Chapter 164:

Good ole Benoni

En Passant Grandmaster

Utami walked through the city, searching for foes to face. Now that Okisato was in China, she and Yuusuke were the strongest players from the chess club, or so she thought. Azenira and Zago stepping up really made the game much easier.

"We've practically won this game without Tanabe even participating. I also heard Mimoko-sama took out one of the executives, and even Iori-chan helped take out some grunts. Tanabe really has been slacking. I thought he beat that skeleton ages ago so where is he?"

As she rounded a corner, Utami froze, and quickly retreated. Behind the corner was the rainbow executive, Melania Plav. Instead of wearing her flashy blue fairy dress and flats, Melania was now clad in a latex blue coat, black latex leggings, and white sneakers. She had also let her short hair dow, giving her a much more refined and professional look. Had Utami not recognized her by her hair color, she'd have easily mistaken her for a different person.

"Ah, Melania-sama. My apologies, your attire and hairstyle is a bit different so I didn't recognize you," a nervous grunt stuttered.

"I only wear that dingy outfit when I'm on camera for the league. This is my preferred fashion. Besides, my coat and hair are blue, so Scharlachrot should have no issue. The dresscode simply states you don the color you're given and dye your hair to match, though I guess Sorcha can no longer do the latter. Now move. I have business to attend to."

As Utami watched, Azenira and Zago showed up.

"HEY Utami-senpai! Why ya hiding behind a wall?" Azenira asked?"

Azenira's voice immediately sent Melania and the grunt, charging towards the wall.

"Nice going, loud mouth," Zago groaned.

"Hey, I was callin' em over. Now I get the blue one."

"No, she's mine. I fought the indigo girl so I should fight the blue girl as well."

"No way! She noticed me first, so I play her. I hear the others took out the other executives so whoever beats Bluey here wins the competition."

"Uh... I actually saw you first," the grunt nervously chuckled.

"ARE YOU SHITTING ME!? Ugh, hurry up and call the arbiters. Guess this means Zago wins."

"No, I'm challenging the one with red hair," Melania glared as she zeroed in on Utami.

"Then what about me?" Zago asked.

"Go find another grunt somewhere else."

The arbiter squad quickly appeared and surrounded all the players.

"Uh, I am rated 1800 which is actually higher than most of the executives, so-"

"You're just a grunt, nothing special," Azenira snarled as the poor grunt became depressed.

Utami on the other hand found herself playing as black against Melania, who was rated lower than her.

"Now make this quick, I'm on a schedule," Melania glared as she opened the game by moving her pawn to d4.

"Those two are rated lower than me, so why'd you choose to challenge me?" Utami asked as she moved her pawn to c5.

"The old Benoni defense? To answer your question, ratings don't always reflect true skill. Those two are on the rise, not to mention, your the one I want to send to prison the most," Melania glared as she moved her pawn to d5.

"Because I overheard you?" Utami asked as she moved her knight to f6.

Melania went silent and moved her knight to c3, as Utami let out a sigh and moved her pawn to e6. "Very well, I'll just play quietly," she thought as Melania moved her bishop to e3.

Utami moved her pawn to d6, prompting Melania to capture the pawn at e6 with her d-pawn, However, Utami simply captured said pawn with her bishop, prompting Melania to move her pawn to b3.

"That wasn't a great move. Hmm, her appearance makes her look more skilled, but perhaps her rating is her true strength," Utami thought as she moved her pawn to d5.

Melania continued to make questionable moves, starting with her moving her queen to d2. Utami decided to move her knight to c6, but then Melania castled on the queen's side.

"You know, castling isn't always the best move," Utami stated as she moved her pawn to c4.

"Are you trying to lecture me? Quiet. Chess is meant to be a quiet sport, so respect the game, and shut up," Melania glared as she captured the pawn at c4 with her b-pawn.

"Though we are allowed to say, check," Utami stated as she moved her bishop to a3.

Melania clicked her tongue and moved her king to b1, prompting Utami to move her bishop to b4. Melania then captured the pawn at d5 with her c-pawn, but rather than deal with it, Utami moved her queen to a5. This prompted Melania to immediately capture the bishop on e6 with her d-pawn, but Utami had her eyes on something bigger and captured the knight at c3 with her bishop.

"I'm not going to have my queen taken," Melania thought as she moved her queen to d6.

It was then that Utami noticed something Melania had completely overlooked. "Sorry, but you're the one that's going to be taken out of the game. Check," she declared as she moved her queen to b5.

Melania's eyes widened as she realized she was about to be mated. "Tch, damn this undercover operation. I've had to dumb my skills down so much, it's starting to truly affect me," she thought as she moved her queen to b4.

Utami promptly captured said queen with her queen, leaving Melania with no choice but to move her king to c1.

"And that's checkmate. Seems this was completed in a timely manner like you wanted," Utami huffed as she moved her queen to b2, winning the game.

"Well, win or lose, it doesn't matter. Now I'm free to attend to my personal business," Melania growled as she walked away.

"HEY! Don't just leave without facing me!" Azenira yelled.

"Rules state rematches with beaten opponents are forbidden. Now good day."

Azenira began throwing a tantrum as the grunt she had brutally beaten stared down at the ground in sadness. "S- She didn't have to beat me so cruelly."

Zago meanwhile, decided to head off on his own, but Azenira noticed him sneaking off and took off after him. As the two caught up to each other, a figure leaped off the roof of a nearby building and landed before them.

"So you've bested the rainbow executives, then it's up to I, Heather, queen of the fairies, to clean sweep you all. Now I laid eyes on you first, girl. So let us fight!"

"Sucks for you. I win the competition," Azenira snickered as she went to face Heather.

"Guess I'll hunt some more grunts then," Zago groaned as he headed out. Unaware, that Azenira would in fact get completely outplayed by Heather.

The full game:

White: Melania Plav (1074) Black: Utami Enoki (1500)

1. d4 c5

2. d5 Nf6

3. Nc3 e6

4. Be3 d6

5. dxe6 Bxe6

6. b3 d5

7. Qd2 Nc6

8. O-O-O c4