal the cards because the duel between the two sides was still in the middle of a conversation.

"Applying a formula? That's something only a half-baked amateur would do. Mathematicians don't use such shortcuts," the old man said, shaking his head and gazing at his opponent behind the gambling table.

"We rely on equations and formulas. Seventy-five supercomputers, powered by multiple Pokémon working together, operate at high speed, processing all existing information in the current market simultaneously. Combined with algorithmic models, this allows us to accurately predict the areas where solitary waves are about to occur, sometimes for short-term trading within five minutes, sometimes for value investing over several years, but in either case, our calculations can never be wrong—this is something only mathematics can do."

Vio stared straight at the blueberry, proudly raising his hand: "And for this gamble before us, we don't need the power of computers. My old brain alone is enough to see the shape of the future Lone Wave."

"So this is how plasma clusters make money? I've learned something new."

The old man's opponent wore a respectful and obedient expression, but on the blueberry's face, this expression seemed like feigned mockery, which instead earned him hostility.

Vio scoffed, "Don't pretend you know nothing, King Yueju. This matter has never been a secret within the Order. With your superb intelligence-gathering skills, you should have known about it long ago. Otherwise, why would you have brought up that paper earlier?"

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"Perhaps we should focus more on the current game rather than on these off-field information."

Lingju smiled, her slender fingertips tapping the table.

"Although you have claimed to have an advantage that would be an open declaration of victory, I have not yet conceded defeat. If you want to win the Royal Union and the billions of dollars on it in one go, you'll have to work harder."

"The game has only just begun."

As if responding to Vio's earlier statement, the Dark-type Elite Four member licked his somewhat dry lips and declared in a menacing manner.

.

"You talk so arrogantly, but aren't your current actions just repeating your previous defeats?"

In the lobby, Naz was holding New Leaf Cat in her arms, staring blankly at the high-definition television screen.

Skipping cards, folding, and betting heavily to force Vio to give up calling—the King of Villains' tactics were no different from before—the only difference being that the bets he placed became more and more expensive each round.

Vio was occasionally outmaneuvered by his opponents, but overall he won more matches. The castle built of amethyst grew taller and taller, gradually evolving into the shape of a mountain range.

In contrast, blueberries are gradually falling into a desperate situation—just as the old man had previously declared.

The gap of one-third has unknowingly become one-half, and there is no sign that it will stop there.

Naz gradually heard the gambler's cursing voice, the lament of the bettor who had bet his entire fortune on lingonberries.

As night deepened, unease and madness began to fester.

Everyone was either ashen-faced or snickering behind their hands. The crowd was mixed together like a shuffled deck of cards, yet it was also vaguely divided into two distinct factions.

"Meow..."

The green kitten opened its eyes wide and looked at its trainer on the screen, then turned back to curiously observe the chaos outside the screen.

Just as it had not yet learned the meaning of the suits on the gambling table, it was equally unable to comprehend the joys and sorrows of the humans in the hall.

In this silent, bustling crowd, amidst the prayers of those who offer their souls, it seems only this little cat is untroubled by winning or losing.