The 7 secret chess maestros [Season 1 End]

Himitsudono began applauding as the chess board lowered back into the counter. “Well done, Grandmaster Inoue. You have bested me and thus gain the following spoils of war. First, you earn a badge for besting me. Second, a bounty of 1000 points and lastly, the right to rematch me for just a single point, though that is only possible within a secret puzzle cafe.”

“So I can play you again. That’s amazing. I’m glad there’s something like that, though if you don’t mind me asking, are there other SPCMs to challenge?” Mimoko asked.

“Why yes there are, and they each have their own secret puzzle cafe, though they will not be as easy to beat as me. Though if you want a challenge, seek out the other 6 SPCMs and best them. I assure you that it is worth it even for a player of your skill. And speaking of a skilled player, here comes one now."

Mimoko and Okisato turned to see Peter entering. He immediately sat down and nodded as a tablet appeared before him. Within seconds, he had solved all 10 puzzles at the highest difficulty, perfectly.

"Now, would you like to purchase something with your wealth of points, Grandmaster Morphy?" Himitsudono asked.

"Yes, I want a lead on where one of the three maestros I have left to find is."

"'Maestros'?" Mimoko asked.

"Seems we meet again, Mimoko Inoue. Unfortunately, it seems your timetable will prevent us from having another match today, but I will be at the blitz tournament next week."

"I'm looking forward to it."

"My, seems Grandmaster Inoue truly is getting the lion's share of information for free. As for Grandmaster Morphy, the information you requested has been sent to your WWCF card. We thank you for your transaction."

"A word of thumb, Mimoko Inoue. You can purchase an app that lets you play the puzzles anywhere once a day, however, you'll get bonus points for solving the puzzles at a secret puzzle cafe. Hmm, so China is indeed where one of the maestros is. I was hoping for one of the more obscure ones, but I guess I'll know all their locations soon. Now, if you'll excuse me, I must take my leave to track down the maestro and best them before next week’s tournament."

As Peter left, Himitsudono chuckled. "Seems the biggest secret is now out in the open. The secret maestros are the seven super grandmasters that can only be challenged by beating all the SPCMs in their domains. As for the maestros themselves, they are truly the best of the best, and all have ratings over 3000."

"Wait, but I thought the highest rating achieved was 2899!" Mimoko gasped.

"That's why it's a secret. So, think you can beat ALL the secret maestros?"

A smile began to form on Mimoko's face. "You bet! It sounds like fun."

"Then you should probably save up your points so you can buy the app. Students like us can't come here at midnight every night," Okisato nodded.

"How much is the app?"

"Well, for that, the price varies. Normally, it's 9,999,999 points, but there are ways to get it at a discount. For example, beating a maestro will lower the price considerably. Another way is to solve puzzles at the max difficulty and get a perfect score on them within your first three visits to a secret puzzle cafe and/or best a SPCM on your first attempt within your first three visits. And you, Grandmaster Inoue, have done just that. Thus, for today only, the app for you will cost only 1000 points."

"DEAL!"

Once the points were exchanged, a new icon appeared on Mimoko’s WWCF card.

"Ah yes, I should also mention that the app allows you to see the leaderboard. You may also order items you’d normally only be able to order from within a secret puzzle cafe and even challenge SPCMs you’ve bested to chess matches, if they are available. As for a final word of thumb, as long as you are within a secret puzzle cafe, you may challenge any SPCM or maestro that you've met anywhere in the world from any cafe,” Himitsudono stated.

"Say, does the app allow you to teleport to any cafe you've visited?" Okisato asked.

"My, I wonder if it does?"

"How many points?"

"A non-discountable 10,000,000,000, though I hear the price can be halved if you best half the maestros like Grandmaster Morphy has done. And perhaps, there is a secret way to unlock a more affordable price for it.

"Are there other ways to earn points besides the daily puzzles?" Mimoko asked.

"Why yes indeed. Winning a free-for-all 4-way chess tournament here at a secret puzzle cafe. Tthere is an entrance fee of 40 points, but the winner walks away with 40,000,000 points and that's just for the standard. The international variant will net you 4 billion points, but only if you win the whole thing, and let me tell you, even someone like Grandmaster Morphy struggles to win those."

"Why's that?"

"Because in 4-way chess, there's four players. You also win by capturing pieces and getting points. Three players could also mutually agree to take out the biggest threat before attacking each other," Okisato stated.

"Wow, I'll have to study up on it."

"Oh, and you can also earn some points based on your performances at normal tournaments and regular 4-way chess tournaments hosted by the WWCF, now that you’ve found a secret puzzle cafe and completed a daily challenge"

"Wow, I really hit the jackpot. Thanks Himitsudono."

"My pleasure. I look forward to your return, and eventually rematches."

...

"UGH! Those puzzles are hard! I only got 4 right!" Iori fumed as she headed to the bus with the others.

“What difficulty were you on?” Okisato asked.

“Duh, Max difficulty! I’m hardcore!”

As for the others, Utami managed to get 7 right at novice difficulty while Yuzuha got 5 right at beginner difficulty. Rodeo had only gotten 2 right, but largely due to attempting the advanced difficulty ones. Maida meanwhile managed to get an impressive 9 right at the advanced difficulty, while Azenira and Zago both got 5 right at the advanced difficulty. Numakawa however…

"The puzzles are far easier than the game, I got all 10 right," Numakwa boasted.

"Bet it was at beginner difficulty though, right?" Okisato jibed.

"Geh, I will gradually increase the difficulty."

Yuusuke meanwhile struggled just to get 6 right at the advanced difficulty, though his mood only soured when he heard Mimoko and Okisato got the secret puzzle cafe app. "Ugh, you got the app? I'm never gonna get that thing. It's not fair.”

"Hey, do you have any idea how many years it took to save up for this?" Okisato groaned.

"Have you beaten a maestro, Tanabe-kun?" Mimoko asked.

"Maestro!? Wait, you mean like Himitsudono-"

"I still need to find all the cafes and SPCMs first and beat them in addition to the ones I've found but still haven’t beaten before I can challenge Maestro Himitsu. But now that I have the app, I won't need to worry too much about getting the points to do that."

"Maestro Himitsu?"

"The maestro of Japan. I have no idea who they are, but it's possible I've met them without knowing. As for you, Shousen-san, did your mother not tell you about the maestros?"

"No, I have no idea what you're talking about, man."

"By the way, what happened to Zanni?"

"Oh I beat him and made it so that he'd destroy the DESPER and never hurt anyone again. Then the WWCF president had his guys drag him away."

"Seems you really decided to make him suffer. Well he deserves it."

"Unlike you, I'm a hero."

"Yeah, sure.”

…

The next day, Mimoko woke up early as her mother pounced on her bed. “Ugh, Okaa-chan, stop…”

“Up n’ at em, girl! I heard ya got interviews to do on the mornin’ news!” Mimoko's mother smiled as she rummaged through Mimoko’s closet, looking for a nice outfit.

“So this was what Tanabe-kun warned about. Well, guess I’ll accept the challenge,” Mimoko shrugged as she got out of bed.

As she headed downstairs, she noticed Utami waiting patiently at the dining table. "Did you sleep alright?"

"Y- Yes. Breakfast with Mimoko-sama... Breakfast with Mimoko-sama.

After getting back from the hotel last night, Mimoko had offered to let Utami stay at her place, due to her being too nervous to return home.

"Mimoko-sama, shall I accompany you to your interviews?"

"Don't you have school though?"

"It matters not!"

"Sorry girl, but ya gotta get to school. Though feel free to come back and spend the night again," Mimoko's mother smiled as she prepared breakfast.

…

As Utami neared the school, she found her path blocked by a young man that looked identical to her brother, Nagi, aside from the scar on his face. Utami's heart began thumping uncontrollably as her entire body began to tremble in fear.

"Well hello, Utami. I hear Nagi and Mami kicked the bucket because of you. Naughty. Now I have so much more work to do as student council president, not to mention the emotional toll this has taken on me," the young man sneered.

"Ka- Ka- Kazuya-nii..."

The young man was Kazuya Enoki, Nagi's older twin brother. Despite not being gifted in shogi like his brother, he was gifted in other areas such as politics. This led to him being elected student council president, and cozying up to the Segawas, forcing his father to acknowledge him. However, he was still seen as inferior to his younger twin brother, and treated Utami just as badly as him and his father, in fact, it could be argued that of the three, he treated Utami the worst.

"Utami, I heard you betrayed the shogi club in order to form a chess club. While I'm no fan of shogi, I do respect our school's pride and joy, yet now you've destroyed it, all to replace it with a chess club."

Utami trembled in fear, however, that line had angered her enough to speak out. "N- NOT TRUE! I've b- been in hell because you a- always let Shion beat me up! My freedom was on the line and I won it, thanks to Mimoko-sama!"

"Well, you certainly gained a nasty mouth. Good thing I made a worthwhile investment with Gyro," Kazuya sneered as he pulled a DESPER out of his pocket.

"H- How-"

"A few months ago. And wouldn't you know it, I discovered a new talent," Kazuya sneered as he flashed his WWCF card before Utami.

His rating was 1599, which was intermediate-level, but nonetheless, it was still much higher than Utami's 1001. Fearing she was about to be dragged into a DESPER battle, Utami went on guard, yet to her shock, she suddenly felt someone grab her from behind and shove a cloth into her face.

"Sorry, trash like you isn't worth wasting this on. But don't worry, I'll make sure you die, at the hands of your beloved "Mimoko-sama"," Kazuya sneered as Utami lost consciousness.

[Season 1 End]