“Chess, huh? It’s been a while.”
“How long has it been?”
“The last time I played was with Sharine… about 30 years ago?”
Maybe it was because I knew her age.
Despite being a considerable length of time, those 30 years seemed like nothing more than a fleeting moment to her.
“Shall we play in the standard Imperial style for now?”
“I don’t mind.”
“Then—”
Clack!
With a sharp sound, a chessboard was placed on the table.
It was an Imperial-style chessboard, the most widely recognized version in this world.
It was nearly identical to the boards I had played on in my past life.
As I studied the chessboard with interest, I let my gaze shift slightly toward her.
She had looked somewhat indifferent just moments ago, but the instant the board was set down, her expression visibly brightened.
I already knew that chess held significant meaning for her.
If only she smiled like that more often.
“Are you any good at chess?”
“Well, back when I was an adventurer, I never lost a single game.”
“Hmm~ Is that so? Perfect.”
Now, at last, she wore an expression befitting her youthful appearance. One of pure, childlike excitement.
What was the reason behind that bright, carefree smile? Was it simply the joy of playing a game?
“I’ll let you go first.”
“I appreciate it.”
Whatever the case, I had to win at least once if I wanted to ask my question.
I reached out and picked up a piece from the chessboard.
.
.
.
.
.
“Checkmate.”
“…….”
With just a single remark from her, the first game ended in an instant.
The sight of my king falling helplessly to her knight was downright pitiful.
I had a feeling this would happen… but damn, she’s ridiculously good.
No matter how much chess I had played, a few years of experience weren’t nearly enough to beat her.
Even if I had spent years playing chess like it was my daily bread, she had been at it for at least thousands of years.
Every time I made a move, she had already calculated several moves ahead.
Just like the veteran adventurers used to say, she and I were in entirely different leagues.
“Hmm~ that was easy.”
“…I lost.”
“That means I get one question, right?”
“What do you want to ask?”
“Let’s move on to the next game first. I’m going to keep winning anyway, so I’ll just ask everything all at once later.”
“…….”
For some reason, her words sparked a strange sense of competitiveness in me.
Hearing something like that made me want to land at least one blow on this smug lizard.
“Then how about we change the board?”
“Hmm? You know other variations?”
“Let’s switch to Chaldean chess.”
Chaldea.
It was the name of a region in the beastkin territories. One of the many lands ruled by non-humans.
“…You’ve had ties with the beastkin? That’s not something most Imperial citizens would be familiar with.”
“It’s the style I’m most confident in.”
“You really are a strange one.”
Back when I had taken refuge in beastkin territory, I had often played chess with the tribal chiefs.
Of all the chess variations, this was the one where I had the highest chance of winning.
***
Clack.
“Checkmate… That makes it eleven to zero.”
“…….”
I looked sadly at my fallen pieces, scattered across the board.
Far from dealing a blow to the headmistress, I had taken eleven hits myself.
No way… Did someone implant an AI into that dragon’s brain or something? How does she not have a single opening?!
“…Should we call it a day? We’ve tried most of the chess variations by now.”
“…….”
“But it was fun. I never imagined you’d even know obscure styles like Spirit Chess and Fang Chess.”
She really must have enjoyed herself. Throughout the entire game, she wore a deep smile unlike her usual expressions.
…Meanwhile, my face was practically rotting away.
“You’re really going to send me off without telling me anything?”
“Of course. I told you I’d answer your questions only if you managed to win at least once. Since you didn’t, that’s the end of it.”
“…….”
“If anything, shouldn’t I be the one asking questions after winning eleven times in a row~?”
Her half-closed eyes arched as she spoke, and for a moment I actually wanted to punch her.
Damn it. What do I do…?
Knowing how twisted this dragon’s personality was, there was a real chance she would keep her word and tell me nothing.
And she was more than shameless enough to pull it off.
Still, after coming all this way, I can’t just leave empty-handed.
Fortunately, I still had a card left to play. One that would undoubtedly catch her interest.
It felt a little premature, but in the end, I made up my mind.
“…One more game.”
“More? Most of the rules are similar, so the results won’t really change—”
“Randel-style chess.”
Thunk.
The headmistress who had been lounging on the sofa and idly sucking on a candy suddenly froze.
Even the candy slipped from her fingers as she stared at me with her eyes wide with shock.
“…What did you just say—”
“You have a Randel-style chessboard, don’t you?”
“…….”
“Let’s play a match with that.”
It was almost a gamble, but even so, I played my final move.
***
“Alright, it’s all set up.”
“…Oh.”
Lost in thought for a moment, I hadn’t noticed that the chessboard was already prepared.
Unlike standard Imperial chess, the board itself was a different size.
And the pieces arranged on it were anything but ordinary.
They looked almost dragon-like.
“I’ll let you go first. You already know the victory condition, right?”
“Yes.”
In Randel-style chess, there was no king or queen.
That meant the only way to win was by eliminating every single piece.
In other words, it was a battle of annihilation.
“…Alright, let’s begin.”
“Yes.”
A heavy silence followed our exchange.
Unlike before, when the mood had been lighthearted and playful, a weight now hung between us.
Without a word, I raised my hand and moved a piece.
Tap.
The sound marked the beginning of the match.
.
.
.
Tap.
The irregular sounds of pieces being moved echoed through the room.
She and I played seamlessly, our moves flowing like water.
…Tch, as expected, a straightforward approach won’t work.
Tap.
Among all chess variants, Randel-style chess was one of the most complex.
A wide variety of pieces, multi-layered terrain effects, and regional battle bonuses tied to different colors—
These additional elements made it far more intricate than Imperial chess.
In reality, it was practically an entirely different game.
“You’re better at this than I expected.”
When she finished her turn, the headmistress offered a dry remark.
I said,
“…Can’t you go easy on me just a little?”
“Why would I?”
“I can’t believe you’re so eager to crush a young student…”
“I take everything seriously.”
Tap.
My turn ended, and it was her move again.
Only then did I take another proper look at the board. Despite her earlier words of praise, the game was completely one-sided.
More than half of my pieces were already gone, while over seventy percent of hers remained intact.
At this rate, the match would be over in an instant.
…This approach might attract too much attention, but…
I resolved myself and continued to move my pieces.
“Hey.”
Just as I carefully shifted another piece, she spoke again, absentmindedly fiddling with one of her own.
“Since you’ve been losing to me this whole time, let me ask you one thing.”
“…What is it?”
She stared at the chess piece in deep thought before shifting her gaze to me.
“You know how to play Randel-style chess. But do you also know its origins?”
“…A little. I remember hearing about it when I first learned the game.”
“Explain.”
“All of a sudden?”
“Hurry up.”
“…Well, alright. So—”
Randel-style chess.
Its other name… was the Chess of Dragons.
Long ago, even before the Empire was founded, dragons were living, breathing beings in this world.
The name of the continent where dragons once lived was Randel. In the dragon language, “Randel” meant “dragon”.
Overflowing with narcissism, they created the pieces in their own image and added various entertaining elements, eventually perfecting what became Randel-style chess.
The dragons had enjoyed playing this game until the day they vanished from the world.
“And the war of the dragons… is a great disaster that anyone who studies the history of the continent will know.”
“……..”
The full details were never passed down to later generations.
For some unknown reason, they had fought among themselves, killing and being killed, until, in the end, they were wiped out.
“Most people believe that. But those who truly understand Randel-style chess see things a little differently.”
Those who had only learned about the War of Dragons on the surface believed the dragons had gone extinct.
But those who knew the deeper truth understood that such claims were wrong.
“To begin with, Randel-style chess was a game known only to dragons. And the fact that humans learned of it only after the war broke out…”
“….…”
“Then wouldn’t the one who spread this chess across the continent have been a dragon? Of course, no one has seen a dragon since the war.”
“…That would make sense. If the war wiped them all out—”
“Not all of them died.”
Many dragons had perished in that battle, but some had undoubtedly survived.
If that was the case, where had the remaining dragons disappeared to?
I moved one of my last remaining chess pieces.
It was the only piece I had left.
Barely made it in time.
Tap!
“…This is…”
“Randel-style chess has a special way to win, doesn’t it?”
It was not a rule that had existed from the beginning.
Most likely, it was an additional rule introduced by the dragon who had spread this chess variant across the continent.
“How… how is this even possible…?”
“If a single special piece is left alone, placing it on a specific designated square results in victory.”
That “specific square” referred to the exact spot where I had just moved my final chess piece.
On that square, a familiar word was inscribed.
[Ella]
Ella Academy. The neutral territory where the academy was located.
This chessboard was modeled after the lands of the past, back when the continent of Albracia was divided into multiple regions before being unified by the war’s aftermath.
And Ella Academy was the last remaining trace of that war.
“The dragon race was not annihilated. They were merely sent to a distant, separate dimension.”
“……”
“And even in this world, dragons still remain.”
I looked at the lone chess piece in my possession.
The single piece left standing was the weakest of all the chess pieces.
After all, when this chess set was first created, she had been nothing more than a young hatchling.
However, under these specific conditions, that piece gained a special effect.
I recalled the name of her character from the setting guide.
[Exiled Kin – Dimensional Dragon, Lily]
She had been in a position where she could do nothing but watch. In the end, when the war reached its final stages, she chose to bear the entire burden herself.
To save her beloved kin. To protect the war-torn races of the continent that were thrown into chaos by its aftermath.
Because she loved them all, she had to sacrifice herself to save everyone.
She was the one who exiled her own people to that distant dimension. And now, she remained here, endlessly waiting for the day she could reunite with them.
Ella. In the language of dragons, it meant “waiting”.
Ella Academy was the weight of the responsibility she had taken upon herself. And her prison of waiting built on a dream of liberation.
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