The secret of the scarred man

While the main highlight of the Bermuda party was most certainly the 6B tank, that didn't mean it was the only thing going on. In terms of non-chess related activities, the big one was the karaoke contest.

There, nations could compete against each other singing songs from their homeland. Up first was Norway's Ole Kjedelig singing Ved Stanford Brua with his teammates Guttorm Bjørnseth, Lasse Borge, and Magnar Dagsland on drums, flute, and electric guitar, respectively.

As they sang, Daria sat at a table with Amelia and watched. "What's the song about?"

"The battle of Stamford bridge. It is heralded by many as the end of the Viking era."

"Why's that?"

"Because during the battle, the Vikings were obliterated. The great irony of it all though was the victor, King Harold, ended up falling to William the conqueror a few days later."

"How bad was it?"

"Both Norwegian commanders, notably King Harald Hardrada, were killed, and the army suffered heavy losses. Perhaps the only good moment for the Norwegians was the lone berserker who held up English forces at the bridge, taking down 40 or so all by himself before ultimately being slain via a surprise attack from under the bridge. But thanks to his efforts, Norway was able to better organize it's forces, but it didn't matter as they got slaughtered anyway."

"Who was this berserker?"

"We don't know. His name was never recorded despite his valiant efforts."

"A shame."

"Yes, a shame despite that berserker's valiant efforts amounted to nothing. Perhaps that's why his name was forgotten. All that knew it were either killed, or so depressed with their humiliating loss that they didn't even bother recording his name. But I suppose that is history. Losers are to be forgotten after all."

"I doubt any would forget about your team when you lose."

Amelia's gaze narrowed. "Hoh? You think your team would beat mine? Sorry, but we'll be the ones achieving the first perfect score in the women's section."

"Perhaps you'll fall me, but the others will pull their weight."

"And that's where you're misguided. My girls have been trained by me, personally. But if it makes you any better, I doubt we'll be slaughtering you next round."

"The president will likely save our class towards the end, possibly even the final round, right?"

Amelia nodded and took a sip of water.

"Not drinking?"

"No, I never do. I like to remain the most intelligent person in the room."

As the two sat and conversed further, Iori found herself confronted by Mimosa and Alice, both of whom were masked up, furious, and broken out in hives.

"Uh, sorry?" Iori nervously grinned.

Mimosa trembled with fury as she let out a muffled grunt and flipped off Iori.

"You polluted us! Sabotaged us! DEFILED US! We'll make you pay by making you bleed blue like Mimoko!" Alice fumed. 

"Um, I'm perfectly fine. Just a bit blue and sticky," Mimoko smiled as she strolled over.

"But it's humiliating! And that bitch deserves it for what she did to us!"

"Hey, you're the one that kissed your sister directly after I accidentally kissed her, so don't blame me for you getting sick," Iori growled.

"I WAS STERILIZING MIMOSA'S LIPS!"

"Ok, Alabama."

"INTO THE TANK! I'M CHALLENGING YOU-"

But before Alice could continue any further, a man's hand clamped down on her shoulder. "Alice, don't bother."

"B- But-"

"First off, you're sick. If you want to participate in 6B, you'd have to go last, so as not to risk anyone else getting sick when you land in the blueberry juice."

"Are you saying I'd-"

"Yes, barring no jarring blunders from your opponent, you'd most certainly lose given your physical state."

Alice stared down at the ground before looking back up and shooting Iori a death glare before storming away with Mimosa.

Now with both of them out of the way, it was easier to see the man that had stopped them. He was a scruffy middle-aged man with a single arm and a scar running down the left side of his face and neck.

However, he didn't seem to pay Iori and Mimoko any heed before turning and heading back to his table.

Curious as to who the man could be, Mimoko attempted to scan him with her WWCF card, only to get an error message. "An error? Is he a SPCM?"

"Due to the policy changes, SPCMs and DSPCMs can now show up normally on searches," Daria stated as she walked over.

"Then that man-"

"Who knows."

Mimoko began to scowl. That response told her Daria knew exactly who that man was, but was choosing not to tell her.

"If the boys end up facing France, I'll reveal more about him, but that seems a bit unlikely. Though I suppose since you've seen his face, I'll at least reveal his name is Alexandre Bealieu."

"'Bealieu'? Isn't that Fifi-chan's surname?"

"That's right. He's my dad," Fifi smiled as she hopped over. "So why ya curious about him?"

"Oh, I was just wondering what kind of person he was to be able to get Alice-chan to back down."

"That's it?"

"Yes?"

Fifi began to pout. "He's really, really, good at chess, though didn't used to be."

"What do you mean?"

A glint appeared in Fifi's eye. "So glad you asked! You saw the scar on him, right? Well after he got that from serving in a war, he suddenly became really good at chess. Remind you of anyone?"

Mimoko's eyes lit up. "Alexandre Deschapelles! Heralded as the greatest chess player of the early 19th century! He even lost a hand in battle, and had a scar running down his face from a saber wound, believed by some to be the cause for his sudden aptitude in chess!"

"That's right, my dad's pretty much the modern incarnation of him. Even shares the same birthday too. So, wanna play him?"

Excitement filled Mimoko's eyes as she nodded her head.

"Excellent! But first, ya gotta get through me, Alice, Fleur, and the others."

"The others? Wait, does that mean-"

"Yup, my dad is France's maestro, maestro Alexandre Bealieu."

A big smile formed on Mimoko's face as she clenched her fist. "Then tell him I'll be challenging him as soon as I have the time. He sounds like a wonderful opponent."

"I heard it loud and clear," Alexandre smiled as he strolled over. "Since the cat's out of the bag, no need to avoid contact. I'm Maestro Alexandre. I look forward to the day we can eventually face each other, Mimoko Inoue."

"As do I."

As Alexandre returned to his table, Mimoko noticed something about the server. With her multicolored hair, she looked kind of familiar, but there was no way it could be-

"Carol-chan!?"

Sure enough, the girl turned and indeed it was Carol.

"What are you doing here!?"

"Helping. All us SPCMs and DSPCMs that aren't competing got drafted for serving tables here. That means you can't challenge us, even though I wouldn't mind a dip in the blueberry juice. The others are roaming around too, even Safumi in her scooter. So if ya see us, feel free to give us a wave, but remember, we're on the clock," Carol smiled as she strolled away.

"Lame, was hoping her being here meant we could have a blueberry dunk  dare challenge," Iori pouted in disappointment.

"Plenty of streamers competing here to choose from, and besides, it might be possible to facilitate a 6B match for enough WWCF points," Daria winked as she strolled off.

That tidbit brought a mischievous grin to Iori's face. She now had a new goal to save up her points towards.