‘……Why chess all of a sudden?’
Upon waking up, I found the situation unfolding in a strange direction.
I cautiously poked my head out of the pocket, only to quickly pull it back in. There was no way I could afford to make my presence known.
Being stuck inside the pocket was frustrating since I couldn’t see what was happening outside. But sticking my head out wasn’t an option either—I couldn’t risk being spotted by Nox.
Left with no choice, I pulled out an item.
Enhanced Eye of Insight.
It was a modified version of the hamster-sized glasses, Eye of Insight, with upgraded lenses. Whenever I activated its enhanced function, the lenses darkened like sunglasses. Though it wasn’t the most stylish look… there was no one around to see me anyway.
Despite its appearance, its purpose wasn’t to block light but to let me see through objects to the outside world.
According to the system’s notification, the ability couldn’t be used indefinitely—there was a daily limit of one hour.
‘This is actually pretty useful.’
[(￣︶￣*)b]
From within the pocket, I carefully observed the outside.
In the heavy silence, the chess pieces moved—sometimes holding their ground, sometimes advancing, and occasionally being eliminated and cast off the square battlefield entirely.
Nox played aggressively, taking direct control of the king and queen, the two most crucial pieces, to pressure Kyle.
On the other hand, Kyle played defensively. Even though it was impossible, he desperately tried to avoid losing any of his pieces. Because of this, he missed several opportunities to checkmate.
“If you cling to the insignificant, you will fail in achieving the greater cause.”
Kyle moved a knight to block in front of his queen.
The game continued in this manner. When absolutely necessary, the king would move a single space, but the queen remained mostly still. Even though it was the most versatile piece, he barely moved it.
Because of this, Nox’s white queen freely roamed the small chessboard, relentlessly pressuring Kyle’s black queen. Each time, Kyle sent a knight to shield it.
“How loyal.”
Nox sneered as the last black knight was struck down by the white queen.
“I don’t see why you cherish a queen you barely even use.”
Kyle pinched a black bishop between his thumb and forefinger. The dull, shadow-like piece toppled the brilliant white queen.
“Some things are precious simply because they exist. Ah, but I suppose that’s a foreign concept to you—respect and affection.”
“Hm.”
Nox smiled silently.
He showed no interest in the fallen white queen. He played chess the way he lived—he only moved his remaining pieces, waiting for the moment to strangle the black king.
“Survival comes before respect. No matter how much you love something, what meaning does it hold once it’s dead and discarded?”
The black queen fell. The white rooks, the advancing pawns, the knights, the bishops—black and white pieces alike were gradually banished from the board.
The white queen stood before the black king. Checkmate.
But before Nox could wear a triumphant grin, Kyle calmly spoke.
“At the very least, they won’t feel like they were cruelly cast aside from this world. It wasn’t a miserable death.”
The atmosphere froze. The delicate tension that had filled the room moments ago now felt meaningless, as if it had been nothing more than a child’s game.
Nox’s eyes blazed with the desire to tear Kyle apart. But Kyle didn’t back down either.
Neither had drawn a weapon, yet their gazes alone seemed to be cutting each other into pieces.
‘Stop it!’
I had been quietly staying put the whole time, but now, I clenched my tiny fists and began pounding furiously on Kyle’s thigh.
Just then, a system message appeared.
[‘Enhanced Eye of Insight’ usage time has ended!]
‘We need to leave now!’
Since I couldn’t make any noise, I flailed my arms and legs, throwing a fit inside Kyle’s pocket.
It wasn’t that I thought Kyle could win against Nox. The last time he had played chess was about fifteen years ago.
Back then, it was just a meaningless pastime played against the well-fed nobles of the Imperial City. After moving to the North and dedicating himself entirely to survival, he barely even remembered the rules.
The only reason he had sat across from Nox, knowing full well he would lose, was to keep that troublesome wizard occupied—at least for a while. And if he could get a glimpse into Nox’s mind in the process, even better.
Kyle, noticing my protests, subtly adjusted his cloak to conceal the pocket where I was hidden. Then, he stood up. I clung tightly to his thigh, making myself as small and silent as possible.
Alright. Now we just had to get out of here safely. Kyle turned his back and began walking, neither too quickly nor too slowly.
But then—
“Your Highness.”
Nox’s chilling voice stopped Kyle in his tracks.
W-What? Why is he calling him all of a sudden? …He couldn’t have figured out that I’m hiding here, could he?
“You seem to have forgotten our agreement.”
“……”
“The winner of the chess match was allowed to ask a question, wasn’t he?”
Kyle let out a small sigh.
“Right, I suppose we did agree to that. What do you want to know?”
The white specter slightly tilted his head forward.
“That small and impudent lover of yours.”
“……”
“Does it belong to another world, come from another world, or have the ability to travel between worlds?”
The ability of the Eye of Insight had worn off, leaving me in total darkness. Maybe it was because I couldn’t see anything—but my heart pounded anxiously.
Nox had won the chess match. According to their agreement, Kyle had to answer his question truthfully.
Kyle straightened his posture slightly. His body tensed for a brief moment before relaxing.
“Yes.”
I expected Nox to press further, to dig for more details in his relentless pursuit of curiosity.
But instead, he simply fell silent. After hearing the answer, he turned and left the room with surprisingly light steps.
‘Another world… How did he know?’
I crawled onto Kyle’s palm and looked up at him. Kyle, too, gazed down at me with a puzzled expression.
Understanding Nox’s true intentions was still beyond us.
***
The next day.
While I was eating a late lunch in the dining hall, the shameless master of the Frost Tower casually took a seat across from me.
“No matter how much I dig, you never run out of mysteries. It’s fresh and intriguing—I like it.”
“You’re looking at me like I’m some vegetable you’re inspecting. I have no interest in becoming a radish or potato in your little garden, so take your eyes elsewhere.”
I growled under my breath and took a big bite of my sandwich. The fresh lettuce and juicy tomato crushed softly between my teeth.
“Well, that’s good to hear. It would be a shame if you disappeared the moment I bit into you.”
He stared at my sandwich for a moment before adding, “Like that poor tomato.”
My appetite instantly vanished.
Even dogs don’t bother people while they’re eating. This bastard has no sense of decency.
“You really excel at being a pain in the ass.”
“Why, thank you, kid.”
“And you have an impressive variety of ways to be insufferable.”
Suppressing the boiling frustration inside me, I forced a smile, though my tense lips trembled.
Today, I had used Reload a little earlier than usual to discuss matters with the knights. But the moment I returned to my original body, I realized that my right arm was a complete mess.
That damn specter must have played a trick on me, likely triggered by the brand, because I hadn’t responded.
“You didn’t answer, so I had no choice.”
Shameless bastard. And now he’s making it sound like it’s my fault? I swallowed both the rising curse and the bite of sandwich in my mouth.
“Are you alright? It must have hurt quite a bit. Normally, you’d barge into my room yelling something like, ‘You’re such a pain to deal with!’ But today, you were strangely quiet. Almost as if…”
“……”
“…you had crossed into another world.”
So that’s why that was the question he asked after winning the chess match yesterday.
“Haa…”
With a short sigh, I finished the rest of my sandwich and dusted off my hands before getting up.
Yeah, what’s the point in arguing?
The best way to deal with people like him is indifference. The more attention I give, the more he’ll grate on my nerves—and that can’t be good for my blood pressure.
I won’t answer. There’s nothing to gain from it.
[(#`O′)/!]
For some reason, the system had thrown a fit the moment I staggered after using Reload today.
In a way, it was as if I had directly challenged it. Not only had my carefully hidden presence been wrecked, but there had also been multiple clashes of power.
‘Yeah, yeah. I hate that bastard too.’
For once, the system and I seemed to be on the same page. I soothed it half-heartedly and walked on.
There were two sets of footsteps echoing in the hallway—mine and his.
I found it so irritating that he was deliberately matching my pace that I slowed down, then sped up at random.
Yet by the time we reached the library, I was the only one exhausted.
“…Aren’t wizards basically desk workers?”
“Your legs are just short, kid.”
“Just go away already. Stop being such a nuisance.”
I pushed open the heavy library door and hurried inside. He’d probably follow me anyway, but I wanted to put off seeing his face for at least one second longer.
Sure enough, just as I reached the largest bookshelf, the door creaked open behind me. Without looking, I ran my fingers along the book spines, pretending to be too focused to notice.
‘Don’t come any closer.’
The library’s thick carpet muffled any sound of footsteps.
I grabbed a random book, flipping it open and pretending to read. Maybe if I looked absorbed, he’d lose interest—at least for a moment.
The air felt fresh, as if someone had aired out the room after cleaning. The deep red velvet curtains fluttered in the breeze, letting in soft sunlight that streaked across the floor.
As I followed a warm ray of light with my eyes, I suddenly felt an arm wrap carefully around my waist from behind.
“Shu.”
For a brief moment, my body tensed—then slowly, all the tension melted away, like thin ice dissolving in the spring sun.
Familiar warmth. Familiar touch. Familiar voice.
I leaned back against him slightly, smiling. Then, turning my head, I pressed a kiss against Kyle’s cheek.
“Your Highness.”
