The students in the auditorium eagerly volunteered, and finally, a female student, a male student, and William Jiang were chosen as Leon's assistants.
A table was brought onto the stage, and Leon took out a deck of playing cards. "What do you think is the most amazing card trick?"
"Guessing the card?"
"Predicting the future?"
"Making the card go through glass?"
"I'm sorry, but I don't think there's any card trick that's truly magical," William responded dismissively. "To me, magic is just deception. Whatever you perform, I can figure it out."
The other students booed his arrogance.
Leon smiled. "It seems this student is a tough audience."
"These card tricks aren't impressive. What else do you think?" Leon asked as he shuffled the deck.
"Levitating cards?"
"Are you talking about the Berglas Effect?" a loud voice answered.
Leon nodded. "Yes, the Berglas Effect!"
Most students were puzzled by this term, having never heard of such a magic trick.
The student who answered, a member of the Magic Club, shouted, "You must be joking. Even the top card magicians don't know the secret of the Berglas Effect."
Curious, the others asked what the Berglas Effect was.
"David Berglas performed a miraculous 'Any Card at Any Number' trick over fifty years ago. Due to its mysterious method, it hasn't been deciphered for fifty years and is thus known as the Berglas Effect."
"The Berglas Effect adheres to four strict criteria: 1. The deck can be shown at the start of the performance. 2. The spectator freely names any card. They are not stooges and can choose any card from the 52. 3. Another spectator names a number between 1 and 52. They are also not stooges and have no restrictions. 4. A third spectator counts down to the named number, and the named card will be there. The performer does not touch the cards during the performance."
After Leon explained, everyone was in awe.
"Today, I will recreate this legendary card trick! But with my own twist," Leon confidently declared. "This version will be even more complex. I will have you think of a card, then I will guess what you are thinking, and finally reveal the card without knowing it."
"If you can do that, I'll eat the cards," William scoffed, not believing such an outrageous trick was possible. He was sure Leon was bluffing.
The audience looked at Leon with skepticism, unable to imagine such a feat.
Unfazed, Leon spread the cards on the table and addressed the first female assistant. "Please look at these cards and think of a suit without saying it out loud."
The girl nodded.
Leon squinted. Normally, he couldn't have achieved this, but today he had a different approach.
Activating Ability NO. 108—Mind Reading!
『This senior is so handsome, but his girlfriend is so pretty. Sigh…』
"Have you decided on a suit?" Leon asked.
"Yes," the girl blushed, nodding.
『Hearts!』
"Now, think of a number between 1 and 13," Leon instructed the second male assistant.
『13!』
"Got it," the male assistant confirmed.
Leon then approached William.
'You got lucky with the script change earlier. This time, you're going down! How dare you take my hosting spot and oppose me! I'll make you pay.' William's inner thoughts were filled with malice.
"Should I think of a number between 1 and 52?"
Leon's eyes flashed with a fleeting coldness, but he maintained a harmless smile. "Yes, think of a number."
『14, you're dead!』 William chose the number 14, thinking of its phonetic similarity to "death" in Chinese.
Leon chuckled inwardly, finding William's pettiness amusing.
"Have you all made your choices?" Leon asked for confirmation.
All three assistants nodded, though William kept smirking.
Leon gathered the cards and shuffled them, then casually asked William, "You seem skeptical."
"Hmph, I will see through your tricks," William sneered.
"Are you sure? Betting against a magician can be dangerous," Leon warned kindly.
"Enough talk. If you can do the Berglas Effect, I'll eat the cards," William retorted. "But if I catch any flaw, will you eat the cards?"
The audience gasped, sensing the rising tension.
Jason He shook his head, thinking Leon was being overly bold.
"No problem," Leon agreed.
"Will you let me shuffle the cards?" William pushed further.
Leon handed him the deck, indicating he could shuffle. William shuffled furiously, mixing the cards chaotically like a madman. The audience watched nervously, while the Magic Club members held their breath, knowing that no magician had ever dared to let an audience member shuffle so recklessly during the Berglas Effect.
"Leon is really daring," Celia remarked, admiring his courage. "No matter the outcome, he has captivated everyone's attention."
Lily Lin, however, was extremely anxious, eyes closed, praying fervently.
"This student has good shuffling skills, clearly a professional," Leon joked, taking back the deck and placing it on the table.
"The cards were shuffled by this student, and the chosen suit and numbers were not spoken out loud. Any objections?"
The audience murmured in agreement.
"Good. Now, without touching the deck, please reveal what you thought of."
Leon prompted them.
"Hearts."
"13, the King!"
"14 cards!" William announced smugly, confident in his choice. He felt assured because the chosen suit and number had only been revealed now, making it impossible for Leon to have known.
William didn't believe in the existence of mind-reading magicians.
"Please count to the 14th card!"
William began counting the cards. With each card, the tension in the room grew.
At the 14th card, William held it up, and Leon didn't rush him to reveal it. Instead, he said, "From the beginning, you shuffled the cards. The suit and number were chosen by you all independently. If this card is the King of Hearts, won't you be amazed?"
'What a show-off. Do you really think you can recreate a magic trick that even world-class magicians haven't deciphered? I'll make sure you regret it,' William's thoughts were filled with contempt and mockery.
In contrast, the other students' thoughts were much purer, filled with disbelief and hope.
The entire event was being recorded by the photography department, with thousands of eyes glued to the screen, not wanting to miss a single detail.
"Now is the moment to witness a miracle!" Leon thought of Lu Chen's famous line and smiled.
William snorted disdainfully, flipping the card without hesitation, confident that Leon couldn't pull it off.
He expected to see Leon's embarrassed face but was instead met with a triumphant smile.
The auditorium erupted in screams.
The 14th card that William revealed…
Was indeed…
The King of Hearts!!
"How is this possible?!"
William was utterly dumbfounded.