Ryuuou no Oshigoto! - Volume 14 - Chapter 1.1

  MASTER AND APPRENTICE CROSSING

“Oh?”

Coming through the bullet train turnstiles at Shin-Osaka Station, I get a glimpse of the girl out of the corner of my eye.

Long black hair like a wing.

She’s dressed in all black like a Gothic doll, but with an impish beauty about her. And, keeping with her personal theme, she has a black tablet clutched in one little hand as she works on it with the other.

This grade schooler standing out from the throngs of people is–––.

“Hello there, Ai! What a coincidence!”

Ai Yashajin.

The youngest girl ever to reach 2-dan in the Women’s League at only 10 years old, and also my apprentice.

“On your way home from Tokyo? That’s where the Women’s Throne League is being held, right?”

I walk over and start talking without thinking much of it, but the living doll dressed in black isn’t happy to see me …… Actually, she shoots me a suspicious glare and says, “………… Are you stalking me?”

“S-S-S-Stalking you?! No, no! I just said it’s a coincidence, didn’t I?!”

“But …… You knew I had a match in Tokyo and the reason why. It sounds like you’re tracking my movements ……”

“I’m busy, but not so busy that I don’t check to see what league matches my apprentice is in! That’s how Masters show their love, right?!”

“Would you not press your perverse version of love onto me?”

People passing by must’ve heard our conversation.

“Wait, what was that?”

“He said showing love, right?”

“A lover’s quarrel, maybe?”

“But that girl’s gotta be in grade school ……”

Crap, crap! Station security is gonna show up any minute!

I pull Ai around the corner and ask her in a very quiet voice.

“…… Where’s Akira?”

“Buying meat buns from 551.”

Those things are famous in Osaka.

Though I’m sure she could find them just fine in Kobe …… Then again, they’ve got chilled packs on sale inside the Shin-Osaka bullet train concourse. There’s never a line, so it’s like having your own secret shop. So that’s why she stopped by here instead of riding the train straight back to Kobe ……

“I didn’t know you liked those.”

“How should I know? I’ve never had one.”

“Say what? Then why did you bother getting off the bullet train to buy some–––?”

Wait, now I remember.

Mio Mizukoshi, who moved away after her father was transferred overseas just recently, loved 551 meat buns.

“…… Ah, I see. You miss your best friend, so you want to try one of her favorite foods.”

“Wh-What are you talking about?! Why would I care what that chatterbox liked to eat?! Akira wanted some, so we stopped here. Don’t get the wrong idea, trash!!”

“Huuuh? That’s weird. I never mentioned Mio’s name, did I?”

“………… Die, will you!”

Our first squabble in a long time, and we’re tied one to one.

It’s a big relief talking to her like normal.

The last time we talked, um …… She said something I never saw coming ……

“I love you, Yaichi.”

It happened right outside a wedding chapel in Kobe …… And then she kissed me.

The thing is, I still haven’t figured out if that was real or her idea of a prank. I’ve been focusing on my title matches recently to avoid thinking about it ……

“More importantly, tell me what was happening here.”

Almost like she hasn’t noticed the conflict playing out in my head, Ai takes over the conversation.

There’s a match record displayed on her tablet, one that looks familiar–––.

“Hm? This …… this is the 2nd Crown Title Match. You were watching me play?”

“Not you, your Shogi.”

Then, Ai rephrases her own words.

“Your losing Shogi!”

“About that …… It’s clear just how much of an advantage he has when it comes to using software. Adapting that much in a week is really ……”

I got really good at analyzing pieces of software sequences and used the two-day format’s sealing move to figure out how it responds to offense and defense. The Shogi in the first match was comfortable all the way around.

But Okito-Crown found an even easier way to steal a victory star for me in the second match.

Seriously, it was like a magic trick.

“The defender kept a steady 100 points behind during the early game as if calculating every single move. Why would a Shogi player with a brain built like a cyborg intentionally avoid the best move every single time?”

“It’s true that Mr. Okito didn’t play the best moves on the board.”

I nod and continue.

“That strategy was so great because it didn’t involve the best moves.”

“………… So, I was right.”

I could hear the lightbulb coming on in her voice. Even if she went out of her way today just to hear me say that I don’t find it strange at all. Shogi players understand the value of a few words.

“By the way, are you on your way to Tokyo right now?”

“Yeah. For a placement match …… There’s no way I can do them in Osaka.”

Since I have the Shogi world’s strongest title, the Dragon King Ryuo, I sit in the upper seat for every league match other than when I challenge for another title. That means that my opponents have to come to Osaka.

But placement matches are all about fighting on equal ground, so I have to go to Tokyo despite my title.

Taking the first bullet train in the morning would get me there before the 10 o’clock starting time …… But spending the night is standard.

Add in the fact that I’ve got another match scheduled for two days after my title match, I don’t have time to take it slow.

“I stopped by my apartment a moment ago to change clothes, and it’s already this late. Ai Hinatsuru is probably still in class, right? It was strangely empty at home …… Sure, it’d been a few days since I was there, but it didn’t feel like home, you know ……?”

“Don’t make it sound like you’re a married couple living apart.”

“You got that vibe, too? I was hoping to come home to my cute apprentice greeting me at the door, saying Master? Do you want dinner first? Or a bath? Or maybe …… Sh – o – gi? That’s what a pro’s apartment is supposed to be like, right?!”

“Gross.”

That one word slices through me like a sword. Ouch …… Yeah, I know ……

“She is staying at Grand Master’s house, yes?”

“Yeah. Most of her stuff is over there, so that’s probably part of why it doesn’t feel like it should at home, but ……”

“That explains all the annoying Come over and play, Ten-chan! messages she’s been bombarding me with.”

“Ahh …… It gets lonely sleeping in a bunk bed by yourself.”

It’s the same bed that Ginko and I used to share.

On the nights when she was staying at the hospital for one reason or another and I had it all to myself, I was all excited saying, “Yahoooooooo! I’m freeeee!” But, strangely enough, I missed Ginko when she wasn’t there.

“That chatterbox she went to school with is gone and her favorite Master is too busy. Spend some time with her already.”

“I would if I could, trust me. It’s just, the Ryuo Title Match starts right after the Crown Title Matches finish …… I’m going to be traveling all around the country like this for the rest of the year, probably.”

“Yo Okito’s your opponent for the Ryuo matches too, right? It’s getting boring to watch, honestly. And disappointing.”

“At least put sensei at the end of his name ……”

Yo Okito-Dual Title is in the same generation of players as Mitsuru Oishi 9-dan and Jin Natagiri 8-dan. Just one generation behind the Meijin, Okito-sensei has been at the top of the Shogi world since before Ai was born.

She looks up at me with a cold gaze and says, “You’ve been spending a lot more time with Okito-sensei than with your own apprentices recently. Traveling around, staying at nice hotels, eating local dishes and sampling the desserts together.”

“It’s not like that ……”

Since the matches use the two-day format, each one eats up four days of my schedule, if you include travel time. Since there’s a match every week, I’m spending a lot more time at work that I am at home.

Mix in my other matches, and I’m practically living out of my suitcase rather than taking the time to stop by the apartment.

On top of that, I have to turn in my phone during the matches so I can’t respond to emails or return phone calls for days on end ……

I used to see my live-in apprentice every single day, but it’s been almost a week since I heard from her …… Now my walking right up to Ai Yashajin in the middle of a crowded train station doesn’t seem so strange, does it?

“I’ve got placement matches, yeah? Tournaments are starting, right? Don’t forget the King League is about to start, too. I don’t even have time to go home, let alone time to spend teaching Shogi sequences to you girls …… I’m sorry about that, really.”

There’s no need to worry about Ginko anymore now that she turned pro, and Ai Hinatsuru has been staying at Master’s place. I haven’t been able to focus on Shogi this much in a very long time.

That’s the main reason I’ve been winning a lot recently, but the more I win, the more matches I get scheduled for. It’s a vicious cycle living in the Shogi world.

“The schedule is the most hectic when you hold two or three titles, but having all seven is much easier.”

Words of wisdom from the Meijin, who currently still holds four titles.

That’s deep …… and also scary at the same time.

“Being involved with two title matches at once makes it clear just how amazing the Meijin truly is …… He’s had this kind of schedule for almost 30 years and also has a family. That’s god-tier time management skills right there.”

“In that case, hurry up and get the rest of the titles so you can teach us something useful.”

“That’s impossible, weren’t you listening? Have you ever been told that you don’t listen well to others at school, Lady Yashajin?”

“So what? You are the one who stole my first kiss.”

“?! I-I didn’t steal anything. Actually, you were the one who–––.”

Ah! …… Relax, relax.

Take a deep breath. Don’t think back to that day. Don’t fall for her taunts. Don’t build up defenses ……

“Aren’t you the one who refused to do big board analysis for her Master’s title match in her own hometown?”

“What choice did I have? My own match took priority.”

“Your match ……? You were supposed to do analysis during my second title match, and Ai Hinatsuru would be the third because its being held in Kanazawa. That’s what we agreed upon when I became the challenger for the Crown Title, yes? It’s your fault for not informing the scheduling department!”

“And, if I didn’t?”

Now, it’s so obvious ……

I went to Kobe thinking that Ai Yashajin would be there to do big board analysis for my match, so it was a real letdown when I didn’t see her there. I won’t say that’s the reason I lost …… but …

It’s official. Saying she loved me was a prank. There’s no doubt in my mind.

I mean, if she did have feelings for me, she would jump at every opportunity to spend time together, right?

“Besides, taking part in another person’s title match doesn’t suit me. Even if that other person happens to be my Master.”

That, right there.

On the other hand, that is what made it clear to me that I had to take her as my apprentice, even if that meant stealing her away from someone else.

“Say, Yaichi.”

Suddenly, my apprentice closes the gap between us.

Then, she grabs my necktie and–––.

“What would you do if I told you …… I was waiting for you here the whole time?”

“……!!”

My heart pounds like there’s no tomorrow. Blood rockets through my veins as my face burns up in an instant.

–––Ai …… was waiting for me? Why ……?

No way …… Was she so concerned about me after losing the match that she stopped at Shin-Osaka Station and waited all this time to soothe my wounds ……?

In that moment, the pain of losing evaporates away. I can feel it leaving my heart.

Then comes the shame of knowing this fifth grader is toying with my emotions …… and the internal conflict of being okay with that starts making my head spin.

What saved me from falling into the pits of hell is–––.

“My Lady! Meat buns have been purchased! …… Hm? Oh, Kuzuryu-sensei. Well, what a coincidence.”

The appearance of Akira Ikeda holding a big bag with 551 HORAI written on the side gives me the breather I so desperately needed in this long bout.

–––Th-That’s right …… Coincidence. This is all just a coincidence ……

Shin-Osaka Station is huge, so why would she wait here without knowing for sure that I would pass by ……?

Ai Yashajin isn’t the type to do sappy stuff like that, at all.