Nameless King

Everyone was surprised to see a huge chessboard. It was something strange and unbelievable.

"Welcome to the next challenge and maybe even the final challenge. It will be up to you." Said the mask flying up to the group.

"Chess is a worthy game to put your lives on the line, isn't it?"

"What are the rules?" Asked Ayla.

"It's simple, two of you will play, and the rest of you will bet on who wins. The losers will die. That goes for the players and those who make the bets."

"How do we determine who will play?" Finch muttered.

"Huh, it was all decided a long time ago, during the first challenge. As you all know, chess has two sides, white and black. They are two opposite colors that are as far apart as possible. You could say it's the first and last color."

No one understood what the mask was talking about. Ayla waited with trepidation to find out who would play.

"Whoever picked up the revolver first during the first test would play for white. Whoever held the revolver last before the trial ended would play for the blacks. Isn't that easy?" The mask said with a smirk.

Then everyone looked at Ayla and Wain. Given the rules, they had to play, and like the mask said, it had been decided initially.

"Damn..." Wain muttered.

He knew how to play chess, but he couldn't boast a high level of play. His skills could be compared to a beginner who had played no more than ten games in all time. 

Wain's only hope was that Ayla didn't know how the pieces moved at all.

However, when he looked at the girl, she was smiling contentedly. This could only mean that Ayla was confident in her abilities, unlike Wain, for whom chess was a passing distraction.

"Hey, Elf, you come from a noble family, right?" Finch asked.

"Yes. My family is influential and powerful. The length of our lineage goes back several thousand years, and we honor tradition." Ayla said with genuine pride.

Finch and Dia smiled. At that moment, they decided who they were going to bet on. They were sure that Wain could not play better than Ayla, a noble family's offspring. It was impossible.

"All right, then, it's settled. Players, please take your seats." Said the mask, and the darkness turned into two stairs and platforms the next moment.

Ayla smilingly made her way to her platform and was ready to make her move. 

In the meantime, Wain slowly climbed to the top and reasoned about the situation. He didn't know what to do or how to win. It wasn't strength or luck that decided everything now, but his level of chess.

When Wain stood on the platform and looked at Ayla's confident face, he finally realized that he could not win this duel, but Wain thought he had a chance.

'None of the previous trials have been common. There must be some secret in these chess games. It can't be an ordinary game.' Thought Wain looking at the chess pieces.

Whooooooosh.

The mask flew up to the chessboard, and two coins each appeared in front of Dia, Finch, and Keya, one was white the other black. They smiled and immediately took the black coin without even waiting for the mask's words.

"I see that the spectators have already had time to place their bets, well, I hope you won't regret your decision. As before, this challenge has one peculiarity. These chess pieces are magical artifacts responding to your power. It may help you, but it may be a critical mistake." Said the mask and disappeared.

Then a massive clock appeared to the left of the chessboard and started the countdown. There were only three minutes to move, and the game could last indefinitely until one of the players won.

'Will the chess pieces respond to our power? Hmm, perhaps not all is lost yet.' Wain thought and looked closely at one of the pawns.

Wain wanted to try to use his power on it, but he was having none of it even after two minutes. He didn't understand if it was supposed to be that way or if he was doing something wrong.

"Okay... it's worth making a move first." Mumbled Wain looking at the fact that he only had ten seconds left.

He swung his hand, and pawn moved to the center from the second square to the fourth. It was the classic and most effortless move, so Wain decided to do just that. 

Moreover, he knew that chess is a game where the longer the game lasts, the more complicated the situation becomes.

"Hmm? Did you decide to give in to me?" With a slight smile on her face, Ayla said and waved her hand.

One of the pawns glowed brightly and jumped over two squares at once, and destroyed his pawn to Wain's surprise.

"What's going on...?" Wain muttered.

The pawn could step over one square, but Ayla's piece stepped over two, which was impossible according to the game's rules. Also, pawns could not destroy other pieces directly but only diagonally.

Wain was in a stupor. He didn't understand why this happened.

'I tried to influence the pawn, but it didn't work. However, she did it like it was a regular thing... Shit, shit, shit.' Wain thought.

He stared at the knight and tried to reinforce the piece, but Wain failed again. He had to make a move and watch Ayla destroy him again.

Thus fifteen minutes passed, and each side made a total of four moves. Wain tried to stall for as long as possible and figure out the difference between him and Ayla.

He looked intently at the girl, at her surroundings, at the pieces.

'She looks like an ordinary girl, only if it weren't for her pointy ears... Right, ears...' muttered Wain to himself.

Then Wain realized that the answer to his question was obvious. He was human, and Ayla was an elf. That was also the only reason why he, unlike her, could not interact with the chess pieces.

'Humans have many disadvantages, one of them being the inability to absorb energy. I could control the pieces if they could use energy, but it looks like the chess pieces don't absorb energy. 

They give it to me. In that case, it's impossible for me. I can't absorb energy from the crystals, and therefore from the chess pieces...' Wain thought and bit his lip until it bled.

Wain was right. Every time Ayla made a move, she received a large amount of energy and increased her strength. For a human, this test was a real disaster, Wain didn't have a single chance to win.

For the next ten minutes, Wain tried to figure out how to get out of this situation alive. 

He made the simplest moves and did it as slowly as possible. In contrast, Ayla answered in seconds and looked at Wain with a satisfied smirk.

'Damn, I'm no expert, but I think it finished in a few moves. I already have fewer pieces than her. I need to hurry up.' Thought Wain and looked at Finch and Dia.

They were just as happy with the situation as they supposed Ayla was easily defeating Wain and dominating.

At that moment, Wain had an idea. He realized that one important detail had eluded him for a long time.

Every time he was in the Purgatory zones, someone tried to invade the zone. 

It wasn't a coincidence, Wain understood that, but he didn't guess that the reason was him personally.

'Sven had said that it was impossible to get to some places even with a portal. It requires the strength of the spatial barrier to be greatly reduced. Is it possible they could get here because of me since I came here through a secret entrance...'

Wain realized that his only option to survive in this situation was to create chaos that would make the ordeal and everything else irrelevant. To do that, he had to weaken the spatial barrier of the area somehow again.

Other creatures would come here, and perhaps Wain could take advantage of the situation.

'Perhaps if Pearl Hunter gets into this zone, I can completely change the situation.' Thought Wain and his aura began to intensify gradually.

He made his last move and was building up energy. Gray ceilings burst from beneath the ground like tongues of flame, and a crown appeared on Wain's head with a closed eye. 

Energy enveloped his hands, and the sound of teeth clattering against each other from the jaws on his palms could be heard.

"What are you doing?!" Shouted Ayla looking into Wain's cold eyes.

Then a golden frog's paw appeared in his hands, and he immediately swallowed it. His stats went up 15%, and all of his senses were greatly heightened.

Wain's power shocked Ayla, Finch, Dia, and Keya. They didn't expect that he suddenly decided to activate his Beyond, which would wield such crushing power. 

Their heartbeats quickened, and they breathed harder. It was a power they couldn't match.

"Holy crap...what's wrong with this guy! Can an Inerian man have that kind of power?" Shouted Finch.

Dia didn't answer anything. She didn't know what to say and didn't understand what was happening. Keya was just as stunned, the situation was out of control.

Crackling.

Suddenly a mask appeared in front of Wain, and dark chains tried to bind him. He was about to break the trial rules, and the mask had to stop him.

"Stop it now, get back to the game like you're supposed to!" The mask said menacingly, but suddenly Wain turned into a blur.

Chains like tentacles tried to chase him, but he managed to dodge at the last moment each time.

"I may not be able to beat you, but I can eat you!" Wain said menacingly and looked at the approaching chains with icy eyes.

He waved his hand, and his jaws opened wide. Above him appeared the silhouette of a gray maw that abruptly closed, and a third of the chains along with a scrap of ground disappeared. 

It was like the bite of a massive beast. However, it wasn't enough to win.

The mask's aura intensified, and the remaining chains began to clone and divide. The chains multiplied and were ready to devour Wain.

Wain launched another attack and turned into blue lightning. He was about to use his last trump card, but it would cause him serious injuries, and he definitely wouldn't be able to continue fighting after that.

"Stop!" Shouted the mask, and a gray robe and an eye patch appeared on Wain at that moment.

The last time Wain had fought Purple Pilgrim, Blind Sorcerer had discovered a unique ability. Wain didn't know if he could use it again, but it was his only chance.

The Mask wouldn't dare kill him, but if the chains caught him, that would be the end of it. Wain would have to finish the game, lose, and then death would catch up with him.

Whooooooosh.

Wain waved his hand and created a gray, energy wave that hit the chains like a tsunami. This attack destroyed hundreds of plants and dozens of trees and threw the chains far off the chessboard.

Finch and Dia were hit, activating their Beyonds to avoid serious injury and withstand the onslaught. Their bodies were covered in white flames, and together they created a fire barrier.

Keya left the spectators' seats and ran up to Ayla. She decided that she would protect her in case of danger.

Wain had only a few seconds to do what he wanted. He tried to activate the ability again, but it didn't work until a drop of blood from his lip fell on his left hand.

At that moment, the seal of the broken mirror shone brightly, and the blindfold fell from his eyes. 

Everyone saw the open left eye. It was colorless with the image of the whole mirror, and then it was time for the final touch.

Wain looked up and smoothly swung his hand. A gray, almost invisible blade flew forward, which disappeared without a trace.

"А? Did he make a mistake?" Finch muttered.

"Looks like we're saved." Smiling, Dia said.

Ayla and Keya had the same opinion. They were sure that the mask was about to grab Wain, but...

Tremble. Tremble. Tremble.

Suddenly space trembled, and the sky was split in two. This was what Wain was after. His goal was to let everyone in.

When the mask saw this, it stopped chasing Wain. All the chains headed towards it to regain space, but it was too late.

The cut was enormous. It far exceeded the one that had appeared after the battle with Forgotten. Wain had been attacked by a single Pearl Hunter back then, but now the situation was strikingly different.

A second after the spatial barrier had been breached, dozens of paws of the monstrous creatures had penetrated. 

Everyone shuddered in fear. They knew that these creatures would tear them apart without even blinking an eye.

However, something else caught their attention. In the center was a girl slowly falling down. 

She had long hair split in two, the left one black as the abyss and the right one blood red. She was dressed in clothes that matched the color of her hair. It looked strange but also beautiful and harmonious.

The girl's eyes were amethyst, and her gaze was sad and devastated. She looked as if she had lost the will to live or was searching for something that would cause her to have new, unexperienced feelings.

She looked at the monsters around her and swung her arm smoothly. Then two small, dark spheres resembling stars or black holes were created around her.

They began to rotate rapidly, and the monsters' bodies were torn apart. The blood split into millions of drops and rained down on the garden and the chessboard.

This scene stunned everyone, even the mask did not understand how such a catastrophe could happen, but the chains had already restored 50% of the space.

Wain smiled contentedly, he didn't know who this girl was, but it was his chance to win. However, if he had heard Ayla's words, he would have stopped smiling.

Ayla looked at this girl and muttered with fear in her voice, "Did... she really come? She's Inerian...."