PROLOGUE: THE QUEEN'S GAMBIT

I could still remember it, back from that time when I ‘died’…

“…”

When I opened my eyes, the scene right before me was of murky gray. My hand quickly went and felt my neck, since I knew it was slashed by that suspicious man. He timed the attack when I exited the tournament battle site; otherwise, the substitution doll would have absorbed the damage, thus protecting me.

Well, my neck wound is already gone.

The Human Saint, Maddie, wasted no time teleporting into my location and tried to heal my wound. But according to the Beastman Saint, my injury was deep enough that I was already dead long before I lost consciousness…no matter how much magic Maddie poured into her hand to heal me.

Ugh…I don’t get it. Maddie would’ve healed me since her God-given power is healing. Why isn’t it effective during that time?

Anyway, so I died. To be honest, I didn’t think the place where I went to was heaven. For one, it’s kind of grey and sad. Though, yes, I could tell that I died, since I could only feel lightness and pleasantness.

I guess that’s the effect if you’re already a spirit? I don’t know; I have met no one who went from death back to life before…

A few moments into the place, I noticed a change in the murky grey patterns. It disappeared slowly, and the entire scenery was replaced by a white room. And even my clothes changed from my old, Earth-style ones to that of pure white pants and shirt. Turning around, I saw a table and a chair behind me. I didn’t know when it was put up there, nor did I see anyone do it.

But well, I could tell that it was there for me to sit upon. So yeah, I took up on the offer and did just that.

“!!!”

I almost jumped from my seat when I heard and felt someone behind me. I spun around and saw an old man standing right beside my chair. Honestly, I didn’t know what to say. This fellow not only surprised me; I was also getting the feeling that this person was someone like a—

“Yes, I’m a god,” he never let me finish my thoughts.

“Oh…”

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The old man who called himself ‘God’ took out a chair from nowhere and sat in front of me. He then asked if I’d like tea or coffee; my mind was kind of having a difficulty in comprehending the events as it unfolded, so I refused his offer. However, God only smiled; He brought a cup of coffee and a small plate of cookies which he gave to me, anyway.

“I know you’re bewildered at what’s happening; don’t worry, I won’t pressure you to understand right away,” the old man reassured me, “And I always get that look whenever I meet someone, so I understand your feelings.”

“Thanks…uh…”

“Just call me ‘God’. There’s no need for grand words whenever I’m around; I prefer to keep it simple,” he winked at me as he sipped his coffee. Then he pulled out a chessboard from under the table.

Seriously, where is He pulling those things from?

“By the way, would you be so kind as to oblige this old god to a friendly game of chess?” God asked me with a friendly smile on His face.

“Honestly, I know how to move those pieces, but I’m not a skilled player,” I admitted to Him.

“Doesn’t matter,” He replied as He set up the board with all of its pieces, “We’ll play as we go along with the questions in your head.” God then finished putting the chess pieces together and asked me, “White or black?”

“I prefer black, Lord.”

“Ah yes, always the one who reacts…that’s you, Kuro.”

I pretended not to hear that. In the first place, I didn’t know what He meant by that, and I was shy to ask as well. Maybe I’m embarrassed to know more about myself, I guess…

God then put forward a pawn as an opening move, that one from the front of His queen. A queen’s gambit, huh? I quickly replied with a black pawn opposite the piece He had just moved.

And then, I took the time to ask, “So, uh, God?”

“Hmm?”

“Why am I here?”

“You died.”

“Of course.”

“And that’s how your fate should be. I mean, your life is only up to this time, even on Earth.”

“Oh…”

“That’s why, to answer the question in your mind before, the Human Saint of Chersea could not heal you. Back on Earth, you would’ve died from a combination of stress and exhaustion. But since you’re here, you were killed.”

Hearing those words suddenly made me shiver. Well, I did claim once that I was ready to die, but I was not rushing to it. If it came to that decision, I’d still gladly choose to live, “That’s odd. Aren’t the Saints something like the gods of that place, Chersea? You mean to say that they still have their limitations?”

“Of course, they’re only ‘saints’ and not full-fledged gods after all. And one limitation of the Human Saint, and the others as well, is that they have no complete control over you. You’re someone from another god’s territory, summoned over to Chersea—which is under the jurisdiction of the ‘Saints’.”

“Is that so?” Well, I guess I was pretty satisfied with God’s explanation.

We kept on moving our chess pieces against each other, eventually making up formations in which each piece would support the other, and vice versa. Our chessboard became a huge battlefield full of soldiers waiting in their positions. No one tried to capture an enemy; we just set up good spots to threaten the other side.

And then, I asked God once again, “God, may I put up another question?”

“Go ahead. It’s not like our time is limited, you know.”

“Well, where is this? I’m sure it’s not purgatory nor heaven nor hell…”

“Of course, it isn’t. This is a place where we wait for your transport back to the mortal realm. All because someone requested you back.”

“Oh?”

“Yep. She doesn’t want you dead and went to me to plead for your life.”

“Maddie?”

“Yes. That girl relies on you more than she thinks she is,” God explained, “So, she came to me requesting that I bring your soul back to your mortal body. Not that it’s difficult for me, but she went that far even though there’s someone back in Chersea who also has the power to resurrect the dead.”

“There is?”

God nodded and explained further, “The Human Saint knows this as well, but she decided to appeal directly to me instead. So yes, you’ll live again. This will be your second life.”

“Will that be alright to You, God?”

“Why not?”

“Well…honestly, I don’t think I did something worthy of being granted another chance at life.”

“Nah, you’re fine. Every mortal that I know has sinned anyway, and I also want you alive as well,” God chuckled, “Besides, it’s not like I have jurisdiction over Chersea. I mean, I’m the high king of the gods, but we have an agreement not to meddle with each other’s world. I’m only to watch over and make sure everything goes right as it should be.”

“Uh…t-thanks, I guess…”

“Right…” God took another sip of his coffee, “And by the way, even though your life back on Earth is a normal, uneventful one, I think you’ll be a great help to Chersea in its great time of need.”

“Oh? What do You mean by that, Lord?” I suddenly became excited, “Will I become a powerful human with magic abilities and mad skills like those in Isekai novels?”

“Hmm? Well, I could easily give you those…but, as I’ve said before, I’m only an overseer. Doing so would be meddling on my part; I have meddled enough by bringing you back to life because of the Human Saint’s request. I can’t keep on breaking my words, see?”

“I understand…” Well, I was disappointed. But I guess I had to live with that.

God then gave me a reassuring smile, “Don’t be dismayed too much, my child. Didn’t the Black Saint tell you about your abilities before?”

“Well, yes,” I explained, half-sulking, “But I don’t think that mere words can always be of use every time, especially in wars or fights.”

“Indeed, you are right. If you use it directly to stop a war, it would be ineffective.”

“So why do you say that can I be of use to Chersea when I’m all powerless?”

God then moved His chess pieces on the offensive, “You underestimate yourself, Kuro. Though useless in confrontations, mere words can be powerful enough to alter the course of war indirectly, more so if you combine it with a sound decision. Those are the abilities that you possess, my child.”

“Hmm? Alter the course of the war—” I wanted to ask Him what He meant by that. But since He captured a pawn from my side, I captured His pawn, and thus, I was distracted.

God then countered my move with the powerful combination of knights and queen of His, completely isolating and trapping my queen, “If you’re wondering what I mean, look at this situation.”

“While I’m distracted talking to You, You’re moving against me?”

“That’s one point. However, there’s even more to this. Let’s say, for example, this board is the realm of Chersea, and your pieces are the various kingdoms and principalities of that land. And opposite yours, is my pieces, which is the enemy.”

“Enemy…”

“And your queen, let’s say, is the greatest hope of those kingdoms and principalities could field against this enemy.”

“Uhh…but it’s isolated already. I can’t move my queen without getting it sacrificed.”

“Precisely.”

“Wha—”

“Hmm…seems like you’re having difficulty in understanding my words…maybe I’ll break a bit more of the gods’ agreement this time. Please don’t tell anyone about this,” God smiled mischievously, going on moving a knight of his against my king, since my queen could not move anymore.

“…” I watched helplessly as He proceeded to ‘check’ me.

“You see, the enemy is moving to isolate and trap the ‘queen’, all the while going for the ultimate prize. It’s only a matter of time before they succeed,” God explained as He went after my king, which I continuously moved to evade being checkmated, “And you can’t keep running away forever; for there might come a time when you have to take a stand, or you’ll lose everything in a simple swipe.”

“Huh? Wait—” I was again distracted. Though He kept on checking my king, I finally saw an opportunity and countered His relentless attacks, effectively trapping His king. In the process, I finally freed my queen from being captured and bring her back into the fight.

“Good move, Kuro,” He praised me, “I think you’ll do fine as Chersea is about to face its greatest crisis ever since the last human-demon war.”

But instead of glossing over His words, I asked, “Will there be another human-demon war in Chersea?”

“Ah, sorry. That’s all I could tell you,” God was visibly amused by my counter-attack, and hurried His king to safety, “Any more than that, would be meddling on my part.”

“I understand, Lord. Sorry for asking too much.” Well, He has His circumstances, so I won’t press Him any further.

“It’s alright, my son,” God then took another sip of his coffee before going back to the game, “Anyway, this game is upping its tempo! Care to make your next move, Kuro?”