Ch.1 – EP03 First Day at the Club — A Baptism of Fire

With Momoko gripping his wrist, Sora was half-dragged down the hallway.

“Hey, wait! I haven’t said I’d join—”

“Yep yep, less talk, more walking.”

Momoko’s walking pace was fast, and Sora nearly stumbled as he followed. She didn’t look back—only straight ahead. To the end of the hall, down the stairs, and on toward the clubroom building tucked deep in a separate wing.

When the wooden sliding door rattled open, the air changed with a soft fwoosh.

Inside, it was surprisingly quiet, without the characteristic classroom buzz.

On the desks by the window, multiple wooden chessboards were lined up, pieces arranged in neat order. The scent of polished wood and a faint trace of oil. The walls were lined with group photos from tournaments and rows of gleaming trophies; the smiles captured there all had serious eyes.

“I’m back, everyone—this kid’s our new recruit starting today.”

At Momoko’s breezy announcement, the clubroom air stirred for just a second.

A few members set down their pieces and looked over.

“Huh, if Momoko personally brings someone in, it means he’s got something, right?”

“Potential pick?”

“…Doesn’t look like a total chess beginner.”

(No, I’m absolutely a beginner…)

—Sora had no idea why they’d think otherwise.

He dropped his gaze to the wood-grain floor.

Before he could say anything back, Momoko gave his back a light pat.

“This one just started chess, but he’s got good instincts. I vouch for him.”

“Hehh.”

“For real?”

“Sounds fun.”

In an instant, the members’ eyes turned like cats who’d spotted prey.

A boy who looked like a second-year, playing at a table in the back, looked over as he reset pieces.

“Where’s the captain?” Momoko asked.

“Not here today. Supposedly meeting with the advisor to prep for the tournament.”

“I see. Then let’s do a quick showcase match.”

“A-a showcase?…”

While Sora was still flustered, Momoko headed for an open table and briskly began setting up the pieces.

“Here, sit.”

“I still haven’t said I’d—”

“Sit.”

Before he had a chance to resist, she pulled out the chair and Sora sat down.

The sounds of pieces being placed rang with a pleasant rhythm—clear wood-on-wood.

Across from him sat the second-year from before. Short hair, sharp eyes.

“Let’s play a quick one. I’m Akira.”

“…Sora.”

They didn’t shake hands; once the pieces were set, the game began immediately.

Akira’s fingers moved without hesitation. Pawns pressed the center, knights hopped, bishops glared down the long diagonals. Sora, for his part, desperately reproduced shapes he’d crammed since last night.

(e4… e5… Qh5… No, not that—this line is bad.)

In the middlegame, Akira’s knight captured Sora’s pawn. But Sora, reading one move ahead, slid in his bishop to recapture that knight. A small “oh” slipped out around them.

The next instant, Akira advanced his queen to threaten Sora’s king. Cold sweat prickled, but Sora instinctively chose the defense he’d learned from the pages.

Midway through, Akira gave a crooked grin.

“Heh, not bad for a beginner.”

“…I practiced a little with a book.”

“If that’s all it took, you might grow fast.”

Other members stood around to watch, murmuring now and then in low voices.

“He’s unexpectedly good with knights.”

“But his endgame is still weak.”

Each time those words reached him, Sora pressed power into his fingertips.

The result was, as expected, a loss. But it wasn’t the total wipeout like when he’d lost to Momoko the day before. Up through the middlegame, it was even, and Sora could tell Akira had gotten a little serious.

____________________________________________________________________________________

“…Not bad. Beginners are usually nowhere near 1000, but you’ll hit 1200 right away,” Akira said, shaking Sora’s hand.

Sora: “1000? 1200?”

“ELO rating—the number that expresses chess strength. Sounds cool, like a battle power♡”

Momoko cut in from the side. “Akira-senpai is 1400; Soma-senpai is 1800 and a regular at regional tournaments. Our captain, Iori-senpai, is 2100 and among the national top tier.”

“Huh. What about you, Momoko?”

“Sekret♡(secret in polish) If I told you, you’d get scared and lose your motivation, Sora~”

Akira: “Momoko trained in Poland, a chess homeland, so she’s super strong. But she won’t tell even us what her ELO rating was back in Poland.”

Grinning, Momoko patted Sora’s shoulder with a pon.

“Sensei (my mentor in chess and everything else) told me to start over from scratch in Japan… fufu, but right now, Sora, you’re under 1000 so relax.”

“…Don’t flex on me with numbers.”

“Of course I will. That’s reality. From here on, you’ll stack your battle power from below 1000.”

“No worries, I’ll go past ten thousand in no time.”

“Fufu, Głuptas♡”

“…What does that mean?”

“Polish for ‘dummy’♡”

“…You’re annoying.”

“Listen, okay? ELO ratings: GMs—Grandmasters, the chess gods—are around 2500–2800. And the human record peak is Magnus Carlsen’s 2882.”

“No way!? So there’s no 10,000…?” Sora flushed a little.

“ELO is a number for human chess strength, but there’s a higher tier. As a reference, chess.aic’s strongest AI player, Zero King, is said to be around 3900.”

“What’s that? That big a difference!? Over a thousand above the best human?”

“That’s how otherworldly the strength of AI players is. They say the strongest AI players don’t cling to the chess theory humanity’s cultivated; starting from zero, after tens of millions of AI-vs-AI games, they rebuild strategy from the ground up.”

“I thought humans were stronger than AI…”

“Since the world champion at the time lost to AI in 1997, AI has kept evolving. One famous GM even said, ‘Watching Zero King’s games is like a higher species landing on Earth and showing us how to play chess.’”

(Was it a mistake that I beat an AI two years ago? Maybe Haruto was messing with me…)

____________________________________________________________________________________

At the back of the clubroom, the shelf lined with trophies was bathed in the setting sun, gleaming gold.

For some reason, Sora couldn’t look straight at that light.

(My battle power is under 1000… huh. But that’s exactly why—)

In his pocket, his fingertips moved as if tracing the shape of a chess piece.

This time, he felt he might reach just a little farther.