Huffman Merge Cost
Description
Repeatedly merge two available weights, paying their sum each time, until one weight remains. Find the minimum possible total cost.
Input
The function receives the input weights and a writable work array.
Output
Return the minimum total merge cost.
Constraints
- $1 \le n \le 8$.
- $1 \le weight_i \le 1000$.
Source
Classical Huffman optimal-merge problem reconstructed from the verified C artifact.