Chapter 153:

Sir Grobhand vs Numakawa

En Passant Grandmaster

Yuzuha trembled as she watched Numakawa engage with Medeucesa in battle.

"You’re only 400? I'll go a bit easy on you, so how about we play 3-check?" Medeucesa smirked.

3-check was a chess variant where all it took to win was to either deliver a check 3 times to the enemy king, or checkmate before that could happen.

"Just 3 checks? You're underestimating me," Numakawa smirked as Medeucesa opened by moving her pawn to e4.

"Save it until AFTER the mate."

Numakawa smirked and adjusted his glasses as he moved his pawn to e5, prompting Medeucesa to move her knight to f3.

Next, Medeucesa captured the pawn at e5 with her knight while Numakawa captured the pawn at e4 with his knight. With a gleeful grin, Medeucesa captured the pawn at f7 with her knight, and most shocking of all, Numakwa responded perfectly, moving his queen to e7.

"How do you like that? I calculate this position is completely dominating for me."

"Yeah, if this was normal chess that is. Check," Medeucesa snickered as she moved her knight to d6.

While Numakawa had forgotten this was 3-check, he actually did have a huge advantage. For if he captured the knight at d6 with his knight, he could also deliver a check, and have a better position to boot. But instead, he went full Numakawa and captured the knight at d6 with his c-pawn instead.

This allowed another check in the form of queen h5. Now there were only three possible moves Numakawa could make, though none mattered as he would lose anyway. He didn't know this and moved his pawn to g6, and was delighted that Medeucesa gleefully captured it with her queen. Until...

"Checkmate. That's three checks. Off to prison, egghead."

Medeucesa won the game.

"I- Impossible."

As Medeucesa and the arbiter squad hauled Numakawa off to prison, Yuzuha cringed in disgust at what she had witnessed. She knew Numakawa was an idiot, but even she was able to see the right moves to make.

“I think I’ll slap him when we get home.”

As she nervously wandered by herself, she ran into Azenira, and lightened her mood by informing her of Numakawa’s capture.

“He got captured!? Great!”

“Look, I know he’s an idiot, but forsaking him-”

“No, no. That means there’s an executive guarding him!”

Azenira quickly ran off, leaving poor Yuzuha stranded alone once more.

…

At the prison, trouble was brewing in a different sense as two idiots met.

"A hairless nerd? I've never seen one before!" Sir Grobhand gasped as he laid eyes on Numakawa.

"You can see my big brain much easier now, yes?" Numakawa smirked.

"A big brain? Oh so that's why they threw me in. They said they didn't want me gallivanting around, even though my domain lies hither. Yet the fools fail to realize... NO PRISON CAN HOLD SIR GROBHAND OF GROB!" Sir Grobhand declared as he activated his DESPER.

A model castle sprung up as the area turned into a jousting ring.

"Now, should ye lose, ye shall be given death at the hands of the axe," Sir Grobhand stated.

"And should I win, my brain will naturally enlarge and get smarter. Numakawa stated.

"So be it. Now- Ugh, you are to make the first move."

"Behold! The unmatched power of my intellect!" Numakawa declared as he moved his pawn to g4.

Sir Grobhand laughed and countered by moving his pawn to g5. "So ye are a worthy opponent, but now the duel truly begins."

"You've fallen for it! Now you will fall before the unstoppable Coca-Cola gambit!" Numakawa declared as he moved his pawn to f4.

"No, I counter it," Sir Grobhand sneered as he moved his pawn to f5.

"A common blunder, now I take," Numakawa smirked as he captured the pawn on f5 with his g-pawn.

"Likewise," Sir Grobhand glared as he captured the pawn on f4 with his g-pawn.

"And now I achieve dominece," Numakawa declared as he moved his pawn to e4.

Sir Grobhand began to shake his head. "I just en passant. Nothing you can do," he glared as he performed en passant and captured the pawn on e4.

Numakawa immediately burst in to confident laughter. "The en passant was a common trap of the Coca-Cola gambit, and you fell for it! Checkmate!" he declared as he moved his queen to h5, winning the game.

Sir Grobhand immediately went pale with horror, though his knight helmet made it difficult to notice. "NO! I'm the master of the Grob! I can't lose like this!"

"Oh, but you did, for you lost to a Grob," Numakawa boasted as his head suddenly began to enlarge.

"Of course, only a Grob can beat a Grob. You are a worthy adversary," Sir Grobhand smiled.

"Well that was cringe," Medeucesa snarled as she stood guard.

"Nay! It was battle!"

"No, it was stupid. We're unable to confiscate your DESPER, but instead of using it to warp away, you used it to just summon a pocket dimension for the match. And you, "big brain", why didn't you make the prize for winning going back home to Japan, or putting some hair on that fleshy scalp of yours? Idiots."

Numakawa and Sir Grobhand stood in silence. Perhaps as a coping mechanism, both stopped thinking and entered a hibernated state. Though it didn't last long as Azenira soon arrived and managed to beat Medeucesa, freeing Numakawa. Sir Grobhand though was still held prisoner, much to his dismay.

...

At Fairy HQ, Scharlachrot scowled as news of Medeucesa's defeat reached her. "Ugh, looks like we're getting whooped. Seriously, why didn't any of those assholes say these guys had prodigies among them. Now that Medeucesa and Plum are out, Vittoria and Melania are the only executives left."

"Just saying, it would help if YOU decided to participate," Melania glared.

Scharlachrot began to go pale.

"Hmm?"

"Uh, you know we can't have the chief enforcer go out there and risk losing."

"But you're the second in command, yes? So you should be able to take them down even in a normal chess match."

Scharlachrot began to sweat buckets until Heather arrived.

"Worry not. For I, queen of the fairies, shall take the field myself. You need not worry, I'll wipe them all out."

"Even Okisato Tanabe?"

"I fear he's probably gonna ditch the game. He's already in his second round with Red Reaper," Scharlachrot sighed.

"Hmm? I believe he's one of the first to actually beat the kaiser," Melania mumbled as she walked away.

Scharlachrot shot her a glare as she clenched her fist. "Melania, you're the most suspicious person here. If you're with the Desperados, I'll never forgive you."

...

In the skies above London, Okisato once again found himself in a Sopwith camel and playing as black.

"What a shame, herr oni-tiger. You're stuck as black again," Red Reaper taunted

The full games:

White: Medeucesa Indikó (2406) Black: Syouma Numakawa (400)

1. e4 e5

2. Nf3 Nf6

3. Nxe5 Nxe4

4. Nxf7 Qe7

5. Nd6+ cxd6

6. Qh5+ g6

7. Qxg6#