"Alright then, we'll start with a simple ga."
When they took a break on the road, Kain played a ga with ra just as she'd requested.
Kain didn't need to play mind gas for training, as his mind was already chaotic enough.
However, he knew that mind gas were necessary for ra to get used to the convoluted thinking of those who never thought simply.
To set up the ga, Kain simply picked up a small stone from the roadside.
"This ga is called... Guess Which Hand."
"Have you played it before?"
"No, I just thought of it a few minutes ago, but it's quite common, so you probably know it. Basically, you need to guess which hand I'm hiding the stone in."
"Oh, I know that ga! When I was little, so smarty-pants... no, I'm not talking about you, Kain. Anyway, they used to play it a lot, but with coins." ra's voice dropped then, her expression a little pouty. "I thought you'd let try so kind of strategy ga..."
"Not like that, ra." Kain shook his head and chuckled. "Strategy is always hidden in action, no matter how big or small. Wisdom and thought are the core, and everything else is just a stage for wisdom and thought to display their depth."
"Just play with , and you'll understand why."
Then, Kain put his hands behind his back to hide the stone. After that, he brought his two clasped hands forward, palms down with only his knuckles facing up, in front of ra.
"ra, guess which hand I'm hiding the stone in?"
ra, of course, didn't guess randomly.
Although she hadn't truly entered the political arena of masterminds, ra had perford quite well, especially when she tricked the five pursuing Magus earlier.
And despite having no imdiate clues, ra started by observing the direction of the other person's gaze, just as she used to guess which hand a coin was in as a child.
This wasn't so advanced technique; it was a basic one anyone could do. Those hiding a coin in one hand would often look at that hand more, then glance at the person opposite them as if confirming whether they'd guessed correctly.
But...
Would Kain make such a low-level mistake?
ra couldn't help but wonder, but she still lifted her gaze from his hands to observe Kain.
Just as she thought, Kain's gaze was perfectly normal; he wasn't paying attention to either side.
So, she lowered her gaze again to look at his two arms.
However, at that very mont, ra's eyes furtively darted up, just in ti to catch Kain's gaze directed at his left hand.
"Bullseye!" ra couldn't help but inwardly cheer.
Indeed, Kain wouldn't make a low-level mistake like revealing his gaze, especially not under soone else's observation.
That's why ra deliberately created a situation where she observed, then stopped observing, because she guessed that when she looked away, Kain would confidently glance down at the hand hiding the stone to confirm whether she had noticed.
And it was true; ra secretly saw Kain look towards his left hand.
"Kain, it's this one!" ra pointed to his left hand, a cunning expression showing through her faint smile.
However, when Kain opened his left hand, it was empty.
ra's face went blank.
"Oh, too bad, ra. Looks like you're out of luck this ti," Kain said with a nonchalant smile, making ra purse her lips, finding his deanor incredibly provoking.
She really wanted to pounce on him and bite him!
What do you an "out of luck"? He clearly tricked her with that gaze.
Only after this defeat did ra realize that when she told him about playing this ga in her childhood, Kain had already anticipated this outco. Because the "guessing by looking at the hider's eyes" trick is the most common thod people use for this ga.
Yes, ra's deduction wasn't wrong.
Kain did indeed use her story to create that eye-trap in this first round.
Even ra's extra layer of reasoning—thinking that he wouldn't reveal such an obvious flaw—was within Kain's predictions.
So why did ra make that decision?
That's because, for her, guessing based on eye movent was the fundantal way to play this ga. So even with her newfound ability for deeper deduction, ra would still rely on this foundation.
And just as Kain thought, ra would assu he would only reveal his gaze when no one was observing.
Thus, a single fake gaze was enough to lead ra to the wrong conclusion.
From start to finish, Kain never forced ra to use his gaze to determine which hand held the stone. He even actively "hid it," so ra could "discover" it and be pleased, thinking she had found the correct answer.
This was rely a "basic" level for Kain. ra still had a lot to learn.
"Let's start a new round! Let try again!" ra declared, rolling up her sleeves as if preparing for a grand magic battle.
Though, this was just a simple guessing ga even children played.
But at this mont, ra understood Kain's earlier words: wisdom and thought are the core, not just the surface on which they are displayed.
"Alright, as you wish." Kain indulged ra, once again putting his hands behind his back to switch the stone, then presenting them to her.
"ra, guess which hand I'm holding the stone in."
ra slightly lowered her head, deep in thought, but her eyes furtively darted up to observe Kain's gaze.
And she saw Kain, for a fleeting mont, glance down at his right hand, then return to normal.
"Good thing I didn't loudly state why I lost earlier, so he probably thinks he can still trick with this move," ra thought to herself.
Although she hadn't won against Kain in the previous round, she still knew how to keep her mouth shut.
Therefore... Kain must have hidden the stone in the opposite hand he didn't look at, which ans his left hand!
"I choose the left hand!" ra pointed to Kain's left hand, blinking, full of anticipation.
However, when Kain opened his hand, it was empty. Where was the stone?
ra's face went blank for the second ti.
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