Lan Ze nodded slightly, seeing that the girl was obviously in a rather poor mood today, though he did not go easy on her in the game of chess, instead mercilessly wiping out Artoria's pieces.
The girl froze in place, staring blankly at the chessboard for a moment, and then looked up to fix Lan Ze with a lingering gaze.
You are definitely teasing me on purpose, aren't you?
After a month's interval, she was no longer a clueless novice, and by now she recognized that Lan Ze had deliberately toyed with her during the match. Despite having several opportunities to checkmate, he refused to take them, choosing instead to devour every last one of her pieces until she was left with only a single general.
Lan Ze did not deny it, smiling instead. "This is also one of the ways to play the game; I haven't broken any rules."
Artoria's gaze darkened. She shot Lan Ze a resentful look, finally sighed, and left the Dreamscape in low spirits.
Outmatched in skill, she had nothing to say.
Merlin glanced at the chessboard and let out an admiring click of her tongue. "It's been a long time since I've seen Arthur reveal such an emotional side. You really are something else."
"It's just that you don't seem very good at pleasing young women," Merlin added.
"If I had deliberately let her win, wouldn't that have made her even more unhappy?" Lan Ze said.
Merlin nodded slightly. "That is true indeed."
Artoria was just that kind of headstrong person, the same on the battlefield as she was in daily life. If she found out that Lan Ze had intentionally gone easy on her during the chess game, she would undoubtedly be far angrier than she was just now from being toyed with