Moments after Zeyra swore herself to me, something cracked open in my mind.
A surge of information slammed into my skull - uninvited, unstoppable. Data about the different piece types poured straight into my brain and filed themselves neatly into place.
I staggered slightly, blinking against the overload.
'Okay. Wow. That was... something.'
But it wasn't overwhelming. In fact, it felt strangely familiar. Like I already knew the game… I just hadn't known I was playing it.
It really was like chess.
The rules weren't identical, but the logic was unmistakable. Every piece had a role.
Rooks - my frontline. Straight-line brawlers. Tanks in human form, built to take hits and hold the line. Probably aura-heavy types. Soldiers. Brutes. Wall-breakers.
Bishops - diagonal movers. Slipping between gaps. Precision specialists. Ranged attackers or battlefield supports. Arcanists, maybe. The kind who could blast from a distance or stitch wounds mid-battle.
Knights -ah, now those were my favourites. The unpredictable ones. The wild cards. Able to leap over allies and enemies alike. Assassins. Spies. Tricksters. The kind who broke the rhythm and made enemies question their next move.
And of course… the Queen.
The strongest piece. Fast, powerful, terrifyingly flexible. A force of nature - if I ever managed to recruit one. The system kept the queen piece behind a locked condition with no description… and a gender restriction, which made sense.
I wasn't sure whether to be intrigued or concerned, but at least I wouldn't accidentally recruit some sword-swinging meathead and turn him into a super-powered Queen.
That just left the Pawns - the weakest of the bunch. Farmers, servants, mercenaries, and everything in between. The common pieces. Replaceable, but not useless. They could be promoted under the right conditions or sacrificed, depending on how grim things got.
The info dump lasted a couple of seconds.
But by the time it ended, I had a better idea of what a full board would look like. I didn't have all the answers, but I understood the foundation.
Simple rules. Infinite depth.
It really was 4D chess, and the additional dimension was reality itself.
That said… there was still one question burning in the back of my mind.
'Who the hell am I playing against?'
Other Kings? Rival players? Some kind of demonic threat? An empire-spanning rebellion?
I had no idea who or what it might be, but I was sure they would reveal themselves soon enough.
And when they did, I'd be ready.
'Not that I'll be doing the fighting myself,' I thought with a shrug.
I pulled open my status screen, half-hoping - okay, desperately hoping - it had improved after recruiting my first piece.
Nope. Wishful thinking.
Everything looked exactly the same, right down to the part where the system insulted my condition. The only changes? A shiny new skill called King's Eyes and a lonely 'Piece Count: 1' sitting there like a participation trophy.
Yup. Still a trash-tier main character with the stats to match. No combat class. No power level. No flair.
But now I had a Piece.
I glanced at the floating chessboard beside the status window, and sure enough, one small figure had joined the King piece. A knight. Sleek. Sharp. Dark.
Zeyra.
I tapped it, and her profile unfolded across my vision with a satisfying shimmer.
[Status Window: Knight Piece - Zeyra]
Name: Zeyra Vale
Title: The Silent Knight
Condition: Currently advancing ranks as both Aurist and Arcanist due to the sudden increase in potential
Age: 25
Rank: Advanced Aurist / Advanced Arcanist
Class: Assassin
Aura Path Potential: A
Mana Path Potential: A
Special Trait: Shadowbound – One with the shadows
'A-rank and already advancing in both? Damn. She's going to be OP.'
My eyes flicked to her trait, Shadowbound.
'She's going to be an even more dangerous assassin with that Special Trait. I can't wait to see her in action.'
Zeyra appeared silently confident in her abilities, and I instinctively felt the difference between us. But now? She was mine. And she had been boosted as a result.
'I have someone this strong on my side already, not a bad start.'
A soft ping echoed in my mind.
[Mission Complete – Recruit Your First Piece!]
[Reward Unlocked: Rank Potential Increase Token]
[Item Description: Permanently increases one potential path (Aura or Mana) of any piece by 1 rank.]
My gaze locked onto the glowing +1 at the bottom corner of the floating chessboard that I could assign to any piece.
'Wait… permanent rank increase? For real?'
I selected it, immediately testing whether it could be used on myself, the King piece.
And...
It could!
A chill ran down my spine.
'I can boost myself… or any piece I recruit. Permanently! That's insane. I would assume that potentials are innate and can rarely be improved. But I guess the King System is more than just rare.'
My eyes darted back to Zeyra's profile.
She was already terrifying. A bump to S-rank, which I assumed was the limit, in either path would push her into monster territory. But even so, using a token now felt… wasteful. Going from F to E for myself also wouldn't change much.
'Training hard and putting my life on the line is definitely not for me. Though I wouldn't mind some magic.'
Despite that, I decided to hold it and save it until I'd given it more thought.
Still… the possibilities?
They were endless.
I could build a perfect team. Recruit rare talents, upgrade them into elite war machines, and let them clear the board while I stay comfortably behind the front lines, sipping tea and making clever observations.
I tried - honestly tried - not to smile like a scheming villain.
But it was hard.
Meanwhile, Zeyra remained kneeling before me, shaking slightly, but still unreadable as ever. She hadn't spoken a word since pledging herself and seemed deep in thought.
Something about her had shifted. I could feel it in the air around her. In the way that her presence no longer wavered or flickered. She wasn't hiding anymore - not from me, anyway.
She was quiet.
Loyal.
Lethal.
And now, mine.
It did feel a little too easy to get her on board (pun intended). But regardless of the reason, I was glad to have her on my side.
Whether she realised it or not, she wasn't just watching over a broken noble anymore. She was the first piece in a game far bigger than either of us...