A new era of chess

After meeting up, all the present chess club members went over how they did. Okisato ended the tournament with 4 wins, resulting in him getting 4 points out of 5. And since all his opponents were rated above 2500, he had secured the final grandmaster norm, meaning all he needed to get the grandmaster title was a rating of 2500 or more, which he seemed likely to get.

As for the other members,Yuusuke managed to break even with 3 wins, netting him 3 points while Numakawa managed to win only his final game, leaving him with just 1.5 points thanks to his 1st round draw. Yuzuha managed to get 2.5 points thanks to winning two games and drawing one. That just left Rodeo who managed to net 2 wins, leaving his final score at 2 points.

Maida managed to get 2 wins and 2 draws, leaving her with 3 points. It looked like Mimoko was the big winner with her 4.5 points, however…

"LOL I went 5-0!" Iori gloated.

"You were in an easier section, though,” Yuusuke glared.

"Still did better than you!"

"Well, you'll probably end up having to play in the open section next tournament considering your rating will likely jump to the point where it will be too high for the intermediate section," Okisato noted.

Just then, Utami approached the group with her head hung low. "I'm sorry, Mimoko-sama. I couldn't do anything."

"It's OK, you're supposed to have fun above all else-"

"But I couldn't win 1st place, I'm a disgrace to you."

"Utami-chan, how did your games-"

"Ah, it says she won her last 3 games. That plus her second round draw gives her 3.5 points," Okisato stated as he checked the rankings.

"That's amazing!"

"B- But I didn't win 1st, Iori-chan did, so she's the one worthy of being by your side."

"Uh, I'm not jumping into any love triangles, I'm just the G.O.A.T. when it comes to chess," Iori gloated.

"Doubtful," nearly everyone said in unison.

"Don't worry, Utami-chan, I'm very proud of how you did. Now let's all go to the awards ceremony," Mimoko smiled.

Utami tearfully nodded in approval as Zago and Azenira arrived. Turned out both of them secured 3½ points too, which was all the more impressive considering the level of players they faced.

...

At the awards ceremony, Raymond himself took center stage. "Today is a momentous day in the history of chess. But before that, I suppose we should get the other achievements out of the way. First off, the winner of the rookie section with a perfect score, Nyoan Nyakuoji."

"NYAHAHA! I won, nya!" Nyoan declared as she leaped on stage, now sporting a wool-knit hat.

Kuon proudly took pictures of her, though beneath her smile, she was still upset about Mimoko’s rise to fame.

"Next up, the winner of the intermediate section also with a perfect score, Iori Ishikiridokoro."

"YO! Post this all over social media!" Iori grinned as she struck a cute pose.

"As for the open section, in third place with 4 points, Hagemi Shousen. In second place with 4 points, Peter Morphy. And our winner with 4 and a half points, Mimoko Inoue!"

"Hmm? Nobody got a perfect score?" Yuusuke asked.

"Well, it is to be expected," Okisato nodded.

"But why are the 3rd place and 2nd place not sharing 2nd if they have the same amount of points?" Yuzuha asked.

"Because of tie-breakers. Peter probably edged Miss Shousen out because unlike her, he didn't lose a match. And me losing to Peter who finished second is probably what doomed me to 4th place."

"As for the top team, the Shogikawa Gakuin chess team wins it all."

"Oh, we won," Okisato shrugged as he and the rest of the chess club joined Iori and Mimoko on stage.

With all of them up on stage, poor Nyoan quickly felt like the odd one out.

"Now your attention please. With the conclusion of the tournament and awards ceremony, your new ratings are now available. Please pull out your WWCF cards," Raymond instructed.

Everyone did as they were told and quickly pulled their WWCF cards out. All the chess members that had ratings had increased them with Iori and Yuuske jumping to 1144 and 1530, respectively. Okisato had jumped to 2525, which combined with his tournament performance, meant he fulfilled all the conditions needed to become a grandmaster. While it was a big moment for him, he was genuinely more interested in what Mimoko’s rating would be along with all the other rookies. It turned out Rodeo’s rating was 250, Utami’s was 1001, Maida’s was 1354, Yuzuha’s was 350, Azenira's and Zago's were both 1000, and Numakawa’s was 900.

As for Mimoko, the moment she pulled out her WWCF card, the entire room gasped as they saw the number.

"And for our new previously unrated champion, her new rating is now 2700! And that's not all, she bested not one, not two, but FOUR grandmasters, all rated above 2600! Not to mention a draw against one of the strongest grandmasters and top 5 chess players, Peter Morphy. Therefore, by my authority as president of the world wide chess federation, I grant Mimoko Inoue the title of grandmaster!" Raymond declared as the room descended into gasps and murmurs.

"Damn, even faster than me. Don't think anyone's just been given a straight pass to grandmaster without securing three norms since Mikhail Tal," Hagemi smiled.

"So I was the first to fall to this new terror. Well, I guess it can be considered a badge of honor to lose to the next big name in chess," Gorana smiled.

"She's around Noa's age, and already a 2700-rated grandmaster after a single tournament! Guess she practiced behind the scenes, and really does have talent, otherwise I doubt Redfield would just hand her such a lofty prize outright," Maccabee chuckled.

From behind him, a young girl with long dark hair tied up in a ponytail stared up at Mimoko. This was his 18-year old daughter, Noa. "She managed to do all that in a single tournament. I wonder if one day, I too could be a grandmaster and maybe even face off against her," Noa thought.

"So this is why Gyro was so frightened. Now I can see. I should have been more proactive," Svetlana thought as she watched from the back of the room.

"Heh? So she really was a big deal. Guess now I'm motivated to break her. Wonder which one of her teammates I should use to send a message. Maybe the big lug," Haruki thought as he began to head out.

"So Raymond is making another grand bet. Well, she truly did earn her rating. Though I imagine I'll now have to get in line to challenge her once more," Peter thought.

"And with that, thank you all for coming and look forward to the blitz tournament next week at Triple cedar hotel," Raymond stated before leaving the stage.

"My, it seems that club has quite a few intriguing members. So why did you fail so badly in your section?" Kuon asked as she glared at Nyogaku.

"I waz sleepy," Nyogaku derpily smiled.

"Well, it does make me happy when you fail in such adorable fashion. Nyoan is progressing well, so no matter. Though I will admit, I'm not exactly thrilled about Hagemi being dethroned."

"Why'zz that?"

"Because the one who dethroned her will only push me down even harder than Hagemi did," Kuon snarled as she walked away.

...

After packing up all the awards, Okisato brought everyone to the bridge overlooking the secret puzzle cafe.

"Tanabe-kun, this better be quick, the bus to the station will leave in 15 minutes," Maida glared.

"That's plenty of time. So Inoue-senpai ready to-"

"I’m taking the secret ramp. I'm not jumping off with you," Mimoko angrily smiled.

Okisato nodded, and proceeded to jump off anyway. Despite not showing it, he was a little saddened Mimoko decided not to jump off with him.

But upon landing on the invisible walkway, nearly everyone stared in awe before jumping off themselves, much to Maida’s horror.

“DON’T JUST JUMP OVER THE BRIDGE!”

“It’s fine! There’s a path,” Okisato called back up.

Mimoko shifted awkwardly as Maida decided to leap off the bridge herself, leaving her as the only holdout. “Oh fine! But just this once!” she cried as she leaped off the bridge to the invisible pathway below.