Once both Mauriss and Leo had settled into their positions, the ga finally began as both players contemplated which card to play first.
Unlike Mauriss, Leo already knew which card he wanted to play, as after having played the ga against multiple opponents hundreds of tis, he had arrived at what he believed to be the most optimal opening sequence, one that did not guarantee victory, yet ensured that he would not fall behind from the very first exchange.
Because in every variation he had tested, against every opponent he had faced, the first move always dictated the rhythm of everything that followed.
And since the first move was so important, he had thought about it the most, eventually arriving at the conclusion that the ga must begin with an attack.
If both players chose to attack, then the damage would remain equal and the field would stay balanced, allowing the match to progress into deeper layers where preparation and structure would begin to matter more than unpredictable instinct.
However, if both players chose to defend, then nothing would
happen, and such a stagnant opening would quietly disrupt the flow Leo had designed his strategy around.
Since the outco he was chasing here relied on controlled defensive pressure and carefully tid exchanges when options beca limited, delaying the progression of the match was sure to only work against him.
Which was why he decided against carrying such an unnecessary risk.
'So the first move must be an attack, Leo concluded calmly, as his fingers hovered over the cards before selecting one without hesitation, his expression steady as he slid it forward.
Across from him, Mauriss looked down at his own set of cards with
his head tilted slightly, his lips slowly curling into a grin that widened with every passing second, as his eyes glead with a kind of excitent that had nothing to do with winning and everything to do with creating chaos.
Because unlike Leo, who sought the most efficient path forward, Mauriss was drawn toward sothing far more chaotic, sothing that would distort the rhythm of the ga before it had even properly begun, as the idea of breaking structure fascinated him far more than following it.
"Let's see what happens if I choose to go for this from the very start," Mauriss muttered softly, as his fingers drifted across the multipliers before settling on one without the slightest hesitation, the choice made out of impulse, as he just picked a card at random, and placed it alongside the multiplier.
"Alright, we both show our choices together..."
Leo said, as since both of them had chosen their cards, they now had to slide it into the gaboard chanism, which would then reveal the cards simultaneously.
*Slot*
*Slot*
Both of them locked in their choices, as-
*Flip*
The cards turned over simultaneously, revealing vertical slash, against vertical slash enhanced by a five tis multiplier, as the constructs responded imdiately.
*BOOM*
Both stone golems surged forward at once, their movents mirroring one another in form, yet differing drastically in intensity as they accelerated across the surface with heavy, grinding steps, closing the distance in an instant while raising their arms to strike.
Leo's golem moved with clean precision, its attack direct and efficient as it drove forward with a calculated blow aid at the opponent's head, while Mauriss's construct erupted with amplified force, its body surging with violent energy as the multiplier took effect, pushing its movent beyond its natural limits.
*CRASH*
The two blows connected almost simultaneously, stone colliding with explosive force as fragnts scattered outward, the impact sending both constructs sliding back across the board while cracks spread across their bodies, yet the difference in damage quickly beca apparent as Leo's golem staggered under the heavier strike, its head dented heavily, while Mauriss's construct remained comparatively stable with only surface level damage marking its fra.
*Crack*
At this mont, Mauriss leaned forward slightly as he watched Leo, his grin widening into sothing unhinged as he licked his lips in clear enjoynt, his eyes never once shifting toward the board as his laughter rang out freely into the storm.
"Hahahahaha!"
The sound cut through the chaos around them, sharp and unrestrained, as his golem straightened first and held the advantage, while Mauriss remained focused entirely on Leo, as though the damage dealt was only part of the entertainnt and not the true objective of the ga.
"You have truly designed a very interesting ga here.
I was wondering if my golems weapon would collide against that of yours and break it.
However, the attack lines were just slightly different, allowing both attacks to land simultaneously and differ only in damage...."
Mauriss observed, as despite the unhinged madness on his face, it beca clear that the God was trying to grasp the exact chanics of
the ga underneath that facade of insanity.
"You warning that running out of multipliers might be a bad
choice, made want to use one from the very start.
And let say.... I am not disappointed at all.
Both of us hit our targets, and yet I did so with a multiplier.
Which ans, I have the upper hand now.
Ideally, as long as I counter every move that you throw at ideally
from here until the end, then you lose just because I landed one hit
that was stronger than yours.
So, in a way, you have lost already..... no?"
The Deceiver said, as he kept trying to get into Leo's head even now.
"Tell Skyshard, of all the tis you have played this ga against an opponent.
How many tis have you actually faced an opening exchange like
this?
And how many tis have you won while starting from this position?" Mauriss asked, as he tried to read Leo's expression to understand the
level of confidence Leo still possessed.
Whether he was still unfazed?
Or whether this exchange was truly out of his anticipation? However, unfortunately for him, Leo revealed nothing, as he simply slid his hand to select the second card, and waited patiently for Mauriss to do the sa, as he showed no signs of being put under
pressure.
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