Chess is a touchstone for the soul.

–Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

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Long ago, to avoid the side effects of the Lionheart Method, Master came up with a method.

It was to add a mnemonic to the technique to create another persona modeled after the practitioner.

The Pseudo Persona, born through a complex process, is immediately sealed in the mind.

It bears the brunt of the Lionheart Method’s side effects, including excessive violence and cruelty, semi-permanently.

In a way, it’s only natural. Two personas cannot coexist harmoniously in a single person’s mind.

A martial artist who practices the Renewal Lionheart Method must periodically consume elixirs to sustain the energy used to maintain the seal in the Niwan Palace1.

‘It’s a relief that I took the Poria & Red Fleeceflower Pill in advance.’

Fortunately, the side effects haven’t progressed to the stage Master feared.

I’ve only answered the King’s Specter once.

Since I’ve consumed a good elixir, I can start breathing exercises slowly to suppress it.

‘If I had a violin or could at least sing, it would have been easier to resolve.’

The reason I can’t suppress Papiyas2 as easily as before is because this is the Forbidden Palace, where a hundred discourtesies are forbidden.

Singing or playing instruments by anyone other than royal members or invited singers is strictly prohibited by rules, so it’s impossible to calm Papiyas with David’s Aria here.

Of course, the final side effect won’t immediately consume me, so I won’t make a big mistake during the ball.

But if the Pseudo Persona sealed in the Black Book keeps talking to me and rattles my composure, an unexpected accident might occur during my meditation.

‘I must resolve this before Watson returns.’

The biggest problem I face is that the one trapped inside knows me quite well.

[You’ve never cherished anyone. It’s always been empty words. You’ve wagered your life on your calculations. You believe everything about you belongs only to yourself. Selfish human.]

I mentally denied the words of Papiyas leaking from the Mind Palace, but the clear malice in its words kept trying to persuade my reason.

‘Was sowing guilt its goal?’

Fortunately, it can’t see through my thoughts in real-time.

Master said that the Pseudo Persona sealed by the Renewal Lionheart Method harbors terrible hostility towards the original.

As long as I don’t react, it’s just a ghost wandering in my mind.

No matter how aggressive it is, the right approach is to neither pity it nor let it out.

Fortunately, it knows me well but not well enough to destroy me.

The limited information it absorbs each time the seal is released can’t break my spirit.

It’s foolish that the one born from my mind doesn’t even know what sort of person its master is.

It has either gone mad from malice or become an idiot from bearing the side effects of the Lionheart Method alone.

‘I’m selfish?’

Nonsense.

I don’t intend to emphasize that I was destined to be a great hero.

No one who uses such an embarrassing title for themselves is unselfish.

I still remember vividly.

The day John was shot and injured while solving a case.

I realized how thin and fragile the mask of reason I wore proudly was.

Having experienced death and regained life, I understand now.

How arrogant it was to claim that a mere human could control their emotions without a single lapse.

‘The attempt wasn’t bad, but it’s unfortunate.’

As the Specter said.

I am a selfish human.

But I’ve learned to willingly give my heart to those who have stayed by my side for a long time.

John Watson and Jane Watson.

The two who constantly inspired me when I looked into the unknown realms of friendship and devotion.

My heart belongs to them.

*-Thump! *

As soon as I finished my rebuttal, I felt Papiyas shrink.

I didn’t refute Papiyas’s claim.

I didn’t confront a phantom but subdued my inner delusion with apt logic.

As long as I remain unwavering, Papiyas is no different from a passing scene.

-Kwaaa!

The moment I gained enlightenment, the blood concentrated in the Niwan Palace circulated throughout my body, and my foggy mind cleared instantly.

“……”

I succeeded in suppressing Papiyas before it affected my internal injuries.

I shivered at the sensation, as if basking in the sunlight at the summit of Ben Nevis.

The faces I miss, and those I’ve already begun to miss.

Thinking of the two I am grateful for, I sat cross-legged on the meditation sofa.

“It seems that I’ll always be indebted to you two.”

I don’t have many ways to repay them.

Nor are there many things a patient can do while waiting for the doctor.

For now, all I can do is focus on meditation to lessen Watson’s worries.

-Goooo…

I slowly adjusted my energy flow and began breathing exercises.

The thief I’ll face at the ball,

The sinister traps of society,

The complex rules of the Forbidden Palace,

The threat of the Zion Clan,

The pressure of the Sword Queen,

Moriarty,

None of it matters now.

As long as four warm hands are cradling my heart.

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After absorbing the energy of the Poria & Red Fleeceflower Pill and calming my meridians, I entered the Mind Palace to examine the sealed Black Book.

The Book placed on the marble pedestal in the center of the Mind Palace.

The cover was closed as if nothing had happened.

[……]

The Specter was silent.

I don’t know if it’s dispirited or asleep.

In fact, it doesn’t matter either way.

As long as it doesn’t rampage, I can be at ease for a while.

However, through this incident, I inadvertently empathized with its feelings.

When I heard Master’s explanation, I vaguely thought it was something like a mental disorder, but after conversing with it, I confirmed that the King’s Specter is a being with reason and self.

Perhaps because my mind has calmed, I can make more advanced inferences than before.

Perhaps the one sealed in this Book is much more normal than I imagined.

‘You believe everything about you belongs only to yourself. Selfish human.’

It definitely said that.

Perhaps that statement isn’t criticizing me for throwing myself into the waterfall with Moriarty to protect Watson and others.

Earlier, I was surprised that it shared my pre-reincarnation memories and became defensive, but upon reflection, I thought that statement might reveal its true feelings.

‘Selfish human, huh. It’s only natural for you to think of me that way.’

Isn’t it similar to a tumor gaining self-awareness in a human body?

It’s like a science fiction story, but imagining the tumor’s perspective, it seems strange not to harbor resentment.

Even a lifeless being would accumulate dissatisfaction if kept confined.

Moreover, wasn’t it created entirely for my needs?

The Specter might harbor resentment for being continuously denied, despite being part of the martial artist known as Sherlock Holmes.

“Another useless thought…”

I put on the cold mask of reason again.

Even if this speculation is true, there’s no need to show it any weakness or mercy.

If there’s time to be distracted by unnecessary thoughts, it’s better to focus on other productive concerns.

For example―

“Hmm?”

As I turned to leave the Mind Palace, an object that wasn’t there before appeared before my eyes.

A round table modeled after the Yin-Yang symbol, divided into black and white.

On it was a chessboard.

The Dragon Veins in the central four squares were not raised.

The rear lines of the Black Chess Piece and White Chess Piece camps, representing the Ten Thousand Mountains and the Murim Union, were not expressed in height differences.

In other words, it’s not the duel chess enjoyed by martial artists in this world, but a regular chessboard.

And―

“……”

The game seemed to have already started, with a White Pawn in the center moved two squares to e4.

“…Why am I Black?”

Whose mind did this trick come from?

No. That’s a foolish question.

I’m the only one who can enter the Mind Palace.

And one more.

Hamlet too.

“Hm.”

Looking around, I noticed clues I hadn’t seen before.

Some books on the shelf had a black aura clinging to their spines, like burnt fabric, moving subtly without any wind.

Without complex reasoning, I could tell it was something like the Specter’s fingerprints.

The books it touched were all records of memories from the world I lived in before crossing over, not from this world.

It seemed it had looked into various things about me before returning to the Black Book.

Thanks to quickly suppressing Papiyas, it hadn’t acquired much information, but thinking about the connection between the chessboard before me and the Specter’s actions, an ominous possibility came to mind.

“It never did this before. Or maybe it was impossible until now.”

Perhaps, just as I grow stronger by making the internal power and Kung-Fu principles accumulated in this world’s Mind Palace my own, the Specter might also be able to increase its influence in some way.

For example, by acquiring the memories I had before crossing over, something like that.

Otherwise, there’s no explanation for how a formless specter can perform such a trick.

‘Now that it’s come to this, it’s not right to just ignore it.’

A sigh escaped me unconsciously.

This too will be a wall I must overcome someday.

There’s no answer in avoiding the problem by leaving it unattended.

Just following the path the master taught does not make one a good disciple.

I stood before the chessboard with my hands behind my back.

“Then, let’s learn a move.”

I don’t know if these words will reach Hamlet.

But it might be different with the chess pieces.

“e5.”

As soon as I spoke, the piece slid two squares forward on its own.

The White and Black Pawns confronted each other in the center of the chessboard.

In response, the Specter’s hand moved another Pawn to f4.

♜♞♝♛♚♝♞♜♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟

♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♖♘♗♕♔♗♘♖

The King’s Gambit, symbolizing a romantic struggle.

I don’t know the Specter’s purpose or the stakes of this game, but I think I understand how it views me.

However.

“…Let’s stop here for today, I’m busy.”

Since there’s no timer, there’s no need to finish today.

Above all, I have to play duel chess with the Sword Queen later, so it’s not good to overwork my mind before that.

“Let’s continue when we have time.”

Perhaps the Specter is a more communicative opponent than I thought.

It certainly seems to harbor unusual malice towards me.

“See you next time.”

-Clatter!

The White King wobbled slightly back and forth on the chessboard as if bowing.

I walked towards the exit.

I felt a gaze on my back as I left the Mind Palace, but I did not bother to look back.

1. TL/N: Brain ️

2. TL/N: Inner demon ️