"Hiii-juu!"

The sharp whinny of the lead stallion marked the moment, starting the journey towards the Flambell Kingdom without delay, driven by the urgency of the funeral and Melioris's Order.

"...."

"...."

On the outside of the caravan, alongside the mercenaries, Shija and Boudica (the latter, now recovered from her punishment) rode in silence next to the carts, their minds concentrated on the immense task of recovering their funds.

"Wheee!"

(Cling, clang!)

Meanwhile, inside Baron Glutt’s main carriage, a scene so irregular was unfolding that it defied all the logic of the world of Ky'lar.

"I’m glad you’re having fun~"

There, Melioris was seated across from the Baron, immersed in a game of chess. Her posture was one of playful confidence, with one hand propped on her head, her expression adorned with a smile that made one doubt whether she was amusing herself or planning her opponent's destruction. She stared intently at Glutt, awaiting his next move, while cheerfully greeting her "babies".

"But... how?"

The Baron, for his part, visibly hesitated while wiping the sweat from his face with a fine silk handkerchief, staring at the board with wide eyes, his mind struggling against the complexity of the game and the fear of his opponent.

"Hey, when are you going to make your move?"

And Melioris, observing his reaction, put on an annoyed expression while filing her nails with a file manifested from nowhere.

"A trap... I fell into the trap."

At that moment, Baron Glutt, amidst the scene inside the carriage, could only understand too late that he was entangled in a strategy of his opponent from which he could not escape.

(Her mind... is a labyrinth.)

His thoughts worked rapidly, contemplating ineffective ways to escape the chess game, which was only a small point of calm in a sea of surreal activity. Where near one corner, a pulsating brain contained in a thick glass jar utilized telekinetic abilities to manipulate a deck of cards, dealing them with chilling precision, oblivious to the movement of the carriage, while its playing partner, a floating golden straw doll known as Goldie, who wore a small blanket tied over her shoulders using it as a cloak, levitated, holding her cards to play.

"Wheee! Ziiiip!"

At the same time, flying merrily around, there was a tiny fairy with iridescent wings whom Melioris had introduced as Flora, flitting everywhere in the air of the "carriage," yelling filled with excitement and fun at being chased.

(Cling, clang! Cling, clang!)

Following closely was a small silver armor that barely reached knee height named Silver, pursuing her with clumsy metallic steps playfully, unable to catch the elusive fairy, creating a constant loop of chase and frustration.

(She doesn't play chess; she plays with the boundaries of what is real.)

Baron Glutt was literally trapped. His luxury carriage, which had been his refuge from the world, had become a mobile cage full of inexplicable entities, all orchestrated by the girl who was impatiently waiting for his move on the board.

"Come on, dear. There's no point in hesitating."

Melioris closed her eyes slightly, urging him to continue with a patience he felt was cruel mockery.

(If only it were that easy!)

The Baron struggled to remain calm while cold sweat beaded on his face, feeling how frustration and terror clouded his vision as he strove to maintain his composure.

(This isn't even a damned carriage anymore!)

Then, in his panic, the Baron was unable to divert his attention from the surrounding environment, becoming aware again that the carriage's interior no longer respected the laws of nature.

The place had become a space of dimensional anarchy; a place of suspended rules where matter and perception bent to Melioris's will.

There, the light entering through the windows had a sickly hue, and the air, dense and sugary, was difficult to breathe.

"Ugh!"

Trapped between a rock and a hard place, Baron Glutt wiped away the sweat.

(What... what thing still moves?)

He knew the risk was not just in losing a game piece. Every move of the pieces was reflected in the "reality" of that space, and those inside suffered the consequences of defeat.

(Just concentrate. Don't breathe, just... where is the loophole?)

He knew it very well, for he had already experienced over thirty defeats at Melioris's hands.

"Gulp...!"

Baron Glutt swallowed, the handkerchief in his hand soaked. The rule was simple and tyrannical: he could not escape the carriage until he managed to defeat her in a game of chess.

(Come on... Think!)

Glutt swallowed, his mind struggling to find a move that would save not only his position but his sanity.

"Your turn."

Finally, with a tremor in his hand, he moved one of his pieces.

"Finally!"

But Melioris's response was instantaneous, without even fully opening her eyes...

"Checkmate."

... Her smile widened slightly.

(Bzzzzzzzz)

And immediately afterwards, the reality inside the carriage disintegrated with a horrible hum.

"Noooo...!"

Immediately and violently, the wooden floor beneath Baron Glutt's feet turned into something alive.

(GGRRAAACK!)

The texture of the wood transformed into gray, damp skin, and a grotesque, toothed mouth opened right at his feet.

"STOP!!"

Terror flooded the Baron's face.

(CHHHWAAAP!)

But before he could utter a single scream, the mouth devoured him whole and proceeded to masticate him slowly with crunchy, repulsive sounds.

(CHLACK-CHLACK!)

The echo of his muffled screams mixed with the sound of teeth grinding his flesh.

(SCRRUNCH!)

The scene was absolute horror.

But as soon as the last, gruesome sound of chewing faded, reality itself distorted. The air wrinkled like paper, the colored lights merged, and Melioris’s figure blurred while the entire carriage seemed to shrink and expand, before the sound of the wheels on the road returned to normal.

"Well... Let's continue~!"

When the scene stabilized, Melioris was seated across from the Baron, propping her head up with one hand, looking at him with a playful smile, awaiting his next move.

"Damn it! How many more times do I have to go through this?"

Baron Glutt, reliving the cycle, with the handkerchief in his hand soaked with sweat, hesitated to make his next move, for the game had started once more.

For over thirty times in the last five days since the journey began, Baron Glutt had faced his own execution, programmed to occur the moment Melioris declared "Checkmate" after securing victory.

"What is it that you want from me?!"

His panic was total.

During those five days, he had died in thirty different ways, all of them grotesque, torturous, and related to the sensation of being trapped and squeezed to annihilation:

Once, his own layers of fat had turned acidic and corrosive, and the Baron was slowly squeezed by his own ribs that closed in on him, forcing all his internal fluids out through every pore.

On another occasion, the brain in the jar had immobilized him with telekinesis, transforming him into a large elastic tube of skin that was mercilessly rolled and squeezed by a steamroller until he deflated like a punctured balloon.

And on another occasion, he was slowly compressed by a shrinking box until he became a mass of squared flesh.

"Why are you doing this to me?!"

Baron Glutt not only feared defeat; he feared the endless repetition of that personalized agony.

"Why...?"

And Melioris, the orchestrator of it all, simply awaited his move with a satisfied smile on her face.

"... W-why?!"

In response, instead of moving a piece, Baron Glutt lifted his trembling head; his voice came out raspy, broken by horror and mental exhaustion.

The question was a plea for answers about his constant torture and the monster's purpose in doing this to him.

"Ah, the old question... 'Why?'"

Melioris, whose gaze had been fixed on the board, finally opened her eyes completely.

"The answer is simple~"

Her heterochromatic eyes shone with a dazzling intensity, and the tone of her voice lost all trace of joviality, becoming dangerously sweet.

"You see, dear Baron Glutt..."

She then leaned forward, just enough for her cold breath to touch the Baron's sweaty face.

"I want to allow you to experience, firsthand and to the core of your corrupt soul, the pain of being trapped. Of being caged. Of losing your freedom... and of being at the mercy of someone else's designs."

After saying that, she stepped back, lazily returning to her spot in the seat, and closed her eyes again, as if the sight of the Baron were boring.

"You have dedicated yourself to moving other people's pieces and undertaking quite 'curious jobs'..."

Melioris continued, without looking at him, her voice now disinterested, pointing at the chessboard with a long, slender finger.

"... But in the end, none of that matters to me."

Then, in that moment and in that place, the Baron understood...

"The only thing I want from you, dear Glutt, is to play."

... That the coldness of the creature's whim before his eyes was more terrifying than any physical torture.

"And if you don't win..."

At that moment, Baron Glutt, despite the haze of terror, could truly comprehend what was happening.

"you won't leave. Ever~"

Successful merchants like him had to master the art of reading others, of penetrating the mask, of negotiating while concealing their own emotions and intentions.

"But, you know what? I have to admit..."

And because of that skill, he finally understood.

"... Since I arrived in this world"

He looked at Melioris, and the instant she allowed the slightest fissure in her facade, Glutt saw the authentic "gaze" of what he was facing.

"I've been learning many things."

What he saw was a gaze full of pure madness, without the slightest hint of morality or human logic.

"Now I understand what I am truly capable of or how I really am."

That was the gaze of a predator.

"So tell me, dear..."

Upon understanding, the Baron felt a shiver as his blood seemed to freeze upon hearing Melioris whisper, her eyes opening again with a manic glint.

"Do you think that once a creature like me has tasted the flavor of freedom... it would willingly return to its cage?"

Melioris then approached with an instantaneous movement as Glutt felt the contact of her hands on his sweaty face; she held him, her thumbs grazing his cheekbones, and gave him a smile of ecstasy that made the terror in the carriage seem like the only truth.

"Because I assure you, dear..."

In that instant, Glutt felt how he lost all physical freedom, becoming immobilized, while his body was compressed from within by an invisible and crushing force, feeling how his bones cracked and his organs were pressed.

"... that I would not be capable."

Thus, Melioris finally replied with a smile that had transformed into an expression of total ecstasy.

(I-I can't... breathe!)

But just when the Baron thought that this would be his end once again.

"Oh, I'm sorry about that!"

However, it was then that Melioris, releasing him with total lightness, apologized.

"I still lack practice."

And in this manner, Melioris returned to her tranquil expression, closing her eyes.

"So now... let's continue the game!"

Thus, the Baron, understanding the kind of monster he was dealing with...

"I will begin..."

...was only capable of starting the next game.

"Checkmate!"

In which he would once again face defeat and, consequently, death.