The sound of sharp inhales and exhales echoed within the empty chamber, where only a single table and two chairs stood at the center. Upon that table rested a chessboard.
Balthazar's chest rose and fell as he instinctively reached for his face.
"It seems the wounds and bruises from my fight with Hernec have vanished," he muttered, brushing his fingertips across his cheek.
His gaze shifted to the table. A lone pawn stood just one step away from promotion into a queen.
A chessboard?
Balthazar frowned, trying to understand why such a thing was there.
Ding!
A status window appeared, revealing every detail of his stats. His eyes widened in disbelief when he noticed he could raise the rank of his Gambit.
In that instant, a vision of triumph bloomed in his heart, standing at the very peak, exacting vengeance on those who had looked down upon him, and one day even erasing his father from existence.
But he shook his head. Such schemes were for the future. For now, he needed to focus on analyzing this place, on learning where exactly he had been brought.
Slowly, he turned his head to the right.
The moon shone brilliantly outside the window, its pale light falling directly upon the chessboard, as though it had been placed there deliberately beneath a spotlight. Crimson curtains framed the view, and at last, Balthazar understood, this was the Gambit Realm.
Then he turned to the left, and what met his eyes froze his breath.
A severed head hovered there, dark hair framing its pale face. It was staring directly at him. What unsettled him most was not the head itself, but the fact that it was his own face.
Balthazar jolted upright, his chair clattering to the floor.
Thud.
His eyes bulged, pupils trembling in disbelief.
The fuck?!
A headless body slumped before him, staring upward with vacant posture. It was his body, his own corpse.
W-what the fuck?! Why is there a corpse here?!
His mind spun, nausea rising within his stomach.
Clutching his mouth, he slapped his own cheek, forcing himself to stay calm amidst the horror.
It was his first time seeing a severed head so closely. Blood pooled on the floor, the lips of the corpse still parted, the lifeless eyes frozen open.
Balthazar bit down on his lip.
Is this all you amount to, Balthazar? Cowering at the mere sight of a corpse? His own thoughts challenged him, mocking his weakness.
He drew in a sharp breath. Yes, it was only a body. Not his own. Though it resembled him perfectly, but he was still alive, his heart still pounded wildly in his chest.
Suppressing the urge to vomit, he stepped closer. Kneeling, he reached to close the corpse's eyes.
But the moment his fingers touched the head, the entire body crumbled into tiny blue fragments.
The fragments floated into the air, gathering together into a small glowing sphere.
Balthazar's brows knitted. Just moments ago, he had been horrified, and now this strange transformation bewildered him even more.
The glowing sphere shot forward without warning, piercing straight into his body.
Whoosh!
Balthazar staggered, as if struck by a hammer. Then, memories surged through him like a flood of visions.
He saw himself gaining a skill [En Passant] after promoting a pawn on that very chessboard into a king.
He saw himself confronted by a dark-haired monster woman, her hand clutching a dagger as she beheaded a man who had tried to flee from the Haunted Mansion.
He saw himself almost stabbed by that same creature among a mountain of books.
And finally, he saw the long, dim corridor. At its end stood the monster woman, her blade flashed once, and his life had been severed in a blink.
Balthazar collapsed to the floor, clutching his stomach with one hand and his head with the other.
"It fucking hurts! Khhhk, why does the pain remain?!" His voice broke between clenched teeth.
For several seconds he crouched there, drool dripping from his lips. At last, the torment ebbed away. He lifted his head, eyes brimming, blood staining his mouth.
"I… have returned to the past…?" he whispered, brushing the blood from his lips.
He stood and patted his stomach, then his neck. No stab wound. His head still firmly attached.
How? His mind reeled with even greater confusion. He gripped the edge of the table tightly.
Do I possess some hidden power? A unique trait unknown to the system?
No… impossible. The Gambit System cannot make such an error.
Yet the fact remained, he alone had the anomaly of raising his Gambit rank. Perhaps the system had overlooked something.
Balthazar shook his head, crimson eyes sharpening with resolve.
Fool. Focus. First, comprehend why this has happened.
In the last timeline, I was beheaded. Now, I have returned to the past. And in this moment, I encountered my own corpse from that previous loop. Which means… perhaps every death leaves behind a vessel to hold my memories.
He scratched his head, realizing the flaw.
If I must find my corpse from the prior timeline to regain those memories, then this power will be painfully difficult to control. What if I die in some forgotten corner of the world? What if monsters obliterate my remains until nothing is left? How could I possibly retrieve them?
He slapped both cheeks with his palms.
Enough, Balthazar! Focus on escaping this mansion. You have only relived the past once!
Drawing a deep breath, he prepared himself. In mere minutes, the man outside would be beheaded by the monster woman.
His eyes returned to the chessboard. Swiftly, he moved the pawn forward, promoting it into a king.
Ding!
A grin tugged at his lips.
[Congratulations! You have gained a Skill!]
Beside him, the glowing letters of a status window unfolded in golden script.
[En Passant!]
Yes, yes… I already know, Balthazar thought, smirking with arrogance.
And why shouldn't he? He was certain now, he possessed a power that could rewind time.
Ding!
Another notification appeared. New Gambits would be divided into two factions: Black Gambits and White Gambits.
He glanced at his wrist. A white band glowed faintly, he belonged to the White Gambits.
Ding!
The system displayed his Main Quest and Sub Quest. The Sub Quest demanded that he defeat the monster woman.
Balthazar chuckled.
Defeat her? When in the last timeline she killed me in a single blink?
"AHHHHH!" A man's scream tore through the night outside.
Balthazar froze, then noticed, this time, the scream came slightly later than before.
Without hesitation, he opened the door. He knew the monster woman was out there.
First step… find someone I can use.