Day 821

The past few days blurred together into a monotonous routine, so I didn't bother documenting them. Think of it as a little time skip. But today—today was different. It was a day worth remembering. We had done it. After months of hard work, endless training, and perseverance, the three of us had finally completed our courses at Kreel Academy. Amazing wasn't even the right word to describe it.

Relief, pride, and excitement just flowed through me as we marked the achievement. With that milestone behind us, it was time to continue our next adventure. Next stop: the Castillon Kingdom. I had initially been itching to go straight to the Dwarven Republic; their forges and engineering wonders always seemed to have piqued my interest.

But Ruby, just newly promoted to C Rank in the Adventurer's Guild, begged me to visit Castillon. I can't just refuse; it will make me look evil and, worse, make him lose trust in me. I had no option but to agree. He earned it. Silvia and I had our reason to celebrate, too. We were officially S Rank Adventurers now. It wasn't just a badge of honor—it came with perks.

More significant discounts on goods, free entrance to towns and cities, and a reputation that opened doors wherever we went. Life as an adventurer was about to get a whole lot easier—or maybe harder, given the challenges that came with the rank.

Day 823

We had just covered the capital of Castillon Kingdom in two days; it so happened that the kingdom was located between the Yalarien and Archard Kingdoms. Having entered the city, I suggested that we spend three days here and then move forward toward the Dwarven Republic in accordance with my original plan. Silvia wanted to stay in the inn overnight, but Ruby was going out because she was so excited about something.

I preferred walking in the streets myself just to know what this city has in store. First of all, I noticed how clean everything was. It was almost unnerving. In most medieval cities, the air would be filled with the stench of filth and the streets would be covered in waste. Here, there was no foul stench, nothing decaying, and no flies buzzing around.

Even the food at the market stalls looked fresh and unspoiled—not even a maggot, not even a rotting piece of fruit. It was almost like stepping into another century. As I continued to wander around the city, I stopped at a small potion shop and replenished my supplies inside. Right at the counter, two men were totally absorbed in a game. At first, I wouldn't give it much thought, but then my eyes became fixed on the board.

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I paused for a moment to take a good look. "Wait… is that chess?" I thought to myself. It was a game I hadn't seen since I left Earth. Curiosity was burning inside of me, so I decided to approach them. "Excuse me, is that chess?" I asked. One of the men looked up with a smile. "Ah, yes. It's a new game invented by our king. Quite fun, isn't it?" My head started racing. Renford Castillon. Could he be like me? From another world?

What were the odds? As I thought about that revelation, the other man declared, "Checkmate!" "Damn it! Why do I keep losing?" the first man groaned, slumping back in frustration. Unable to resist, I asked, "Would you mind if I played a match?" The man who had just won grinned. "Sure, why not? Let's see what you've got." I hadn't played for years, but somehow, my basics remained in there.

Actually, I was never that amazing at this game. Even back on Earth, I barely passed 500 ELO. But something inside this world had honed my mind. Maybe it was from all the battles and all the lives taken by my ability. Nevertheless, I seemed more intelligent. We set up the board, and I started with a simple Queen's Gambit. The game progressed. Before long, we were in the endgame, and the board was leaning heavily in my favor.

My opponent didn't see it coming. "Checkmate," I declared. "What?! No one has beaten me before!" the man exclaimed, staring at the board in disbelief. "Hey, kid, what's your name?" the other man asked, clearly impressed. "Savvy Santiago," I replied. "Leader of an adventurer party called The Eternals." "An adventurer, huh? Not bad for a kid to beat me at a game that's only just been introduced," said the man I had defeated, still rubbing his neck in frustration.

"You should consider joining the upcoming recruitment for the Knights and Mages Orders this afternoon," the other man suggested. "His Majesty is looking for talented individuals. It's worth a shot." With a casual smile, I replied, "Nah, not my style. I'm not the type to take orders or work under someone else." "That's a shame," the man said, shrugging. "You'd have been a great asset."

"Maybe," I said with a laugh. "But for now, I'm just here for mana potions." I purchased my supplies and left the shop, but my mind was still on Renford Castillon. A king who brought chess into this world? There was no way that was a coincidence. He must be from Earth. But what kind of man really was he?

I walked out of the potion shop with racing thoughts of tests said to be conducted by King Castillon. Strange - what need would a king have for going out of his way to conduct such tests? A king, by norm, left recruitment to their commanders; whoever wanted to serve was good enough without much scrutiny. And here was King Castillon breaking all tradition, conducting his own tests. Interesting, indeed.

Curiosity began to gnaw at me. What kind of tests would he design? Combat or strategy, or something much less conventional? A man who had invented chess and seemed to be from a world of his own wouldn't settle for anything but exceptional. They said the venue is in the arena this afternoon, I thought to myself as I walked through the spotless, thronging streets.

It would be amusing, at least, to watch, to see the king and his machinations.