Age of Adventure

ON TOP OF A HILL IN GREATER VERANIS

Aero is resting on his villa. He is playing chess. Playing with him is a woman covered in hood. The woman then took her knight to a position. Her castle blocks the other route. Her Queen look menacingly at the other position.

She smiles and said

’Checkmate’ Aero smiles.

’I lost again’ he said, shaking his head but there is a smile on his face. It almost looks like he doesn’t care that he loses.

The woman said

’I thought you would be good in playing chess’ Aero just laughed.

’What gave you that impression? He laughed.

’Most strategists in stories usually have great attainment in games like chess’ she said. Aero laughed and said

’In the end, chess is not living’ he said and then he laughed again as he looks at the chess pieces. She then nodded and said

’because it is not a battle’ Aero just nodded.

Chess pieces have no emotions. They have no hearts and they have no minds of their own. They have no ambition and no desire.

If people is like that, then probably it is easier to lead battle like commanding chess pieces

There is no unexpected terrain to traverse, no sudden weather changes that forces one to retreat.

In real battle, people get scared. Some could make a different choice when ruled by fear.

One could get lost in a fog, swept away by a flood, having visibility reduced by rain and having movement hindered by snow.

Chess have no such thing. And because of that Aero find it boring. He laughed because he truly did not care whether he loses or win in chess. Because no one dies in chess.

The woman is none other than Viola. She sighed. Even though she wins she did not feel happy. For some reason, that play by Aero is weird. It felt like even though she wins, she felt like she was caught in a big net

’Another game’ he said. She shakes her head.

Aero did not insist as he takes a sip of tea. She gets up from her seat and then said

’The Empress knows you are here’ Aero smiles and then said

’I guess this called for another game of chess’ he said and then the servants that was standing on the side of the door quickly come and rearrange the chess pieces on the chessboard

Sighing, she sat back down.

Aero is white this time. And Viola is black. He makes his first move. He moves his pawn. And then he said

’Does the Emperor knows?’

She shakes her head, as she thought about that Empress who is as beautiful as the Goddess Aphrodite as she moves her pawn.

Nodding, he said

’That is good’ As he brought out his bishop.

’When will you show yourself? She said as she moves out her knight. Aero shakes his head as he brought out his queen.

He sighed as he seems to be thinking about something. Viola waited for an answer and she moves her other knight.

Aero then was about to move her queen when suddenly someone barged inside the leisure area.

Aero release his finger from the chess piece and look to his left. It was one of his spies. The man kneels and presented to him a scroll tied with a golden thread. Aero eyes widened.

He took the scroll and unfurls it. His eyes read the content and then his smile grew wider.

Aero then stood up from his chair and then looking at Viola he said

’I guess we will not be having a chess match after all. It seems my time to reveal the world has arrived’

Then he quickly left the area. Viola was startled by the sudden declaration and she also stood up.

The servants on the side quickly went to the chessboard to clean up the chess pieces and Viola glanced a bit at the chessboard.

The servant was about to sweep it all away but Viola held their hands and they stopped. Viola look again at the chessboard and then her eyes frowned.

Was all that losing were meant for this one victory?

She thought to herself as she looks at the chess board.

When she looks at it, she could see that if Aero made one more move he would checkmate her pieces.

To win elegantly, is that his style?

Her chess battel with Aero in the afternoon had been hours. But each time, she emerges victorious. She even thought that Aero did not know how to play chess.

But looking at the composition of the chess pieces and its position, Aero from the beginning wanted to checkmate her with the oldest trick in the book.

The Scholar mate.

He wanted to win elegantly. To show her that while she needs to fought hours with him, he could actually use only four moves to destroy her.

That tracks with Aero personality and his style of solving problem. This kind of tricks would be easy for her to recognize.

If the opponent is anyone else, she probably sees this trick a mile away.

But Aero keep losing to her and she let her guard down. She makes moves without thinking about it. And thinking about all of the chess battle, she felt shiver.

All of that just to make her let her guard down? No wonder people said that Aero is a scheming person.

In the beginning, Viola did not underestimate Aero. She even prepares for any attack and she close all possible ways for Aero to advance to her side of the chess board.

But as time passes and as Aero shows his weakness in playing chess, even though she did not show it outwardly, she thought she was better.

She thought that Aero is weaker than him.

And she was wrong. That weakness is not a weakness at all.

The weakness was shown to her so she would let her guard down and form a mistaken perception of Aero

Maybe this has always been the way Aero operates. By making people having a wrong perception of him, no one could understand him.

The more people who did not understand him, the more unfathomable he become in their minds

Viola shook her head and smiles bitterly.

He could take hundreds of losses but as long as he wins in the end, what would all that losses matter?

In the end, who would laugh last is the most important, she thought to herself

Aero had long gone to his private study and she stands there, transfixed and then laughing she left the villa.

That day, a piece of news shook the world. Greater Veranis is attacking Holy Vanheim Empire!

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