It's Alister's turn.
However, Eliana, with a smirking smile, spoke first:
"Just a friendly reminder, E5 is the trap I set~."
The best opening moves are relative; white starts from E4 and black starts from E5.
In other words, according to the pure rules of optimal solutions, Alister should move the pawn to E5 to clear the way for the subsequent pieces.
But in reality, whether this is the best solution doesn't matter; what's most important is...
"Interfering with the opponent's judgment through rhetoric—"
With his hands in his pockets and supported by the shadow behind him, Alister calmly signaled the pawn to move forward.
"—is futile."
With his command, the black pawn in front of the king moved decisively to the E5 area, the very spot Eliana had pointed out.
Nothing happened.
E5's so-called death trap was Eliana's lie.
The white-haired girl remained gentle, but said nothing.
Ignoring the suspicion and wariness brought by rhetoric, he seemed to grasp the overall situation and went straight for the best path.
The indifference of the "Shadow" gave rise to an inexplicable feeling of suppression.
The true meaning of Deathtrap Chess is to make the player think ahead and set up invisible death squares...
Vigilance and suspicion regarding the death squares are the biggest obstacles to the game's progress.
Yet the "Shadow" seemed utterly unconcerned about this...
"Tch, lucky break."
After a few seconds of silence, Eliana responded with a hint of danger amidst her gentleness.
To be thrown into suspicion and confusion after just one failure was not the mentality befitting a strong individual.
Eliana, who proclaimed herself the World Princess, knew this well.
But she didn't know...
"I never rely on luck."
Empowered by his heightened senses, Alister, step by step, not only won a move against her, but would likely secure victory in the end.
Lies can be concealed, but they will never be buried.
The "Shadow's" smile could be even more sinister than that of a yandere; it was the expression of someone toying with their prey.
Gentle yet instilling an instinctive sense of fear.
...
...
In Deathtrap Chess with invisible death squares, chess skills are not the sole determining factor; deception and manipulation also play a pivotal role.
These are the three things Eliana needs to consider.
When lying, details like heartbeats, pulses, and breaths that can't be fully controlled will inevitably reveal themselves.
Therefore, deception and manipulation are meaningless in front of Alister, akin to adults watching a child's performance.
—Purely childish tricks.
Alister only needs to consider the correctness of his moves and how to subdue the yandere perfectly, not only on a psychological level...
In this game of international chess, he holds an absolute advantage.
"Knight to C6."
"Shadow," dressed in a sleek black coat, commands the piece like a monarch, unflinchingly directing the black knight to C6 on the smooth black-and-white chessboard.
Eliana responded in kind:
"Bishop to B5."
The white bishop moved significantly, directly reaching the area defended by the black pieces.
"Pawn to A6." Alister blocked the white bishop's path.
"Bishop to A4." Eliana's hair swayed with the unfolding game.
Next, during his turn, "Shadow" looked at a certain square with interest and said:
"Is the death square set here?"
Eliana, still gentle, tilted her head slightly and replied with a smile:
"Yes, I set the death square here."
—A lie.
Without even a moment of thought, Alister, with an overbearing attitude, commanded the black pieces to move over there.
The piece seemed to scrape against the black-and-white board, and it seemed to rub against Eliana's mindset.
Her gentle smile gradually displayed a hint of change, though still subtle.
But Alister saw it nonetheless.
"How did you see through it?" Eliana's smile bloomed amidst danger, "The Shadow's additional power?"
It's widely known that the Chief's power is to control shadows.
However, this information cannot explain the substantial increase in his psychic value...
And the bizarre way he sees through things now.
Clearly, a player can only have one ability in their ability bar.
Alister responded with a similarly dangerous smile, saying playfully to the white-haired girl, "Can you guess?"
Eliana didn't want to guess. Relying on luck, she dodged the death square and commanded her pieces to move once more.
With a sound of smooth friction, the huge white pieces advanced diagonally, forming a defensive stance.
Then it was Alister's turn again.
"Death square, is it here?" Alister asked as usual.
However, this time, Eliana didn't speak, merely existing as the white king with a smiling expression.
Eliana speculated that "Shadow's" ability to see through things was connected to her responses, so she stayed silent.
But silence was still within the range of an answer.
Once again, Alister moved his piece, again taking on the role of a predator, step by step controlling the main course of the game.
...Eliana watched it all unfold.
One turn ended, then another, with the usual questions arising...
Unknowingly, despite Eliana repeatedly avoiding the death square with "Lucky King," the game was still being led by Alister.
The number of pieces was gradually reduced by Alister, the disadvantage becoming increasingly apparent, and defeat not far off.
It seemed she was losing to Alister even in pure chess skills.
Although this was a game she initiated...
Eliana directed the white queen to move repeatedly, overcoming Alister's obstacles time and again. But as the problems were resolved...
She began to feel somewhat unwilling, recognizing the impending reality of her defeat.
"In games, without self-confidence, how can one make brilliant moves?"
Alister suddenly spoke, his words calm but pressing on Eliana's state of mind, stealing away some of her composure.
She knew this was a tactic to distract her thoughts, but she couldn't ignore it.
Alister had always been confident to the point of arrogance, a trait Eliana had dismissed before.
Now.
"Queen, capture the obstructing piece ahead."
Eliana's smile revealed genuine danger, abandoning passive defense for an extremely aggressive offensive strategy.
Either suffer a defeat in defense or seek survival in attack.
But as said before, Alister just loves curing yanderes, treating them harshly.
"Queen, move."
He also adopted a more aggressive strategy, exchanging moves with Eliana, accelerating the evolution of the game.
"This turn, is your death square here?" Alister considered giving her a glimmer of hope.
Defiantly, Eliana replied with a gentle smile, "Yes, so what?"
Next turn.
"Well, it seems it's here..." Alister pondered, looking at a certain spot.
Eliana tried to stay composed, "No, it's not."
And the next turn.
"Death square, no need to ask." Alister's tone was calm.
Eliana's brow twitched, "..."
Under the suppression of heightened senses and meticulous chess strategy, despite Eliana's efforts to reverse the situation, she was ultimately moving towards defeat.
With the sound of smooth friction of the black piece, it moved toward the white knight and took it down...
"Shadow" stood on the chessboard, calmly looking at her queen, pointing directly at Eliana, representing the white king.
There were no spare white pieces to prevent it, and the black queen could end the white king's reign in the next move.
According to the unchanging rules of chess, when the king is captured, it signifies defeat.
Thus, with the "Shadow's" calm tone, the endgame of this chessboard world was declared.
"Checkmate."