Chapter 330: 328: Zechys: The Second Phase

Bang!

While Argentum muttered what seemed to be the name of a move rarely used in Zechys, a loud explosion sound resounded throughout the area, originating from the Sergeant piece that Argentum commanded to dash towards Claudius' side. Before such a thing happened, the surface of his Sergeant piece had multiple hairline cracks on its body already, giving one the idea that the explosion had something to do with it.

And indeed, it did. At the very instant the explosion occurred, the hairline cracks on Argentum's Sergeant piece proceeded to expand at unbelievable speeds, revealing a glossier surface from within. In less than an instant, a more terrifying aura could be felt from the Sergeant piece. To be more exact, it was now a piece one rank higher. A Sergeant Major piece.

Whoosh!

Surprisingly, the Sergeant piece was able to finish its transformation to the next ranking piece before it arrived at Claudius' side. Stomping one of its feet on the ground to instantly cut its momentum, it then grabbed a blade from who knows where and madly swung it at the pieces neatly lined up just a few meters away from Claudius. Claudius, who was watching this scene with shock afar, could not help but shout with anger, "Oh no, you don't!"

"2nd Circle! [Bind Offense]!"

Swoosh! Swoosh!

In less than an instant, a milky white ball of energy hastily made its way towards Argentum's now Sergeant Major piece, reducing the edge that could be felt from the aura radiating around it. Unfortunately for Claudius, this reduction only lasted for a short bit until the strength of the aura returned to normal, allowing the Sergeant Major piece to attack all of Claudius' pieces in one fell swoop.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

With such a domineering move powered by a force not seen in the same level of pieces, it was no surprise that most of the pieces Claudius had were severely injured from the attack, if not destroyed to bits. The outcome of Argentum's swift attack was the loss of 4 low-ranking pieces and the severe injuring of all remaining pieces. Of course, the Captain piece Claudius had, being a higher-ranking piece, only obtained a small fraction of the damage due to the difference in rank.

Nevertheless, with his capabilities instantly cut down to a little bit over than half, though in reality it would feel like less than half, Claudius could not help but grit his teeth in anger as he scratched his head in slight fury. After some time, he took in a few deep breaths as the gaze in his eyes had turned clear. At this moment, it was as if the Claudius Argentum was up against in the first round had returned. A calm yet calculating person.

Letting out a light breath, he looked at the remaining pieces he had and assessed the damage they've accrued from the Sergeant Major piece. Naturally, Argentum recalled his remaining piece while Claudius pondered on what move he was going to make, knowing very well that he would lose if he just let his remaining piece stand there.

After a minute or so, Claudius had an expression of determination on his face as he muttered, "Since the remaining pieces are severely injured except for the Captain piece I have, I guess that's the only I could tip the scales back to a balance."

Clenching his fists as he hoped that this move would indeed tips the scales back to a balance, he then commanded in a stern tone, "All pieces except for the Captain piece, send all of your energy towards the Captain piece! Make sure to convey all of your emotions of anger and revenge while you're at it!"

"I see. So that's what you're going with," Argentum could not help but mutter as he watched Claudius' next move come to life.

Swish! Swish!

In less than an instant, a pale gray energy surrounded the five lower-ranked pieces Claudius had before being tinged with a faint crimson red, melding with the gray energy surrounding them as it gave off the feeling of rage. Though, amidst that feeling of rage, the feeling of might and insanity could be felt as well, making one think that they were betting everything on a single move.

After all of the energy surrounded the five lower-ranking pieces had taken on a reddish gray energy, these were then redirected towards the Captain piece, gradually fixing up all of the injuries it had on its body as the aura surrounding it gradually grew stronger. At the very moment the transfer of energy was done, the five pieces turned into ashes as the Captain piece was now radiating an aura not lacking to the Sergeant Major piece Argentum had.

Seriously gazing at the Sergeant Major piece that gave off a lofty feeling, Claudius then muttered the name of the move he had just done, officiating it as he said, "[Pseudo-Morale Resonance]."

"[Binding Rage]."

Roar!

Surprisingly, just as Claudius was finished saying the name of the move, a low roar resounded from the Captain piece, seemingly giving off the feeling that the Captain piece was now being fueled by the emotions and energies of the previous pieces that sacrificed their lives for it. Of course, Argentum couldn't care less to what he thought was something akin to flavor text in Zechys. Nevertheless, he could not help but radiate an aura of faint happiness as he said to Claudius, "Now that your Captain piece is at the same strength as mine, what're you going to do next?"

"Of course…" Claudius lightly smiled with an expression of victory as he placed his hand on the Captain piece, infusing it with his energy as he said.

"The obvious move is to tip the scales back to my favor."

"[Defender's Incarnation]!"

Swoosh!

In less than an instant, the energy emanating from the Captain piece and from Claudius himself had melded into a single type of energy, creating a pulsating wave of energy that was not only visible, but tangible as well, giving Argentum a feeling that he was being pushed back. Seeing this, he knew that Claudius was basically saying that he was giving it his all to not lose, even sacrificing his own energy just to gain an edge.

In Zechys, it was incredibly rare to achieve Morale Resonance as it needed a certain lineup of pieces to do so, though it used the pieces' energy to achieve a boost in power to another piece. Pseudo-Morale Resonance also operated on the same concept, though the obtained boost in power was lacking when compared to the real thing, which was not really a downside if both sides couldn't achieve Morale Resonance.

A rarer move above Morale Resonance was the one Argentum used, which was Piece Ascension. It's considered the strongest move one could do if one only thought about the energy from their pieces. But if one thought that they themselves were a part of the game as well, then they could use a move rarely used in actual games, but was a move that could be used in any game.

Player Incarnation. Although the name would be different in reality depending on the side the player was on, it meant that the player was sacrificing their energy to boost their pieces' power to greater heights, relying on their strength to do so. If the person using this move was at a high rank, then the boost the pieces would obtain would definitely be considerable. But if the person was at a low rank, well…

What's the point of using it in the first place?

Although Claudius was just a Rank 2 Animate, he had a feeling that he was fighting against someone weaker, relying on the aura radiating off of the opponent he was up against since the inheritance protected the inheritor's privacy. Feeling that the connection between him and his remaining Captain piece was now solidified, he then let out a slightly malevolent chuckle as he said to Argentum, "This time, I'm not gonna hold back. If you still beat me with this last resort, then I'll give you my title of Monarch of Zechys Victories!"

"Although the title sounds like cringe…" Argentum could not help but say, hurting Claudius' pride a bit.

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"I'll take you up on that offer."

"[Attacker's Incarnation]."

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Doing the same thing as Claudius, it did not take long for his energy to meld with his strengthened Sergeant Major piece. Unexpectedly, just as the connection between him and his piece was solidified, Claudius finally made his move, bolstering his piece's strength and speed with his own spells as it arrived in front of Argentum's Sergeant Major piece in less than a few seconds.

With his enhanced senses, Argentum went ahead and controlled his Sergeant Major piece with his thoughts as he made it dodge the Captain piece's attack. While doing so, he was pondering over something, extending one of his palms towards the Sergeant Major piece.

'Should I use all of my buffs on my piece to finish it in one go? Or do I toy with him for a bit then finish it in one go?' he thought to himself, coming to a conclusion not long after a soft chuckle could be heard.

"I'll just do both."

"[Higher Zephyr Magic: Zephyr Burst]!"

"[Higher Ignis Magic: Ignis Burst]!"

Swoosh! Swoosh!

As he and the piece were connected, the spells took instant effect, increasing the Sergeant Major piece's movement speed and attack power in a flash. With both spells, the piece's sidestep had turned into horizontal leap as the Captain piece had hit thin air instead of Argentum's Sergeant Major piece.

Seeing that his attack hadn't taken effect, Claudius could not help but become infuriated once more, only to take in a deep breath as he went ahead and cast more of his status boosting spells on the piece, making sure that the Captain piece had enough speed and force to land a hit on Argentum's piece.

Unfortunately for him, Argentum wasn't going to give him that chance as he made sure to dodge Claudius' attacks at the very last moment, which led to the Captain piece always hitting thin air.

Thinking that he had toyed with him for some time now, given the fact that Claudius' face was now red with anger, Argentum then looked at Claudius and said, "How about we end this once and for all? Your piece just keeps on hitting thin air while my piece keeps dodging your attacks."

"If you let me hit your piece, then that'd be great," Claudius said in a calm tone, to which Argentum replied, "Although that proposition sounds interesting, how about…"

"I do the opposite instead?"

"[Zephyr Ignis Ouroboros Magic: Symbiotic Resonance]!"

Whoosh! Whoosh!

In an instant, the two basic buffs Argentum had cast on the Sergeant Major piece went ahead and made multiple connecting links on the piece's surface, instantly amplifying both buffs to a level Claudius was not expecting. Not letting the opportunity pass up, Argentum went ahead and willed the piece to grab its blade and aim straight for the Captain piece's neck while Claudius was still at a stupor.

Of course, Claudius wouldn't let that happen, willing his Captain piece to take a step back at the very instant he could. Unfortunately, his order was just a tad too late.

Swish!

Thud!

With a clean cut, the head of Claudius' Captain piece flew in the air for a few seconds before landing on the dusty ground with a solid thud. After a few seconds, a thud slightly far away from Argentum could be heard as well, prompting him to look at it. Surprisingly, this thud came from Claudius, kneeling on his knees in disbelief as he watched Argentum land the final blow on his Captain piece. Well, to be more exact, the blow Argentum should've landed in the first place.

"You…what…" Still in disbelief and shock at the sudden tipping of the scales, Claudius could not help but look at Argentum as if he was a monster, though in reality, he was only looking at the aura shrouding him. As for Argentum, he let out a light giggle as he said, "I guess I'm the Monarch of Zechys Victories from now on."

Oblivious to what Claudius and Argentum were talking about, the disembodied voice resounded throughout the room after the game had finally reached a conclusion.

"Landing a clean hit on the opponent's remaining piece, the attacker side has claimed victory in this game of Zechys, making it the first ever recorded game in this inheritance to be a victory not relying on the occupation of the opposing side's bases."

"Due to this new type of victory, the attacker side, which is the inheritor, has obtained two chances to obtain anything from the inheritance. Since the feat the inheritor has pulled off has never been seen in this inheritance, the inheritor's grade has been upgraded to the highest grade, the Prominence grade."

"Prominence grade…" Argentum muttered, wondering if the grade actually made the trials more difficult or not. Soon after, he heard another thud coming from Claudius' direction, only to find him to all fours as he muttered, "You…you…"

"What are you trying to say, man?" he could not help but ask, wanting to know what was on his mind. Fortunately, Claudius finally gave a proper response…though it was a response he was not expecting.

"You…you…you're so cool! Making sure that the remaining pieces you had were enough for a Morale Resonance and a Piece Ascension…surprising me with that Player Incarnation you used…tell me your thought process, oh Monarch of Zechys Victories!"

In response, Argentum only uttered a single sound.

"…huh?"

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