The Mauryan capital rested beneath a quiet night sky.
Winter had nearly disappeared now. Only faint traces of frost remained along shaded corners of the palace courtyards while cool wind drifted gently through stone corridors beneath the moonlight. Torches flickered steadily against ancient walls, their flames swaying softly within the darkness.
Inside his chambers, the brazier burned with a quieter flame than usual.
Warm orange light spread dimly across the room.
Rudura sat alone near the low table once again.
Échecs Humains rested open before him.
The black-covered book had changed something within him gradually over these past weeks.
Not suddenly.
Quietly.
Each chapter sharpened the way he observed people.
The way he interpreted emotion.
The way he understood behavior.
Tonight, however…
the title before him felt strangely different.
He stared at the words longer than usual.
The Greatest Illusions Men Hold Are Often About Themselves
Silence filled the room.
Then slowly, Rudura lowered his gaze toward the opening lines beneath the title.
Men observe hypocrisy most clearly in others while remaining remarkably blind to it within themselves.
The brazier crackled softly nearby.
Rudura continued reading silently.
Self-awareness is among the rarest forms of honesty because the mind instinctively protects the image it wishes to preserve.
That sentence lingered immediately.
Because almost at once, memories surfaced from his previous life.
Arguments.
Classrooms.
Friendships.
Contradictions.
Rudura leaned slightly back while staring thoughtfully into the firelight.
He remembered students criticizing arrogance constantly…
while becoming defensive whenever their own mistakes were questioned.
Interesting.
People detected flaws in others faster than in themselves.
The realization settled quietly within him.
Rudura lowered his gaze toward Échecs Humains again.
Most men believe themselves more rational, kind, moral, or self-aware than their actions consistently prove.
That line connected sharply with countless memories.
Another surfaced immediately afterward.
Group projects.
Students frequently complained about others contributing too little…
while overestimating their own effort naturally.
Interesting.
Human perception bent protectively around self-image.
The realization lingered heavily.
Another memory followed.
Arguments between friends.
Each person usually believed themselves reasonable while viewing the other as emotional or irrational.
Interesting.
Humans narrated their own behavior more sympathetically than the behavior of others.
The realization felt painfully realistic.
Outside, cool wind brushed softly against the palace windows.
Inside the chamber, the brazier flickered steadily.
Another memory surfaced.
People describing themselves confidently:
honest
loyal
humble
mature
Yet under pressure, behavior often contradicted those identities unexpectedly.
Interesting.
Humans frequently believed more in who they wished to be than who they consistently were.
The thought lingered quietly.
Rudura rested one arm lightly against his knee while continuing to read.
The ego survives partly by editing memory, motive, and interpretation into forms easier for the self to tolerate.
That sentence stayed with him immediately.
Because it explained so much naturally.
Another memory surfaced from his previous life.
Students justifying cruel behavior by focusing only on their intentions rather than outcomes.
Interesting.
People judged themselves through intention…
and others through consequence.
The realization settled heavily.
Another memory followed.
A classmate once saying:
"I only acted that way because I was angry."
At the time, Rudura accepted the explanation easily.
Now another layer became visible.
People often treated emotion as excuse for themselves while condemning similar behavior in others.
Interesting.
Self-perception softened judgment instinctively.
Very interesting.
The brazier cracked softly nearby.
Rudura slowly turned another page.
Men wish to see themselves as protagonists within their own minds, and therefore unconsciously reshape truth to maintain that role.
That line lingered deeply.
Because it felt undeniably human.
Another memory surfaced.
Online arguments from his previous life.
Nearly everyone viewed themselves as:
justified
misunderstood
rational
Interesting.
Very few people truly believed themselves wrong while arguing.
The realization connected sharply with earlier chapters:
emotion
desire
perception
meaning
Everything intertwined naturally.
Humans protected identity continuously.
Outside, clouds drifted slowly across the moonlit capital.
Inside the room, firelight flickered softly against the pages of Échecs Humains.
Rudura leaned back slightly while thinking.
Then another memory surfaced unexpectedly.
A student constantly criticizing attention-seeking behavior…
while subtly seeking validation himself through different methods.
Interesting.
Humans often disliked in others what they unconsciously recognized within themselves.
The realization lingered heavily.
Another memory followed.
People describing themselves as "different" from everyone else.
At the time, Rudura found it ordinary.
Now it felt strangely ironic.
Interesting.
Most humans considered themselves unusually self-aware despite possessing the same psychological blind spots as others.
The realization made true self-awareness seem extraordinarily difficult.
Rudura lowered his gaze toward the next passage.
Understanding humanity is easier than understanding oneself because observation becomes distorted the moment ego enters the process.
That sentence remained in his mind immediately.
Because it shifted the entire direction of the chapter.
Another memory surfaced.
Students giving excellent advice to friends…
while repeatedly failing to follow similar advice within their own lives.
Interesting.
Distance created clarity.
Emotion distorted self-perception.
The realization felt important.
Another memory followed.
A friend once warning others about unhealthy relationships…
while remaining trapped inside one himself.
Interesting.
Humans recognized patterns externally far easier than internally.
The realization lingered quietly.
The brazier burned lower beside the wall.
Rudura slowly exhaled.
Then continued reading.
The mind fears honest self-examination because identity itself feels threatened by uncomfortable truth.
That line unsettled him slightly.
Because for the first time in many chapters…
his thoughts slowly turned inward.
Silence settled softly throughout the room.
Then another realization surfaced quietly.
Interesting.
He had spent weeks analyzing humanity.
Fear.
Pride.
Desire.
Meaning.
Emotion.
Perception.
But how much of that observation had he applied toward himself honestly?
The thought lingered heavily.
Rudura lowered his gaze slightly.
Then another question surfaced naturally.
How much of Rudura was truly him now?
The room remained silent except for the steady crackling of charcoal.
He thought about:
reincarnation
adaptation
palace life
royalty
knowledge
Interesting.
The lines separating identities no longer felt entirely clear.
He still remembered his previous life vividly.
Yet increasingly…
the emotions, instincts, and experiences of Rudura himself had begun shaping him too.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Another thought surfaced afterward.
Had observation itself begun distancing him emotionally from others?
The question lingered uncomfortably.
Sometimes conversations now felt layered automatically in his mind:
emotion beneath words
insecurity beneath confidence
fear beneath anger
Interesting.
Even ordinary interactions no longer felt entirely simple.
The realization settled quietly within him.
Outside, cold wind moved softly through distant palace corridors.
Inside the chamber, silence settled warmly around the firelight.
Rudura turned another page slowly.
The observant man eventually risks transforming people into patterns while forgetting they are still human.
That sentence struck him deeply.
Because it felt dangerously close to truth.
Another realization surfaced immediately afterward.
Perhaps excessive observation itself created emotional distance.
Interesting.
Understanding behavior psychologically did not mean fully understanding hearts.
The realization mattered.
Very much.
Another thought followed.
Had he himself begun wearing masks too?
Prince.
Student.
Heir.
Observer.
Interesting.
Which version felt most genuine now?
The question lingered quietly.
Another memory surfaced from his previous life.
Students adapting personalities depending on social surroundings.
At the time, Rudura analyzed the behavior externally.
Now another realization surfaced.
Even he himself adapted constantly:
formal around royalty
calm around servants
restrained during lessons
introspective when alone
Interesting.
Perhaps identity itself was more fluid than he once believed.
The brazier flickered softly nearby.
Rudura lowered his gaze toward Échecs Humains again.
Men frequently imagine self-awareness as knowledge of their thoughts. True self-awareness begins when they question the motives beneath those thoughts honestly.
That sentence remained in his mind immediately.
Because motives themselves were difficult to untangle completely.
Another realization surfaced quietly.
How much of his ambition came from wisdom…
and how much came from fear?
Fear of weakness.
Fear of irrelevance.
Fear of losing control.
Interesting.
The thought unsettled him slightly.
Another followed afterward.
How much of his calmness was maturity…
and how much was emotional distance developing slowly over time?
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The realization lingered heavily.
Outside, pale moonlight stretched across the sleeping capital while cool wind drifted gently through distant archways.
Inside the chamber, the brazier crackled softly.
Rudura slowly closed his eyes briefly.
Then another realization surfaced quietly.
Perhaps true self-awareness was not comfortable.
Perhaps that was why so few pursued it honestly.
Because observing others threatened pride occasionally.
But observing oneself truthfully threatened identity itself.
The thought lingered heavily within the silence.
The room remained still except for the soft flickering of firelight against stone walls.
Rudura lowered his gaze toward the final lines of the chapter.
Perhaps the greatest deception practiced by men is not the deception of others… but the quiet deception through which they preserve comforting illusions about themselves.
Silence filled the room afterward.
Because the sentence felt heavier than the others somehow.
Not cruel.
Not cynical.
Simply unsettling.
Outside, moonlight covered the sleeping palace while cold wind moved softly through the night.
Rudura finally closed Échecs Humains gently.
Thump.
The chamber remained warm and still.
For a long while, he simply stared at the black-covered book silently.
Then quietly murmured into the firelit darkness:
"…I understand humanity more clearly than before…"
"Yet perhaps the person I understand least… is still myself."
(Continued in Chapter 91)