Lesson

*Yawn*

John woke up from his sleep.

It was sunrise, and the rays of sunlight shine upon the morning dew like a diamond. The brightness of the sun removes the dim atmosphere and the birds in the sky are flying and chirping a melody.

'It's already morning.'

John stretches his muscles.

He twists and cocks his head to relieve the stiffness he felt.

'Ah, much better. Let's get up.'

John got up from his bed and make his bed. The bed is rather comfy as there was a little foam inside it, and the pillow were not so good to sleep at.

'Hmmm, good I'm done here.'

John got down from the double deck bed. He looked at Dave who was sleeping like a log. It's like a drunk man who passed out from all night drinking. His drool is staining his pillows as he mumbles something in his dream.

'What a heavy sleeper and those drool.'

John sighs as he need to wake up Dave from his dreamland.

"Dave, wake up."

John nudges Dave on his shoulder.

"Five more minutes, Lily."

Dave smirk as he hugs his pillow even tighter.

John had a blank looks on his face. He saw that Dave ain't waking up.

"If you don't wake up, I will break your figurines."

Dave jumps up from the bed as he looks towards John.

"The heck man? Why wake me up like that?"

Dave gasp as he looks in the room to check if his precious figurines got smashed.

"Phew, I thought you smashed them."

Dave exhales a breath of relief. To him there was nothing more precious as the figurines he collected throughout the years of searching. He had intruded into an unknown land as soon as he heard that there was a cute girl figurine on it.

"What's the better way to wake up someone is to threaten them."

John shows a wicked grin into Dave.

Dave got scared as he looked at John who was grinning.

"You're a one scary guy."

"Let's hurry or we'll going to be late."

John walks towards his belongings and grabs a towel that he will use to take a shower.

"John, what's your schedule?"

"Here, my class will start at 7:00 am sharp."

John gave his schedule to Dave.

Dave looked at his schedule.

'History, laws, math, language, and chess. He got quite a lot of subjects and it is the same as mine.'

Dave nods.

'Wait a second.'

Dave looks above the paper.

He saw they assign him to 'Class 1 - D'.

"John, you didn't tell me we were classmates!"

"You never asked, so I didn't bother and besides we got into a tight situation last night."

John replied.

He was planning to tell Dave last night about his subjects so he will know where to go after he asked for his direction.

But since they got into a tight situation last night and it wasn't a pleasant time to ask him about it.

"Right…"

Dave replied with a bitter look on his face.

"Don't think anymore about it and besides I need to take a shower."

"Wait for me, I will grab my towel too."

John and Dave both left the room and have gone to take a shower.

***

After they took a shower, they both dressed up in their uniforms.

"Cool, right?"

"Yeah, this was the most eye-catching uniform since I arrived here."

John and Dave got dressed up in their uniform. It was a red blazer with a white undershirt and a necktie and a black pants and shoes. They both look stylish at their uniforms as they look in the mirror and make their hair.

"This is comfortable to be honest."

John commented. The uniform didn't feel too tight or sloppy. He tried some pose in various angles, and he there is nothing he can comment bad about it.

"This is one of the best things the school could offer. They aren't skimping on the budget and wanted to make their student presentable."

Dave acknowledge.

"Let's go."

John spoke as he got his notes ready.

John and Dave headed down to the cafeteria.

They saw that there were already some students having their breakfast.

The students were enthusiastically chatting and eating. They both got their own breakfast and sat on an empty table.

"John, you know little of the school right?"

"Yeah." "Perfect, you already know that the student council make the rules here right?"

"Yeah, that's what I heard."

John responded.

He had heard from Bart that the student council make the rules in the school from his non-stop mix of school and life story.

"There was a rule upon the establishment of the school is that the student who excel in any field and can play chess extraordinarily will become a student council will be the one to run it, the staff only provides guidance when needed as it is a test to see if they can lead the school. They student council mostly handle all affairs related to school and they are all geniuses. Right now they had established a chess tournament at every end of the semester to see which of the class will win and gain a privilege and it has become one of the most highlighted events."

"There are 10 student council members. From the president to a council member they all work to run the school and they excel in their field."

John listened as Dave spoke.

"There is a library, gymnasium, magic center, training hall, gyms, club rooms, etc… There are so many things in the school but it's better for you to go see them for yourself. And before I forgot, never interact with the student council, they are all nuts!"

Dave got a shiver as he remembers that one person in the student council.

"Anyway, that's all I can tell you for now as I don't want to spoil you everything."

Dave didn't want to speak everything about the school as he doesn't want to spoil everything from John.

It was better to let him explore and judge for himself.

John heard everything he needed for now.

'Interesting, the student council handles the school affairs. I guess they are geniuses. But I wonder how good are they'

John thought.

John and Dave had finished eating their breakfast and got out in the dorm.

Dave led John to follow him and they both walk inside a building full of rooms.

The building is tall and had a classic look of a university in a medieval world. It had an elegant and artistic design that you can see on European University. The walls looked like a polished marble and their post looked like a stack of bricks neatly arranged and proportional to their sides. The windows had a glossy look with a ceiling on top of it that covers the rays of sunlight.

They both walk inside and saw the students who were walking towards their room.

John looked towards them for a moment and continued to follow Dave towards the end of the corridor.

"We have finally arrived on our classroom."

Dave pointed at the old-looking door and on top of it displays "Class 1 - D".

They both got inside and saw the old-looking room. The room looks old and some chairs and tables looks broken and there were some cobwebs on the ceiling. There were already students and a teacher inside who was chatting with each other. They noticed Dave, who was at the door with another student.

"Am I late again?"

Dave spoke to John, who was feeling uncomfortable.

The teacher inside the classroom walks closer towards their direction.

"No need to worry Dave, I just arrive a few seconds ago. I heard there will be a new student in my class so I'm assuming he is the one?"

"Good morning, Teacher Fawkes, yes he is the one."

Dave nods.

"Good morning, Sir."

John greeted his new teacher politely.

"Both of you get inside, and John I presume?"

"Yes, sir."

"Please introduce yourself to your classmates."

John nods and the three of them walk back inside the classroom.

"Students, there will be a new classmate attending this class so I may have your attention, please."

Teacher Fawkes exerted his teacher authority towards the students who were speaking with each other.

John walks in the center and looks at his new classmates. He felt the incoming eyes glaring at him. There was one thing John didn't like is the feeling of being stared at like some kind of creature. He saw that few of his new classmates looked at him with interest while others disliked him.

"Hello everyone, I'm John von Sebastian, I will be your classmate today and I hope you take care of me."

John spoke with a sincere look in his eyes.

"Kyaaaaa!"

"He is so handsome!"

"Damn it, why is there another handsome bastard in the classroom!"

"Just explode will ya!"

There was a mix of reactions he receives in the classroom. There are few girls blushing at his handsomeness and wanted him to be theirs and some boys grits their teeth as their target is blushing towards him.

Teacher Fawkes nods and told John to find a seat.

Dave waved at John to come to his seat.

John walks towards his direction and finally sat beside him.

"What do you think of this seat?"

"Um, it's breezy here and there's a window nearby. A perfect place"

"Totally."

Dave agreed.

This was his favorite seat of all as he can feel the breeze blowing towards his direction as he listens.

Teacher Fawkes saw that John had finally found a seat.

"Quiet down students, today I will lecture you all on history, law, and chess fundamentals so listen well to my discussion."

"Yes, teacher."

***

The class responded to his words and obediently sat down. John looked at teacher Fawkes.

'He looks like a noble. The way he carries himself gives off a refined etiquette, and he is an excellent teacher from what I can see.'

Fawkes discussed the history of the races, the kingdom, and the current situation.

The class got a bored look as they didn't like history as they a look like they know it at the back of their heads and their eyes were so heavy that wanted to sleep. Only a few of them listen to the class attentively.

John and Dave focused.

Teacher Fawkes described world history in a clear and concise manner.

John took notes of the important things he needed to know.

"The world of Lematean is the world where all the races live in and is separated by four large continent with oceans in between, and on the center is an island where the continental monochrome every year. It's been 15 years since the last war between the races, the peace brought by the heroes is a blessing to humans. Trexia school is the by-product of the peace create by the heroes and it is our duty to protect the peace and prosperity of humans."

Teacher Fawkes spoke as he saw the devastations of the war.

The monochrome fifteen years ago where all the races signed a treaty to end the war for twenty years. The current era was peaceful by the heroes who made it possible, and humanity slowly recovered from the losses.

John finally knows why there wasn't any news about wars. But the twenty years is almost up and there's only five years left until the monochrome ruling it will rescind.

"Let's discuss the races of the world. There only a limited information about the races but luckily we have gained some during the last war."

"On the western continent Ezuin, the elves live on the Natrea Great Enchanted Forest and the current elf king is Elzon Natrea. The elves occupy an enormous part of the western continent with the Faeries and Seraphs. The faeries live on the northern part of Natrea Great Enchanted Forest and the current ruler is the Queen Teliona. The Seraphs live on the flying island of Himmel and they run on a council system to enforce rules and regulations to their race."

"On the northern continent Adeinath, the dragons live on top of the mountains of Ishe and the current king of dragons is Mirvor The Lord of the Skies. The dragons occupy all the mountains of Ishe in the north, and the dwarfs occupy the mountains of Heinra from the south, and their current king is Loghouck Onyxforged. Both races are at peace with each other as both the races agreed not to intrude on their territory."

"On the southern continent Nalohix, the Demons and Vampires live on the endless dusk of Dreafuthis Empire. We know nothing much in that continent, but during the war, they are the most deceptive races."

"On the eastern continent Ezelas, the Humans and Demi-humans lived together. The Demi-humans live in the northern part of Ezelas continent and have many kinds among their race, and most of them lived on the Liekki Empire. The current ruler of Demi-humans is the Fox Maiden who said to be immortal as she remained young till this day."

"The humans lived on the southern part of Ezelas continent and have established the three kingdoms namely the Itecegia Kingdom, Teator Kingdom, and the Xiphate Kingdom. Every year, we held an annual chess tournament with each other and last year the Teator Kingdom won the championship, the Xiphate Kingdom came in second and we the Itecegia Kingdom held the last place."

Teacher Fawkes displayed a disappointed look on his face.

"And last, the mermaids are the most elusive of the races. We know not much from their races as they swim the oceans of Limatean, which made it difficult for us to gain information on the location where their Kingdom."

Teacher Fawkes was finally talking with his history lessons.

He then moves to his next lecture.

"Let us discuss the chess fundamentals"

Teacher Fawkes discussed.

The ultimate aim in the chess game is delivering a checkmate on the opponent. White is always first to move and players take turns alternately moving one piece at a time. Movement is required. If a player's turn is to move, he is not in check but has no legal moves, this situation is called "Stalemate" and it ends the game in a draw. Each type of piece has its own method of movement. A piece may be moved to another position or may capture an opponent's piece, replacing on its square (En passant being the only exception). With the exception of the knight, a piece may not move over or through any of the other pieces. When a king is threatened with capture (but can protect himself or escape), it's called check. If a king is in check, then the player must make a move that eliminates the threat of capture and cannot leave the king in check. Checkmate happens when a king is placed in check, and there is no legal move to escape. Checkmate ends the game and the side whose king was checkmated loses.

The chessboard is made up of eight rows and eight columns for a total of 64 squares of alternating colors. Each square of the chessboard is identified with a unique pair of a letter and a number. The vertical files are labelled a through h, from White´s left (i.e. the queenside) to White´s right. Similarly, the horizontal ranks are numbered from 1 to 8, starting from the one nearest White´s side of the board. Each square of the board, then, is uniquely identified by its file letter and rank number. In the initial position setup, the light queen is positioned on a light square and the dark queen is situated on a dark square. The diagram below shows how the pieces should be initially situated.

Kings move one square in any direction, so long as that square is not attacked by an enemy piece. Additionally, kings are able to make a special move, known as castling.

Queens move diagonally, horizontally, or vertically any number of squares. They are unable to jump over pieces.

Rooks move horizontally or vertically any number of squares. They are unable to jump over pieces. Rooks move when the king castles.

Bishops move diagonally any number of squares. They are unable to jump over pieces.

Knights move in an 'L' shape': two squares in a horizontal or vertical direction, then move one square horizontally or vertically. They are the only piece able to jump over other pieces.

Pawns move vertically forward one square, with the option to move two squares if they have not yet moved. Pawns are the only piece to capture different to how they move. Pawns capture one square diagonally in a forward direction. Pawns are unable to move backwards on captures or moves. Upon reaching the other side of the board a pawn promotes into any other piece, except for a king. Additionally, pawns can make a special move named En passant.

Castling is the only time in the chess game when more than one piece moves during a turn. During the castling, the king moves two squares towards the rook he intends to castle with, and the rook moves to the square through which the king passed. Castling is only permissible if all the following conditions hold:

• Neither king nor rook involved in castling may have moved from the original position;

• There must be no pieces between the king and the rook;

The king may not currently be in check, nor may the king pass through or end up in a square that is under attack by an enemy piece (though the rook is permitted to be under attack and to pass over an attacked square).

En Passant may only occur when a pawn is moved two squares on its initial movement. When this happens, the opposing player has the option to take the moved pawn "en passant" as if it had only moved one square. This option, though, only stays open for one move.

Pawn promotion occurs when a pawn reaches the opponent's edge of the table, it will be promoted – the pawn may be converted to a queen, rook, bishop or knight, as the player desires. The choice is not limited to previously captured pieces.

"That's all for now, I will continue my lecture this afternoon. And don't forget I will have a quiz after I'm done. Class dismissed."

Teacher Fawkes then walks out of the room.

The student followed in a suit, while John and Dave left last.

John and Dave talked with each other on the matters about the history.

"Hey John, aren't you curious how strong are those heroes?"

Dave asked a question.

"A little, but why are you asking? Planning to become one?" John smirks.

"No. I don't want to die early."

But secretly Dave wanted to become one who will play on the grand stage as what many chess players hoped. The fame and honor that any player can have during their lifetime is there on the monochrome. It align to what Dave wanted. First, was to escape from a certain someone, and second is to explore the world to search of cute things.

'Being a monochrome chess player will earn me my freedom from that demoness.'

Dave shivers as he remembered a certain someone.

The continental monochrome is the ultimate battle between the monochrome chess players of each continent and being one of the top will give you the respect you deserved. It was the culmination of power and knowledge a monochrome chess player create during their lifetime. There was nothing more problematic than a pissed, powerful monochrome player got on a poor side of their opponent's race. There were stories that a powerful monochrome player got pissed by interfering what he is doing on a certain continent and almost destroyed it.

"Let's go outside, I'm hungry"

Dave called out to John, and he agreed.

Both of them left the classroom.