Chapter Text
Solely because of how confusing this will be, this entire first chapter is dedicated to notes and disclaimers
Yes, this is an AU.
Yes, this is a retelling of the series of events but from a wildly different angle (and my own headcanon of how thing should happen), hence AU. There will be Canon things that happen, which I will gloss over because no one needs a rehash.
Yes, Haruki is the tertiary protagonist. This means she takes importance above everyone else in this story haha, because Haru and Tokaku's story we already know. This opens up room to look at the rest of the class.
Yes, HaruI will get an unfairly large amount of coverage. I have since moved more towards focus on Haruki, but the ship may still be prevalent. My favored order of ships seem to go like: HaruI->Suzukou->Chitahitsu->Yurinio->Tokaharu or Otoshie (sorta) or Sumibanba. Nothing against those three at the bottom, but I don't get very interested in writing them for long periods of time.
No, I did not watch Queen's Gambit. I just know it is a show about chess. The theme is a war game and the controller is a queen, so I thought the title an appropriate reference.
Yes, the beginning seems largely the same. If you want to get to where the story really deviates from the main line, its chapter 19.
Every chapter after this one is a Riddle. Solve it, or don't. Doesn't really matter too much. At some point they might devolve into straight up ad-libbing l because riddles are hard. I'd make rebuses but those need pictures. Some riddles also get answered down the road by later chapters!
The Black Garden here is not a real book. I made it up. It contains references to things I may not own, and other stuff I just made up.
My writing style often times feels fragmented because it's supposed to reflect the jarring and incoherent states of mind when someone thinks too fast or just thinking in general. And it's also fragmented because I get bored writing certain sections and want to jump around or speed up.
No, there is no actual magic in this fic. There are fantastical elements that stretch the imagination a little, but nothing crazy like Harry Potter. Mostly, it deals with stuff like hallucinations and superhuman techniques. Technology will be a bit more advanced than even the anime.
Yes, this first chapter will be updated with any clarifications just in case.
No, I don't think this all would have fit into a note. Maybe it could have, but this way I'm doubly sure people can't miss it.
Yes, this is the full version of the "DEMO" story I posted. It should be called the Queen's Trial or something.
Yes, this work spans over the course of a Japanese school year. I think that's appropriate since Haru graduates at spring time and I consider the beach episode their summer vacation. Too bad the anime doesn't show enough course of seasons for people to know.
Yes, this work nominally takes place in the year 2014, as was established in the manga. However, I rather like my technological advancements. As a result, this will feel more like 2040+ than pre-2020. Some things remain relatively analog and there are some old trends still going maybe. You can pretend this is an alternate, technologically advanced 2014.
Yes, there ARE OCs in this work... but I want to focus on the original cast, using OCs more as tools to help them develop, rather than showcase OCs.
For people wondering about crossovers, they do exist... Sorta. I'm not sure if I have to tag them or not, as there is, like, one, and it's only one arc. It's like a dip into another story line but it's not meant to be a central part of the story. Just another road on the way to romance. I will list the works and their appropriate credit here when I do the crossovers or make references:
Crossover/Reference - Owner, Chapter
- "Xanathar" from Dungeons and Dragons - made by Gary Gygax (owned by WoTC), other DnD references in chapter 45, 112-120
- Kazahana Family Mass Battle - By Lifepoint1, chapter 51. The Kazahana FMB was a collaborative project that involved many third-party designers. Such characters all belong to their respective owners.
- Gabimaru from Jigokuraku - By Yuji Kaku, chapter 65
- Mumon from Shinobi no Kuni - By Ryou Wada, chapter 65
- Akeha from Nier:Reincarnation - By Yoko Taro, chapter 67
- Bottakuri Izakaya - Manga by Shiwasuda, original story by Takimi Akikawa, chapter 121
- Banana Fish - By Akimi Yoshida, chapter 123
- Life is Money - Manga by Yaguraba Tekka, original story by Asanji Teru, chapter 123
As the tags indicate the romance is developed in the story and does not start immediately. Be prepared for VERY SLOW BURNING relationships or whatever it's called. Much like how the Manga and anime should have developed more instead of making them instant pairs.
The tags are liable to change. This is going to feature a lot of darker things or brutal scenes compared to the manga and anime.
This is meant to be like a light novel, hence the images. I used some pics that weren't mine, then replaced them all with my stuff. All the comic panels and art are mine, though the characters obviously are not. I do take commissions, link here.
For easier navigation, I am including a list of the arcs in order and the chapters they span. For ease in finding what you people probably actually want to read, I am including some ship notes where applicable. Some arcs are very diverse in shipping limelight so I'll just state that simply. There are also some chapters that are single-character-centric, which will also be written.
- Beginnings and Introductions (Chapters 1-14)
- First Impressions and Mission (Chapters 15-29)
- Intermission and First Attempt (Chapters 30-34) - [Begin the Game]
- Tsukuyomi Arc (Chapters 34-44)
- Intermission (Chapters 45-50) - [After the First Dance]
- Kazahana Arc (Chapters 51 -91)
- Tokyo to Sendai (51-54)
- Aomori (55)
- Hakodate (56-59)
- Sapporo (60-62) {HaruI-centric}
- Kyoto (67-69)
- Kobe (70-72)
- Izumo (73-75) {Suzukou-centric}
- Fukuoka (77-81) {Otoshie-centric}
- Okinawa (82-85) {Chitahitsu-centric}
- Aftermath (86-91)
- Miyazaki to Kochi (86-88) {Chitahitsu-centric}
- Osaka to Yokohama (89-91) {HaruI-centric}
- Haruki and Kouko Assassination Attempts (Chapters 93-98) {HaruI-centric}
- ARES Arc (Chapters 99-107) {Otoshie, Suzukou-centric}
- Intermission (Chapters 108-111) - [Eyes from the Swamp] {Tokaharu, Suzukou-centric}
- Gygax Arc (Chapters 112-120) {Multiple Ships}
- Room of Air {Chitahitsu-centric}
- Room of Water {HaruI-centric}
- Room of Earth {Sumibanba-centric}
- Room of Light
- Room of Fire {Suzukou-centric}
- Room of Darkness
- Intermission (121-129) - [Return from Hell] {Multiple Ships}
- Gemini Arc (130-135) {Chitahitsu-centric}
- Intermission (136-140) - [Fools of Fate] {Chitahitsu, Suzukou-centric}
- Venus Festival (141-142) {Chitahitsu-centric}
- Intermission (143-144) - [Denying Death] {Chitahitsu, Suzukou-centric}
- Home-Myoujou Invasion Arc (145-149) {Suzukou-centric}
- Intermission (150-151) - [Reasons of Immortals]
- Myoujou-Home Invasion (152-154) {Suzukou-centric}
- Repairs and Time Skip (155)
- Return and Re-Acclimation (156-165)
- Preparation for the Violet Room (166-168)
- Violet Room Arc (169-174) {Sumibanba-centric}
- Intermission (175-183) - [Throne of Sacrifice] {Sumireko-centric}
- Akatsuki Island Arc (184-191) {Sumibanba-centric}
- Intermission (192-204) - [Weal to Woe]
- Setsubun (195)
- Karakurigumi Kidnapping (201)
- Karakurigumi Arc (205-212) {Sumireko, Haruki-centric}
- Intermission (213-223) - [Grieve the Dying] {Sumireko, Isuke, Chitaru-centric}
- Koganei Apartment Incident (220-222) {Chitahitsu-centric}
- Isuke's Assassination Attempt (224-227)
- Intermission (228-229) - [Final Peace]
- Sumireko's Attempt (230-232)
- Intermission (233-236) [The End Nears]
- The "Final" Mission (237-240)
- Intermission (241-246) - [Headless Preparations]
- Fall of Myoujou (247-251)
- Intermission (252-?) - [Make Your Choice]