CH 74
“Alright.”
There was no reason to refuse.
Chess was a game I had known the rules of for a long time.
Since the rules of chess in this empire were not much different from those in Korea, it was even easier to pick up.
If there was a difference, it was that the rook was called a magician here?
That said, I didn’t particularly enjoy playing chess.
In 21st century Korea, there were many games that were much more fun than chess, so there was no need to play it.
In this empire, no one even glanced at me when I said I was studying magic.
So, all I knew about chess were the basic rules.
“Do you know the rules?”
“I only know the basics.”
“Really? Got it. Then I’ll play under the same conditions.”
“Sounds good.”
I sat across from Helen.
“It wouldn’t be fair to take white against a beginner, so I’ll choose black.”
“Feel free to do as you like. I’m just following along.”
“Alright. I’ll concede the first move.”
Helen smiled and opened the chessboard.
The first move.
I stared at the chessboard for a while.
How can I win?
‘I’m just a beginner who only knows the basic rules.’
The only opening I knew was the Queen’s Gambit.
But Helen was a seasoned player with considerable knowledge of chess.
She seemed quite confident as well.
‘Considering Helen’s personality, she would naturally play aggressively.’
That was the thought I had while looking at Helen.
An aggressive noble who wouldn’t back down.
Helen had a personality that hated the idea of her honor being tarnished more than death itself.
People with such personalities tend to use their strength to crush their opponents when they encounter the weak.
‘Especially since she has been at a disadvantage against me several times before.’
How many times had I defeated her in my field of illusion magic?
She would be filled with a desire for revenge.
There was a high possibility she would desperately try to win against me.
She would want to suppress me as much as possible and claim victory.
‘The fact that she asked me to apologize was probably her way of venting her frustration for not being able to concentrate on the exam because of me.’
After winning a few times, she would probably feel relieved.
She would want to calm the rising sexual desire using her anger as a means.
If the dopamine generated from relieving her anger was somewhat possible, then that was the reason I accepted the chess match, which I had a high chance of winning.
Since I had fought on favorable ground until now, it was time for me to fight on unfavorable ground.
‘But that doesn’t mean I’m going to lose easily.’
I had to struggle to win as much as possible.
And what if I actually won?
‘What would happen then?’
I would blame Helen for her lack of skill.
How could she lose to a beginner? That’s just too weak~!
I thought as I simulated the game while staring at the board.
I constructed the illusion magic and calculated, and my mind began to spin quickly to adapt to the ever-changing environment.
Calculating how each piece could move happened swiftly, and I chose one of the many possibilities that emerged.
It was the most aggressive move I could think of.
‘Counter-offensive strategy.’
It was the most suitable move to suppress an opponent who was reckless and only knew how to attack.
If it were an actual war, it would be a move that couldn’t be chosen easily.
The scale of the enemy and the scale of our forces were different, the terrain was different, and the weather and armament conditions were different.
‘If I made a mistake, the weaker side could be wiped out immediately.’
But this was chess.
It was a battlefield where the same pieces fought under the same conditions.
‘In that case, the side with slower thinking would be wiped out.’
The fact that I could make the first move was a ridiculous advantage.
I didn’t know how much Helen understood this, but if she came out aggressively as I expected, just having the first move would allow me to predict my victory.
And Helen was just as I expected.
“You’re playing quite aggressively, aren’t you?”
She also made a counter-offensive.
‘I won.’
The moment Helen made her first move, I sensed victory.
I quickly made my next move.
Thwack!
After placing my central pawn a bit more aggressively, I waited for her next move.
“Hm, very aggressive. Do you want to play a center game?”
Helen began to counter-attack aggressively after reading my move.
After confirming that she had captured my pawn with her pawn, I threw my knight forward, and I could see the corners of Helen’s mouth rise.
“Oh, are you trying to do the Black Mardimer Gambit? It’s a very effective opening at the amateur level, but it won’t work on me.”
She captured the pawn I had set up aggressively and positioned herself even more offensively.
“Black what? Honestly, I don’t know such things.”
“What?”
“I’m choosing this move because I think it has the highest win rate.”
“Oh, I forgot you were a beginner. Sorry. Let’s continue.”
“This will probably be the last time we talk during this game.”
“What?”
I didn’t give Helen any time to think.
Thwack!
Immediately, I made my next move.
I pressured Helen by moving my pieces.
Then Helen tilted her head.
“You’re moving like this here? But the textbook says if you do this…”
Is it a trap?
She must want to think it through.
Her brain was probably working at full capacity.
But all the moves she could make had already been calculated in my mind.
I had already thought about how Helen would make her moves.
Depending on where she would attack, I had already considered my countermeasures.
I didn’t know much about chess openings or attacks like Helen did, but I knew one thing for sure.
‘If I give her time to think, I will lose.’
I made my moves quickly so she wouldn’t have time to organize her thoughts.
“Bishop…”
Thwack!
As soon as Helen made her move, I made my next one.
“What on earth are you thinking…?”
Thwack!
Before Helen could even question it, I made my next move.
This was momentum.
It was as if I was pushing forward with sheer force.
To be precise, it was closer to pushing Helen into the trap I had calculated.
Contrary to her confident declaration of wanting to play chess, Helen’s pieces had gradually disappeared.
After a few uncomfortable exchanges, there were hardly any of her pieces left.
“Ugh…”
Helen, completely at a disadvantage, bit her lip.
The signs of defeat were clear.
She didn’t have many moves left.
“Please hurry. Time is running out.”
“…”
In the end, she didn’t call for surrender due to her pride and made her last move.
“Checkmate.”
“…”
Thus, the king met his demise.
“How was it? In a fair match, I emerged victorious. Since it’s a bet…”
“Let’s play one more game.”
“One more game?”
“Y-yes.”
“…Are you serious? I never thought the noble Helen of the Silvesta family would want to annul a game that has already been played.”
“How about a best of three?”
Helen’s expression as she proposed this looked quite desperate.
It seemed like she was saying she couldn’t afford to lose this time.
Her appearance of clinging to me was quite frantic.
This was a different development than I had thought.
“Alright. Since there’s a lot at stake, one game might not be enough. Let’s do it again.”
Setting up the board from the beginning again, I sat across from Helen.
Helen’s fighting spirit was ignited.
However, after the first game, I instinctively felt.
‘I will never lose.’
The next game began.
And the result was the same.
“Th-this can’t be happening…”
It was quite amusing to see Helen flustered.
“What did you say would happen if you lost? You said you would become the tester for the improved illusion magic circle since you came here.”
“…”
Was it the humiliation that was rising?
Helen’s face, biting her lip, turned fierce.
I could feel the murderous intent in her gaze as she glared at me.
No matter how much she glared, the result wouldn’t change.
‘Her reaction is quite enjoyable.’
It was fun.
The thrill of teasing her was quite satisfying.
Was it because I felt I could win no matter what?
“It seems there’s a significant skill gap, so let’s add one more condition.”
I added one more condition.
“What is it?”
“I will give you the right to challenge as many times as you want. Instead of a best of three, if you can beat me even once, I will sincerely apologize.”
“Are you looking down on me?”
“I’m not looking down on you. It just means there’s a significant skill gap.”
“…”
She didn’t deny it.
“If you give up and acknowledge your defeat, then I will receive my reward.”
“…”
“However, since I’m offering a shocking condition, I will also set a condition for myself.”
“What is it?”
“Every time you lose, I will attach the tools I used in the illusion to your body. You know what that means, right?”
“Y-you’re saying…”
“You’ll experience what you would have faced in the illusion if you lose anyway. You’re just tasting it in reality beforehand. Haven’t you already seen it?”
“…”
Helen was silent.
I waited for her to respond.
“If you don’t accept, I will start the illusion right away.”
There was no choice but to accept.
It was essentially a notification.
Helen had no choice but to accept.
“…Fine.”
Just like now.
“Alright. Then let’s start from now. And since you lost four times just now, I will attach three items.”
“What does that mean?!”
“I told you. I will attach one each time you challenge again.”
“But…”
“If you want, I can consider it as taking off your clothes.”
“Fine.”
At my words, Helen obediently took off her clothes.
The part where she had already seen what she would face in the illusion had already lowered her psychological barriers.
She took off not only her outer clothes but also her top.
Starting the game in a state of only wearing underwear.
“Let’s go. I’ll be watching to see how many times you challenge.”
“Fine. I will win no matter what.”
However, unfortunately, Helen never managed to win even once.
“Checkmate.”
Throughout the eight matches.
“Haah, haah… I-I have nothing left, ugh…”
In a completely naked state, with a rotor on her chest, a vibrator on her clit, and a massager intermittently vibrating on her sensitive areas.
Helen’s entire body was covered with various devices.
With her eyes glazed over and panting, Helen spoke with trembling hands.
“Ugh!”
Feeling a faint orgasm, she gasped for breath and set up the chessboard again.
“So, are you going to give up?”
“…N-no. I-I can’t give up.”
It seemed this wouldn’t end easily.
I didn’t expect her to be this stubborn.
“Phew, I understand. Then this game will be the last one.”
I had no choice but to use a different method.
***
Helen had come to relieve her stress by easily crushing Max in chess.
She had considered asking him to show her the illusion, but that was too much for her pride as a noble, so she chose this alternative.
She thought Max wouldn’t play chess often.
After all, Helen had been known as a chess prodigy.
No matter who she faced, she had always won.
She thought she was at least at the level of a master.
So she boldly took the plunge.
She never expected to be shattered like this.
It felt like hitting a wall.
An insurmountable, lofty fortress.
No matter what move she made, I could see through her intentions and countered with deeper strategies.
Every time she made a move, her attack routes disappeared.
She had never felt such a gap even when sparring with chess masters.
Everyone had been able to hold their own, and she had lost regrettably.
This was the first time she felt such despair.
Even while being violated by unfamiliar devices in a naked state.
Zing.
“Ugh!”
Helen didn’t think of collapsing.
Silvesta couldn’t easily fall.
While it was true that the illusion magic was Max’s main battlefield, this was different.
If she collapsed here, it would tarnish the name of Silvesta.
Of course, Helen didn’t realize that.
Being naked in front of a man, with a lewd object inserted into her shameful place, gasping in pleasure was far more embarrassing than losing.
Unaware of this, Helen forced her trembling body to sit down.
As she sat down, the rotor she had inserted began to stimulate her, providing new sensations.
“Haah…”
Her body trembled.
“Q-quickly sit down.”
Helen made her first move.
Helen had already held white for a long time.
In a dazed state, her head spinning, she desperately tried to think of her next move.
Max, who had been watching her for a moment, smiled and made his next move.
But then.
‘What is this?’
The massive wall that had felt like a mountain until just now didn’t seem to be there.
The overwhelming pressure she had always felt from him was completely absent.
Helen unconsciously raised her head to look at Max.
‘Why?’
Max was smiling.