Chapter 3 2

Chapter 2

I observed Nergal as it pursued its prey around the room. The rabbit, desperate to escape, displayed fear in its eyes. It understood it would be Nergal's dinner tonight.

I smirked, finding the scene captivating. Nergal seemed to be toying with its meal, offering false hope to the rabbit, as if implying it could escape if it tried hard enough. I smiled with a menacing satisfaction. I had truly trained him well.

I crossed my arms, watching as Nergal ceased the chase. The rabbit paused, studying Nergal, attempting to anticipate his next move. But Nergal simply sat down, appearing weary of the pursuit.

The rabbit appeared to regain a glimmer of hope. It seized the opportunity to dash toward the wide-open door. Just as it approached the threshold, Nergal rose on all fours, leaping and using his claws and jaws to end the rabbit's life and consume it. The rabbit's screams of terror echoed in my ears as Nergal tore its body apart.

I couldn't contain my laughter. What a spectacle! Nergal had done exceptionally well. He truly took after me. And the rabbit's cries-music to my ears!

This way is much more enjoyable, isn't it? When hope transforms into despair.

Emotions wither further under intense fear.

Ah... False hope. Potent enough to be self-destructive.

Nergal finished his meal, licking the rabbit's blood off his paws. I grinned, extending my hand with my thumb rubbing against my fingers. I clicked my tongue several times to beckon him.

The tiger locked eyes with me, then sauntered over. I chuckled as he allowed me to stroke his head.

"Very good, Nergal," I praised, and the cat purred.

I glanced at Enkidu, who stood silently beside me. He witnessed it all, yet his eyes betrayed no emotion. I shrugged. He was always like this. He only spoke when I asked.

"What do you think of Nergal, Enkidu?" I inquired, still petting my companion. "Isn't he quite clever?"

"Indeed, he is, Your Majesty," he replied. See? If I hadn't asked, he might have remained silent.

"Really?" I studied him. "How do you figure?"

"He knows whom to follow," Enkidu explained. I raised an eyebrow, signaling him to elaborate. "He can discern who holds authority, like you and your father. Only you two he obeys."

I looked at Nergal again, and the tiger nuzzled my hand. I playfully tickled his neck, and he appeared to relish it.

"So he favors royalty, huh?" I mused. "Will he be able to recognize the EL Ordre's King? Would Nergal allow the enemy's King to pet him?"

Well, that's what Enkidu had suggested. I hadn't even realized that Father acknowledged Nergal, but I had noticed the tiger's constant snarls in his presence. The same with Enkidu, but not when I was around.

"It is a possibility, Your Majesty," my Bishop assured me.

"Hmm..."

Nergal circled my feet and settled there. He seemed drowsy, as usual after finishing a meal. Perhaps he was weary from his play with the rabbit.

I must reward him for entertaining me today.

"Your Majesty!"

I was taken aback as someone entered the room. It was Ross, my Knight, who appeared eager upon seeing me. However, his gaze quickly shifted to Nergal at my feet. The tiger lifted its head to regard the intruder, studying him before returning to rest. I chuckled as Ross let out a relieved sigh.

They all fear my tiger. They fear everything about me.

"What's the rush, Ross?" I asked. His excitement returned to his face.

"I think I have an idea who the EL Ordre's King is."

Well, that surprised me. Among my chess pieces, I see Ross as someone who relies on strength without using his brain. He's the type to charge into a war armed only with a gun and without a plan. Hearing him say this is actually a surprise.

I don't even have an idea who the EL Ordre's members are. I only know who their Queen is.

"Who?"

He gave me a smug look. "It's just a hunch. But don't worry, once I have proof, Your Majesty, I'll inform you immediately. For now, I need to confirm it."

I sighed. I knew it. See? He told me earlier that he has an idea who the EL Ordre's King is, but now he's telling me it's only a hunch. It's like he doesn't even think about what he's saying. He's always wasting my time.

"What will you do to confirm it?" I asked.

"I think he has a girlfriend."

"The Queen?" Ishtar?

He shook his head. "No. An ordinary woman."

That piqued my interest. The EL Ordre's King dared to love a woman other than the Queen?

"He has two Queens," Ross said with a chuckle. "A bit too greedy."

I smirked. "Alright. Get back to me once you've confirmed his identity. I am expecting positive results, Ross."

"Yes, Your Majesty."

Ross left the room with a big grin on his face. He looked so proud, even though he hadn't done anything yet. He hasn't even confirmed it, but he's already so confident.

It's been years since we made our first move, which was to eliminate the EL Ordre's former Rooks. I didn't know that Dyke's plan would actually work. I bet the EL Ordre were rattled by our move.

And now, I have another plan.

"Yucca..." I called her during one of our meetings. "Can you give me any updates?"

Yucca looked uneasy and couldn't meet my eyes. She avoided looking at me altogether. I closed my eyes and tried to calm myself. I like it when people genuinely fear me, but she's making me feel like I'm a monster she doesn't want to see.

"I... I think your plan might work, Your Majesty," she said, barely above a whisper.

Despite that, I still managed to smile. "Really? Can I expect that you will not disappoint me?" She only nodded, but that's enough for me. I turned to Alter beside her. "Alter."

"Yes, Ate Eresh?"

I automatically gave her my warm smile. I really like it whenever she calls me that. She is my favorite piece because she's truly loyal, and she's lovely, too.

Youngsters.

"Can you find Ross? I haven't seen him for weeks now."

The last time we spoke was when he told me he had an idea who the enemy's King is. I was really looking forward to his report, but I haven't heard anything from him since.

"He's just around. Laid back as usual," Black said. He propped his feet on the table and leaned back in his seat. He looked quite comfortable in our new hideout.

My father moved our hideout here so we can focus more on our mission. He angrily stated that if we only held meetings and made plans in the house, we wouldn't take this game seriously. He might even think we're just idling around.

I don't, though. I'm giving my all to win this game. I need this. I need to feel strong and powerful. I want everyone to bow down before me. I want them to follow my orders and treat my every word as if their lives depended on it.

"Oh, no..." I heard Alter mutter after half an hour of working with her laptop.

"What's wrong?"

Her cute face looked at me, concern in her eyes. "The Knight's information got deleted from our database."

I frowned. "I don't understand. Explain, Alter."

She showed me her laptop. "We have a database where only some of our information is stored, Ate Eresh. The EL Ordre has one too, but I'm sure their tracker manages it." She typed some codes. "And I just found out that they've deleted the Knight's information from our database."

My frown deepened. "What does that mean?" Fuck. She's young, but when it comes to computers, she knows more than I do.

"I think something bad has happened to Kuya Ross, and the EL Ordre tried to cover it up."

I sighed when I finally understood everything. Ross got caught. His plan failed. And now, we have no idea what happened to him.

"You let this happen under your watch?" I couldn't help but feel irritated with Alter. This is the first time she's disappointed me.

"I'm sorry. It was the only thing they touched. They didn't get anything because of the firewall I built, Ate Eresh-"

"There's no room for mistakes in this game, Alter," I said coldly. "And call me Your Majesty."

I saw her gulp. Yucca looked back and forth between me and Alter. I paid no attention. I'm so fucking irritated that I chose to stand up from my seat. I needed to think.

"Strengthen your defense, Alter. I want you to build a firewall that is unbreakable so this won't happen again." I walked out, and Enkidu followed me without saying anything.

I am fucking irritated! I think Ross' hunch is right! The evidence is that something bad has happened to him. Why didn't I push him to tell me who he suspected was the King of the EL Ordre?!

The EL Ordre deleted our Knight's information because they knew his cause of death would be recorded. We would have been able to trace what happened to him and who he tried to kill! We were so close!

Ross knew. He knew who the EL Ordre's King is. And I'm sure they killed him once he confirmed it.

Fuck... The dead can't talk.