Chapter 58:

Triple cedar's Himitsuchan

En Passant Grandmaster

Rodeo paused as he turned around to come face-to-face with Yuzuha.

"Hey Gorou-san, why are you looking so down?"

Rodeo refused to answer, causing Yuzua to pout and attempt to drag him away wit her to the secret puzzle cafe. Rodeo didn't care and simply walked away, dragging Yuzuha along with him, not knowing he was being watched.

"Well, looks like we got a double header. This worked out even better than I had hoped," Haruki smirked as he watched the two from a distance. "I hope I can force the girl with the lug to be punished as a bargaining chip, but Skabby mentioned that the DESPER won't allow someone rated 500 points higher than the one being challenged to be tacked on to the bet as a bargaining chip. Let me just... Heh, she's only 100 points higher than him. Time for double despair," Haruki sneered as he pulled out his DESPER and charged at the two.

"MMPH NGh MMPH!?"

Haruki skidded to a halt as Iori suddenly appeared before him.

The glint in Iori's eyes told Haruki she was bad news, and prompted him to retreat as Yuzuha and Rodeo turned around.

Iori attempted to give chase, but stopped as Yuzuha let out a shriek. "I- Iori-chan? I- Is that you!? What happened!?"

"Mmph ngh mmph," Iori blushed as she made a shaving gesture with her hands.

"Well... It is on brand for you... So come help me bring Gorou-san to the secret puzzle cafe. He hasn't done the daily puzzle yet, nor does he know where it is."

Iori shrugged and decided to help Yuzuha. Figuring that it might be best to stck with Rodeo as he was clearly being targeted.

The trio made their way to the secret puzzle cafe and entered to find everyone else present.

"This is good, now I can tell everyone about the piece of shit's plot with no repercussions" Okisato thought. "Say, were you three attacked by a pretty boy with tan skin and long chestnut hair?"

"We uh, just saw a guy like that run up to us, but Iori-chan scared him away," Yuzuha nervously stated.

"Good. He's targeting Gorou-san and wants to enslave him and strip him of his free will."

"Why the hell should we believe you?" Rodeo snarled.

"Yeah, you make shit up all the time, not to mention you've been messing up Utami," Yuusuke growled.

"He's with the Desperado league though," Okisato glared.

"I don't believe you. Your buddies put us in debt with their silver tongues," Rodeo glared.

"Then at least buddy up with Shouben-san instead of going off by yourself."

"No."

"You don't trust him either?"

"I don't trust ya, so I won't listen to ya."

"Then DON'T ask Inoue-senpai for help when she finishes doing the puzzle rush," Okisato grumbled as he gestured towards the back.

"You're tryin’ to make me approach her. I ain't that dumb."

"And what's wrong with asking her for help?"

"I don't want you to hurt her."

Okisato began to scowl. Rodeo just had to be the stubborn type. Now Okisato began to fret as he surmised Rodeo would now be wary of anything he said, and even feared he'd now refuse Mimoko's help due to thinking it was because of his plot, which it technically would be.

"Gorou-san, we really should ask Inoue-senpai for some pointers. You lost every game you played, right? We should get some training so we don't do poorly in the main tournament," Yuzuha pleaded.

A ray of hope shown for Okisato as Rodeo turned to face Yuzuha.

"No."

"PLEASE!"

Rodeo shook his head and headed out with Yuzuha and Iori chasing after him.

"Hmm? Did something happen?" Mimoko asked as she and Utami emerged from a pod in the back.

Okisato thought for a moment before shaking his head. While he would have preferred Mimoko to take care of Rodeo, the fact that Iori was seemingly tagging along with him put him at ease, as he suspected Iori was much stronger than she let on.

“So are you going to play that 4-way chess match?” Michiko asked.

“Sorry, I think we’re good for now,” Okisato nodded.

“Did you know that it counts as beating an SPCM even if you beat them in chess variants like Chess 960 and 4-way chess?” Mizuse smiled as she emerged from the back alongside a young woman with dark skin and short black hair.

Okisato raised an eyebrow as he recognized the woman with Mizuse, but decided to remain silent so as not to spoil the surprise.

The woman, however, didn’t say a word and simply headed over to the large center table to play someone.

“So are you enjoying your bald endeavor?” Mimoko asked.

“Quite so. Though it has not even been an hour since the makeover was completed. I would love to sit and chat, but I do have someone waiting to challenge me, so alas, I must be off. But feel free to watch,” Mizuse smiled as she headed over to the large center table to play someone.

As Okisato checked his points menu and realized he had enough points to challenge Michiko, Mimoko suddenly redeemed her points to challenge Michiko. “Uh, why’d you do that?”

“I heard from Shousen-kun that you were causing some trouble, so I’m going to relieve my stress by challenging SPCM Himitsuchan,” Mimoko huffed.

Okisato sighed and slouched back down on the couch as Michiko did her introduction.

"Pleased to make your acquaintance. I am Himitsuchan, now let's have a good match," Michiko bowed as her WWCF card appeared.

"2144. You're pretty skilled," Mimoko smiled.

"Now challenger, let's see if you can best me. You are to move as white, so the first move is yours. You have 60 minutes on the clock and your time starts... Now!"

Mimoko happily opened the game by moving her pawn to e4 as Michiko moved her pawn to d4. She then promptly moved her pawn to d4, as Michiko mirrored her by moving her pawn to d5.

"The French defense: Normal variation does have a nice aesthetic to it," Mimoko smiled as she moved her knight to c3.

"Hoh? What about the French defense: Winawer variation?" Michiko smirked as she moved her bishop to d4.

"I think you meant to say, French defense: Winawer, delayed exchange variation," Mimoko smiled as she captured the pawn at d5 with her e-pawn.

"Well you certainly know your chess terminology. Have you taken a terminology trivia quiz at a secret puzzle cafe yet?" Michiko asked as she captured the pawn at d5 with her e-pawn.

"Not yet, but it sounds like fun, so I'm going to. You’re pretty savvy with chess terminology as well," Mimoko smiled as she moved her knight to f3.

"That is one of my charm points, why I dare say that amongst all the SPCMs in Japan, I’m the only one that can correctly name every opening move and variation, check," Michiko chuckled as she moved her queen to e7.

"That’s really impressive," Mimoko smiled as she moved her bishop to e2.

On the outside, Michiko looked like she was enjoying herself to the fullest as she moved her knight to c6. However, on the inside, she was frantically racking her brain to come up with a good move. "She just castled on the king's side. Now knight f6 is my best move, and since I'm forbidden from going all out... I just angered myself. I should probably just let my mind loose to avoid thinking about that.”

After the moves Michiko predicted came to be, Mimoko moved her rook to e1, prompting Michiko to capture the knight at c3 with her bishop. Mimoko naturally captured said bishop with her b-pawn, as Michiko opted to castle on the king's side.

Mimoko then decided to set up and moved her bishop to d3, while Michiko similarly moved her bishop to e6. Mimoko then moved her bishop to g5, prompting Michiko to counter by moving her pawn to h6.

"This really is a lot of fun, Michiko-chan," Mimoko smiled as she slid her bishop to h4.

"I'm glad, though you seem to be in a bind," Michiko chuckled as she moved her pawn to g5.

"Oh don't worry, that's easy to get out of," Mimoko smiled as she captured the pawn at g5 with her knight.

Michiko's eyes widened in shock. "That monster, many fail to escape that predicament, let alone turn it around in their favor," she thought as she captured the knight at g5 with her h-pawn.

Mimoko happily captured said pawn with her bishop, prompting Michiko to move her f-rook to e8. Mimoko then let out a joyful giggle as she moved her queen to c1, while Michiko struggled to maintain her smile as she moved her knight to b8.

"Damn my stagnated rating. It's hindering me in more ways than one," Michiko thought as Mimoko moved her bishop to h4.

Michiko then moved her b-knight to d7 and watched as Mimoko launched her attack, by moving her queen to g5, forcing her king to f8.

"Check, looks like we're nearing the end," Mimoko smiled as she moved her queen to h6.

"My, what makes you say that?" Michiko chuckled as she moved her king to g8.

Mimoko responded with a happy giggle as she moved her rook to e3. Knowing what she was planning, Michiko slid her queen to d6, yet that didn't phase Mimoko as she moved her rook to g3. Michiko quickly slid her bishop to g4 in hopes that it would deter Mimoko, but the glitter in Mimoko's eyes told Michiko, she saw the mate in 3.

"She truly is a monster," Michiko thought as Mimoko captured the bishop at g4 with her rook.

With no other choice, Michiko captured the rook at g4 with her knight and watched as Mimoko moved her queen to h7, forcing her king to f8.

"Checkmate. I had lots of fun," Mimoko smiled as she moved her queen to h8.

"Impressive. You have bested me, dear challenger. And as such, you may claim some bounty. First, you earn a badge for besting me. Best the other 6 managers, and you will have the right to challenge Maestro Himitsu. Second, you win a bounty of 1000 points. Finally, you unlock the right to rematch me for just a single point."

"Thanks. Though can I only rematch you at a puzzle cafe?"

"Only if you don't have the puzzle cafe app, but you have that, yes?"

"Indeed I do. So can I attempt a terminology quiz?”

Before Mimoko could do so, an announcement went out stating that the awards ceremony for the blitz tournament would begin shortly. Okisato let out a heavy sigh as he realized this meant he wouldn’t be able to challenge Michiko. “Well at least Iori-chan’s hopefully guarding Gorou-san,” he thought.

The full game:

White: Mimoko Inoue (2714) Black: SPCM Himitsuchan (Michiko Azami) (2144)

1. e4 e6

2. d4 d5

3. Nc3 Bb4

4. exd5 exd5

5. Nf3 Qe7+

6. Be2 Nc6

7. O-O Nf6

8. Re1 Bxc3

9. bxc3 O-O

10. Bd3 Be6