Chess: The Assassin's Move

The King's Horses - The King's Men.

Between the same rich and heavy smell of coffee and the little grin that sat on Park Jimin's lips as he announced, "Checkmate," Namjoon couldn't decide what he hated the most.

He was supposed to get used to that, both losing and Jimin's preferences, but he was a man who couldn't stop hoping for a change. A wishful thinking that kept him coming back to this place every single night.

The tatami flooring and the wooden lining would go best with a floral scent lingering around in the room instead of the nutty aroma of the coffee, he thought, not for the first time. Though, he knew better than to express himself, foreseeing the reaction he would receive if he did.

Park Jimin was a man who never took suggestions. He knew what he wanted clearly. The only one in Namjoon's life who had not changed, although Namjoon would argue with himself that change is a natural phenomenon that all living goes through.

So the conclusion he reached was that Jimin, just like the others, did have changes, but unlike the others, he rarely showed the sides of his true self.

"I was pretty close this time," Namjoon said, resetting the pieces on the chessboard. He took a glance up at Jimin's face, and just as he expected, a glint of amusement was visible in his eyes.

Namjoon wanted to argue further about how a few improvements in his strategies and he would do the impossible, but even those words sounded funny to himself.

He sure could win at a lot of things against Jimin, for say, height, but chess, a game that ran in Jimin's veins like blood, was not one of them. It was like he was made for the game or vice versa. In their college years, some lucksters would manage to win against Jimin, but then the circumstances were different; then Jimin wasn't a bloody murderer, as he would call himself.

They were currently sitting in a 'minka' in a Japanese town called Yoshino. He was the only one who knew about this place except for Jimin's four shadow assassins. This was the place Jimin had called his home for the last 8 years.

Despite Jimin's dislike for teas, Namjoon was about to go make some for both of them until a knock interrupted their quiet peace. "Come in."

It was the leader of the shadow assassins, Elijah, with a black bandana on his forehead indicating his position. "Sir, we received news from the city. There was an explosion at one of our training centers, and close to 300 pieces of equipment were stolen from our main headquarters."

The same shock was evident in the assassin's voice as it was on Namjoon's face. Nothing like that has ever happened before, not when their enemies knew who they were up against. "Who could do that?"

Jimin's eyes were on the piece of chess between his fingers. He spun the King until it fell flat on the board. "Jung Hoseok," he muttered the name more to himself than Namjoon, but the room was awfully quiet and the wind carried his voice around until it echoed off the walls.

Jimin brushed his hand through his silver hair and lifted his face, finally meeting Elijah's eyes in a silent order to complete the message.

"Reportedly, they couldn't find anyone or any traces of who might have done it as if nobody was there at all."

A small smile slipped up Jimin's lips as he turned to face Namjoon. "That sounds like the king's horses," he said, moving the two knights on the board at the same time.

Namjoon was still confused. He squinted his eyes for better comprehension.

Jimin laughed seeing the look on Namjoon's face. "The king's knights, JK and V," he explained. "Seems like Hoseok send his best men for us."