◈ 339. [STAGE 14] King & Knight
“This is not it.”
Immediately after escaping from the encirclement of the special forces, he struggled with a narrow struggle under the escort of three members of the shadow unit.
I said after throwing off the tin helmet. The three bloodied shadow troops turned to me.
“This is not it! If you do this, Lucas is in danger!”
Lucas took up my stand-in and stayed in their den. Swap clothes with me and pretend to be me, tied up there.
I looked down at Lucas’s armor I was wearing instead.
The black armor, which had been newly fitted not too long ago, was punctured, split, and covered in blood.
Lucas himself said he had a way out… … .
Is that true?
Could it be that I just lied to you so that I could get out of my mind?
“majesty.”
God Hand looked back at me and said calmly.
“Have you ever played chess?”
“Yes, of course I left it.”
It’s a game where the rules are the same both on Earth and in this world.
“Do you know what the winning conditions are in chess?”
“It’s about capturing the opponent’s King.”
“That’s right. And we have to protect the king on our side.”
God Hand pointed at himself and the two corps members in turn.
“Even Pawns like us and Knights like Sir Lucas all die for the King. It is a stepping stone to victory.”
“… .”
“If we can save Your Highness from death with our lives, it can be said that we paid a cheap price.”
I kept my mouth shut. God Hand nodded.
“The great nation continues only when there is a king. Only when Your Highness is safe, the front line here can survive.”
“… .”
“Sir Lucas made a choice. Even if you are in danger yourself, you must save Your Highness… … A very right decision as a knight.”
I then took a deep breath.
The hot forehead calmed down a little and my consciousness became clear.
“Listen straight up God Hand. You need a king to continue the game, but… … .”
and said
“You can’t win a game without a king.”
“… .”
This time, God Hand kept his mouth shut.
“For the king, the pawn, the knight, the bishop, and the rook must be the queen. Only then can a king become a king.”
“… majesty.”
“It is because you are together that I, who can only move one block at a time, become a commander on the battlefield.”
After God Hand, I looked around Burnout and Body Bag in turn.
“I need you. And I need Lucas too.”
i want to go with
with all of my colleagues.
The road to the true ending and beyond… … .
So, in a place like this, the real protagonist of the game, my knight, and the strongest card, Lucas… … can’t lose!
“It is an ideal theory, Your Highness.”
God Hand laughed bitterly.
“Because chess is a game in which you have to lose to gain.”
“But this isn’t a chess board, it’s the real world, isn’t it?”
“That’s right. It is more severe.”
“But it is where there are possibilities that are not set by the rules.”
and i
I decided to be a tyrant, not just a commander.
In order to win, you can trample on any rules… … A tyrant on the game.
That’s why – I don’t care about the exchange fee.
Throwing a pawn and a knight and not playing to take the opponent’s bishop and look.
I will use force and swarm to gnaw away only the enemy’s hand without losing any of my hand.
yes this is me a player
to do so… … I decided.
Beep.
It was then. A system window popped up in front of me.
[Player existence verification completed.]
[System can be used.]
“… .”
I don’t know what error prevented it earlier, but I was able to access the system again.
There are not one or two things I want to question, but now is not the time for that. I hurriedly reached into my inventory and picked up the item. ok it works
God Hand urged me.
“I understand your feelings, but for now, evacuate to a safe place first, and then reorganize your troops-” “
So it’s too late. They might kill Lucas right away.”
“If so, what are you going to do? Do you want to go back there again?”
“… .”
While checking the number of moves I had, I suddenly looked down at the wooden sword in my hand.
It was the wooden sword Lucas brought. It looked like it had been broken in half, but an idea flashed through my mind when I saw it.
“Guys. Prince, I had a good thought.”
I saw the white cloth that the Shadow Unit members were wearing instead of bandages. ok this is enough
shit.
I raised the corner of my mouth and looked around at the three members of the shadow unit and said.
“Do you believe me?”
“… .”
The three elves stared at each other, smiled wryly, and nodded at me.
“What shall we do, Your Highness?”
***
Tied to a chair, Lucas was a super-corpse.
Mason beat Lucas with beatings under the guise of torture, and Lucas was silently beaten and did not open his mouth.
“How about saying at least one word soon, boy?”
Mason growled as he untied his blood-soaked wrists.
“I want to remember at least the will.”
Then Lucas sighed and raised his lips.
“Your fists are like cotton balls, Mason.”
“… what?”
“I think it hurt more when I was beaten by my lord in the past.”
At that time, my heart ached because I was scolded by the object of my loyalty.
But what about now?
Even though the body may be destroyed, the heart is infinitely lighter.
‘Now he’s doing something a bit like a guard dog.’
die for the master… … .
Isn’t that the best ending for a guard dog?
I lied to Ash that there was a way out, but there was none. Lucas came here with the determination to die in Ash’s place.
The punishment for betraying Ash that day. Can this be paid off… … .
“… hey. young master.”
Mason clenched his fists with a terrifying look on his face and said,
“Do you think you can die comfortably by provoking me like that?”
He put his hand into his bosom and pulled out the syringe containing the dream magic hypnotic.
“Now that the prince has run away, the young master should spit out as much information as possible for me.”
“… .”
“Don’t worry, I won’t kill you. I’ll cut off your limbs and put you in medicine, and I’ll scrape out the last bits of information left in your brain.”
Lucas closed his eyes tightly.
Then, the magic power remaining in his body was slowly transferred to the aorta of his neck.
I had no intention of dying at that bastard’s fist from the beginning. I was thinking of killing myself cleanly.
Why?
What came to my mind at the end were memories of my childhood.
The day I first entered Dustia’s villa.
Moments at the secret base under the roof that young Ash invited… … .
that buck that buck
Mason strides forward and Lucas catches his breath one last time.
It was then.
“Kuhm!”
There was a loud breathing sound outside the hideout door.
A knock rang out.
Knock. smart. Knock.
once. twice. once.
‘… what?’
Lucas opened his eyes and looked at him curiously.
This knock signal is obviously in childhood… ?
Quaang-!
The door opened violently. Everyone inside looked at them in surprise.
“Do you wanna build a snowman~?”
Ash was standing there.
He gently waved the white flag in his hand.
It was a crude white flag with a white cloth loosely tied around a broken wooden sword. As he jerked it back and forth, Ash grinned.
“Surrender is surrender! hello secret friends The prince came back because he wanted to play with you more.”
The agents who were guarding the outside came in after them, pouring out cold sweats.
“Great Captain! His Highness the Prince suddenly returned… … Before we can stop… … .”
“why? So you don’t like it?”
Ash smiled and waved a white flag in his hand.
“What’s the point of saying this with my mouth, but I’ve never had a case in my life when I asked to play first and was rejected?”
In any case, the intention to surrender was clear. I was dumbfounded, so Mason laughed hysterically.
“Your Highness, you really have a big liver. Or my hair is gone… … What the hell were you thinking-”
“I’ll guide you.”
Mason closed his mouth at Ash’s words.
“Lake Kingdom. Didn’t you make this mess just because you wanted to get in there?”
Continuing his speech, Ash shrugged his shoulders skillfully.
“it is not diffcult. I’ll take you all. follow me only I’ll let you in directly.”
After looking back at the perplexed task force members who couldn’t understand Ash’s intentions, Ash waved the white flag in his hand over his head.
“Because the prince is so amazing at guiding amusement parks again!”
It was a skillful flag movement like a guide guiding tourists.
***
So.
Following Ash’s guidance, the task force members were moving toward the teleport gate in the manor house.
“… Lord. why?”
Lucas, who was limping along with Ash’s support in the lead, stammered.
“why… are you back I risked my life to let my master go… … .”
“Because you risked your life.”
Ash replied calmly.
“So I must risk my life to save you.”
“I am only the guard dog of the lord. It is only natural to die for your master. However, the lord must not risk his life for the guard dog… … .”
“no.”
“yes?”
“You bastard, you are not a dog.”
Ash glanced at Lucas as if he were genuinely elated.
“People say you look like a puppy and look like a golden retriever, so you really think you’ve become a dog? no you idiot You are a human!”
“… .”
“And I. save people.”
Ash sighed as if he had promised himself.
“If it is within my reach, I will save people. I’m just trying to enforce my principles.”
Lucas, who had been absent-minded, was about to say something more when Mason stepped up from behind.
“I will tell you in advance, Your Highness. Because of Your Highness’ earlier lies and lost subordinates, I… … The fever is rising in the head.”
“Oops. The body seems to have a lot of heat. Are you a solar person?”
Ash threw another incomprehensible joke, but Mason didn’t listen and growled.
“If you try to deceive me again, I won’t be able to do it well.”
“Oh, you are scared. A government official who dared to threaten the imperial family. You really should get a health checkup later. That big belly is all going to be full of fatty liver.”
The road to the teleport gate was empty.
Mason and the task force were on the lookout for an ambush, but there were no troops in sight, let alone ordinary citizens.
Ash grumbled at the task force members who were not letting go of their tension.
“hey. I am the mayor of this city. Fighting with you guys in the middle of the city hurts even innocent people. How do you deal with the damage?”
“… Are you saying you left people behind?”
It seemed that Ash ordered his men to take out the people on the route in advance. Ash shrugged.
“Anyway, shouldn’t we achieve each other’s goals? You guys go to the Lake Kingdom and see the Demon King, and I take my knight home and leave work safely. okay?”
Of course, even if Mason achieved his goal, he had no intention of letting Ash and Lucas go gracefully, but he quietly nodded.
Arriving in front of the teleport gate, Ash raised his hand to activate the gate.
“Come to the land of fantasy, where fun festivals are held~ Come to the land of adventure, the land of eternal happiness~”
Humming an incomprehensible eccentric—which Ash claims to be the theme song for an amusement park—Ash gestured toward the open gate.
“Now then, shall we go? To the Lake Kingdom!”
“… .”
Mason grabbed Ash by the shoulders and jumped into the teleport gate together.
Flash!
When the teleportation ended with a flash of light- a wide square opened up.
All over the clearing, magic stones were shining like streetlights, and a large fire was burning in the middle of the clearing.
Moisture feels soft. And the pitch-black darkness that covered the sky… … .
Mason intuitively noticed.
“… You came right.”
This is the Lake Kingdom.
Flash! Flash!
The task force members who arrived after them opened their mouths and looked around.
It was his first time using the teleport magic, and he was embarrassed because it was his first time visiting the Lake Kingdom dungeon.
So Ash bought time.
Grinning wickedly, Ash swung up the white flag in his hand.
Both of Ash’s wrists were tied, but the white man in his hand was not taken away.
It’s not even a weapon, so what am I going to do with that little flag of surrender?
They had no idea.
What Ash can do with the ‘flag’.
“This place.”
Ash shouted as he slammed the white flag on the floor.
“I declare it as the territory of the empire-!”
Whoaaaaagh!
Magical power emanated from Ash, and a dazzling flash covered the area.
