Chapter 73
Chapter 73
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Translator: uly
Chapter: 73
Chapter Title: Checkmated by a Beginner
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"Alright."
There was no reason to refuse.
Chess was a game I'd known well from before.
The rules here in the Empire weren't much different from those in Korea, which made it even easier to pick up.
The only difference was that the rooks were called mages or magicians?
That said, I didn't particularly enjoy chess.
In 21st-century Korea, there were far more entertaining games than chess, so there was no need to bother.
And here in the Empire, no one paid me any mind while I was researching magic.
So all I knew about chess were the basic rules.
"You know the rules?"
"Only the basics."
"I see. Alright, then. I'll play under the same conditions."
"Alright."
I sat down across from Helen.
"Taking white against a beginner wouldn't be sporting, so I'll take black."
"Do whatever's comfortable. I'm just following along."
"Good. I'll yield the first move to you."
Helen smiled as she opened the chessboard.
First move, huh.
I stared at the board for a long while.
How could I win this?
'I'm a beginner who only knows the basic rules.'
The only opening I knew was the Queen's Gambit.
But Helen was an experienced player with considerable skill in chess.
And she seemed pretty confident, too.
'Considering Helen's personality, she'll definitely go aggressive.'
That was the impression I'd gotten watching her from the side.
A stubborn noble who wouldn't back down.
Helen was the type who hated having her honor shattered more than death itself.
People like that always crushed weaker opponents without mercy.
'Especially after losing to me multiple times.'
She'd been caught in my field of illusion magic several times, hadn't she?
She must be brimming with a desire for revenge.
She'd probably come at me desperately to beat me no matter what.
She'd want to pin me down and seize victory by any means.
'Even making me apologize was probably just her venting frustration from not being able to focus on her exams because of me.'
Once she won a few games, her anger would cool off.
She wanted to quell her surging lust by using this as an outlet.
Dopamine from venting anger would substitute to some degree.
That was why I'd accepted this chess match, where I was at a disadvantage.
I'd fought on my advantageous turf until now, so it was time to fight on hers.
'That doesn't mean I'm planning to lose, though.'
I'd struggle as hard as I could to win.
What if I actually won?
'What about it?'
She could blame her own lack of skill.
Losing to a total newbie? You're too weak~!
Something like that.
I stared at the board for a long time, running simulations.
My brain, honed from constructing illusion magic and performing rapid calculations amid constantly shifting environments, began to spin at full speed.
Calculations on how each piece could move flowed swiftly, and from the many possibilities that arose, I selected one.
The most aggressive move, in my opinion.
'Counter-fire strategy.'
It was the most suitable way to subdue an impatient opponent who only thought about killing.
In a real war, it wouldn't be a choice I'd make lightly.
Because enemy numbers, our forces, terrain, weather, and armament status would all differ.
'One misstep, and the weaker side gets obliterated.'
But this was chess.
A battlefield fought under identical conditions with the same number of identical pieces.
'In that case, the side with the slower brain gets obliterated.'
Plus, I had the first-move advantage.
Having the first move in a fight like this was an absurd merit.
I wasn't sure how well Helen grasped that, but if she came at me aggressively as expected, just having the first move would seal my victory.
And Helen did exactly as I'd predicted.
"Pretty aggressive, huh?"
She responded with counter-fire of her own.
'I win.'
The moment Helen made her first move, I foresaw victory.
I quickly made my next move.
Clack!
I positioned the central pawn a bit more aggressively, then waited for her response.
"Hmm, very aggressive. You want a center game?"
Helen, reading my move, began counterattacking aggressively.
After confirming she'd captured my pawn with her own pawn, I advanced my knight, and Helen's lips curled up.
"Oh, trying the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit? It's a great opening for amateurs, but it won't work on me."
She stubbornly captured the pawn I'd pushed forward and set up an even more aggressive position.
"Blackmar-whatever? Honestly, I don't know any of that."
"What?"
"I'm just picking the move that feels like it has the highest win rate."
"Ah, I forgot you're a beginner, Teacher. Sorry. Let's continue."
"This will be the last conversation during the game."
"What?"
I didn't give Helen time to think.
Clack!
Next move immediately.
I pressured her by moving pieces relentlessly.
Helen tilted her head.
"Moving like that here? But according to the manual, if you do that..."
A trap?
She'd want to think it over in her head.
Her brain was probably running at full capacity, too.
But I'd already calculated every possible move she could make.
No matter how Helen played.
I'd prepared countermeasures depending on where she attacked.
I might not know chess openings or attacks like Helen, but one thing was certain.
'If I give her time to think, I lose.'
I played quickly to prevent her from organizing her thoughts.
"The bishop to..."
Clack!
The instant Helen moved, I followed up.
"What are you even thinking..."
Clack!
Before Helen could voice her doubts, next move.
This was momentum.
Pushing with sheer momentum.
More precisely, herding her into the board state I'd calculated.
Unlike her confident claim of playing chess, her pieces had vanished before she knew it.
After a few uncomfortable exchanges, Helen didn't have many pieces left.
"Ugh..."
Completely at a disadvantage, Helen bit her lip.
Defeat loomed heavy.
She didn't have many moves left.
"Come on, make your move. Time's running out."
"..."
In the end, pride kept her from surrendering, and she made her final move.
"Checkmate."
"..."
Her king met its end just like that.
"How's that? I won fair and square. A bet's a bet, so..."
"Hah, one more game."
"One more?"
"Y-Yeah."
"...Are you serious? I never imagined Helen from the Silvesta family would try to nullify a game that's already happened."
"Best of three out of five, how about that?"
Helen's expression as she proposed it to me looked utterly desperate.
It was like her inner voice was screaming that she couldn't lose this.
She was clinging to me desperately.
This must be far from what she'd expected.
"Alright. With so much on the line, one game might not be enough. Let's do another."
I reset the board from the start and sat across from Helen again.
Helen burned with renewed determination.
But after finishing the first game, I instinctively knew.
'I absolutely won't lose.'
The next game began.
The result was the same.
"N-No, this can't be..."
It was pretty fun watching Helen panic.
"You said what happens if you lose? You agreed to be the tester for my improved illusion magic circle since you're here."
"..."
Was it humiliation welling up?
Helen bit her lip, her face turning vicious.
I could even sense killing intent in her glaring eyes.
But no matter how much she glared, the result wouldn't change.
'Her reactions are delicious.'
It was fun.
Teasing her felt quite rewarding.
Was it because I now thought I could win no matter what?
"Seems like the skill gap is bigger than expected, so let's add one more condition."
I tacked on another condition.
"What is it?"
"I'll give you challenge rights, so you can keep trying as many times as you want. Not best of whatever—just if you can beat me even once, I'll sincerely apologize then."
"You're underestimating me right now?"
"Not underestimating. Just that the skill gap is that wide."
"..."
She didn't deny it.
"If you give up and admit defeat, that's when I'll claim my reward."
"..."
"But in exchange for such generous terms, I'll add a condition on my end."
"What?"
"For every loss, I'll attach the tools used in the illusion to your body. You know what that means, right?"
"My chastity..."
"You'll suffer it in the illusion if you lose anyway. This is just a preview in reality. You've already seen it all, haven't you?"
"..."
Helen fell silent.
I waited for her answer.
"If you don't accept, we'll start the illusion right now."
No choices here.
Essentially an ultimatum.
Helen had no choice but to accept.
"...Fine."
Now, just like this.
"Alright. Then let's begin. And since you've lost four times already, that's three items."
"What are you talking about!"
"I told you. One per rematch."
"But..."
"If you want, I can count stripping as one."
"Fine."
At my words, Helen obediently stripped.
The part about having already seen it in the illusion had lowered her psychological barriers.
Not just outer clothes, but her top as well.
We started the game with her in underwear only.
"Let's go. I'll watch how long you keep challenging."
"Fine. I'll win somehow."
But unfortunately, not once did a scenario where Helen won materialize.
"Checkmate."
Over eight games.
"Hah, hah... N-Now there's nothing left to... uh..."
Completely naked, with a rotor on her breasts, a vibrator on her clit, and a massager intermittently pulsing waves on her sensitive spots.
Helen was covered head to toe in all sorts of devices.
With dazed, unfocused eyes, she panted, her trembling hands fumbling for words.
"Hnng!"
As if feeling a light orgasm, she gasped for breath, then shakily reset the board.
"So, will you give up?"
"...N-No. I absolutely won't give up."
This won't end like this.
I hadn't expected her to be this stubborn.
"Sigh, alright. Then this game will be the last."
No choice but another method.
Helen had come to crush Max at chess and relieve her stress.
She'd considered asking him to show her the illusion but dismissed it as beneath a noble's pride, choosing this as her next best option.
She figured Max didn't play chess often.
After all, Helen had been called a chess prodigy in her own right.
No matter who she faced, she always won.
She was sure she'd reached near-master level.
So she'd challenged him boldly.
Getting shattered like this was nowhere in her expectations.
It felt like hitting a wall.
An impossibly lofty castle wall she could never surmount.
No matter what move she made, he saw through her intentions and countered with deeper strategies.
Every casual move of his erased her attack routes entirely.
She'd never felt this level of disparity even against chess masters.
Those were close games; she'd lost regrettably.
This was the first time she'd felt such despair.
Even as her naked body was toyed with by unfamiliar devices all over.
Ziiing.
"Hnng!"
Helen had no intention of crumbling.
A Silvesta couldn't break easily.
Illusion magic was Max's home turf, so that was one thing, but this was different.
Cracking here would tarnish the Silvesta name.
Of course, Helen didn't realize.
That her current state—naked before a man, lewd objects stuffed in embarrassing places, panting from pleasure—was several times more shameful than losing.
Unaware of that, Helen forced her trembling body to sit back down.
As she sat, the rotor inside her pussy stimulated her, sending fresh waves.
"Haaah..."
Her body shuddered.
"Q-Quick, sit down."
Helen made her first move.
She'd taken white long ago.
In a hazy, dizzy state, she barely clung to her wits and thought of her next move.
Max watched her for a moment, then smiled and played his next move.
But then.
'What?'
The massive wall that had felt like Mount Tai until moments ago was gone.
The overwhelming pressure that always dominated her was nowhere to be felt.
Unconsciously, Helen looked up at Max.
'Why?'
Max was smiling.