Chapter 703:

Hagemi's fateful match

En Passant Grandmaster

Hagemi let out a sigh as she turned off the TV. It's been months since it happened, but I still can't get it out of my mind," she thought as she began to recall the match that led to her becoming Hannelore.

...

Finding herself in a DESPER world thanks to Phantom, Hagemi was forced to play him while Kuon watched from the sidelines.

"Now, shall we begin the game?" Phantom asked.

"And why are you facing me instead of Kuon?" Hagemi snarled as she opened by moving her pawn to e4.

"I refuse to register with a DESPER, and wouldn't want to beat you when you're nothing but a groggy mess. Therefore, this individual will make sure your chess prowess continues post brainwashing so that I'll be able to beat you at your best," Kuon giggled as Phantom moved his pawn to g6.

"And what if someone beats me before you, or you fail to beat me?" Hagemi glared as she moved her pawn to d4.

Kuon clicked her tongue. "That won't happen. You won't see any action until round 1 of the Chess Olympics, and there, you'll play at your best."

Phantom wasn't so convinced as he shook his head and moved his pawn to c5. "If someone else other than Kuon beats Hagemi Shousen in her brainwashed state, Hagemi Shousen will enter a comatose state, only being freed from it when whoever beats her is able to beat Kuon. Then, Hagemi Shousen would return to the state she was in before this match with me begins," he whispered into the DESPER.

With her freedom on the line, Hagemi met Phantom's advance by capturing the pawn at c5 with her d-pawn. Phantom followed up with the natural play of bishop g7, but it was then that the effects of captivity began to show themself on Hagemi as she made the shaky play of bishop c4.

"Hoping for a draw? Foolishness. Check," Phantom snarled as he moved his queen to a5.

Hagemi's eyes widened as she moved her pawn to c3. "No, has to be my imagination," she thought as Phantom captured the pawn at c5 with his queen.

Though Hagemi's advantage was lost, the game itself was far from it, especially after sound plays like queen b3, e6, bishop e3, and queen a5 followed. But then came yet another shaky play from Hagemi in the form of queen a3. It wasn't a game-losing play, but it did reflect that Hagemi's mind was not quite up to its normal computing speed, which was all according to plan.

"And this is why I didn't play you, Hagemi. You're not up to par, so your victory would feel hollow. I want absolute victory so finally... FINALLY I can surpass you," Kuon thought as Phantom moved his knight to c6.

Hagemi wasn't completely out of it though as she initiated a queen trade by capturing the queen at a5 with her queen, resulting in said queen being captured by Phantom's knight. She continued to hold the line by moving her bishop to d3, but sensing blood on the water, Phantom moved his knight to f6, and sure enough, it paid off as Hagemi's slip up of knight a3 put her at a slight disadvantage.

"Slipping, but still maintaining balance," Phantom thought as he moved his pawn to d5.

The game still wasn't lost as Hagemi moved her knight to b5, seeing a path forward, which Phantom decided to humor by capturing the pawn at e4 with his d-pawn.

"My mind's a little fuzzy, but I'm sure I can still hold. Check," Hagemi meekly grinned as she moved her knight to c7.

Phantom moved his king to d7, allowing Hagemi to capture his rook at a8 with her knight, yet nearly equalized by capturing the bishop at d3 with his e-pawn. Hagemi struck back by capturing the pawn at a7 with her bishop, with Phantom not seeming to care as he moved his knight to d5.

"Another check. Maybe I can hold this," Hagemi thought as she moved her knight to b6.

Said knight was promptly captured by Phantom's knight, which in turn was captured by Hagemi's bishop. Phantom retreated his knight to c4, prompting Hagemi to move her bishop to e3.

"Tch, perfect play," Kuon thought as Phantom captured the pawn at b2 with his knight.

Indeed perfect play was on the board with knight f3, rook d8, rook b1, knight c4, bishop g5, f6, and bishop c1 showing no sign of weakness from both players.

"Tch, she's starting to get back in the groove. If she draws, she'll be able to flee," Kuon thought as Phantom moved his pawn to e5.

"Heh, my mind's feelin' a little clearer now. Maybe I can threefold," Hagemi thought as she moved her rook to b4 and began to smile.

She spoke too soon as after Phantom moved his knight to d6, Hagemi slipped up a third time and moved her pawn to c4.

"How symbolic that that's the move that signifies your self destruction," Phantom scoffed aloud as he moved his king to c6.

Hagemi's eyes widened in horror, both at the state she was now in and also at the fact that she now recognized who Phantom was. "No... You're ____!?" she trembled as she moved her bishop to e3.

Kuon also recoiled in shock, yet Phantom remained unphased at the accusation as he moved his knight to f5. Hagemi, meanwhile, was trying her best just to survive and salvage things as she moved her bishop to b6, but the moment Phantom moved his rook to e8, she messed up big by moving her bishop to a5.

Kuon's malevolent smile returned. "Yes. Mental fatigue finally took effect. And against an opponent like Phantom, there's no room for error," she thought as Phantom moved his pawn to e4.

And from there on, it was only a downward spiral for Hagemi as knight d2 and knight d4 did her no favors in improving the state of things. She made one last gamble in the form of rook b6, check, but king d7 dashed any and all hopes. Dejected and deflated, Hagemi moved her king to d1, allowing pawn f5 to further encroach on her turf. Knight b3, knight captures b3, and rook captures b3 ensured with Phantom leaving the trade with extra tempo thanks to rook e6.

Bishop b6 and rook c6 came next before king d2 offered Phantom a chance to finish things. He promptly captured the pawn at c4 with his rook, leading to the anticipated response of rook c1 from Hagemi.

"Now to go for the coup de gras," Phantom thought as he checked Hagemi by moving his bishop to h6.

Just as both he and Kuon hoped, Hagemi messed up once more and moved her king to d1. Panic quickly spread on Hagemi's face, yet Phantom didn't even give her a moment to freak out as he swiftly captured the rook at c1 with his rook, winning the game.

"Checkmate. That ends the matter," Phantom coldly stated.

A single tear streaked down Hagemi's face as the board began to vanish and her mind began to go dark. "Yuusuke, I'm sorry."

...

Back in the present, Hagemi shook her head. "Never again. I'll never allow myself to be captured like that ever again."

The full game:

White: Hagemi Shousen (2808) Black: Phantom (?)

1. e4 g6

2. d4 c5

3. dxc5 Bg7

4. Bc4 Qa5+

5. c3 Qxc5

6. Qb3 e6