“Game over,” Jugi declared, his lips curling into a cold smile as five of his knights and his King drove their blades into Saem's King. The holographic board flared red on Saem's side, while Jugi's side glowed green in victory.

“Already? How??” Dami blurted, eyes wide in disbelief. His brown eyes darted across the board in confusion.

“Yeah, how?” Idina echoed, equally stunned.

“Dammit, he took my Queen!” Saem growled, frowning deeply. His gaze shifted to the palace on the board, where his Queen and children had been killed, their bodies gruesomely propped up by stakes, making them appear as though still alive.

“But... how?” Candy, the cat girl, wondered aloud, her ears twitching in bewilderment. ‘The castle was covered in thorns,’ she thought, her yellow eyes narrowing in suspicion. ‘How did they get in?’

For the first time ever, Saem’s crewmates had witnessed him lose a game.

“Wait... your King,” Saem muttered, his eyes narrowing as he scrutinized Jugi’s King. Something was off. It didn’t resemble his own. Every piece on the board was supposed to look the same, just different colors. But Jugi's King looked strangely like... a knight.

“Yes, he’s a decoy,” Jugi revealed with a chilling grin. “That’s just a regular knight dressed in the King's armor.”

“My real King was leading a mission with soldiers to infiltrate your castle. I used a wooden platform, covered in mud, to bypass your thorn defenses,” Jugi continued, gesturing toward a muddy, wooden ladder resting beside Saem's castle. The roses, which had formed the thorny barrier, were now watering it, slowly washing away the mud.

“It was a risky gamble, but it paid off,” Jugi added, his tone proud.

“I see you had a similar strategy,” he noted, glancing at his side of the board, where Saem’s knights were frozen in mid-action, poles in hand, trying to scale Jugi’s castle walls.

“I admit defeat,” Saem said solemnly, his voice heavy with resignation.

“It was a fun game,” Jugi chuckled, clapping his hands. “You should be proud of yourself.”

“Tch, do your thing. I’m heading to the deck,” Aurianna snapped, standing up abruptly. She paused for a moment, staring down the hallway, her eyes distant before she commanded, “Hadina, escort me.”

“Yes, Master!” Hadina beamed, quickly rushing to her side as they both disappeared down the hall.

“To think Captain Saem actually lost,” Rufus, the shark man, remarked, his frown deepening.

“Don’t fret,” Jugi said with a smug smile. “I’m much older than him, so my experience far outweighs his.”

‘Honestly, I saw this coming,’ Giev, the fish man, mused quietly, his eyes studying Jugi with a calm, wary expression. ‘Everything about these people screams danger.’

“I’ll start packing up the table since we’re all done eating. Echiya, help me!” Faston, a human girl, said as she got up from her seat, gathering the dishes.

This text was taken from Royal Road. Help the author by reading the original version there.

“Okay!” Echiya, a demi-human bear girl, chirped, hopping up to help with the empty plates.

“I’m going to join Aurianna on the rooftop,” Kaina stated, rising to her feet. She encased her lower body in a swirling ball of water before gracefully floating away.

______

“The sea seems unusually peaceful,” Aurianna remarked, her voice calm as she reclined on Hadina’s tentacles, gazing out at the peaceful ocean which was a rare sight to see.

‘Of course, it is,’ Kiana scoffed inwardly as she sat nearby, not bothering to hide her reluctant admiration of the view. ‘Their aura alone probably scares off the sea monsters.’

“Why the gloomy face, Kiana?” Aurianna asked, her gaze flicking toward her.

“Nothing, nothing!” Kiana quickly waved her hands, shaking her head in denial.

“Also, Master Aurianna... after the Ruin,” Hadina began hesitantly.

“Wait a second... after the Ruin, did I get a reward?” Aurianna asked, suddenly realizing.

“Yes, you did! Luckily, it was given to me. Here it is!” Hadina declared, beaming as one of her tentacles presented Aurianna with a small pouch.

“How much?” Aurianna wondered, opening the pouch to reveal an array of shiny magic coins.

“Well, Kaina received 100,000 magic coins, but you got 700,000,” Hadina explained cheerfully. Aurianna stared at the pouch, her jaw dropping in disbelief.

“I think she just spaced out from the shock,” Kiana muttered, side-eyeing Aurianna’s stunned expression, which quickly morphed into pure joy.

“Are you serious?!” Aurianna exclaimed, practically bouncing with excitement.

“Y-Yes...” Hadina answered, her tone slightly nervous at Aurianna’s outburst.

“I’m rich!!!” Aurianna declared, unable to contain her happiness as she quickly deposited the money into her inventory.

“Hmm, so now I have 899,999 magic coins. I remember using one to buy my phone, and I got 100,000 from the war with the Infinite Nation,” she mused, counting her money.

“Wait... since when did they have phones?” Jugi asked, overhearing the conversation as he approached, clearly intrigued by the mention of the device.

“Yeah, since when?” Avriel chimed in, scoffing as she materialized next to Hadina. “I knew they had communication cubes, but phones? Bunch of copycats.”

“Here’s mine,” Aurianna said, pulling her phone from her inventory. Jugi and Avriel leaned in, admiring the sleek device. Across the deck, Boara and Kiana remained unfazed, having already seen it before.

“Well, the mechas had them, but it wasn’t exactly a world-wide thing back then,” Jugi remarked, studying the phone curiously.

“These phones are expensive though. Only the rich can afford them,” Aurianna said with a smug grin.

“Oh? How much? Maybe I should get one myself. It’s been a while since I had one,” Jugi muttered, clearly tempted by the idea.

“Depends on which one you want, but a good quality phone goes for about one magic coin,” Aurianna revealed. Both Jugi and Avriel immediately scrunched up their faces in disbelief.

“Damn, that’s pricey,” Jugi muttered. “Back in our world, phones were affordable. Seems like the mechas in your world are keeping technology from advancing too far.”

“I’m curious now. I wonder how far the mechas have advanced their tech,” Aurianna mused, kicking her legs playfully while still perched on Hadina’s tentacles.

‘Though Eva’s a mecha, so I don’t really care,’ Aurianna thought, dismissing the idea with an inward shrug.

“Do you guys know the current money exchange rates?” Aurianna asked, glancing over at Jugi and Avriel.

“Nope,” they both replied in unison.

“Hah, well, let me break it down for you,” Aurianna began, smirking as she held up her fingers. “100 copper coins equal 1 silver. 100 silver makes 1 gold. 100 gold turns into 1 platinum, and 100 platinum converts to 1 magic coin. So, that’s one magic coin for 100 platinum coins, 10,000 gold coins, 1,000,000 silver coins, or 100,000,000 copper coins.”

She paused, frowning as she mulled over her finances. “But... ugh, I don’t like this odd number. Kiana, give me one magic coin,” Aurianna demanded, extending her palm expectantly.

Kiana blinked, her lips trembling as she muttered, “But… it’s my money…”

“Give it,” Aurianna’s voice turned cold, sending an unmistakable shiver down Kiana’s spine.

“Yes, ma’am,” Kiana relented with a sigh. She fished out a small pouch from a white crystal ring on her finger and pulled out a single magic coin, handing it to Aurianna.