Ryuuou no Oshigoto! - Volume 12 - Chapter 5.8

  PULSE

I want wings. That’s what I thought.

“Gh …………!!” 

I grit my teeth and deploy a piece in my home territory to brace against Mr. Kagamizu’s attack.

I’ve been on the defensive ever since I played that Silver at 6 Eight and declared to hold out even if my heart stopped. How many turns ago was that?

The Sub League doesn’t have match recorders.

Without a record, without anyone around, the two of us duel to the death on our lonely island.

I don’t even know how many moves we’ve played at this point. It should be over 100 by now. Both of us are down to a few minutes of waiting time each.

–––One-minute Shogi will be the death of me! I must avoid that at all costs ……!

My eyes more focused on the clock than the board, I hastily move my pieces about.

Things will only get worse if I lose time in a bad formation. Actually, Mr. Kagamizu might go for the safe win once he thinks he can and start overthinking …… allowing me to catch up!

But the Sub League veteran doesn’t let up.

“Shaa!”

Mr. Kagamizu uses that long reach of his to slide his Dragon King deep into my territory like a boxer delivering a body blow.

“Moving the Dragon ……?!”

It’s… not the worst move, I don’t think.

But it had been protecting his King. Moving it into attack without any hesitation not only shows me how much better his formation is, but how dead set Mr. Kagamizu is on finishing me off.

To hell with the safe win! I’m taking the shortest path to victory!…… He is that determined.

However, taking time to admire it will get me killed.

“All right then–––take this!!”

Giving him a taste of his own medicine, I snap down a Lance in an area that I had surrendered as the defender. Now I can skewer a Gold and his King in exchange for a Knight. It’s the perfect counter!

But.

“Shaaa!!”

Mr. Kagamizu leaves the Knight where it is and deploys a Pawn right in front of my defensive wall to stomp it down.

It’s a heavy jab with a haymaker of a Rook lined up behind it.

His perfect combination of vertical and horizontal fronts not only pushes my defenses to the brink but puts my spirit on the ropes as well.

–––He’s not shaking at all …… Too strong!!

I’m overwhelmed, both on the board and psychologically. After seeing him expose his King to danger on purpose and keep his focus steady as a rock, I have to admit it.

His King hasn’t moved from 4 One, but mine is diving into the smallest openings to escape. It barely has enough time to come up for air ……

–––…… So far away …………

I had that King one move away from checkmate, but now it is so despairingly far out of reach. Beyond the opposite horizon.

Gone ………… for good …………?

“Haaa ………… Haaa ………… Haaa ………… HaaaAAAAHHHHH!!!”

I howl.

Howl away the fear and keep reading my options.

Defensive Shogi is basically seeing death at every turn.

No one move alone can save you in Shogi.

There are only moves that slightly extend your life and moves that end it right now.

I have to see my death thousands and thousands of times in order to find the one move that allows me to live for another turn.

–––It hurts …… I’m scared …… The pain ………… Save me …………

I have to hope that he makes a mistake at some point while I keep extending my life over and over again.

Unfortunately, 3-dans don’t make those mistakes, ever.

With this much of a lead, there wouldn’t be a single match in a thousand where he’d trip up.

I keep dying in this never-ending cycle of despair. Despair compounds despair, and my spirit is breaking under its weight.

“Pant …… Ghhh!! Kghh ………… Argh!! …………… Haa …… Haaaaaaaaa!!”

My pulse is ragged.

Every death I see, every checkmate I read myself into makes my heart pound that much harder. It won’t be able to hold out at this rate.

It calms the moment my King has nowhere else to go…

…Only to start hammering again at the first ray of hope.

“Haaa …… Haaa …… Agh! Ah, ah, ah ………… Argh ………… ugh.”

The room starts spinning, lungs and heart refusing to work in sync as I desperately search the board for that one move that will keep me alive.

–––I …… I thought, I had gotten stronger ……!

If Yaichi, Sota or that pipsqueak were here ……

If it were one of those winged Shogi Martians with their extraordinary talent, they would find a way out of this mess while humming a little tune for good measure.

I’m not so greedy as to wish for a full set of wings.

If only I had just a single feather ………… If I just had that late-game prowess for a single moment! If only ……!!

“Did you think I’d let instant death happen again?”

“…………?!”

I freeze, my thoughts being read like a book.

Mr. Kagamizu knows what this is like. He’s known for years and years ……

The man in front of me isn’t the kind, brotherly Hiuma Kagamizu I know. He’s not even a Shogi player.

He’s the entire Sub League.

“You’re welcome to try. But that pressure won’t work on me. Because–––.”

He spells out the unforgiving truth.

“You aren’t Sota Kunugi.”

“……”

“I’m sure you realize this by now, Ginko. We aren’t prodigies. We aren’t up with Sota or Yaichi. We’re moles that can’t fly. All we can do is dig through the mud to survive. Whoever’s got the better formation with the most time left is going to win.”

“…………………”

I couldn’t say anything back and realize something else at the same time.

If his attack gets one move closer–––my King will be checkmated. Whether it’s a check path or hisshi, I can’t read far enough to tell.

“SHUUUUUUT YOOOOOUR MOOOOOOUTH!!”

I grab a Rook off my piece stand with as much force as my battered and bruised spirit can amass and slap it onto the board deep in his territory.

Check.

This is the only move that extends my life.

“Yes! Come! But know that death is waiting for you the moment you let up!!”

Mr. Kagamizu retreats his King.

I use the Gold that had been sitting useless after my first attack to put him in check again.

But this is the one trap I still have left.

It looks like he can take it for free, but–––.

“Checkmate at 7 Three King or taking the Gold at 5 Three ……… hah!! When will you learn?!!”

–––He saw through it?!

It hurts too much to pull off any other tactics. I send my Gold further in, chasing his King across the board.

Take it! Come on, just take it!

“I can tell that’s a poison apple, so give up on it already!!”

He must’ve seen the looming instant death long ago, because Mr. Kagamizu keeps moving his King away from my Gold every turn.

Until, finally, our Kings meet face-to-face with only Pawns between them.

A King Vanguard Battle ……!!

Ba-thump! My heart thunders in my chest, almost strong enough to crack my ribs.

–––I might …… have a chance!!

The last lines of defense themselves, the vanguard, collide when the Kings are so close together.

It’s like two warships colliding in a narrow canal.

One of them will die. Immediately.

However, King Vanguard Battles are close combat. The only protection I have is a thin Pawn layer, not much better than bare skin. If Mr. Kagamizu wants to kill my King, his own will have to join the battle itself ……!

“Geeh! Nghhhh ………… Cough! Ghhh ……!!”

My nerves hit my stomach and diaphragm, making them convulse. Hot stomach acid drips out of my mouth and dirties my skirt. Tears start flowing, it hurts so bad.

–––L-Let up for a single turn …… and I’ll die ……!

Although Mr. Kagamizu’s King doesn’t have any defenses, I’m still in hisshi. So I take a Lance off my piece stand and snap it down right in front of his King to extend my life once again. That’s five checks in a row!

“Pointless!!”

Mr. Kagamizu slides his King out of the sixth and seventh checks with just his fingertip before coming right back and putting me in check!

–––W-What is going on here?! This …… This isn’t Shogi!!

It’s a puzzle. A double King puzzle.

With only one space separating our Kings in a standoff, Mr. Kagamizu yells, “Now––––––this is over!!”

He deploys a Knight onto the board with the intensity of a meteorite on impact.

–––…… Checkmated.

One glance is enough to know. There’s no back door to escape from and the way forward is blocked off.

The word surrender makes its way up my throat.

–––But …… There is one way I can resist.

Pawn Drop Mate.

If I pull my King back and Mr. Kagamizu deploys a Pawn to finish it off, that would violate the rules and I would win by default.

Surely he wouldn’t have played that Knight if he wasn’t worried about Pawn Drop Mate. Even I know that.

Except no one knows what will happen when emotions are running high.

And most of all …… I don’t want to give up hope!

So I pull my King back with as much boldness as my trembling fingers can muster.

“Hnn ……!”

I keep reaching my neck out over the board even after I take my hand away, rocking back and forth to keep myself ready for battle.

But I feel more like the condemned laying their head down before the executioner right now.

B-dmp! B-dmp! B-dmp! B-dmp! B-dmp!

My heart is pounding so hard in my chest that my opponent can probably hear it, but …… That would be absurd.

–––All he has to do is move that Gold into place rather than deploy a Pawn …… It’s over.

Ba-dump ………… Ba-dump …………

It’s a simple checkmate. My heart steadies itself now that I’ve accepted death.

But Mr. Kagamizu isn’t making the move.

“…………………”

He’s sitting still as a statue with his eyes boring a hole into his own King ………… while time keeps ticking away.

This is more than just playing it safe.

––– ………… Why? Why isn’t he …… playing 7 Seven Gold ……?

I know Mr. Kagamizu can see it. There’s no way he doesn’t.

Then why use all this waiting time? …… Suddenly that story from the Kansai Sub League comes to mind: the one about running out of waiting time.

“I thought my opponent might have a heart attack.”

However, that happened when it was his turn to play in a hopeless situation ……

–––I would understand it for my turn, but why Mr. Kagamizu instead ……… Huh?

“Ah.”

Rather than assuming that Gold will checkmate me, I try reading past it.

Sure enough, an unbelievable sequence shows up …… I gawk with my mouth open.

“……………… The other way around …………?” 

No sooner do I mumble those words than I pick up on just how shaken Mr. Kagamizu is. There’s a panic in his eyes that I’ve never seen before.

My doubts are turning into reality.

–––Moving that Gold would open an escape route for my King …… and put him in Reverse Check at the same time!!

BA-THUMP!!!!

My pulse had stabilized when I accepted defeat, but it goes off like a cannon now that I have hope again.

I can win?

I can win! I CAN WIN!!

That’s the moment in time when my heart reaches its limit.

“ ”

I’m not breathing.

No …… There’s no sound. My entire body has gone silent.

The first sensation is an unnerving tranquility. Then drowsiness …… Not quite conscious.

–––My heart ………… stopped ……?

“………… Yai-chi ………… My chest …………”

I call out for help from my younger brother apprentice who isn’t here, but is fighting his own battle someplace else.

Just like I did the first time I played a match in the Sub League.

–––If I collapse here …… Yaichi will abandon his own match and rush to my side ……

It being a title match doesn’t matter.

He would ditch the review session and board analysis and come straight to whatever hospital I get taken to.

So, if I just fall asleep now, Yaichi will be right next to me when I wake up.

He’ll reassure me that everything is all right.

“You fought really hard, Ginko.”

“You have to take it easy now, okay?”

“I’ll be staying right here with you.”

And if I ask …… we can pick up where we left off that night.

Unseal the confession that we made that night.

He’ll be kinder to me than ever.

We can walk through the streets hand in hand. Go to the movies together. Visit the beach.

We can try anything we want together. Not as sibling apprentices, but as a couple ……

Now that Yaichi is 18 and a full-fledged adult, he’ll take our relationship to the next level.

If I ask, he’ll give the rest of his life to me.

The symbol of that promise will slide onto my left ring finger.

–––Wow …… It’s beautiful …… I love it ……

Sweat and tears are not only doing a number on the tatami mats but blurring my sight as well. I can’t help but smile as that silver twinkle looks just like a ring.

––– How about that …… Everything I’ve ever wanted will come true …… if I just …… give in ……

Collapsing now might be the best thing that ever happens to me.

He is too nice to let weak little me be left out in the cold.

Collapse …… And he’ll always hold my hand like he did when we were children.

He’ll use his right hand, his Shogi hand just for me ……

–––Ohh …… Now I see.

Visions of happiness fill my mind as I squeeze my right hand into a fist.

Squeeze harder, harder, harder.

Hard enough to dig my nails deep into the skin.

Then–––.

I slam that fist right into my chest.

“AAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!”

Crunch.

Bones are definitely cracked. I can feel it.

Sharp pain is right behind it.

This time, it’s not stomach acid coming up my throat, but probably blood.

“Ya …… i-chi ………… My …… chest ……”

My chest.

My heart feels so…!

“Hot.”

Feeling my pulse through my fist in my chest makes everything clear.

I love Yaichi.

So I can never give up on Shogi.

Run up the white flag myself during a match? Never.

I mean, because–––we’re not connected by love or blood. Shogi is the only bond we have.

“Pwff!!”

I open my fan enough to hide my mouth and spit out blood. Once I fan away that iron smell and cool off my feverish body, I close it with a high-pitched snap.

Then I wipe what’s left of the hot blood off my mouth with my hand and lock eyes with Mr. Kagamizu.

“…… Make your move!!”

I’m ready to fight.

My heart stopping doesn’t scare me anymore.

My spirit won’t break.

Even if my heart does stop or my spirit does break, I can revive them with this hand as many times as I need to.

This hand is for playing Shogi.

Electronic beeps start counting down the seconds.

“…………”

Mr. Kagamizu reaches out over the board when he’s down to five seconds and retreats his King diagonally backwards.

It’s not a cowardly move.

“It’s over, Ginko.”

Seeing the result makes my blood run cold.

“Agh?!”

––– Discovery Check ……!!

With his King out of the way, the Lance behind it has an open path to skewer my King!

It’s a mirror image of the Reverse Check that I thought of just a moment ago.

The ultimate counterpunch.

–––I’ll be checkmated no matter what I deploy to block!! I-I didn’t …… even see that move ……

There is one thing I have to do right now.

Find a way to open an escape route while simultaneously preventing check.

That’s the equivalent of doing two moves at once.

–––…… That type of move doesn’t exist ……

Even if it did, I doubt I could find it in the middle of one-minute Shogi.

Which was why it is a total coincidence that one came to me with a single glance.

“………… Silver ……”

The piece that shares my name is blocking my King’s escape route.

My King could escape to the upper right if only it wasn’t there …… Just as irritatingly clumsy as I am.

––– …………… Wait?

In the way?

The Silver?

In that case …… Why don’t I move it?

…………… Huh?

–––But …… What?! This is an actual match!!

I’m down to my final seconds.

I reach out with my blood-smudged right hand and grab the Silver.

Then, just like that–––.

“Here!!”

I slide the Silver to the upper left.

This type of decisive move has never come up in any of the over 10,000 Shogi matches I’ve played, so I couldn’t believe it actually worked even after I made the move.

A total coincidence, all of it.

Coincidence …… And some whimsical good luck.

Because–––I saw it in a Shogi puzzle recently.