章 4: Chapter 4 - The turning point

"Shameless! Give him an inch, and they'll take a mile; I can't withstand these peasants and their unsophisticated behaviours!"

"How brazen of you, peasant! Even the death of your nine ancestral families is not enough to atone for your sins. Your filthy blood and flesh will get tortured for eternity in the Imperial Underground Prison!"

"Professor, this is clearly sexual harassment. We demand justice to be served!"

Cagnus turned a deaf ear to the students' complaints as he looked at Elizabeth with expectant eyes.

"Huh? Why are her ears red? And she also seems to be hiding her face… Does she have a fever?", Cagnus asked worriedly; naturally, he wouldn't dare to voice out his thoughts.

However, when the students saw the professor's expression, even more chaos ensued.

"Impossible! Absurd! What's happening with Professor? Is the peasant using voodoo magic to bewitch her?"

"Outrageous, not only does he dare to sneak into the Imperial Chess Academy, he actually dares to bewitch the Professor using his witchcraft means and forbidden techniques."

"Truly audacious. I've never seen someone as shameless as him. In fact, he goes as far as seducing Madam Elizabeth with his wanton words and devil magic."

Contrary to people's expectations, the knights did not take action.

Professor Elizabeth took a moment to recollect herself as she looked at Cagnus sternly, and then she issued a series of orders to the knights.

"Accompany him to his dormitory."

"Search his room for the identification badge."

"Check its authenticity."

Then her gaze turned sharp as she stared at Cagnus. She continued: "if it's not authentic, follow protocol."

Gulp.

The entire amphitheatre gulped as they felt chills run down their spine. The Imperial Chess Academy's internal protocol is known for its strictness and harshness. One wrong word here will get you expelled; if you commit a relatively light crime, such as disturbing the peace or littering the sacred grounds, even your noble status will get stripped.

As for destroying property, fines were as rampant as mice in the capital's sewer system; even taking off a leaf from a plant would get you a fine of up to three thousand pounds.

As for impersonating a student of the academy, or sneaking into learning grounds without permission or authorisation, even if you had all the money and status in the world, you wouldn't be able to escape paying a visit to the Imperial Underground Prison.

In some cases, death is way better than spending a night over in the Imperial Underground Prison.

Naturally, Cagnus was aware of this. Before he came to the Academy, he did sufficient research with his grandfather to make sure his journey went unhindered.

He silently prayed to the Fide Empire's current Empress, Karry Gasparov.

"O' great Empress of Humanity and Chess."

"I come to you with a humble plea."

"Please guard my belongings and keep them safe."

"So no one takes them away from me."

"Fill my home with your divine presence."

"Protect it from all harm and ill."

"Let no thief come in and steal away,"

"And keep my identification badge safe and still."

"Thank you for your kindness and care."

"And your watchful eye on me."

"Amen."

The Empress Karry is one of the Fide Empire's living gods; both the Ascetics Knight Order and Ecclesiastical Mage Corp fall under her command. These two are considered one of the empire's most potent forces and played an essential role in fending off the various races from invading humanity's grounds.

As one of the Empire's living gods, the Empress naturally has a Holy See, cathedrals and many churches spread throughout the country. Almost every human believes and prays to her daily, and Cagnus is no exception.

When he finished his prayer, the knight wielding the spear grabbed him violently by his shoulder and escorted him all the way to his dormitory.

The residence hall that spanned hundreds of metres soon came into view as both Cagnus and the knights passed by the lobby. Because it was class time, the recreational rooms were empty, with no person in sight.

Soon, they made their way into the staircase that led to the bottom floors. Then they opened a wooden door that led to an obscure area in the dormitory.

After taking two turns to the right, both Cagnus and the knights finally arrived in front of his room.

Their noses couldn't help but twitch as the pungent smell of the nearby bathroom assaulted their nostrils, but the six didn't care. Cagnus looked at the plaque that wrote "23-51" and couldn't help but lampoon his dilemma.

Two of the knights at the front shook their heads tacitly, and then they took three steps back and raised their legs.

BOOM!

Cagnus' eyes widened in astonishment as he questioned his entire existence, "What is this?", "Who am I?", "What am I doing here?".

The already-fragile wooden door plummeted to the ground as it was broken into pieces; shards of wood embedded themselves deep into Cagnus' bed.

"My door!", he couldn't help but scream pitifully as his heart bled.

The Imperial Chess Academy's rules were clear, any damages done to the property assigned to you will be borne solely by you and you alone. Even if the knights were the ones to break the door, Cagnus would have to pay the corresponding reparation fees on top of a disciplinary fee.

For his pocket money, his entire family amassed ten shillings after exhausting all their options. From where is he supposed to gather thousands upon thousands of pounds? Although that number sounds absurd, there have been cases in the academy of people plucking leaves from a random tree on the academy grounds only to get slapped with a fine amounting to three thousand pounds.

Like robots, the knights made no comment as they entered the cramped room. They furiously turned the furniture upside down, breaking the table in the process.

"The badge is right there! It's over there!", Cagnus's heart bled as he thought of his ever-increasing fine to pay.

The identification badge was on the ground; its position was as clear as ice. Even a blind person would not miss it, yet these knights pretended as though they didn't see it as they laid ruin to the bed, table and dresser.

"I'm done! My life is over!", he can already see the fine exceeding the ten thousand pounds threshold.

After they felt that it was enough, one of the guards looked at Cagnus and commanded:

"Bow down and grab the identification badge."

Although Cagnus' heart was filled with indignation, he had no choice but to comply.

Would he dare go against the orders of an Ascetic Knight? Of course not!

After grabbing the badge and handing it respectfully to him, the knight wielding the spear looked at the luggage that was tucked under the ruined bed and spoke: "Your luggage too."

"What?", Cagnus thought he was mishearing things.

"I said your luggage, be quick. Are you defying orders?"

Cagnus sighed silently as he grabbed a bag of cloth that was his luggage. It had his clothes and other miscellaneous items he had brought from home.

He handed the bag respectfully to the spear-wielding knight, then stood to the side and silently observed.

One knight was using a magnifying glass to verify the identification badge's authenticity while the other was frantically throwing out his items, one by one.

His clothes were strewn all across the ground, and then they were "accidentally" trampled on by the rest of the men. After the spear-wielding knight was done with his clothes, he started grabbing the miscellaneous items and breaking them one by one.

A hairbrush crafted by his long-deceased mother.

Snap. Broken in half.

A small wooden box with intricate carvings on it was gifted to him by his grandfather.

Shattered to pieces.

A good luck pendant that's considered to be a family heirloom.

Snapped in half.

A spoon and a bowl his deceased father used to eat porridge in.

Reduced to rubble.

Cagnus' heart bled more and more; he looked at the carnage that was in front of him and blamed himself for forgetting the identification badge.

"If only I'd brought it with me…"

Just when the spear-wielding knight was about to break the last items in the bag, his expression changed as it quickly turned pale. However, because of his helmet that covered all of his face, his teammates and companions did not know.

His entire body shuddered as he grabbed a seemingly-ordinary looking toothbrush from the bag.

It was hand-crafted from oak wood and featured complex patterns and engravings. It had a sturdy handle that looked polished and clean. The bristles were surprisingly soft and gentle; they were made of boar hair as it was the best material to get rid of food bits and other pieces of debris.

However, when you compare this toothbrush to what the nobles use. It looked extremely ordinary and in fact, some would say it looked crude. Whichever angle you look at it, this toothbrush was nothing special.

"F-f-from w-where d-did you get this?", the spear-wielding knight asked in a shivering tone; he held the toothbrush with both arms as his hands shook violently from fear and trepidation.

His companions were oblivious to his behaviour, as they were either busy inspecting the identification badge or trampling on Cagnus' clothes.

When Cagnus heard the spear-wielding knight's question, he replied hurriedly as he looked at the items on the ground with a pained expression: "I handcrafted it."