“Hey! What makes you think my answer is wrong? How could I be wrong? It’s a simple word riddle!” Harper shot up in anger. She was defiant. As a prodigy, she was prideful. It was impossible for her to be defeated by a simple word riddle.
“Dear guest, please calm down. The answer has been set beforehand, and your answer is indeed wrong,” Keanu tried to explain.
“Fine! Since you said my answer is wrong, reveal the correct answer now! I want to see what can be a better answer than mine,” Harper demanded indignantly.
“Dear guest, since the other guests have yet to make a guess, it’s against the rules for us to reveal the answer at this time.
“If no one is able to answer this riddle, I will reveal the answer afterward. Please, calm down for now,” Keanu replied humbly.
“Oh, Harper, just admit you were wrong. A prodigy like you shouldn’t be a sore loser, don’t you think?” A sarcastic voice rang out beside them. It was Lana who spoke out, holding a wine glass.
“Who said I’m a sore loser? My answer isn’t even wrong to begin with!” Harper glared at her.
“You’re as conceited as ever.” Lana took a sip of her drink. With a faint smile, she said, “Do you know why I can’t stand you? It’s because you’re clearly untalented, yet you keep calling yourself a genius.
“Your arrogance is insufferable, just like now. You obviously have the wrong answer, yet you refuse to admit it. It’s truly sickening.”
“Bullshit! What makes you think I have the wrong answer? Do you think you’re better than me?” Harper yelled.
“What makes me think you have the wrong answer? Because I have the correct one, of course.” Lana stood up and turned her attention to Keanu. With a smile, she said, “Mr. Jankow, my answer is time.”
“Hmph! What nonsense!” Harper scoffed with her arms crossed. “Time has absolutely no relevance to the riddle. If this passes as the correct answer, I’ll denounce my name!”
“Is that so?” Lana smiled mockingly.
“Mr. Jankow, please reveal the results. Is my answer correct?”
“Congratulations, Ms. Camron. You are correct.” Keanu nodded slightly.
“What?” Harper practically screamed. She froze on the spot as if struck by lightning. She didn’t expect the answer she shunned to be the correct answer. How was that possible?
“Oh, Harper. How do you feel? It was unexpected, wasn’t it? Surprised?” With a smirk, Lana quipped, “With your personality, you will probably claim foul play or that Regal Court is playing favoritism.”
“That’s right! I won’t accept it!” Harper roared indignantly. “Why is it time and not a grandmaster? I must get a satisfactory explanation today!”
“It’s pretty self-explanatory, don’t you think? Why don’t you explain it to her? “Lana snapped her fingers, signaling the young man beside her to stand.
Although the young man had a gentle and intelligent demeanor, he delivered his words with resounding clarity.
“This poem is not hard. Humans, animals and plants all wither with time. Iron, steel, stone and virtually any substance will erode given enough time. Time practically devours everything.” After he was done explaining, the man leaned back in his seat.
“Brilliant explanation!”
“So that is the answer …”
Many of them applauded after hearing the explanation. Some things appeared simple, but without grasping the key to unlock them, finding a clue would be quite challenging.
“It really was time. Doesn’t that mean I just missed a great opportunity?”
