Ryuuou no Oshigoto! - Volume 6 - Chapter 2.8

  AFTER THE BATTLE

Walking up to the arena, it felt like the air itself was pushing me away.

“……………”

Mr. Oishi seems upset after throwing in the towel, which is very unusual for him. He’s just sitting there without saying a word and staring daggers at the board.

The pile of cigarette butts in his ashtray have been chewed to pieces. Nothing could show how much pain Mr. Oishi is in right now better than that.

“…… Excuse me,” I say in a hushed voice as I take a seat a good distance away from the board. Big Sis and Ms. Mato looked up at me when I come in, but both players kept their eyes squarely on the board.

Mr. Oishi and Mr. Okito aren’t making eye contact, at all.

King and Crown.

These two titleholders aren’t looking at today’s Shogi.

Their eyes are zeroed in on …… the King League, which is about to start.

“……!”

At last, Mr. Oishi starts angrily shifting pieces around in a new sequence.

“……”

Mr. Okito didn’t say anything but goes along with it.

Review sessions can get so heated that sometimes it feels like they should be called the second round.

Each piece that Mr. Oishi snaps down sounds harsh, like kindling crackling under a fire.

On the complete opposite side of the spectrum, Mr. Okito’s moves are unnaturally quiet.

The review session goes on without a word.

Usually, the victor will let the defeated win these proposed sequences during review sessions so that they don’t make the agony of defeat any worse.

But Mr. Okito is crushing every single sequence that Mr. Oishi tries out.

It’s almost like …… He’s an emotionless computer, mercilessly efficient and precise.

The review session came to an end an hour later.

Neither player said a word the whole time.

“Okito-sensei. A later date will be fine, but may I ask you a few questions about today’s match?”

“I would prefer you not.”

Standing up along with the victor once he was finished putting the pieces away, Ms. Mato asks him for an interview. Mr. Okito politely but instantly refuses.

For a second, Ms. Mato froze like she’d been slapped in the face.

“Sensei! Please, just a few minutes–––!”

Unable to take no for an answer, she follows Mr. Okito out the door.

Mr. Oishi is still sitting at the board, alone.

“………”

After watching the review session, Big Sis, who had been working as the match recorder, and I watch with baited breath to see what the still-silent Mr. Oishi will do next.

In the big picture …… this loss doesn’t hurt that much.

Mr. Oishi has already won four of his placement matches, so I doubt he’ll have to drop down. He’s in a perfect position to defend his title without having to worry about other match results.

But his promising new strategy has just been crushed into a million pieces.

Mr. Oishi’s research has reached a dead-end.

Meanwhile, Mr. Okito walked away with the victory …… and new avenues for his research to explore.

That difference is huge right before a big match. Mr. Oishi has to change up his strategy before the first match starts and he’s been mentally pushed into a corner.

How far has Mr. Okito’s research progressed?

Was that strategy specifically for this match in the first place?

And if it was research, preparing for a strategy so far removed from the standards like that is …… 

“…… Guess there’s no point in sitting here,” Mr. Oishi mutters to himself and slaps his knees as he gets to his feet.

He then starts talking to us while getting ready to leave.

“Yaichi. Ginko. Got time tomorrow?”

“I don’t have anything going on but …… Big Sis? You’ve got school, right?”

“The evening is fine.”

Mr. Oishi nods at her answer, but he’s zoned out like his head is somewhere else.

The Worldly Maestro slides his arms through his jacket and tells us what he has in mind.

“I’d like to do a practice session. Please bring what you’d need to spend the night.”