The punching bag creaked on its chain, jerking back with each strike.
Reon didn't count his punches. He just kept hitting.
The dull thuds echoed in the empty gym, the lights above flickering slightly from age. His fists were taped, but his knuckles were still raw, red seeping into the white.
He breathed in through his nose. Out through clenched teeth. His eyes stayed fixed on the center of the bag as if if he hit hard enough, it might all make sense.
Why me?
A soft chime broke the silence.
He stopped. The punching bag swung in lazy arcs as the sound echoed again — gentle, crystalline.
The System had arrived.
He reached into his jacket pocket, pulling out the obsidian-black token that had appeared an hour ago.
Every 16-year-old in the world received theirs on the same day, at the same time, during the yearly System Ceremony. The day they finally got their Piece their role.
Most were Pawns.
Some were Knights, Bishops, Rooks, or Queens.
Kings… were rare.
The token glowed faintly. A single word appeared in glowing white text:
System Piece: KING
Reon stared.
Then blinked.
"…What?"
A second message followed.
No pieces registered. Begin recruitment phase.King's Trial begins in 2 years. Survival not guaranteed.
His throat went dry.
Another chime. This one louder. Sharper.
Notice: King designation confirmed.Leadership authority granted.System access unlocked.Warning: King's Test is lethal. Failure results in death.
The token dissolved into sparks.
And that was it.
No power surge. No dramatic transformation. Just the echo of the system's voice fading into the walls.
Reon leaned back against the gym wall, letting his head thump gently against it.
King?
Him?
Everyone expected him to be a Knight.
He had the instincts the reflexes the reputation. Even his teachers assumed he'd be front-line combat, a powerful pawn at worst.
But a King?
He didn't feel like a king.
He wasn't royalty. He wasn't dominant. He wasn't even that smart. He just happened to be a good fighter with decent grades and a bad temper.
He closed his eyes.
Images flickered in the dark fights he hadn't started but had finished. Friends behind him. Fists swinging. Kids he barely knew thanking him.
And… one memory in particular.
Not now.
He pushed it away.
The World of System Pieces had changed everything.
Sixteen years ago, humans awakened the Chess System a gift from the gods, some claimed, or a mutation of fate, others said.
At birth, everyone was a Pawn.
At sixteen, their true role revealed itself based entirely on their personality. Not potential. Not skill. Not training.
Just who they were.
Pawns were soldiers. The majority. Unremarkable, but essential.
Knights were front-line combatants. Their qualifier: Battle IQ.
Bishops were mages. Perception and focus were key.
Rooks were tanks. Mental resilience defined them.
Queens were dominant female combatants. Brutal. Swift. Magical.
Kings were… male equivalents. Leaders. Rare. Burdened.
Only males could be Kings. Only females could be Queens.
But while Queens were feared and celebrated, Kings were tested.
Literally.
At eighteen, every King was forced to undergo the King's Trial a real-time battle on a massive chessboard against a full golem army. The golems always came as a complete set. If the King had no allies? Too bad.
And unlike the tests for other pieces the King's Trial could kill.
In fact, most Kings didn't survive.
Reon knew all this. Everyone did.
That's why his hands were still shaking.
He stepped out into the night air, the gym door swinging shut behind him.
The street was quiet. Streetlamps flickered. His breath fogged in the cold.
No one had texted him yet.
Maybe they were waiting. Maybe they didn't know.
Or maybe… they were scared.
Reon had heard the whispers before. "He's scary when he's mad.""Don't piss him off he might lose it."
He had always shrugged it off.
He didn't lead people. He just… stood up when others didn't.
But the System didn't care about modesty.
Somehow, some way, it had looked inside him and said:
This is a King.
He sighed. Rubbed his face. His knuckles stung where the tape had split.
Then his own voice echoed back to him from a memory:
"Am I really dominant?"
He had said it once after losing his temper and slamming his fist through a classroom table during a fight.
He didn't remember the fear on their faces at the time. But now… he did.
They never said yes.
But they didn't say no, either.
Reon walked home in silence.
He didn't notice the shadows moving beside him.
And they were already gathering.
[Piece: King][Team: 1/16][Skill: Royal Authority – Locked][Teammates: None]