Jeliel and Carmen Set’s Soul Chess.

All the veteran expedition members, including the Class 7 mage Catherpilt, watched the scene with bated breath.

The Soul Chess between the two unfolded in a truly strange manner.

Because Jeliel was losing? No, if that were the case, they would have nodded their heads in agreement, saying, 'Of course. That’s how it should be.’

On the contrary, it was quite the opposite... It was incredibly surprising that Jeliel was holding her own against Carmen Set.

"The young lady is... slightly ahead."

"She has driven the legendary Carmen Set into a defensive position..."

"Could it be that the young lady's chess skills are that good? The opponent is Carmen Set! The very one who even defeated the creator of Soul Chess!"

Frankly, none of the expedition members thought Jeliel would win. Although she was a young genius and had shown great prowess in Soul Chess, so had the legendary Carmen Set.

At the age of ten, she had already earned the title of Chess Grandmaster.

In her twenties, she summoned the spirit of the creator of Soul Chess and challenged him to a match.

According to a legend, in her thirties, she even won against him

Even if Jeliel had earned the title of Grandmaster in her late teens, her opponent was a genius beyond her, an entity that had lived for thousands of years.

There was no way she could win. They thought she was just burning with a competitive spirit.

• This is ridiculous! It's bewildering!

Every move Carmen Set made was blocked by Jeliel’s moves. Her chess pieces moved into perfect positions as if she anticipated every move in advance.

Anticipation? Prediction? Guessing? Foresight?

No.

None of those words could describe it.

Jeliel’s chess could almost be called 'prophecy.'

'How?'

Everyone had the same thought. The archmage, the expedition members, and even Carmen Set...

Even Jeliel herself.

'How do I know that move in advance?'

She could clearly see every move made by Carmen Set as if it were unfolding right before her eyes.

She could see how he would move next, what strategy he was devising, and the purpose behind each move.

She could see through it all.

It felt as if she had learned telepathy.

Soon, she realized.

It wasn't a particularly difficult problem.

Previously, Jeliel had experienced the second defeat in her life and had thoroughly analyzed and studied all the chess patterns and styles of her opponent, Baek Yu-Seol.

It didn’t take long for her to make his chess her own. Instead, she even went a step further, adapting it with her unique style.

Therefore, she could understand the ancient spirit of Carmen Set. The chess played by this man... resembled that of Baek Yu-Seol.

No, it wasn't just similar; it was exactly the same.

The reason Jeliel had the upper hand? Wasn’t it obvious?

She had thoroughly analyzed and dismantled the opponent’s moves over several days and nights, repeatedly reconstructing and modifying them. She couldn't lose even if she wanted to.

Indeed, Carmen Set’s chess was formidable. He changed patterns several times in that brief moment, causing her strategy to waver continuously.

If... She hadn't experienced chess with Baek Yu-Seol, could she have dared to challenge that monstrous intellect of Carmen Set and... possibly win?

'......... Impossible.'

Even though she knew all the strategies, his chess skills were such that she couldn’t help but keep imagining defeat. It was clear that she, a mere novice, was not a match for him.

However, even though her skills were far inferior to Carmen set’s.

“Hahaha! I lost!”

In the end, she won.

… This was also thanks to the help of someone who wasn’t even there.

Boom!

Finally, when Jeliel’s chess piece knocked over Carmen Set’s king, he burst into hearty laughter and said.

“I acknowledge it! You are superior to me! It's as if the god of chess himself has descended!”

"Oh...!"

"To be acknowledged by the spirit of Carmen Set...!"

"I can't believe it..."

Those loyal to Jeliel were so moved that they even knelt down.

Their young lady not only discovered a legendary ruin but also earned the recognition of the ancient spirit of Carmen Set.

The moment this fact becomes public, she might receive as much attention as the young female mages of Stella, who caused a sensation at the Aslan Seminar with their groundbreaking papers.

However, with an indifferent expression that showed no signs of joy, Jeliel faced Carmen Set.

“Very well! You said what you wanted was 'eternal life'?”

"Yes. Give me the key to immortality."

“Do you truly wish to live forever? No matter what the cost?”

“...... Yes. But it’s not for me."

“Hmm?”

"Not for me, I want to give eternal life to my father."

“Oh…”

....

At this unexpected statement, Carmen Set narrowed his eyes and stretched the corners of his mouth wide.

“I see...?”

Something was off.

But she had resolved to not show her back now. Jeliel stiffened her neck and faced Carmen Set.

He laughed. The corners of his mouth gradually split, his shoulders shook out of sync, and his disheveled hair flew in all directions.

No sound was heard. It was as if he was trying to hold back laughter, but he obviously failed.

“Haha... So, your decision. Will it remain unchanged?”

A moment of hesitation.

Jeliel briefly looked back.

...!’

The Class 7 archmage Catherpilt had his eyes wide open. He was shouting something, but it couldn’t be heard from there.

'I'm sorry.’

No matter how great an archmage, he couldn’t stop her now.

"Yes. I won’t change my mind.”

In the end, Jeliel nodded toward Carmen Set,

Snap!!!

Oh

‘...?’

Suddenly, it felt as if something snapped. Her legs gave out, and she collapsed to the floor.

“Ugh, ugh....”

The world spun.

When she was young, the dark amusement park she visited with her father.

As they rode the carousel alone at midnight.

Her father waved his hand.

But because the carousel kept spinning, she couldn't keep facing her father.

‘Dad.’

Whirl! Whirl!

In the fleeting scenery, Jeliel kept looking for her father. The carousel spun faster and faster.

Da...d

...

Faster.

Even faster.

In the spinning scenery, she could no longer find her father.

‘Ah.’

Jeliel closed her eyes.

———-

Hawol Plains.

The name 'Hawol Plains' comes from the saying, 'Even if you run for a thousand miles, only moonlight fills the endlessly sprawling plains.’ It meant the plains were so vast that nothing could be seen.

Nowadays, with the development of trains, it was possible to quickly cross thousands of kilometers of plains, but in ancient times, hundreds of tribes divided the land and ruled it.

The wolf beastmen Garam tribe, the cat beastmen Black Cat tribe, the frog beastmen Yua tribe, and many others had quite diverse distributions, but now most of the tribes lived harmoniously.

There’s a rather unbelievable part to this.

The reason those tribes, who frequently waged wars, achieved harmony was not because they were tired of war. But, one day, the Starcloud Merchant Guild suddenly appeared and provided all the tribes with 'financial therapy' in an excellent manner.

It might seem nonsensical, but sometimes reality is stranger than fiction.

Clatter! Clatter!

“Ohhh....”

“Wow.”

As the train cut through the mountain via a cliff-side track, the view suddenly unfolded before them, and a gigantic tree appeared.

In the distance.

There was a single enormous tree. It was so large that it seemed to occupy half the world. It pierced through the pillars of clouds and stood tall.

The second Heavenly Spirit Tree, the Hawol Tree. Located at the center of the seven rivers that traversed the continent, it was also known as the heart of the plains.

Unlike the other Heavenly Spirit Tree, the Hawol Tree housed numerous diverse races, including the conservative 'natural elves' that are truly deserving of a fantasy world's 'natural elf' title, making it the largest Heavenly Spirit Tree in terms of scale.

This World Tree also communicated with the Elf King Florin, but it had a 'tree keeper' in a somewhat mayor-like capacity.

Of course, he did not govern. The elves, by their very nature, did not require rulers.

While everyone on the train was mesmerized by the Hawol Tree, Baek Yu-Seol looked in the opposite direction.

In the middle of the plains, a large village was established in harmony with nature.

Moonlight Hills, Lotus Guesthouse.

In the center of the plain, a green stem grew extraordinarily tall, and at its top, a giant pink lotus flower bloomed.

That place was the famous Lotus Guesthouse.

It was also where the Twelve New Moons, including New Moon Silver, resided. It was the most beautiful place in Hawol Plains.

“Next stop is Moonlight Hills. Moonlight Hills station. The exit door is on the right.”

Like a ripple in the calm sea, a woman's voice suddenly came from the machine.

The people who had been staring intently at the Heavenly Spirit Tree quickly came to their senses and hurriedly prepared to get off.

'... I guess I should go now too.'

Baek Yu-Seol wasn't there to leisurely enjoy the sightseeing, but he felt fortunate to have been able to see such beautiful sights thanks to the train trip.

The lotus flower that bloomed high in the sky, and the guesthouse built on top of it.

In ancient times, it was said that immortals who could step on air and fly used to enjoy their leisure here, but nowadays, a state-of-the-art magical elevator was installed inside the lotus stem, making it easy for anyone to access.

Perhaps because ordinary people became deeply fascinated by such a beautiful landscape, there was a time when the Lotus Guesthouse was almost like Las Vegas.

It had casino roulettes spinning on the streets and pachinko machines going off.

Not anymore.

After the StarCloud Merchant Guild bought up all the shares of the Lotus Guesthouse, they closed all the gambling halls and restored it to its former glory.

Thanks to that, there were rumors that the immortals, who had gotten a taste for gambling, smacked their lips in disappointment and disappeared somewhere, never to be seen again...

Believe it or not.

Thinking about it now, it must have been a funny sight.

Seeing immortals with beards down to their waists crowded around a roulette table shouting ‘Let's go!’ would be something you wouldn't easily see even if you paid money for it.

“Do you have a single room?”

The Lotus Guesthouse was now divided into many guesthouses. From Class 1 to Class 5, the quality of the guesthouses varied, and he chose a moderately priced Class 3 guesthouse.

“Oh, student. Where would you find a single room? Of course, you can only get a double room or higher.”

… Was that so?

“Then I'll take that one.”

As Baek Yu-Seol took out his wallet to receive the inn key, Stella’s pocket watch came up with it.

It wasn’t a coincidence; it was intentional. Like when people post pictures of food on social media and sneakily include their luxury watch or foreign car key for bragging.

"Hmm? Are you a student of Stella?"

"Yes."

"Aha. You’re here for a visit?"

The innkeeper's expression changed. He thought Baek Yu-Seol was just an ordinary kid, but upon realizing he was a noble's child coming to 'play,' his behavior changed.

"Well...Yes? It looks like there's a lot of fun stuff here."

With the StarCloud Merchant Guild's liquidation, all illegal gambling at the Lotus Guesthouse vanished. In other words, legal gambling still remained.

Games played with cards or dice were still available, and he had come all this way to participate in them.

"What would you like to try?"

"Poker sounds fun."

"Here. We give out 100 coins for free at first, so give it a try."

"Oh...."

Did they usually give out such things?

Baek Yu-Seol couldn't remember as he hadn't been here before.

But it was obvious.

Seeing him as a noble's child, they intended to hook him with a taste and then make him spend real money.

But there was no need to play such tricks on Baek Yu-Seol.

"I want to exchange coins right away."

Thud!

When Baek Yu-Seol placed a black 007 box on the table and opened it, shining banknotes appeared.

"Unbelievable..."

Passersby stared at Baek Yu-Seol with wide eyes, and the innkeeper was also taken aback by such a high-rolling customer. He was momentarily flustered but quickly switched to a business smile.

"Haha. Oh my, you're a VIP customer. You should have told me sooner. Did I give you a double room? Let me guide you to the VIP room instead!"

"That's unnecessary."

"Come this way. You said you wanted to play poker, right? I'll prepare the best players for you."

After saying that, the innkeeper gestured wildly behind his back.

He thought it was out of Baek Yu-Seol's sight, but he saw it clearly.

Swish!

Several hidden agents moved, and a table was set up for him. All this bothersome process was just a way to meet 'New Moon Silver.'

Even if it cost money and time, it was a process he had to go through.

'Well, let's get started.'

… As Baek Yu-Seol thought, a loud crash came from the next room. It was followed by someone's shouting.

"You damn old cheat! How dare you trick me! Guard! Guard, where are you! This old man cheated! How else could the nine of spades disappear!"

"Sir, please calm down."

"How can I calm down?"

Baek Yu-Seol quickly ran towards the noise. Perhaps because he had shown enough money, the guards protecting him cleared the way.

In what seemed to be another VIP room, an old man was leisurely smoking a pipe, while a man in his thirties was shouting at him.

"You... Give me back my money right now!"

"Haha. The young man is saying something amusing. What exactly did I cheat on?"

Although this place was not a casino, it was still a place for games, and if someone cheated, they would be immediately expelled.

To prevent that, the best mana detection sensors made by a Class 8 mage were installed everywhere, and a Class 7 mage was the owner of the Lotus Guesthouse, so cheating through magic was impossible.

Even if Eltman Eltwin came, the moment he used magic, the mana detection sensors would ring loudly.

"So, did the sensors go off? My hand movements were being watched by the guards. Was there anything strange?"

As the old man spoke arrogantly, the guards sweated profusely and shook their heads. Even the guards with superior vision from the Garam tribe couldn't see anything strange, so it was safe to say there was no cheating.

In other words, he won the young man's money purely by skill.

'That's ridiculous.'

Baek Yu-Seol couldn't help but laugh at the old man's confident demeanor.

How could someone be so shameless?

He was using a fraudulent trick that couldn't even be compared to Class 9 spatial magic or a gambler's hand movements.

"Damn it. Damn it....!"

Unable to find any evidence, the young man in his thirties was dragged out by the guards, empty-handed.

Baek Yu-Seol quickly took his seat.

"Hmm? And who are you, kid?"

Thud!

There was no need to open his mouth.

Just showing his superior wealth and chips, no, coins, was enough.

"Grandpa, let's have a game."

"Oh, I see... You are..."

When he confidently challenged him, the gambling old man, New Moon Silver, seemed intrigued and raised the corners of his mouth.

"... Sure, it sounds like fun after a long time. Haha."

Ping!

He tossed a coin to Baek Yu-Seol, and with that signal, the game began immediately.

The game was poker.

It was the card game he was least confident in.