In the morning, while everyone was still in bed, a lone wood elf appears in the early morning mist. It was a cold morning, the footstep of fall causes old people in the city to feel very uncomfortable. While the forestation of the city doesn't wither due to this being a city of the elves, fall was around the corner all the same. The scenery may not show it, but it's cold. The cold seeps into their bones.

With his cloak pulled up, the elf approaches the house of one diplomat. Sir Te Celsa was not expecting any guests, and if he was expecting for any guests, he would be expecting for the worst considering his recent actions and the city's current political climate. Would they blame him for the newly born vampire?

However, it was just a lone wood elf with his coat. The elf seeks him personally.

Normally, sir Te Celsa stays with in the vicinity of the royal palace due to his profession. However, after his apprentice has fallen ill, it was up to Te Celsa to manage his organization within the elf kingdom of Lumaria.

Seeing the elf travelling in the white mist, Te Celsa immediately recognizes who he is. Andarel. His little annoyance. Someone he needed to harm.

However 'It is not time yet' Te Celsa whispers to himself 'Not now'

This is not an opportune time for an elite elven ranger to disappear within Lumaria, especially in association with Te Celsa.

Also, he was curious about why the elven ranger has seeked him out.

From the window, the legendary diplomat can see the wood elf being shrouded in white mist. It was a cold morning.

"Make him wait outside until I told you to."

Te Celsa told his associates, his hand was cradling a chess piece. It was the white knight piece. Te Celsa puts it back in place and ignore it. He was playing on black, and it was time to consider the grander scheme of thing.

A knight was a tricky piece, however, in the grander scheme of this game, it was inconsequential.

The door to his guest room was suddenly opened. The cold wind bursts in, chilling his old bones. Walking in the door was the elf.

"What did I tell you?"

Te Celsa wants to say angrily to the his personal guards, however, to keep his image, the diplomat hold his tongue. From his position, he just nods slightly.

The diplomat glances slightly toward his subordinate outside who didn't listen to his words and didn't respond. He is a liability.

"Mr. Andarel, what a surprise. Why have you come here? These are trying time. A ranger should be very busy."

The wood elf smiles back with the same faux polite smile Te Celsa has given him.

"I'm on vacation. I was thinking of visiting lord Te Celsa for a game."

So saying, Andarel took of his coat, revealing his white civilian shirt. He was tying his hair back for convenient. More importantly, what was revealed underneath his shirt when he took off his coat was...

The Idol of Solarii.

The familiar crystaline artifact that has been haunting his failure with the dark elf negotiation appears in front of Te Celsa. The very same crystal that he has been painstakingly carrying for weeks only for it to turn out to be a fake and sour his relationship with the Dark Elf. The very same crystal that he was tricked into taking.

Te Celsa gestures to his men to prepare. He receives no response from them, however, he believes that he got his point across. If his guards cannot even recognizes his signal after letting a completely stranger into his chamber, well they would be very bad guards wouldn't they.

Andarel stares back at Te Celsa and smiles

"Just a game." Andarel says

Andarel sits down on the opposite of the old diplomat and arranges the chess board. He took off the crystal on his neck and put it on the table.

"A game." Te Celsa says, still not quite understanding what the wood elf's angle is. However, he is currently inside Te Celsa's house, surrounded by Te Celsa's men. If the diplomat wanted, the elf wouldn't be walking out today.

"It really was a game." Andarel says while making the first move.

Te Celsa plays along with the game. Perhaps it was because he was still trying to figure his angle. Perhaps it was because he was competitive when it comes to chess. However the result was still that Te Celsa starts playing.

"It was quite funny ruining your relationship with the dark elves. A funny game."

Andarel says, causing Te Celsa to stare at him.

Not only was he showing up with the evidence, he admits it himself. Te Celsa's hands are closer and closer to giving the order.

"It was funny seeing your reaction.

I know about your organization. Human racial supremacist is so yesterday. Elves supremacist too. Well, I am not one to talk, I am one too."

Andarel leans back and looks down at Te Celsa, the elf's natural height causes him to tower Te Celsa even this situation. On his lips there was a slight smile. Finally, Te Celsa can see the real Andarel behind the facade.

He was cocksure. His eyes were full of disdain. He looks down on human from his position.

He... he was familiar.

He reminds Te Celsa of what he was hiding inside himself. From his cocksureness to his slight grin and his disdain of the other races. And it enrages the old diplomat.

"YOU-"

The old man grasps his own heart.

Te Celsa sits down and breathes raggedly. He looks at his guards, however, they didn't react.

For some reason, his instinct told him he has to continue with the game. It is the instinct of a man who has lived for a long, long time.

Suddenly, Andarel picks up the white knight piece and puts it down meaningfully.

"I know you think I won't be able to walk out of here today, but it is you who will die. Let me explain why."

The entire aura surrounding Andarel has changed. He has let go of his mask.

"Very good. You are very good at hiding. Let me see how you will walk out of here today, in my own office, surrounded by my men."

So what if the Elven crown knows. Andarel should know that even if Te Celsa lost today, Andarel will still die.

"Are you curious about what you have stolen is?"

Andarel moves his white queen, his most powerful piece.

"I can make a guess."

Te Celsa says, concentrating on the game. The Andarel of today is a much better player than the one he last met. It was like they were two different person.

"It's a magic focus that can only be used by the elves. If it falls into the hand of the dark elves, the High Elves and the Wood Elves would be in trouble."

Andarel says. However, he glances up at Te Celsa with an ugly grin

"Ha. That is if you don't know what I know. I know everything from the start. This world is a game."

The wood elf in front of Te Celsa looks mad. His face has a manic expression on it that is hard to explain.

Andarel moves his queen again in the opening.

"This world is a game, and you can't win against me because in the grand scheme of thing I am the villain and you are just some footnote of history."

Andarel says and moves his queen again in the opening.

Te Celsa calmly forks his queen with his own knight, causing the Queen to retreat again, the fourth move in the opening.

"Did you know how glad I was, that my ancestor was the same as me? The moment I knew that, I felt so much relief washing over me, knowing that I am justified. The ancestor of the elves, Solarii is someone who knows exactly what is right."

The Idol of Solarii.

Ah, Te Celsa now finally realizes what Solarii means.

An ancestor of the elf. And an ancestor of the elves who understand Andarel means...

"However, you were extremely unlucky. Ha ha, I mean, my guy, do you even understand what this is, I understand because I know the plot. This is not just a magic focus, no no, it is more. This is the condemnation of the elven race as a whole. Dark Elves, High Elves, Wood Elves, Ice Elves. I have to thank you for bringing it to the Dark Elves, even if you succeed, the only thing it changes is that the artifact changes hand to another type of elves, and it never ends up in the hand of another race."

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Andarel was monologuing to Te Celsa with the biggest manic grin on his face.

"Did you know how back in the day, our great ancestor Solarii commit multiple genocide against inferior races like you. The Dwarves don't remember, much of their culture has been lost digging holes into the earth to escape, but I know. With his great power, he causes meteor to rain down, endless storm to rage and fire to burn unceasingly. And thank to his action, the elves rise to the dominant position in the world. This world becomes a world of the elves."

Te Celsa widens his eyes. This is-

"This is the greatest condemnation against the elven race as a whole. If this ended up in the hand of the dwarves instead of the Dark Elves and they figure out its secret, it will turn the world against the elves. So truthfully, I thank you. I thank you Te Celsa."

Andarel continues to smile.

Te Celsa has come to term with it. He really didn't have all the cards this time.

"You are telling all of this Mr. Andarel. Is that part of your thesis why I am going to die today."

If he has revealed this secret, it means that he believes he already has all the cards.

Te Celsa is really going to die today. However, what is important is that the wood elf dies too, he is too dangerous, and that someone from his retinue survive to pass on the message.

How to maneuver that is the difficult part. From what he knows, Andarel is an elite ranger, so this scheme is from the ranger order?...

"It is part of it." The elf continues to explain.

"Did you know how your apprentice ended where he is?"

"YOU-"

Te Celsa grasps his heart. However, the anger couldn't be stopped. There was a certain line for Te Celsa. The young Shio was like his own son. However, the circumstances leading to his illness is too tragic for his own heart. It also felt suspicious now that the wood elf has said it.

Brain aneurysm in his own room causing him to fall into a coma.

"At first, I was only using him to hurt you. I wanted to see you hurt just like you wanted to see me hurt. You wanted to hurt my two human lovers hoping that it would hurt me, but did you know, the only reason I started fucking them because I know it would piss off you human. How would it hurt "me"? It might hurt me, however, it wouldn't hurt the true me. And Shio was pissed off Te Celsa, he stews in his anger until I tried to kill him in his sleep."

Magic. That is what it must be, Te Celsa realizes, with the archmage in the city, the elves must have conspire-

"However, the presence of the archmages cause my attempt to fail." Andarel sighs

"Well, you can't win it all." He says.

What does this mean, so the archmage wasn't entirely in on it. Or is this a trick?

Andarel looks up at Te Celsa.

The entire board was thrown into chaos after Andarel makes a mess of it, however, the human diplomat was still surviving, making optimized move.

"So, to evade their detection, I have to take the Idol of Solarii for myself." Andarel says

"Why are you really here Mr. Andarel?"

Te Celsa says, bringing the game to a draw.

"This is just my victory lap. I want you to hear it from me, about how I foil your plan, how I cause your apprentice to fall into a coma, and how I am going to kill you."

In the drawn position, the wood elf moves bishop to E3, there was no more white Knight in the game.

From a drawn position, Andarel brought his game to a losing position. To capitalize on it, the black Queen immediately captures the white Pawn. The white Rook moves to D5, attacking the Queen. Te Celsa moves the Queen back to H8, leading to another drawn conclusion.

"Did you know a while back, a friend of mine die. He works in the ministry of finance. You must have seen him often, the treasurer of the nation."

Luatha, the treasurer of the elves.

"I killed him too. He was too much of a liability."

Andarel says, causing Te Celsa to widen his eyes, Luatha too, but he-

"He died in his sleep.

Peacefully. He is a good friend of mine. However, his extremism is too extreme you know. His daughter loss causes him to have a seething hatred of you human that will never stop even if it is to the detriment of the elves. He will never stop. I know he won't. So I asked him for a game of chess. Then, at night, when he was asleep, that old friend passes away peacefully."

Luatha died in his sleep.

Shio had a brain aneurysm in his sleep. What do they both have in common?

The wood elf.

And a game.

"Do you know of the story where before someone die and they see Death? And then they offer Death a game of chess?" Andarel says.

And that was that.

Te Celsa remembers his dream and his premonition for coming to the Elven kingdom this time, that he would come to meet his death. And that death was an elf.

He looks down at his body lying on the floor. His body was in cardiac arrest.

Then, he looks up at the wood elf dressing in white, playing chess with him.

He looks at the guards who didn't seem to respond to the elves presence.

And then he smiles.

"I see. You are here to see my death. But it will not be easy. I have beaten you before."

Te Celsa continues. Then Andarel turns silent and the game continues.

Andarel sacrifices his rook, then his bishop. Then he moves his queen into the proper position and concludes everything.

"Compelled to move. I see now, from the beginning I have already lost didn't I?"

Andarel's mind was inhuman.

The entire game has led to this situation. Controlled helplessness. It was a helplessness that the wood elf control.

Every possible move that black could make currently is a bad move. He has been led into this.

His own death looks at him at the moment of his death. There was no mercy.

"It is a shame. The reason you lost is simple. I have seen everything before hand. I know which pieces should be taken out first. I know which move to lead to this conclusion. The world is a game, Te Celsa, and I have seen the plot."

So saying, the wood elf puts on his coat and walks out of the room, still ignored by the guards.

The diplomat is on the floor. His eyes were tracking the elves.

'You too. Someday you will be defeated. That is what you said isn't it? That you have accepted your role as a villain.'

The last thought that Te Celsa has was that he hopes it would be a human.

----------------------------------------

Aradon was sitting in his room when suddenly his roommate Andarel comes home. He broke out the chest under his bed containing a bottle of his medicine that Aradon has seen before.

Suddenly, before Aradon could react, Andarel downs the entire bottle.

"Wait, is that even the right dosage."

Andarel ignores him and even douses it all over himself.

Then, after he finishes, he looks over Aradon with a strange expression.

"Yeah, it is too much for me. As I thought, it is best that you hold onto this."

Suddenly, Andarel took out an amulet from under his clothes and shove it in Aradon's face. The disguised high elf couldn't even protest before Andarel crashes into his own bed and was fast asleep leaving a confused Aradon with a strange amulet. He looks at it with a weird expression before deciding to put it on top of his bed cabinet before going to bed himself.

At night, nothing happens. It was a peaceful night.