“What’s up,” Ludwig heard as Hoyo showed up right next to him with a roasted squid on a stick that he was eating from.
“Oh, Hoyo… emm nothing much,” Ludwig didn’t want to share what he was thinking out loud, lest that it’s nothing and he’s just overthinking nor did he seem to want to reveal what he had in mind, because one of the guards seemed to pay too close of an attention to him than others. The same person that escorted Rudolph to rest.
“You lost already,” Hoyo laughed as he said, “But it’s okay, I mean it’s a pretty tough game.”
Ludwig who was in full thought only replied in “Yeah,” completely absorbed in his own mind and what was going on.
“Seems like a lot of players are out,” Hoyo said as he saw several players standing up with dissatisfied looks on their faces while others looked around seeing if anyone had saw their ‘brilliant’ moves.
Soon, Vanessa came over, sighing, “You lost?” Hoyo ask. “No, I won but it wasn’t easy, those guys from the White Tower are really good. Especially their leader, she was next to me and took down her opponent in ten moves.”
“Wow, really, damn that must be some sort of record,” Hoyo said.
“Well, not really someone else apparently in this room won in two moves which I’m not going to lie sounds like a lie but I heard the monitors talking among each other about it, regardless, how did you do Ludwig? Was it difficult?” Kassandra asked.
“Oh, I did well,” Ludwig said. Though his expressions were still focused on what was going on in the matches. So it didn’t sound too sincere.
“Don’t worry about the games Ludwig, I’ll do my best to get the Artificer’s Orb. I also don’t want to do these exams, some teachers are fickle.”
Ludwig nodded to her once again.
Soon, the monitor of the games clapped their hand, “Dear Guests, the first round has ended, please get ready for the second round, you have ten minutes.” He said.
“Already!” Kassandra said sighing, “I need to prepare, let’s see the bracket,” she said as she looked at her name and traced it up, “Damn, I’ll eventually play against her,” she said as she noticed that after her match she’ll play the leader of the White Tower academy freshmen.
“Wait, isn’t that your name?” Hoyo said frowning.
Kassandra looked at Hoyo’s finger and notice that he was pointing at the name Ludwig used ‘Blind Witness’
“Did they advance you? Or did you get a by?” Hoyo asked.
“Huh?” Ludwig said as he was finally woken from his own mind, “Ah, no, I won,” Ludwig said.
Both his friends looked at each other and instantly understood, “Beginner’s Luck” they said at the same time. or they seem to have understood.
Ludwig smiled saying, “Yeah, something like that,” and he wasn’t wrong he was a beginner in this world, and his luck was that everyone else was shit at this game.
“Good luck then,” Kassandra said as she headed back to her seat.
Ludwig proceeded into heading back to his own seat as he once again noticed the chains, this time however it grabbed three people instead, and they were all people that lost the earlier round. The souls screamed and roared out as they were yanked from their bodies, some slid right in front of Ludwig. The people who had lost all had the same air about them that Rudolph had, a depressed atmosphere and lack of emotion and looked like puppets as they left. But at the same time it was awfully similar to the feeling expressed by others who had lost but didn’t get their souls taken.
‘Those who lost and those who got their souls taken all express similar air about them, even if ones still have their souls… and seeing that the chains aren’t taking everyone and ‘choosing’ just a few is to make it not seem to obvious, if the chains took everyone that lost, then that is just asking for trouble. Whoever is doing this is pretty smart and very careful,’ Ludwig’s mind was still thinking about all that until an older man sat in front of him, he had a white jeweled mask covering his eyes and seemed to have a regal and bright air about him.
“Greetings young man,” the man said to Ludwig waking him from his thoughts.
“Oh, greetings,” Ludwig replied.
“Seems like you’re focusing on the game.”
“Something like that,” Ludwig replied hiding his thoughts. The conversation seemed to stop as Ludwig wasn’t the best at socializing, nor did he have any intention to do so.
The old man also began by organizing his chess pieces and asked Ludwig, “Which side do you want to play?”
“Either is fine,” Ludwig said.
“Hmm, usually people like to pick the white since it has the advantage of offense, but it seems that you’re confident enough to take me on regardless of which side,” the old man said.
“It’s just a game, also the one who goes first doesn’t have to always be the victor, in a siege the one that defends always has an advantage,” Ludwig said.
“Ah, spoken like a true commander, then I will take you up on your kindness I’ll take the white side,” he said.
He then proceeded by a basic opening as the game started.
Ludwig slowly played the man, this time a bit more carefully, he didn’t have any intentions of doing him like Rudolph after all not everyone is as terrible as Rudolph.
But the match proceeded exactly as Ludwig didn’t want to. Since the old man’s opening was basic and allowed Ludwig to open the path of both his Queen and Bishop, he soon found himself compelled to play another quick mate game.
The old man forgot, or perhaps didn’t even seem to realize that his knight had been badly positioned while Ludwig advanced his Queen forward. And then after the old man tried to chase her away with a pawn, Ludwig took a stronger position then advanced his bishop.
“You’re playing your stronger pieces already?” the old man said. “I can feel that you want to switch my offensive into yours, then what if I do this!” the old man said as he advanced the already weakly positioned knight forward, threatening a fork in his next round.