Chapter 798: Jarvis, Don’t Screw Me Over
Zou Zhuo entered the game, and graphic elements related to *Three Kingdoms Kill* appeared in his field of vision. At the same time, Jarvis’s voice sounded in his ear.
“Want to play a round of *Three Kingdoms Kill*? This should be your first time with this game. If you need it, I can offer you a little advice.”
Zou Zhuo quickly replied, “Sure, sure! I was just worried I wouldn’t understand how to play.”
As an artificial intelligence program, Jarvis was obviously extremely clear on the rules of these games. He began explaining the game rules to Zou Zhuo while displaying various cards.
“*Three Kingdoms Kill* is a multiplayer card game set in the Three Kingdoms era. It includes several different card types: Identity cards, General cards, Basic cards, and Strategy cards.”
“In the Identity mode, each player takes on an identity. There are four identities: Lord, Loyalist, Traitor, and Rebel. Each identity has a specific game objective…”
As Jarvis explained, he displayed the cards being discussed in Zou Zhuo’s field of vision.
For example, when explaining Identity cards, four three-dimensional Identity cards appeared before Zou Zhuo. When explaining the “Lord,” that card floated in front of him, slowly rotating while a brief introduction in various artistic fonts emerged beside it.
These cards would occasionally form various structures, using a flowchart-like method to show players the relationships and usage between them.
This felt very similar to the tutorial guidance in many games, but the difference was that all the displays were achieved through MR technology. Zou Zhuo could see the cards floating in mid-air before his eyes, and even the patterns and thickness on the cards were clearly distinguishable, giving them a very rich texture.
Since it was an MR game, Chen Mo hadn’t made *Three Kingdoms Kill* out of paper card material. Instead, he added thickness and a carved feel, with beautifully designed embossed patterns on the backs, making them appear more three-dimensional.
Moreover, the current version of *Three Kingdoms Kill* only supported face-to-face gameplay, only the classic Identity mode, and did not yet support online play. This was because *Three Kingdoms Kill* was still an exclusive game for the Matrix Glasses and couldn’t be linked with PC or mobile devices.
The advantage of MR games lay in their mixed display with reality. As a tabletop game, playing *Three Kingdoms Kill* face-to-face with friends was the most fun. Playing it alone against an empty table with people online wasn’t impossible, but it felt far too lonely.
VR devices were for those shut-ins who never left home. MR itself encouraged people to go out, move around, and meet friends, so the positioning of the two types of games was inherently different.
Thus, in the initial version, Chen Mo only included the most basic and essential content of *Three Kingdoms Kill*, focusing on providing all players with the ultimate face-to-face gaming experience.
Some might think, “Why bother with all this effort? You might as well just make physical cards!”
Actually, that wasn’t the case. The MR version of *Three Kingdoms Kill*, and all MR card games, had many advantages over physical versions.
First, convenience. One or two types of cards might not be a big deal, but what about several or even a dozen types? Physical cards had to be carried around, but the MR version only required wearing the glasses to integrate all types of board and card games, with virtually unlimited room for expansion in the future.
Second, stunning effects. Physical cards had no background sounds, no special effects, and their appearance was mediocre. They inevitably wore out with use. But the MR version could include cool sound effects, special effects, and character voice lines, making it even more explosive in presentation than PC or mobile versions.
So, since everyone had Matrix Glasses, the MR version of *Three Kingdoms Kill* was obviously way cooler than the physical version.
Soon, everyone had finished the basic tutorial for *Three Kingdoms Kill*. Although they were still a bit confused, with Jarvis, an AI they could consult at any time, they didn’t have to worry about not understanding at all.
In reality, Jarvis’s skill level was now higher than most players. But to ensure the players’ gaming experience, Jarvis could only offer basic advice to help newbies understand the game. He couldn’t play for them; otherwise, wouldn’t it just become a battle between Jarvis instances?
“Come on, let’s give it a try. Let’s do a five-player game.” Zou Zhuo and the others found two sofas and sat down facing each other, using the table in front of them as the playing area.
Glancing at the lineup—Jia Peng, Wen Lingwei, Su Jinyu, and Zhao Lei—Zou Zhuo silently used the built-in note function in *Three Kingdoms Kill* to label them one by one: Unlucky Dog, Half-European Bloodline, Natural Airhead, Honest Guy.
Yeah, that fit.
These people had known each other for a long time, so they were all well-acquainted. Zou Zhuo was very happy to play *Three Kingdoms Kill* with someone like Jia Peng, since card games were all about luck. Among the four, only Wen Lingwei gave Zou Zhuo a bit of pressure, but it was manageable—she had some European bloodline but wasn’t too pure. If it were someone like Zheng Hongxi, that European dog, it would be much trickier.
Fortunately, Zheng Hongxi was usually busy with work, deeply engrossed in studying game storylines, and wasn’t that enthusiastic about gaming. Maybe that was why he’d managed to maintain such a pure European bloodline…
The game began with a cool card-dealing process. In the center of the table was a full deck, showing the number of cards currently available to draw. Each person had a small area on the table in front of them to display their general information.
Su Jinyu was the Lord. Her area was highlighted, and the special seal-script characters for “Lord” appeared. The identities of the others were hidden, but other players could freely add notes.
After selecting their generals, each person’s small area displayed a virtual image of their general. These images were like figurines, but they moved, making corresponding actions when the player performed operations.
Once everyone had chosen their generals, a special table background appeared, looking like a real battlefield. There were elements like siege vehicles, foot soldiers, and city walls, enhancing the immersion of the tabletop scene.
Jia Peng looked at the available generals in his field of vision and was very conflicted. After listening to Jarvis introduce each one’s skills, he was still a bit confused.
His identity this round was Rebel. Time was tight, so he didn’t have a chance to look carefully. Following Jarvis’s recommendation, he chose the high-burst general Zhen Ji as his hero.
After everyone had made their selections, the game officially began.
The basic rules of *Three Kingdoms Kill* were fairly clear, and with Jarvis as the AI providing basic explanations, Jarvis would offer some fundamental advice before each action or when being attacked. So, everyone played relatively smoothly.
Soon, it was Jia Peng’s turn to draw cards.
First card: Heart.
He drew his hand cards: two Diamonds.
Jia Peng: “…”
Jarvis: “…”
Jia Peng asked, “Jarvis, we’re both surnamed Jia. Don’t screw me over. Didn’t you say this hero could keep drawing cards? Is my ‘Luo Shen’ fake or what?”
Jarvis explained, “You omitted my qualifier. My exact words were that this hero can keep drawing cards ‘if you’re lucky.’”