Heavenly Demon Holmes: London’s Subjugation

A soft-hearted warrior cannot win at Sword Debate Chess.

-French proverb-

What must I do in this situation to steer the outcome in my favor?

It seems best for me to provoke Her Majesty and actively force Sword Debate encounters.

The blood-channel and Elixir Field fatigue accumulated from moving heavy pieces with Poltergeist can be somewhat relieved while trading words.

The important fact is that even if I score a Sword Debate checkmate once, the match does not end.

According to the Sword Debate Chess rules of the European Murim Alliance, an official match requires the two players to alternate White and Black and play twenty games.

And if a player’s stamina fails during those twenty games, it counts as a forfeit loss.

The energy used by a human Ni Hwan Palace is considerable, and it’s only natural that players must fill their stomachs with sweets and various meals between Sword Debate Chess games. Even in the world I lived in before my regression, classical chess players’ calorie expenditure on match days was said to rival athletes’, so Sword Debate Chess, which demands even more mental labor, must be worse.

In classical chess, when two masters must play many games they may continue for days, but this Sword Debate Chess match doesn’t even allow rest for sleep.

Sword Debate Chess is a game where one could collapse just from thinking about piece maneuvers and duels, imagining twenty consecutive games already makes my head spin.

This is the Forbidden Palace, so they’ll at least give time for meals or tea, but this match itself is already a challenge to my limits.

How well can I fare against an Unrestrained Realm master who’d resort to dirty tricks to seize victory?

‘In the end, unless I can remove the constraint of having to use Poltergeist or move pieces myself, beating Her Majesty is impossible.’

It must be achieved through negotiation.

And to lead negotiations favorably, I must risk everything to win this first game.

If I can win perfectly once and then provoke Her Majesty, there will still be opportunities.

“What are you doing? Make your next move at once.”

“I was about to move. Please don’t rush me.”

I purposely wore an anxious expression and advanced a pawn.

♜♞♝♛♚♝♜♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♞6龍♙脈♘♙♙♙♙♙♙♙♖♘♗♕♔e♗♖

e6.

“Ho.”

A move to contest the Dragon Vein.

Her Majesty smiled faintly.

“You seem to have become impatient.”

“Not at all. I came to enjoy this leisurely.”

IIn this era, the Hypermaoshanism theory—circulating only among certain Indian martial artists who inherit the Kung-Fu lineage of the Maoshan Clan—rests upon the strategic principle that, when facing the White, one must refrain from seizing the central Dragon Vein of the Sword Debate Chess board at the outset.

Instead, the new chess the Maoshan Clan plays aims to indirectly seize the Dragon Vein—by subduing White’s elite martial artists who have occupied it, employing pieces such as the Knight and the Bishop, each endowed with mastery beyond the Pinnacle realm.

The key is to exploit the gaps created by the opponent’s early advances without losing control of the Dragon Vein.

“If you truly wanted to enjoy this leisurely, you wouldn’t worry about the Dragon Vein. You seem eager to face me. Well, I am no coward who avoids fights. I’ll play along suitably.”

♜♞♝♛♚♝♜♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♞龍♙♙脈♘♙♙♙♙♙♙♖♘♗♕♔♗♖

c4.

A pawn to c4, advancing the c-file pawn to the fourth rank to prevent Black’s pawn from entering d5.

Playing c4 immediately after I moved my knight would have been the orthodox reply, but she deliberately moved her White knight first and delayed c4 to provoke my impatience.

Yet, whichever the order may be, it remains but a Trick of Seven Acorns.

Her Majesty seems intent on continuing the romantic-era, Dragon-Vein-centric muddy brawl she always plays.

Considering the length of the incense stick, it is true that the more rounds of duel are held, the more the advantage falls to me.

However, should the number of moves swell to an excessive degree, it will in turn bring me loss in the nineteen matches yet to follow.

In this situation, I can only choose optimal moves to pressure Her Majesty quickly while sparring at proper intervals to rest.

Just moving pieces twice with Poltergeist already drained a significant amount of my internal power.

Without stuffing myself with restorative elixirs or food and tea between games, there’s no way to continue this twenty times.

‘Seeing that I’m already wanting to rest, it’s time to start the sword debates.’

I’d like to quickly call forth the f-file bishop into the martial world, but I can delay that until after she brings out the b-file knight.

Therefore, the next move is—

♜♞♝♛♚♝♜♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♞♟龍5♙♙脈♘♙♙♙♙♙♙♖♘♗c♕♔♗♖

c5.

A move that puts the White pawn on the Dragon Vein within striking range.

“Good. That’s how you should have played.”

Her Majesty cheered and advanced her knight on the b-file.

♜♞♝♛♚♝♜♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♞♟龍♙♙脈♘♘3♙♙♙♙♙♙♖♗c♕♔♗♖

Nc3.

Already four first-rate martial artists and three Peak masters have begun opposing each other across the Dragon Vein.

A faint scent of blood began to waft across the small eight-by-eight martial world.

“……”

So far, things unfolded as expected.

I briefly recalled the conversation I had with Her Majesty.

I demanded she stake an Ancient Tomb Clan treasure and one Kung-Fu as the wager, and the Queen, Her Majesty accepted.

Her casually accepting my proposal provided two clues.

First, the Queen is confident she will not be defeated no matter what happens.

And second, she believes I do not know what treasure and secret techniques the Ancient Tomb Clan possesses.

Sword Debate Chess is a game that most efficiently exploits information asymmetry.

In other words, it’s advantageous to use techniques known to the judges but unknown to your opponent.

In this situation, which clan’s Kung-Fu she will use at a critical moment in the match is clear.

It was all according to my design.

The outcome will hinge on how well I exploit her misconception to my advantage.

If I don’t err in the upcoming middlegame, the seeds I’ve sown will sprout and bear fruit.

“Hoo.”

I took a deep breath.

Beside me, I saw a royal attendant sitting by the Sword Debate Judge recording the game’s notation in detail.

The history of the British royal family is recorded for posterity.

The notation of this match might one day be read by the Queen, Her Majesty’s descendants.

If the match goes according to plan, what thoughts will those who read the future record harbor?

‘My apologies, Your Majesty.’

When their ancestors read a record of overwhelming defeat.

I’m simply thrilled to wonder at the expressions the new rulers of Great Britain will make.

For now, I set aside tension and pressure and gathered internal power into my Ni Hwan Palace.

-Thud!

♜♞♝♛♚♝♜♟♟♟♟♟♟♟♞♟!龍♙♙!脈♘♘♙♙♙♙♙♙♖♗♕♔♗♖

I lifted and dropped the Black pawn confronting the enemy on the fifth rank.

An action declaring a duel.

“I declare a sortie. The c-file pawn attacks the d4 pawn. I declare a duel.”

“Ho.”

A pawn moves straight but can only capture diagonally.

I made the sortie against the White pawn occupying the Dragon Vein.

“Begin the rank adjustment calculation.”

When Sir Newton declared it, the palace maid recording the notation began scribbling busily.

Due to the Dragon Vein’s rank adjustment, the internal strength of Her Majesty’s pawn on d4 rises to 3 units, equal to that of a Peak Realm master.

Moreover, that pawn is the Sword Queen’s direct disciple.

For White, the Sword Queen’s and Murim Alliance master’s direct disciples receive an additional 50% additive rank adjustment.

Meanwhile, my pawn is only on Black’s fourth rank relative to the Heretical League’s homeland, so the 73.5% rank adjustment does not apply.

The only adjustment I gain is the fixed 200% first-move multiplier granted to the piece that declared the sortie.

“…You’re charging in despite a full unit difference in internal power? What makes you different from a moth to a flame?”

Her Majesty was right.

Even considering rank adjustments, the Black pawn is at a 2:3.5 disadvantage.

Even so.

“In any fight, you can’t predict the winner until it’s over.”

I must somehow overturn it with matchup and improvisation.

“Good resolve. Declare the affiliation of your piece.”

Her Majesty still spoke with a composed face.

In fact, this stage is where Sword Debate Chess’s most strategic elements become prominent.

The collective of orthodox clans, and families under White’s Murim Alliance, including frontier and alternative clans.

And the warriors of each faction within Black’s Heretical League possess distinct ‘traits’ in Sword Debate Chess.

The official rule forbidding pieces on different ranks from being assigned to the same faction forces players to master a wide range of Kung-Fu disciplines.

Pieces on the same rank belong to the same clan or family.

There are a couple of exceptions, but this is a defining rule of Sword Debate Chess.

This is why the pawns before the Sword Queen and the first-rate martial artists before the Murim Alliance and Heretical League leaders have greater power than others.

For this reason, amateur players often simplified Sword Debate Chess by unifying all pieces into a single clan or family, regardless of Black or White, to lower difficulty.

My match with Her Majesty proceeds under official rules, except that we must personally move the heavy pieces.

A piece’s faction is set when it first sorties or is attacked by an opponent’s piece.

Since the sortie was declared by Black—me—I must reveal my piece’s affiliation first in exchange for the 200% first-move multiplier.

Naturally, upon seeing my chosen faction, the Queen could assign a well-matching White faction role to her pawn, gaining an advantage beyond occupying the Dragon Vein.

However.

‘Since nothing here will be recorded externally, it won’t matter what tricks I pull.’

With constraints gone, I can ignore taboos and employ all methods forbidden in official tournaments.

“I declare the affiliation of the c-file pawn. The faction is—”

I announced it with the best smile I could muster.

“It’s the Merry Men.”

“What?!”

Her Majesty’s voice was aghast.

Immediately, Sir Maxwell of the judges asked in a wry voice.

“Wait. I recall the Merry Men already paid their dues and were incorporated into a clan.”

“I understand Sword Debate Chess distinguishes Black and White factions based on the last duel between the righteous and the wicked per the rules.”

“……?!”

The judges hastily opened the rulebook but, unable to find a flaw in my logic, nodded gravely.

“We accept the Little Heavenly Demon’s claim.”

I could understand their surprise.

Treating the Merry Men as Black is reasonable by the rules, but no one had dared act on it for fear of the Merry Men’s reprisals.

And the Merry Men’s trait is that their strength stands out in the mountains.

“I request a rank adjustment calculation again.”

“Very well. The Merry Men’s trait prevents it from being appointed as a Sword Queen, nor as a direct disciple of the Heretical League Leader. Yet, should it assail the Dragon Vein, it is granted the singular privilege of invoking a multiplicative effect of two hundred percent.”

“Now my pawn is stronger at 4:3.5.”

“W-what nonsense is that!!”

An unexpected reversal.

The shocked Queen cried out.