"Jerom, two domains right."

"Kai, one domain left."

"Balam, one domain forward."

Atticus silently watched as the Marquis moved their champions across the board. It had barely been minutes since Noctis' battle concluded, yet the entire dynamics of the board had shifted.

Dravek's bounty made the gods momentarily forget their fear, but the battle had snapped them out of that trance.

Gods exchanged hardened glances with one another. Champions shook their heads, expressions pale. More than a few uneasy glances drifted toward him.

'It worked.'

The fear was back. Noctis' move had been so potent that none of them had even bothered challenging Whisker. The turn would soon be over, and so would the penalty.

'Now what will you do?'

He fixed his eyes on the now remaining Redflame Marquis, whose will sizzled around him as he glared at the others.

"Cowards… all of you!" Dravek snarled. "You call yourselves the powers of the Verge and you're terrified of a little child? Disgraceful. You're all nothing but a disgrace!"

The Marquis' expression darkened. It was one thing to silently avoid the child, but having it thrown in their faces was another.

Fists clenched. Wills stirred. Still, no one stepped forward to challenge whisker. .

Only a few more, and the turn would be over.

"It should be three favors."

Atticus' eyes moved toward the voice. It was none other than Ordan, whose golden eyes glinted faintly at him.

He frowned. The man had been silent since after his battle with Thane, where he revealed the effect of the life weapon.

Still, Atticus had come to realize that the Willguard did not speak or act unless something was about to happen.

'What's he planning?'

"What are you talking about?"

Dravek's eyes narrowed dangerously at the man, but Ordan merely shrugged.

"What do you think?"

"You—!"

"I don't think you're in any position to complain," the Willguard said lightly. "Your ploy is a smart one."

Dravek's frown deepened.

"Correct me if I'm wrong. The child's penalty only ends when his turn comes next, which means you'll get your opportunity to target his champion yourself. You can get your revenge directly, so why suddenly place a bounty and have other gods go after him?"

Dravek gritted his teeth, but said nothing.

"I'll tell you. Despite killing your daughter and humiliating you, you're still using your brain. You can't afford to attack him blindly and lose your champions. So you did this instead."

Ordan's eyes sharpened slightly.

"You're using them to test the waters."

'He's good,' Atticus silently noted.

Though he'd suspected it earlier, he hadn't expected another to also see through Dravek's play. Thinking about it now, it made sense. Since his arrival on the Marquis layer, the aged man had proven himself more perceptive than most.

Still, not all gods were like him. The others reacted instantly.

"Wait… so the bounty was a ruse?"

"No way… there's no favor?"

"It's all a lie!"

"It's not a lie." The Willguard said then turned to Dravek. "As reckless as he might be, you can always trust a Redflame to keep their word. The favor is real. Still…" He paused slightly. "One favor is too small, if you ask me. To be used like that, it should be three."

Many eyes glinted. One favor was tempting, but three was just insane.

Dravek curled his fists. The temperature around him continued to rise until he released them, steam bursting outward.

"Alright. Three favors."

Several Marquis swallowed hard. Three favors from a Redflame Marquis… just the thought of it was enough to make their hearts race.

"Good choice."

Ordan nodded once, then turned toward Atticus, his golden eyes flickering with a sharp glint.

'So that's what he's after.'

None had been willing to challenge Whisker after Noctis' stunt, but now Atticus could see the light returning to many of their eyes at the increased reward.

During the next turn, Atticus noticed the change immediately. The god rolled a one, but instead of moving any of his champions, he crossed his arms and narrowed his eyes at Whisker, who stood silently across the board.

"Kazan. Handle this."

The champion, Kazan, instantly paled.

"M-my lord… are you sure? Perhaps we sho—"

"It's worth the risk," the Marquis cut in. "Three favors from the Redflame would change a lot for us. Isn't that worth risking our lives?"

"B-but it's my life we're ris—"

"Do it," the Marquis said flatly. "That's an order."

The champion gritted his teeth, but the Marquis had already turned away, pointing toward Whisker.

"I challenge him."

Moments later, the champion was unwillingly transported to Whisker's domain. The white ground shifted, then stretched into an endless desert.

Eyes moved toward the domain, and Atticus didn't miss the cold intent in many of them. Ozeroth was a monster. Noctis too. Now, they were about to witness Whisker.

This fight would decide whether all of Atticus' champions were truly out of reach… or not.

"Hm?"

Whisker stood with a serene smile as he regarded the man before him. He was a hulk of a man, at least seven feet tall, tanned skin etched with countless of gleaming tattoos.

"Oh. They sent you."

Despite his size, the slight tremble in the man's limbs was impossible to miss. He avoided Whisker's gaze as he pulled out armor after armor, weapon after weapon, from his storage.

He donned them one by one until his already massive frame grew larger still, his presence swelling as a blinding glow spilled from him.

An amused smile curved on Whisker's lips.

"Ladies and gentlemen," he said casually as Kazan continued to stack armor,

"what we have here is a prime specimen. Standing at roughly seven feet tall, heavily tattooed, clearly favors intimidation over subtlety."

As another piece of armor snapped into place, the glow around Kazan intensified.

"Oho, there it is. Reinforced plating, layered enhancements, full will amplification." Whisker nodded along, as if taking notes. "That puts him well over optimal combat weight. He's strong, slow and very committed."

A weapon locked into place. Then another.

"Multiple weapons," Whisker continued. "Always a classic. Usually means the fighter hasn't decided how he wants to win yet." He hummed. "Or lose."

Kazan's presence swelled, will roaring outward as he finally settled into his stance.

Whisker clapped his hands together once.

"Alright. Final preparations complete. Everything equipped. Every advantage stacked."

Kazan's expression darkened, but he forced himself not to react.

"He's placed me here to die… But I have to survive. No matter what."

He muttered, then settled into a stance and fixed his serious gaze on Whisker who smiled pleasantly.

"Now the only question left, folks…"

His eyes finally drifted back to Kazan.

"…is whether any of that will actually matter."

"Begin."

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