CHAPTER 38: CHAPTER 35: A GAME OF CHESS

After the three of them finished eating,

Jin said, “Hey Joseph, how about a chess match?”

Nonna stood up and brought her grandfather’s chessboard.

The chess match started.

Joseph chose white, Jin chose black.

The restaurant glowed with pale light streaming through the high windows.

Joseph and Jin sat at opposite ends of the table, taking deep breaths to ease the tension.

Nonna sat nearby, legs crossed, her gaze darting between the board and the players as she lit another cigarette and took a drag.

Joseph opened with 1. e4, staking his claim on the center.

A faint smile crossed his lips, preparation complete.

Jin replied instantly, laughing. “Ha, the classic attacking move,” he said, playing 1... c5.

Jin (calmly): “Sicilian Defense. Let’s see what you’ve got.”

The game slid into the razor-sharp Najdorf:

2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 a6

Joseph paused for barely a second before unleashing the English Attack, a weapon feared even at the super-GM level:

6. Bg5 e6 7. f4 Be7 8. Qf3 Qc7 9. O-O-O Nbd7

The tension was suffocating.

Every piece seemed to hum with potential energy, ready to explode.

Joseph’s next sequence was prepared fifteen moves deep, an opening novelty straight from his chess prep:

10. g4 b5 11. Bxf6 Nxf6 12. g5 Nd7 13. f5 b4 14. fxe6!

Jin’s eyes narrowed. “Damn.” The position had turned razor-sharp.

14... bxc3 15. exd7+ Bxd7 16. Nf5!

A stunning knight leap, threatening mate and cutting through Black’s coordination.

Jin (low, calculating): “You had this prepped, didn’t you?”

Jin defended with absolute precision.

“Ahhh, this is boring. Can’t you finish the game fast? I’m getting bored.”

“Okay, how about this?” Nonna clapped her hands softly, the cigarette still in her mouth, a playful smile forming. “I’ll give the winner a kiss.”

Joseph’s eyes turned serious, his black pupils gleaming.

At that moment, Joseph’s brain found a new motivation.

The game continued:

16... cxb2+ 17. Kb1 Bxf5 18. exf5 Rc8

But Joseph’s attack rolled on, flawless and merciless:

19. Bd3 Qc3 20. Rhe1 Kf8 21. Qb7 Re8 22. f6!!

A brilliancy. The f-pawn sacrifice cracked open Black’s king position completely.

22... gxf6 23. gxf6 Qxf6 24. Bxa6 Kg7 25. Rg1+ Kh6 26. Rd3

Every move was perfect, forming an unstoppable mating net.

Jin played the only moves left to prolong the fight:

26... Qf2 27. Rf1 Qxf1+ 28. Kxb2

And now the final hammer blow:

29. Rh3+ Kg7 30. Rg3+ Kh6 31. Qe4

No defense remained.

Jin stared at the board for a long moment before toppling his king.

Jin (grinning): “Engine prep, huh? You’re starting to become a chess nerd, Joseph.”

Joseph (grinning): “Shut up and call me father-in-law, Jin.”

“Cut the crap, Joseph. Let’s go.”

“Wait until I get my kiss.”

Nonna leaned in to give him a kiss, but Joseph smirked.

“Nonna, is that your wallet?” he said.

When she turned her face, Joseph stole a kiss on her cheek.

“See you at school tomorrow,” he said.

Nonna stomped her foot, the chessboard rattling.

“You little brat! That wasn’t part of the deal!” she shouted, waving her cigarette like a sword.

Joseph and Jin burst out laughing, Joseph grabbing Jin’s hand as they bolted for the door before Nonna could kick their butts.

“Damn you, Joseph! You kissed her! You’re getting bolder every day.”

“I just rizzed her,” Joseph laughed.

“Okay, let’s stop that. We need to hurry. By now, our current webtoon has already released two new Chapters.”

“You know what I hate the most?”

“Yup. Being late to read webtoon Chapters, K-pop, and that shoujo nonsense.”

“That pink coloring and those annoying girls... don’t even remind me. I wish I hadn’t seen that trash. Ugh, I want to wash my eyes with Dettol after seeing it. That’s one of the biggest pieces of trash I’ve ever seen.”

“Whoever reads that deserves to be banished to hell.”

“Yeah, I know. We shouldn’t have opened the first Chapter back then.”

“But we didn’t have any other options. We had already read all our webtoons.”

“It was the only option next to the web novels.”

“You know I hate reading without images.”

“Yeah, same here.”

“Let’s stop bragging about this and talk about something serious.”

“How do you think the fight will go?”

“I believe my Peak Lee will demolish your Goat Seonji.”

“Aikido is still better than the invincible attack.”

“Why do you like copying the martial art of that red-haired jerk? He’s just an evil guy with some cool moves and red hair.”

“Because his fighting style is cool and effective, while your Aikido is boring.”

“Hey, stop criticizing. Come fight me and I’ll break your back.”

“Yeah, yeah, as if you can.”

“We’re too distracted, let’s stop this nonsense and get there quickly.”

They bought snacks for their brothers.

Jin and Joseph ran fast before the old woman noticed and kicked their asses, then headed to the orphanage.

Watching Jin and Joseph, Lin, who was actually the adult Jin’s soul inside Lin’s body, felt his memories returning."

For a moment, he felt like an outsider looking in, as if the warmth of their laughter belonged to a world that had long abandoned him. Each echo rang sharper than the last, fading into the black of night yet cutting into the hollow inside his chest like knives. By the time he realized it, his eyes had darkened, as though all his strength had drained away. All he wanted was to grasp the last rope to his past, the one thing he couldn’t let go. He wanted to know, to see, his friend again. More than anything, he wanted to follow.

Pain and tears poured down his face, and he didn’t even know why.

He found himself shouting without thinking:

“Joooooooseph! Don’t go!”

Blinded by grief, he didn’t notice the shift in the air. A dark presence drew close, a hand pressing down on his shoulder. A chill surged through him as a strange resonance echoed inside. When he turned, a shadow was there, smiling at him.

Lin jumped back, purely on instinct.

“Did you have fun?” the shadow said.

“I think that’s enough memories for today. I’m bored.

You can let your emotions burst out some other time”

The black shadow snapped its fingers with a sharp click, and the illusion shattered. In an instant, it dissolved and reappeared opposite him.

“Lin turned and saw Azareen lying on the ground in the ashen place, wrapped in summer haze and drifting fog, unconscious and wounded from battle.

Then he turned to the dark figure, who was smiling at him.

’Finally... we meet.’”