“Boring.”
“Young Master? Is it because my skills are lacking…?”
“That’s not it, so don’t worry.”
I brushed off the butler grandpa’s polite inquiry about my thoughts and moved a piece on the board game.
With that, my turn was over. Next was grandpa’s turn, but…
At this point, all my pieces had already surrounded grandpa’s king, so the game was effectively over.
“…I surrender, Young Master. As expected, you are the best in the family.”
“Best, my foot.”
With grandpa’s declaration of surrender, I frowned and started tidying up the pieces.
How many times have I repeated this routine? Just today alone, it must have been dozens of times.
It’s been almost 20 years since I was suddenly hit by a car and reincarnated into this medieval fantasy world where magic thrives.
Born into a prestigious noble family, I lived a life without envy, but I had many complaints.
“Shall we play again?”
“…Let’s stop. Grandpa, you don’t have to humor me anymore.”
“Humor you? If the Young Master finds it enjoyable, I can play as much as you like.”
Well, it’s not enjoyable.
I accepted that I had no talent for swordsmanship or magic. So much so that I couldn’t even get into the Empire’s Academy, but I thought it was fine.
However, being the third son was more boring than I had imagined.
Unlike my eldest or second brother, I couldn’t get involved in family affairs, and with no talent, I couldn’t go to the Academy either. I just spent my days idly using the family’s money.
It was the life of a wealthy slacker I had dreamed of in my previous world, but after years of this, time just wouldn’t pass.
In the midst of this, I discovered this chess-like board game.
“I’m tired of this too.”
No matter how much chess is a masterpiece, playing it over and over again is bound to get boring.
At first, I delved into it passionately, even winning several tournaments, and thought this might be my calling.
But without the most important element—fun—I lost all motivation.
As someone who used to visit board game cafes daily and enjoyed countless board games, this just didn’t satisfy me.
“Is there no other game?”
“Another game… you mean? Is there another game besides this?”
“…Never mind.”
Moreover, in this damn world, the only board game that exists is this knockoff chess.
There are other entertainments like circuses, magic shows, and duels… but only real board games could truly satisfy my desires.
‘Should I just make one myself?’
I had thought about it occasionally, but it seemed like the time had come to actually do it.
Until now, the knockoff chess had somewhat satisfied me, but now I wanted to enjoy a variety of board games.
“Grandpa, I have a favor to ask.”
“No.”
“…I haven’t even said it yet.”
“Are you planning to create another dice game and turn the knights into gambling addicts like last time? Absolutely not. The Head of the Family has strictly warned against it.”
“…Ugh.”
Wasn’t it the knights’ fault for starting to bet on the Yacht game I made just for fun? Board games are innocent, you know.
Even if I try to use the prize money I won, Grandpa Butler will absolutely say no.
Being the third son seems nice, but it’s tough in situations like this. I have no real power in the family, so it’s frustrating.
“…Wait, hold on.”
Then, if I make a board game that’s less likely to be used for gambling, like Yacht, wouldn’t that work?
But what kind of game would that be? It’s not like you can just say, “Let’s make a board game!” and whip one up easily. It requires a unique game board, cards, tokens, illustrations, and a lot of professional touch.
That’s why I made Yacht, which only needs five dice, but dice themselves are banned now.
A board game that’s easy to make, fun, and doesn’t use dice.
…I think I’ve got an idea.
“Grandpa Butler.”
“No.”
“Don’t worry, it’s not what you think. You know those bells used in the kitchen?”
“Bells… you mean?”
“Yeah, not the ones you ring by shaking, but the ones you press with your hand. Can you bring me one?”
“Hmm, understood. Sally? Bring one of the things the Young Master mentioned.”
“Yes, yes!”
Sally, the maid who was standing stiffly by the door, hurried out of the room.
Before she returned, there were things I needed to prepare.
“The paper… this should be enough. Grandpa Butler? Can you cut this into uniform sizes?”
“…If it’s for card gambling, no.”
“It’s not that! Just cut it for now. If it’s weird, you can take it away later.”
“…Understood.”
*Whirr.*
Normally, you’d need scissors to cut paper, but I have Grandpa Butler.
Though retired, he’s still a knight who’s mastered Aura. He channeled a bit of Aura to his fingertips and lightly touched the paper.
*Slice.*
Wow, it cuts so cleanly. This is the human scissors right here.
Grandpa Butler, though skeptical, neatly cut the paper into card shapes. And now, I’ll draw on them.
“Shapes… is it?”
“Yeah. It’s what I’m most familiar with.”
Originally, it would’ve been fruits like bananas, strawberries, and kiwis, but this world doesn’t have those. Plus, coloring would take too much effort, so I’ll make it distinguishable without color.
So, I went with shapes like circles, stars, and diamonds. It might be harder to recognize, but it’ll do.
I drew different numbers of shapes on each card—five circles, two stars, one pentagon, and so on.
The total number of cards is 56. As I finished drawing, Sally returned with the bell.
“Young Master! Here’s the bell you asked for!”
“Thanks. Oh, Sally? Can you cast Hardening Magic on these cards?”
“Yes, yes!? Um, how strong should it be…?”
“Not too hard, just enough to bend slightly.”
“Okay!”
With the help of Sally, a trainee magician, the paper became as sturdy as real cards. And that’s it.
It’s super rough, but the board game is complete.
“Is this it? It’s definitely not like last time.”
“Yeah, right?”
“Is this a game you made, Young Master? What’s it called?”
Originally, it would’ve been Hali Gali, but since it’s shapes instead of fruits, I should change the name. Hali Gali was just a fun-sounding name anyway.
Let’s keep it simple.
“Let’s just call it Kyle Galli.”
“Kyle… Galli? I get the Kyle part, but what does Galli mean?”
“Just something I slapped on. Anyway, want to play a round?”
“Well, how do you play this game?”
“Easy. You flip these cards, divide them, and place them one by one so the shapes are visible. When five of the same shape appear, you ring the bell. The fastest one gets all the laid-out cards, and the one who collects all the cards wins.”
“Seems pretty simple.”
“Exactly why it became a global bestseller. All you need are cards and a bell, and the rules are way simpler than most games.”
“Even with Yacht, many found the rules tough, but this is a breeze.”
“Anyway, reassured it’s not gambling, I looked away from the grandpa shuffling the cards and gestured to Sally, who was watching with curious eyes.”
“Sally, you play too. Sit down.”
“M-me? Oh, no! How could someone like me play with the Young Master…!!”
“You need to boost your self-esteem. You’re a magician apprentice, right? You’re way more useful than someone like me.”
“Young Master…!”
“Just kidding. Anyway, let’s play together. It’s more fun with three than two.”
“One-on-one battles are thrilling, but playing with more people adds a layer of mind games.”
“Ultimately, Sally, being a maid, couldn’t refuse the noble’s invitation and sat down, swallowing her tears.”
“…Why are you sniffling? Makes me look like a real villain.”
“So… you heard the rules earlier, right? Shall we give it a go?”
“The cards are all shuffled. Should we divide them equally?”
“Please do. Oh, with three players, two cards will be left over. Just distribute them evenly.”
“Understood.”
“The grandpa quickly dealt the shuffled cards, and with Sally’s tears somewhat dried, it was time to start.”
“‘A new board game, a new board game…!'”
“Even though I’ve played countless games in the original world, it felt overwhelming since it was the first time in this world.”
“I hope the grandpa and Sally will come to appreciate the charm of board games through this.”
“Then, I’ll go first.”
“Yes.”
“Y-yes!”
“Flip. Flip. Flip.”
“One by one, shape cards were laid out, and the turns went by quickly.”
“Both the grandpa and the sniffling Sally seemed quite focused once the game started.”
“The shapes didn’t align into five for quite a while. As we kept stacking the cards—”
“Ding!”
“Wow, Young Master. You’re really fast.”
“I had no idea…!”
“Can’t be helped, I’m the creator.”
“As soon as five shapes matched, I rang the bell and swept all the cards.”
“Sorry to the grandpa and Sally, but I was the top player in the original world’s board game gatherings.”
“Though it might have been a bit excessive against beginners who hadn’t fully grasped the rules yet.”
“‘Well, we’ll be playing this for a while anyway, so what’s the harm?'”
“Even if I really wanted to create a board game, my father wouldn’t allow it, so all I can do is play these small games.”
“Will Hali Gali—no, Kyle Galli—really be able to alleviate my boredom?”
“Again, I flipped the cards.”
*
“Ding!”
“As expected of the Young Master.”
“Amazing…!”
“Meh.”
*
“Ding!”
“Haha, you’re really sharp. It’s hard for this old body to react that fast.”
“Y-young Master…!!”
“Try harder, you two.”
*
“Ding!”
“…Really impressive.”
“Uh… yeah, right.”
“Let’s step it up a bit.”
“How about we play a game?”
*Ding!*
“…………….”
“………….”
“……Grandpa Butler? Sally?”
“Young Master, please flip the card.”
“Oh, yeah……….”
*Ding!*
“……Grandpa Butler?”
“Oh dear, I accidentally used Aura. The paper got destroyed, so it seems this game is a draw.”
“What? How did that even happen!?”
“D-don’t worry, Young Master! We have more bells, I’ll go get one!”
“Thanks, Sally. Seriously, Grandpa Butler, aren’t you getting a bit too into it? It’s just a game.”
“Even though I’m old, I was once a knight. I just couldn’t control my strength this time.”
“If you mess up one more time, you’ll break my hand too.”
“Young Master! I brought it!”
“Alright, shall we continue?”
“…………….”
*Ding!*
“Hmm………huh? What?”
“……Sally, did you just use magic?”
“W-well, I had no choice! If I want to win against you and the butler………this was the only way……….”
“That’s illusion magic, right? Using it to mess with the cards is such a waste of talent!”
“Hehe……….”
“Anyway, that’s cheating, so hand over half your cards.”
“Y-young Master!”
“If you’re gonna cheat, at least don’t get caught. You were way too obvious.”
“…………….”
“Sally?”
“If I don’t get caught……….”
“……Sally?”
*Ding!*
“Hoho, this time I was a bit faster. Sally.”
“Y-you’re too relaxed, Butler……I still have more cards.”
“…………….”
……How did it come to this?
I was clearly leading at the beginning, but how did I get eliminated halfway through?
Was it when Grandpa Butler started seriously using Aura? Or when Sally used her ‘undetectable’ magic?
*Ding! Ding! Ding!*
“Hohohoho, where’s that magic tickling me? It’s so weak I can’t even feel it.”
“Hehe……w-well, you wouldn’t understand, Butler, since you just press the bell fast with Aura……?”
“Hohoho.”
“Hehehe.”
Now that I, the only powerless one, have been eliminated, Grandpa Butler and Sally are openly using Aura and magic to play Kyle Galli.
Aura-enhanced hands flip the cards and press the bell simultaneously, while subtle magic confuses the positions of the pictures and the bell.
And I, watching all this unfold.
‘I need to…add some rules.’
To survive and enjoy board games between these two superhumans.
I decided to create a Kyle Galli rule unique to this world.
If things keep going like this, I won’t even get to enjoy the game………
