[1970 words]

The answer was 9 for the last chapter's equation O.O ​​

Just because something is beside a bracket does not mean you prioritize it, that only applied to the things INSIDE the bracket. (Uncivilized people call them parentheses.)

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PS. Do you guys prefer when I space out paragraphs with periods or does it not matter? I didn't do it much in this chapter except for certain instances.

https://discord.gg/A2KQAkyCvm

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Hundreds upon hundreds of mindless ones were currently rushing through the Citadel and up the stairs to the Chamber of Gathering.

Damien and co had only taken out around 2700 and the remaining 7300 that were still on the island were making their way over.

The only reason they had yet to flood in was the thin halls and staircases, forcing them to come in tens at a time.

Due to this, the only guardian, Indra, was able to mow them down as they came.

Already 700 bodies laid dead, most were clean cuts and some needed multiple cuts as they would simply get up as they felt no pain.

It was a frightening sight to see so many with missing limbs and popped faces rush forth, caring little for their health and whatnot.

If not for Indra's sharp sword, the entire plan would have collapsed by now.

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[Chamber of Gathering]

(Damien POV)

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"Huhuhuhu, your mind may be strong but it is not enough child," Enigma responded.

I was currently trying to get close to him and land a solid punch but it proved difficult.

Why? The guy uses mind pulse-like attacks to obstruct me with ease.

He sends out these orange beams that can't be blocked with my strong physique, they only add more and more weight to my mind.

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"Raging Stream."

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I blast a river of energy forth from my right palm as I gain a footing.

*FWOOOO*

The air rumbles as the 10-foot wide stream of pulverizing energy crushes everything in its path.

Enigma only smiled in response.

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"Barrier of a Thousand Minds."

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Upon his words, a large orange wall appeared and stood tall right before him.

My attack raged on as it collided with his shield, slowly running out of momentum as it vanished.

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"Glazing Mind Arcs."

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Enigma slightly squinted his eyes as a flurry of large orange arcs shot out of his mind, slicing the air and racing towards me.

I saw the oncoming attack, at least 20 or so thin yet sharp blades of mental energy.

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"Devoured Space."

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A diamond barrier appeared in front of me as the hail of blades clashed upon it.

*CLANG* *CLANG* *CLANG*

Every blade that hit my shield caused me to inch back a few feet, I was on the losing end.

'Damn it, this won't do.' I shook my head as I saw him smirk.

"Very well, let's see how you do with the second wave."

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"Fury of Atlas."

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With that said, the same attack proceeded from before, yet it was heavier, far heavier than the one prior.

It is important to know that the previous mental suppression was never lifted, I just adapted to it.

So now that he has increased its weight and intensity, it caused a huge flare of pain.

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'Fuck!' I cursed as the second wave hit my mind, before it was the weight of a hundred mountains, now it was the weight of a thousand.

Even though there wasn't any physical weight, my knees were still threatening to buckle as I waved in and out of consciousness.

'This won't do!' I yelled as I tried to hold up.

"It is useless. Your Haki is simply not enough. Though you should be proud, this level can pressure even experienced Vice Admirals to a halt." He said with a smile.

My body was telling me to quit, to yield, yet my spirit, the spirit of a Supreme King just held on and on.

I was clenching my teeth as I break out a smile.

"...Hehe...my Haki...is not enough? And..."

A certain light flashed by my eyes as I felt a new current swirl around in my head.

"And who decided that?"

BOOOOM!

My Haki which was acting as a wall had been cracked and broken yet that doesn't signify its end. It only gives me what I needed to rebuild it far stronger!

A larger and thicker bubble of crimson energy rushed out of my head as I regained my footing, my back straightened as I approached a new height.

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[Your Conqueror's Haki has reached (Peak-Intermediate Stage). Congratulations!]

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With that burst of Haki, I was able to stand up to it, but rather I saw it as an opportunity.

'More, More, More! Burst, Rage, Scream!'

I was trying to pour out energy, more than necessary, the bubble kept growing and growing, becoming heavier as it expanded.

The feeling of being suppressed was pissing me off as I had the desire to reach the peak of this world!

How could I fall here?

"You... you're using my attack to sharpen your Haki!?" Enigma said with an astonished face.

This was the first time he has seen such a rebellious person.

The man who was used to controlling tens of thousands with a mere thought was now seeing a weaker foe use him as a tool to grow stronger?

How impudent!

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"You brat!" Enigma's calm demeanour finally warped as he felt a threat that could grow too large to contain.

'Hehe, Enigma is used to having things go as planned. He is the 'Chessmaster'. The moment a piece plays a move he did not expect is the moment he will start losing his composure!' I smirked as I saw his pissed-off face.

"Fine, as you wish! I will show you despair!"

Enigma brought both palms together in front of him as if he was doing a prayer. An orange field shot out of his body.

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"Laying the Board!"

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The mind field emitting out of his body started taking shape, around us, a square appeared.

It had an alternating pattern of squares in two colours all over as he and I stood at opposite sides.

It was literally a chessboard!

Everything else disappeared, Kaido's battle nearby was gone, Big Mom watching with a smile also vanished.

My Observation turned off!

The only ones left were him and I.

*FWOOO*

With a wave of his hand, a few flashes rained down to the board.

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'Pieces of the game?' I thought as I saw the pawns, bishops, knights, rooks and the queen appear.

"Let us play a game... I shall show you just how outmatched you are, boy!" Enigma said with a smirk.

"Rahaha, you are quite foolish, aren't you?"

"You set up a game. You bring in the pieces. Then you predict my moves and use them against me."

"Do you think yourself a winner because you are smarter than everyone?"

"RAHAHAHA! You may govern the rules of the game..."

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"But I was never one to abide them in the first place!"

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[Kaido's Battlefield]

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"Cheh!" Kaido gritted his teeth as he was rained down by quick and powerful spear attacks by the Queen.

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"Royal Thrust!"

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The Queen's spear lit white as she raised it over her head and rushed forth.

The blinding spear rocketed towards the ogre's abdomen as it impaled him.

BOOOM!

Kaido was forced back 20 meters as the ground nearby was crushed.

"WORORORO! I haven't bled in a while." He mused as he saw a drop of blood come out of his mouth.

"It was fun while it lasted!" Kaido smirked as his club sparked in thunder.

The entire ground below shuddered in pain as the ogre raged forth with his club in both hands as it neared the female pirate.

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"DIVINE THUNDER!"

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The air currents around the club were bending as streaks of energy were released by the sheer momentum of the attack, thunder echoed as his attack neared its destination.

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"Majesty of the Queen!"

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She twirled her spear in a circle as it generated a force and met the attack head-on.

BOOOOOOM!

A mind-numbing explosion resounded as the enormous club clashed with the white spear, the cracked floor only groaned further as the pillars nearby were threatening to collapse.

The nearby furniture was reduced to rubble as the shockwaves pulsed out of their clash.

"H-How?! How can you have so much strength even after my fruit powers!?"

"WORORORO! You are just too weak!"

BOOOOOOOOM!

A laugh was all that was heard as the entire floor was thrashed as the ever-weakening supports gave in and collapsed down.

The Citadel itself was breaking apart as the 2 pirates fell down the opening.

Blocks upon blocks of concrete rained down onto the foundation as the majesty of Enigma's castle was no longer there.

As for the 2 pirates who had an entire castle cave in on them, one was smirking while the other was no longer breathing, nothing but a bleeding mess.

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[The Chessbaord]

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"Not abiding by the rules, you say? Huhuhu, everything is governed by rules! You cannot simply wish against them, it is not a path possible for your current strength!" Enigma roared, it seems I was challenging his beliefs.

"I have linked this to your life force! This battle can last for years and only a few seconds would have passed in the outside world. You shall play till your demise!" He smiled, he had great confidence in his intelligence.

"I shall feast on your desperation as I break you piece by piece!"

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'Chess eh? Chess of Life and Death is more like it. That said, he didn't even say anything about him losing... I guess that comes with a mind that can reach over 300 IQ.'

I had never been a fan of chess, I tried to play it but bombs were more attractive at the time.

The board was marked with numbers and letters to allow voice command.

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[A/N: The Chessboard image - Enigma is on the black side.]

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"Pawn F7 move to F5." He said.

*Vwooo*

The pawn moved as instructed.

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I was about to panic but then I recalled that I have a certain someone with me...

'Sibyl, how good are you at chess?' I asked.

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[I am the Picasso of anything to do with probability and possibility.] She said with a proud tone.

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I smirked, 'It's all yours then.'

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[20 Minutes Later]

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"How could this happen?! I lost? This is impossible, improbable, illogical!"

He said with a perplexed face as he saw his situation, only the king and the queen piece left while the former was held under checkmate.

Unfortunately, even a 300 IQ human is no match against a System AI which can literally reincarnate you into another world.

Well, I did say that I was gonna cheat, right?

But, with my experience in past battles, these guys always leave a loophole in their strategies, especially paranoid ones like him.

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*SHATTER*

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The mindscape cracked apart as the world reappeared.

"Puah!" Enigma spat out 4 gallons of blood as he hunched down, huffing and puffing.

I guess that's the cost of his loss, maybe he just never saw himself losing.

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*THUD!*

A loud bang as a large shadow appears beside me.

"WORORORO! Looks like I finished before you." Kaido laughed as he saw the broken Overlord.

"Yeah, yeah, whatever." I rolled my eyes at his words.

"MA-Ma-Mam-MA! You lost to a bunch of brats, Enigma!" Big Mom roared from the side as she walked towards him.

"Lost? I lost? Heresy! It is not over yet!"

"Let me see how you handle this, boy!" Enigma yelled as he used his final card.

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"Final Impulse!"

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Once again the surrounding world disappeared as I felt my mind lock into a white space.

The world then began flooding with colour.

A forest, a small cabin, a warm bed...

And a person then materialized.

A woman.

She had long white hair and lilac-coloured eyes, a beautiful face and a warm smile.

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"...Mother."

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"My little Damien..." She said.

The voice I could never forget for the rest of my life.

She extending both arms out and smiled the same way she did when she told me to run into the forest, the last time I saw her.

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"Come and give your mother a hug."

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[The following is excluded from word count]

Author's Corner:

Enigma loves having things go 'his way'. He has been living for decades being the smartest in the room, due to that, he became impulsive in his actions.

But that doesn't mean he will become weaker than he should, pissing off the bad guy does not mean you will win.

Chapter 4/5 of the Encephala Island Arc.

Chapter tomorrow.

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Random Trivia:

Would you rather be imprisoned for 9 months in a maximum-security prison with the most hardcore criminals or be imprisoned for 9 years in a low-security prison with Wall Street type of criminals?

Thanks for Reading!