"Why are you so certain when no move has even been made?"
Krydrla frowned. She had absolute confidence in her chess skills, honed through countless simulated deductions, real matches, and choices of fate. Even against a legendary god, she might not necessarily lose on the board.
"Because I'll use an Outside the Board Move."
Qianyi's answer was direct and honest.
In a proper chess match, Qianyi was absolutely no match for Krydrla. After all, he did not even know the rules of chess, much less how to play it.
But!
He might not know how to play chess, but he knew how to "cheat"!
He could secretly hide a few powerful pieces up his sleeves, quietly swap out weaker pieces; while Krydrla was deep in thought or turned away, he could sneak back pieces that had been "captured," place them back on the board, and pretend they had never left; he could even use some inconspicuous method to dye one of Krydrla's key pieces the color of his own, making it defect in the middle of battle...
And if all else failed, he could learn from the virtues of the Great Han Chess Saint and pick up the board to smash the other side over the head.
In the field of "honestly following the rules to play chess," he admitted he would lose. But under the broader goal of "victory is everything," as long as one was willing to think, there would always be a way.
Victory did not have to be won on the board. You could win outside the board too!
"...You win."
Although Krydrla truly did not want to admit it, if Qianyi really pulled some Outside the Board Moves, then she indeed had no chance of winning.
After frankly conceding defeat, she took the initiative to