I built the Black Tower City in Sumeru.

Chapter 58 Dolly's Schemes, Cory's Adoration, Farusan's Favor, Why Don't You Tie

This is quite a spectacle!

"Um... what are they doing?" Cole asked, dumbfounded and somewhat puzzled.

When Farusan saw the words "Centenarian Strongman" on the banner, she snorted irritably: "What else can it be? That shrewd businessman who only has Mora in his eyes is just creating hype."

"They're expanding the plate, aren't they?" Chen Bo said, taking a sip of the broth.

"Plate? What plate?" Cole was even more confused.

"The betting pool for the Mechanical Combat Competition." Chen Bo put down his bowl and explained to Ke Lai: "Although the Mechanical Combat Competition is a traditional event of the Academy, it doesn't actually attract a lot of attention. Most of the people who follow the theory are just a few enthusiasts. So last time the betting opened, I heard that the total turnover of the entire betting pool was less than 200 million Mora."

He held up his finger and began to illustrate: "Let me give you an example. Suppose there are only two of us in this competition, me and Kavi, and a total of 10,000 people bet on me to win, each betting 10,000 molars, that's 100 million. At the same time, another 10,000 people also bet 10,000 molars each on Kavi to win, that's also 100 million. Now the total bet is 200 million molars."

"In the end, I won. So, I ask you, how many Mora will each of those who bet on me win?"

Without hesitation, Cole replied, "Hmm... if we use the 100 million from Kavi's side and distribute it among the 10,000 people who bet on you to win, with odds of 1 to 2, each person would get back 20,000 Mora?"

"No." Chen Bo shook his head, revealing a "you're too naive" smile, and said, "The correct answer is, the odds are 1 to 1.8, and each person can only get back 18,000 Mora."

"Why?" Cole was completely confused.

"Because the bookmaker takes a cut," Chen Bo explained. "Bookmakers like Dolly, who organize gambling games, aren't doing charity. No matter who wins in the end, they take a fixed percentage from the total prize pool as commission, usually around 10%. So, out of the total 200 million Mora, 20 million goes into the bookmaker's pocket first. The remaining 180 million is then distributed to the winners."

"The bookmakers organize the gambling and provide the platform, so they always make a profit. Since it's a percentage-based commission, the more people participate and the larger the bets, the better. If the total stake increases from 200 million to 2 billion, their commission increases from 20 million to 200 million."

Farusan listened from the side, picked up her teacup, took a sip, and commented, "Hmph, it's nothing more than simple probability theory and business tricks, exploiting human greed."

Chen Bo smiled and nodded, "You're right, senior. So, what do you see Dolly doing right now?"

"My last match was won too easily and dramatically. 'Student of the Living Wheel School' and 'Guided by Senior Farusan' are excellent publicity gimmicks. She wants to portray me as a super favorite to attract more people who don't care about the game to watch out of curiosity. Inevitably, some of these people will place bets, and the whole betting pool will grow."

Chen Bo knew this because he had watched popular science videos on Douyin before.

For bookmakers who take a fixed cut, most of them will not participate in cheating or match-fixing; maintaining their reputation is the most important thing.

For the bookmaker, the most important thing is to find ways to get more people to play.

"So that's how it is..." After listening, Cole suddenly understood and felt filled with new knowledge.

Chen Bo looked in Dolly's direction and sighed softly, "However, Dolly made a fortune this time, while I lost a fortune."

Cole asked at just the right moment, "Why?"

Chen Bo said, "Because I can only bet on myself to win. With Dolly promoting it like this, these new viewers will definitely be more inclined to bet on me to win. And the odds fluctuate flexibly based on the amount of money bet by both sides. Therefore, the more people bet on me, the lower my odds will be."

"In that case, my profits will also shrink significantly."

He shrugged, looking utterly helpless: "The result is that Dolly used my fame to expand the pool and made a fortune. And me, the biggest contributor, because the odds were lowered, even if we won the game in the end, my share of the prize money was reduced. This time, I'm completely ripped off!"

However, it's not entirely a loss. Being made famous is also a good thing. Establishing the reputation of a genius now will make it easier to gain the respect of the masses when he succeeds to the position of Great Sage.

Just as Chen Bo was pondering.

The system screen popped up, displaying two lines of text above the heads of Cole and Farusan.

The text above Cole's head reads: "How come Junior Anil knows everything? He's so amazing... I wish I could be as amazing as him."

[System annotation: "When you decide to face the Doctor together with Coly, her affection for you increases significantly. Affection is composed of intimacy and admiration."]

The text above Farusan's head read: "How come this child knows a little bit about everything? He learns much faster than I did back then. If you ask me, this child should transfer to the Epistemological School! It's such a pity that he's going to the Rainforest soon, and Cole will leave with him too. Then, I'll be all alone again... Should I think of a way to snatch this child away from Tinali?"

[System annotation: "Falusan admires your learning attitude and character, and has unknowingly developed a dependence on you. Her favorability is composed of admiration and dependence."]

Look at the text markers provided by the system.

Chen Bo was instantly filled with questions.

Something's not right, something's very wrong!

Affection? Intimacy? Admiration? Dependence?

What exactly is this system doing?

This is a legitimate research and upgrade path for me. What's the meaning of giving me a whole corner of the screen with a wooden (Galgame) interface?

He glanced across at her. Cole was looking at him with sparkling eyes, an adoration that was practically overflowing.

Meanwhile, the senior, Farusan, maintained her composure as a senior, sipping her tea from her cup, but the slight upturn of her lips and the occasional glances she gave revealed her true thoughts.

The words I just marked were my true feelings.

Just as Chen Bo was internally complaining...

Another line of text appeared on the screen.

[System Notification: All tasks are progressing smoothly, except for "Task Two: Developing Connections," which is progressing slowly. After comprehensive evaluation, the system has decided to issue a friendly reminder to the host: To achieve well-rounded development in morality, intelligence, physical fitness, aesthetics, and labor, it is recommended to advance every basic task. So, why don't you bind yourself to Cole as your mentor?]

The system screen flashed, and the task interface was forcibly brought up.

[Task Two: Developing Connections]

[Introduction: Connections mean opportunities and resources; even geniuses like Heta are not immune. You need a mentor.]

[Requirement: Choose a mentor and raise their affinity level to Friendly (30 points).]

[Rewards: 100 allocatable subject experience points, 100 points of credits. One chance to win a prize (95% junk, 5% random tech creation sample).]