My Utkanc match with Alpshar lasted nearly an hour, but in the end, the winner was Alpshar. Toward the end of the game, I deliberately allowed him to win to prevent him from learning more about me. Additionally, this ensured that no hostility would arise between us. Of course, if I had taken the match seriously, we probably would have ended in a stalemate again.
Meanwhile, the battle below continued. The war had likely started at least a few hours before I arrived here, and by my estimate, the battle had been raging for over three hours and it looked like the battle would continue for a while.
When our Utkanc match ended, Alpshar stepped away from the board, leaned back, and placed his hands on the edge of the table. His face carried the trace of both victory and a cloud of thought.
"You presented me with an interesting game, Ethan," he said. "But actual wars are always more complicated than this board. Someone like you should be able to see beyond it."
