Spit take

Michael and his parents were incredibly impressed with Castelle's expertise. They were more confident than ever that the Reborn company was in good hands.

"That is an amazing idea," Michael complimented. "As expected of my new CEO!"

But there was still one thing they needed to take care of before they could start the sewer project.

"Young Master, we will still need the assistance of the Magic Tower," Castelle pointed out. "If we want the construction to go as smoothly as possible, we need the help of Earth mages—a lot of them."

Her concern was valid. The Magic Tower earned a lot of money from getting commissioned by the City to cleanse the river. Once the sewer system finished construction and became operational, they would lose that revenue stream.

Michael, however, wasn't worried. He simply waved off her concern. "I can deal with that."

_____

With that discussed, Michael, Castelle, and his parents all went their separate ways as they prepared for the construction of the sewer system.

Castelle remained at the Reborn office, starting to organize her plans for the project. She had to find the right workers, the right managers, and even the right materials for the plan to go smoothly.

Bart headed to the Vanderbilt office to use their family name as an influential force to make the governmental bodies in Kingsbridge City sign off on the project.

Lylia, meanwhile, also went off on her own, visiting her rich Madame friends to spread the news about Reborn's new project that would help the entire City.

With her influence, word would quickly travel throughout the City without them needing to use a lot of resources. After all, gossip was free.

Meanwhile, Michael visited the Magic Tower again after five years.

Without hesitation, he made his way straight to the top floor, where the Tower Master resided.

"Ahh, Michael. It is good to see you," Seberus said, greeting Michael with respect by tipping his pointy hat.

"Hello, Seberus. It's been a while," Michael replied, glancing around the room. Even after five years, the room still looked the same as before. The only thing different was the chess boards scattered around the room, with some pieces even floating in the air.

"I've heard you've undergone your Talent Awakening. May I ask what you obtained?" Seberus asked, casually sipping a glass of water.

"I got a Supreme Skill." 

The Tower Master spat out his drink, drenching himself in water. He stared at Michael, searching for any signs that would make him notice that the kid was trying to joke with him.

"You're not joking," he realized.

"I got lucky, I guess," Michael said and shrugged nonchalantly.

But the Tower Master knew that luck had nothing to do with this. Every person in history who had received a Supreme Skill ended up ruling or changing the world in a major way.

The treaty of no ocean pollution between the whole world was made because the King of the Seas threatened to drown the whole world.

People stopped enslaving monsters because the Demon Queen erased an entire continent off the map.

They could finally traverse large distances because the Draconic Empress united the dragons, allowing them to offer their services to the world.

It was mind-boggling to think that Michael could someday become synonymous with such figures.

It was so surprising for Seberus that he absentmindedly ended up drinking all the water in his cup even though he had just spat out a load of it.

"I need your help, Tower Master," Michael said. "I want to prevent an incoming plague."

Seberus nearly spat his water again, but this time, he managed to hold it in and forced the water down his throat.

"Plague? What are you talking about?"

Michael then went on to explain the growing issue of human waste pollution in River Dames and how it threatened to spread disease throughout the city.

"Hmm… that is troubling to hear," Seberus murmured, stroking his long, white beard.

"So, I'm planning on creating a city-wide sewer system that would fix this problem," Michael continued. "But I need your help. I need the help of the Magic Tower."

Seberus went silent for a few seconds as he paced back and forth.

"And why should we do this?" he asked Michael. "We'll lose a million gold per year if this sewer system gets constructed and we are replaced forever."

Michael's response was simple. "We'll play a game of chess for it."

Seberus's eyes gleamed. "Deal!"

Michael chuckled. He knew that the old man wasn't as heartless as he wanted to look. Seberus just didn't want to say yes immediately because he had been waiting for Michael to suggest a wager over a game of Reborn chess.

Of course, Seberus valued human life more than anything.

Not only that, the mages of the Magic Tower actually hated cleaning the River Dames. They considered it a tedious chore, and Michael would, in fact, be doing them a favor.

And they didn't actually need money. The only reason they continued to cleanse the water was because they didn't want the people to suffer from disease.

They knew that their way of cleansing the water was a temporary solution. But now that Michael had come up with the sewer system, they could finally solve the problem once and for all.

Not only would this sewer system help the city, but it would also free the mages from an unpleasant duty.

"Let's play!" Seberus said, telekinetically arranging the pieces into their places.

The match began.

_____

Michael and Seberus faced off in Reborn Chess, their pieces clashing in a fierce battle of strategy and wit.

But after five years, Seberus' skills had improved immensely. His moves were sharper and his traps more cunning. He had even started to make Michael sweat while he cornered his pieces.

"I think I can finally win this game," Seberus said, his excitement bubbling over. "You have no way to win."

But in response to the threat, Michael simply smiled. There was still one move left.

He placed the pawn diagonally with a move called 'en passant'.

The entire game shifted in an instant, allowing Michael to completely change the situation, threatening to defeat Seberus in the very next move.

"What?! That's an illegal move! You can't do this!"

Michael shrugged. "It's in the rule books."

Seberus's eyes suddenly lit up in a white light as he searched through his mind. After a few seconds, he determined that Michael's move was indeed a legal one according to the official rule books of Reborn Chess.

However, it was such a rare move that no one in this world had thought that it was even possible.

"How did you know this?" Seberuus demanded, downing another glass of water. "I've never seen anyone use it before."

Michael smirked. "Because I wrote the rulebook. I own the Reborn company."

Seberus sputtered mid-drink, spraying water in a fine mist, some of it even threatening to rain on Michael, but he quickly stopped it with his magic.

Meanwhile, Seberus nearly choked from sheer shock.