A WWCF board meeting

At WWCF HQ, Daria shook her head as she sat at a large conference table. "So you're saying we just got duped?" 

"That is correct. Upon paying the Fairy League a requested 1 trillion euros, we were told Hagemi Shousen had already been sold to another party," Melania stated. 

"And whose fault might that ultimately be?" Ai snickered. 

Elenora slowly began to scowl. "Agatha... You didn't tell me about this," she thought as the room began to be filled with murmurs.

Raymond quickly slammed his gavel down, silencing the room. "I know this was billed as an emergency summons, but we might as well count this as a full-fledged meeting since new policy changes are likely to arise from this. Now I assume you are all well aware of all the issues that have currently befallen some of our secret chess maestros and their SPCMs. First up, is the maestro of Russia, Maestro Mr. Ian Kimovich."

A middle aged man rose and addressed the board, with his speech mainly revolving around how due to the actions of Desperado and Russia's leader, Tsar Grigori, he and his SPCMs that opposed him were constantly being bombarded with scare tactics.

Next up was Daria who summarized the Michiko incident and the impact it had on her SPCMs. "I'll be able to replace Michiko with ease, in fact, I've already approved the individual and requested some modifications be done to the secret puzzle cafe in Nikko, thus everything should be rolling by tomorrow night. The problem is Taira, as due to her death, Tenju's been neglecting her duties. She's also refusing to meet with me, likely because she still blames me for all that happened. If I were to replace Taira within a fast time frame, I fear that might worsen things between us, yet I might not have much of a choice on the matter."

"Truly a disgrace. And you call yourself a maestro. You never should have been given the title," a young man scoffed.

Everyone rolled their eyes as they turned to face the man. This was Vihaan Gosain, one of India's top chess players as well as a WWCF ambassador.

"Vihaan, you know the rules of the maestro project. It matters not what country they hail from. If they are top in the world, they may set up base in their home country," Raymond glared.

Vihaan slammed his fist down in frustration. "But India is one of the largest chess powerhouses in the world, not to mention the birthplace of chess itself! America, Russia, China, all have maestros, so why doesn't India?"

"Blame you representatives for falling short in the maestro project. Speaking of which, why have you still refused to submit names for viable DSPCMs? We've graciously allocated India 6 possible spots for secret puzzle cafes, yet not one has been filled. Only chess centers are present throughout India. Vihan, as India's representative here at the WWCF, you're expected to play a role in the nomination of DSPCMs."

"I repeat the official position of my home federation; we will not accept anything less than a maestro and 7 SPCMs." 

"You shouldn't be complaining so much, Vihaan. India's rise in the chess world was a large reason why the DSPCM position came to be, so rather than sulk, you should do your job proper as it's representative here at the WWCF and start fielding candidates to fill those spots," a beautiful woman with long silver hair that obscured her right eye, growled.

This woman was Amelia Stavanger, the maestro of Norway. Boasting a rating of 3300, she was often regarded as the strongest of the maestros. Though she had never actually beat Daria in a match, she had never lost to her either as all her matches against her had ended in draws. However, she had fared better than Daria in the maestro project overall, which is why she had been granted a higher rating than her.

"No, we've got the greatest chess power ranking out of every nation, so we should-"

"Vihaan, the maestro project is not about representing the countries that are strongest at chess, it's about recognizing the strongest players in the world. If they hail from a nation that's also a chess powerhouse, so be it. If not, that doesn't affect things either," Raymond glared.

"In that case, I propose we strip Maestro Xiao Lin of her title."

"Huh!? I've already been punished enough, haven't I!?" Xiao Lin fumed as she slammed her cane down on the table.

"Vihan, don't provoke her," Maccabee sighed.

"Our positions are for life, so zip it, youngin. Now onto my business. Thanks to a brave player from Japan, Fianna's out of the picture, props there. Problem is I'm the one taking the brunt of it since one of my SPCMs ratted out my trip to Japan, so now I'm being accused of ordering a hit. Moe Ryedon and his VP even got reinstated by congress, but what really pisses me off is that Fianna was actually some executive board member. What the hell is the deal with that, president?" Wiley fumed."

The non-maestros stared in confusion as Raymond stated the info was confidential, and thus, wouldn't be disclosed. 

"So hypothetically there could be executive board members present?" Daria asked as she glanced over at Ai. 

"I will not say yes or no," Raymond replied. "In the case of Fianna, I will confirm that she was part of the board, and thus, her spot is now vacant. That is all I will discuss on the matter. Now, for the main topic of the meeting, the Chess Olympics."

Everyone quieted down and turned their attention to Raymond. 

"In under a month, the Chess Olympics will be held in Budapest, Hungary. SPCMs, DSPCMs, and WWCF officials are all allowed the chance to represent their countries there. However, this year, I want to allow maestros to compete." 

"No, I'm against this. I refuse to compete on a team with Tsar Grigori and his ilk," Ian scowled. 

"Want to give up being a maestro then?" Vihan asked.

"Don't tell me you of all people would support this!?"

"Why wouldn't I? If Team India takes gold, it proves we are of maestro caliber. Perhaps then my federation could accept having DSPCMs, maestro-slaying DSPCMs that is."

"Sorry, Ian, but you're in the minority here. Majority of us maestros have good relations with their home countries and want to compete properly again," Amelia grumbled. 

"Yes, this would mean maestros would have to face off against each other, and on the world stage. Really hard to be against that," Daria nodded as she eyed up Xiao Lin.

With no further debate, the motion passed with only a handful of dissenters. Thus, maestros would be allowed to compete in the Chess Olympics, along with any future tournament the main governing board approved of them to partake in.

Once the meeting was over, Elenora immediately phoned Agatha. "AGATHA! You didn't tell me you were going to London for Hagemi!" 

"Hmm? You know of her?" Agatha asked.

"Is she being kept at the manor?"

"What? No way. I was only asked to get her away from the Fairies so I could hand her off to another party. Ah, if you're worried about your job, Hagemi was given a chance at freedom via a chess game, but lost. That should smoothen things over with Redfield. Feel free to save your own skin if you feel like ratting on me. Won't change a thing, specially since I got an alibi set up. Bye now."

Elenora pinched her face in frustration. "Agatha, every time..."