Chapter 139 The Solitary King
Officer Li glanced at Kim Wonhun and Specs standing beside him, then looked over at Zhang Chenze on the other side, feeling a bit uneasy. Although he had briefly teamed up with Lawyer Zhang previously, he wasn’t particularly familiar with any of these three individuals.
In such a bizarre place, was it truly rational to team up with people you have no familiarity with for a game?
What was that man, Chu Tianqiu, planning with this arrangement?
"Mr. Li, I heard you’re a police officer?" Specs asked.
"Yes." Officer Li nodded. "Isn't it ironic to meet a police officer here?"
"Not at all." Specs politely shook his head. "In here, we’re all the same."
"Then what do you do?" Officer Li asked.
"I’m in the education field," Specs replied. "Our professions are equally challenging, so I completely understand you."
"Yes," Specs nodded, and after that, the conversation fell silent.
Officer Li sighed in resignation. If not for the team setup dictated by Chu Tianqiu, he would have much preferred to work with Han Yimo. If he couldn’t keep an eye on that fellow, he might endanger those around him.
At this point, Zhang Chenze glanced over at Kim Wonhun. The adolescent appeared to be daydreaming as he walked, looking somewhat amusing.
"Are you a student?" she asked.
"Yah... me?" Kim Wonhun gave an awkward smile. "Jie, I am a student, yes."
Zhang Chenze noticed that despite the boy only being around thirteen or fourteen years old, there was a depth in his eyes that seemed more fitting for an adult.
The four of them awkwardly continued their conversation, soon arriving at a game venue. At the entrance stood a creature wearing a stitched-together mask.
Officer Li stared at the grotesque face before him, scratching his head. Like the Mortal Dragon they had encountered earlier, this person also wore a mask made from various animal skins, but it seemed subtly different. Mortal Dragon's mask had been intricately assembled from the faces of cow and crocodile, while this one was crafted from a horse's head and snake skin. What linked the two, however, was the presence of massive deer antlers affixed to their masks. This person, however, was extraordinarily thin, their frail physique stark against the unsettling adornment of their mask.
"Hello, everyone." The voice came from the monstrous mask, and to their surprise, it was a woman speaking. "Would you like to participate in my game?"
Officer Li, who had been killed by Mortal Rabbit earlier, felt a sense of unease upon hearing the female voice.
Specs looked at the figure in front of them, then pulled out the map from his pocket to check it again, his features reflecting a moment of doubt. They had been sent here by Chu Tianqiu, but why was their destination a monster ?
"Kim Wonhun, do you think we went the wrong way?" Specs held the map in front of Kim Wonhun. "Can you help me take a look?"
Kim Wonhun glanced at the map, then nodded slightly, feeling certain that the direction was right. Yet the map clearly marked this location as a venue of a {Mortal Tiger}, along with an extensive strategy guide below.
This monster before them hardly resembled a tiger.
"I am {Mortal Dragon}," the woman announced. "This game is free to play, would anyone like to participate?"
The four of them exchanged glances.
She was actually {Mortal Dragon}. However, her mask was completely different in style from the one they had seen before.
"That makes sense..." Specs nodded thoughtfully. "Mr. Chu said that the games here are classified according to the Twelve Earthly Branches, so encountering {Dragon} isn’t strange—after all, they are one of the twelve."
The remaining three nodded. Except for Officer Li, the other three had lost their memories and could only follow Chu Tianqiu's instructions. Still, even with his memories intact, Officer Li was seeing a dragon-category game for the first time.
Although the map is faulty, should they still participate in this game?
"I don’t think it’s worth the risk," Officer Li said. "Since the map is wrong, it means the strategy provided by Chu Tianqiu is also flawed. Let’s head back."
"But no want {Dào}," Kim Wonhun interjected.
"Ge, they don’t want any {Dào}," Kim Wonhun clarified, "There’s no nayang admission, there’s no loss in trying."
Specs furrowed his brow, finally understanding Kim Wonhun’s point. This was a free game, meaning the worst-case scenario would be no loss, no gain. And if they won, they could contribute more to their organization. After all, Chu Tianqiu had mentioned that {Mortal}-grade games were mostly safe.
But what exactly did {Dragon}-category games entail?
Specs suddenly had a thought. "Oh! Officer, Mr. Chu said you’re a {Reverberatee}, is that right?"
Zhang Chenze was taken aback, exchanging a look with Kim Wonhun. "{Reverberatee}...? What’s that?"
"I am a {Reverberatee}," Officer Li nodded. "Unfortunately, I must disappoint you. I was eliminated early on, so my knowledge is quite restricted. I don’t know anything about {Dragon}."
"I see..." Specs nodded, turning to the others. "At this point, we have two choices: either we turn back and grab a different map to set out again, or we take a gamble here. But this isn’t my decision alone, so we should discuss it and decide together."
Officer Li pondered for a moment, then said, "Let’s vote. Is anyone in favor of turning back?" Seeing no hands raised, he raised his own. "Personally, I suggest we take a more cautious approach. Jumping into an unknown game is risky."
After a few seconds of silence, noticing no one had responded, he reluctantly lowered his hand and asked, "Then, who is in favor of partaking in this game?"
Kim Wonhun raised his hand.
After some contemplation, Specs raised his hand as well.
The group looked at Zhang Chenze, who hadn’t taken a stance.
"I abstain," she declared. "I won’t make any hasty decisions until I have all the facts."
"That’s fine, the decision’s already made," Officer Li nodded. "Since we’re a team, the majority rules. Let’s give {Mortal Dragon}’s game a try. Even if we fail, we’ll push to bring a guide back."
The trio nodded and proceeded towards Mortal Dragon.
As they stepped inside, the door to the building shut by the Earthly Branch. Yet, in the very next moment, the entire structure seemed to dissolve into thin air, leaving behind nothing but an empty square. It was as though the building had never existed at all, the space now barren, as if erased from time itself.
Chu Tianqiu sat in a dimly lit room, surrounded by shelves laden with bloodstained animal masks. He hummed a classical melody under his breath, tapping the beat with his fingers, clearly in a good mood.
After a short while, he opened his eyes and glanced at the chessboard on the table, where black pieces and some dilapidated plastic toys were arranged
He picked up the four {pawns} and gently placed them in front of a massive monster toy, muttering to himself, "{Dragonslayers}, the opportunity is now—how will you choose to die?"
He chuckled lightly and then glanced behind the monster toy. There, four more pieces were placed.
A {king}, a {queen}, a {knight}, and a {bishop}.
These four pieces, along with the previous four {pawns}, surrounded the plastic monster on all sides, creating an encircling formation.
"Qi Xia, what’s your explanation for this?" Chu Tianqiu closed his eyes and resumed humming his classical tune.
"Why is there consistently just one {king} on the chessboard?"