Complete the table series riddle by finding the number that can replace "??".

Why is the Hole below a Lock?

Two friends were stuck in a cottage. They had nothing to do and thus they started playing cards. Suddenly the power went off and Friend 1 inverted the position of 15 cards in the normal deck of 52 cards and shuffled it. Now he asked Friend 2 to divide the cards into two piles (need not be equal) with equal number of cards facing up. The room was quite dark and Friend 2 could not see the cards. He thinks for a while and then divides the cards in two piles.

On checking, the count of cards facing up is same in both the piles. How could Friend 2 have done it ?

A bomb goes off.
Carnage.
One person, only a few feet away, survives! How can this be?

In the given picture, you can find two letters missing. When two particular letters are placed in the missing spots, you get an eight-letter word while reading in the anti-clockwise direction. Can you find out the missing letters and the missing word eventually?

John was born on March 5, 1970, in Delhi, India. Jacob was born 25 days before John. The year when they took birth, Republic Day fell on Monday.

Can you find out on what day was Jacob born?

The King of a distant land had heard that Birbal was one of the wisest men in the East and so desired to meet Birbal. He sent Birbal an invitation to visit his country.

In due course, Birbal arrived in the distant kingdom. When he entered the palace he was flabbergasted to find not one but six kings seated there. All looked alike. All were dressed in kingly robes. Who was the real king?

The very next moment he got his answer. Confidently, he approached the king and bowed to him.

How did Birbal know who was the real king?

This is a classy optical illusion puzzle. What more you can find except bricks in the image below?

It is always ahead of me yet I can never see it. What is it?

I add 5 to 9 and get 2. The answer is correct, so what am I?