'...' Writing
'...' Sign language
"...": Text to speech
Horikita's POV
I have a chessboard before me and have only recently learned its rules. I'm touching the chess pieces for the first time in my life. During my specialized training with someone over the computer, I've come to appreciate the depth and enjoyment of chess.
If I were playing against Ayanokouji or Sakayanagi, I doubt I'd have a chance at winning. However, the person across the table from me is not either of those two. I don't know how skilled Hashimoto-kun is, but I find it difficult to imagine that he is better than either.
"Good luck, Horikita."
My opponent casually called out to me, and from what I've heard, even the people in Class A think he's a scoundrel.
"What's with the scary look? Don't you want to enjoy this situation a little more?"
"A Class A student like you, who's spent this past year at the top, wouldn't be able to understand just how meaningful this match is for us in Class C."
"It'd suck for us to pay out a bunch of class points if we lose, just like you guys."
The outcome of this chess match will determine whether our class can earn 130 points and graduate in our first year.
"By the way, do you remember my name?"
"I've never spoken to you before, but it's Hashimoto-kun, right?"
"I'm flattered, you know. After all, you, Class C's Horikita, are a bit of a celebrity. I first heard of you when you foiled Ryūen's plans during the Deserted Island Special Exam."
I didn't do anything back then; it was all part of Ayanokouji's plan. But it probably wasn't even something he would call a strategy.
"I've only been playing chess for a few months now. Go easy on me, right?"
"Unfortunately, I've only been playing for a week."
"Really...?"
Even though we had yet to move any of the pieces, the battle had already begun.
Anything we say here could be a mixture of truth and lies. Our history with chess is just one example. We were battling to keep each other in check and find weaknesses in each other's mentality.
Although the exam was lenient regarding small talk among the participants, the only exception was with written tests where the answers might be spoken out loud. Ayanokouji and Sakayanagi, being the commanders, had most likely had many battles like this with one another by now. With the current three-to-three tie, it all depended on the seventh event.
This was all thanks to Hirata's return to action, Sudou keeping his cool, and the collective efforts of a significant number of people. Kouenji's lack of action in the Flash Mental Arithmetic event was the only thing I needed to reflect on, but that could be left for another day.
Kagurazaka... He refused to participate. I want to help him, but he's been distant.
I recalled the arrogant, shocking words Ayanokouji left me with before the morning exam.
Nobody is more substantial than me, even when I'm going easy on them. Remember that.
Surprisingly, as infuriating as it was to hear him say those words, they now felt incredibly reassuring. If Hashimoto isn't a match for him, I can win too.
I don't know why, but it doesn't feel like I'm going to lose. Right from the start, all I could think about was how it felt like I had already secured the upper hand.
"Alright then, we will now begin the seventh event, chess. Please take your seats."
Following the teacher's instructions, I sat down. Hashimoto's smile remained, but his eyes didn't reflect any joy.
The outcome of this match could determine the fate of both classes, and it seems that Hashimoto has also realized the seriousness of the situation.
"Welp, let's get started."
With that, Hashimoto-kun picked up two black and white pawns.
"You know how to decide who goes first, yeah?"
"Yes."
At my confirmation, Hashimoto hid the two pieces in each hand and held them out to me, prompting me to choose.
"Left."
Hashimoto opened his left palm, revealing the white pawn.
In other words, I had the first-move advantage.
"I'm excited to see what your first move will be."
"I'm not sure if it'll meet your expectations."
I felt the excellent texture of a pawn as I made my first move in the seventh match against Hashimoto.
I played my go-to strategy of quickly moving my knight to capture his black pawn, allowing me to control the game.
This was the same method I used in all my matches against Ayanokouji.
"I've learned a lot from Sakayanagi myself. Did you think I would just let you put black at a disadvantage right from the start?"
We both began making our moves right from the start without putting too much thought into them. I only had an hour to finish the game, but since Ayanokouji would use up half an hour, I only had 30 minutes to spare. I couldn't afford to waste time overanalyzing the opening moves.
As we played, I noticed he wasn't playing defensively. He seemed to be making offensive moves one after the other, which was quite surprising. I couldn't figure out who had taught him to play like this because his moves didn't follow standard strategies.
"I've got quite the twisted playstyle, don't I?"
"Indeed. Did you perhaps learn it from your teacher?"
"Yeah, Sakayanagi also plays just like I do. I guess you could say it just clicked for me the most when she was teaching me. Your style seems kind of steady compared to mine. Are you self-taught?"
He's probing me for something. What exactly was he looking to get from my response?
"I've been whole-heartedly devoted to chess for the past week; everything else was pushed aside."
"Oh really now...? Sounds like you were pretty confident that chess would get chosen, huh?"
"You're free to think whatever you like."
Throughout the game, the pieces on the board changed with each move.
Though it may have appeared that my opponent was driving me into a corner by frequently surrounding my pieces, in reality, every move I made was a strategic effort to encroach upon them slowly.
"Have you only played one week?"
"You sure love to talk."
"I think talking is one of my strong points."
He is free to say whatever he wants as long as it's appropriate. I cannot stop him.
"That's right, just one week. But, I can't deny I may be lying."
"If you've only been playing for a week like you say, then I don't believe you learned through self-teaching at all. I can only imagine you've been thoroughly trained by some confident chess player just like our princess, eh?"
"I wonder. I wouldn't tell you either way."
I won't give him any unnecessary information if I can help it.
"Well, that's fine. More importantly, can I ask you some stuff about Ayanokouji?"
That's fine. Based on his demeanor, he seems to have little concern for my experience or whether or not I had a teacher to begin with.
It appears that his true goal is to gather information about Ayanokouji. So, even Hashimoto has begun to take notice of him.
"What do you want to know?"
"Ever since the deserted island exam, I've wondered if Ayanokouji controlled everything from behind the scenes. What do you think?"
He's trying to shake me up emotionally.
This is also probably one of the reasons why he was chosen to play against me.
"What makes you think that?"
"Just a hunch. Answer the question, Horikita."
"What's there to answer? I don't even know what you're talking about."
"Is that so? You seem fairly shaken to me, though."
"When I found out you were my opponent, I already predicted you'd be trying to mess with me like this."
"...Oh really?"
"No matter what kind of tricks you try to pull, you won't get through to me."
With that, I used my bishop to check Hashimoto's king.
Hashimoto's smile once again disappeared for a moment.
"I wonder if you still have the time to keep prattling like this?"
Now, after quietly biding my time for so long, I'll begin launching my counterattack.
"Things are getting interesting..."
And just like that, the match began to lean in my favor.
He's by no means an easy opponent, but his every move is well within my expectations.
Before we were even 10 minutes into the game, his hand stopped.
For the first time, he had to sit and think about what move he would make. That cocksure look he would give me from time to time was nowhere to be seen.
"Aaah, you're a tough one, Horikita. It's unexpected, given that cute face of yours."
"Despite your appearance, you also seem quite skilled."
"No need to butter me up, now. There's always a bigger fish out there."
If this match continues like this, my victory will be all but guaranteed. That's the direction this is headed in.
There's no way the player within Hashimoto hasn't noticed this, either.
However- there's no way this match will end so simply like that.
Ayanokouji's POV
The two players' confrontation was broadcast on a large monitor. In the beginning, Hashimoto was constantly on the offensive, but Horikita handled it calmly and with composure.
She avoided situations where sacrificing a piece seemed necessary for defense. As the game progressed, Horikita gained the upper hand and was winning by the mid-game.
Her victory displayed superior skill beyond what she had shown during their training sessions.
"It's an interesting game. I'd love to see it through until the end."
Sakayanagi spoke as an observer without a hint of urgency in her voice.
"I agree. Let's see it through until the end, then."
"Fufu, although I'd like to allow it... I sadly cannot let that happen. It's not that I don't have faith in Hashimoto-kun, but Horikita-san seems rather composed. Those verbal skills he specializes in don't seem to be affecting her much."
I understand you'd like me to proofread and clarify your provided text. Below is the corrected version of the text:
The time had come, and a notification popped up on my screen informing me that Sakayanagi had decided to intervene in the match. She must have realized that Hashimoto would lose if she waited any longer.
Having to intervene early in the match was probably unexpected for her, but her decision was correct. If she had postponed it even for a few more minutes, Hashimoto would have already been in a position where the match would have been decided. That's how strong Horikita was at the moment.
I was tempted to sit and watch how things would play out for a little longer, as I wanted to see how much she had grown and what kind of moves Horikita would make in a match against Sakayanagi.
"Aren't you going to enter the match, Ayanokouji-kun?"
"We would probably have a higher chance of winning if I left it to Horikita instead of letting me mess things up."
"I see. Then, I suppose it's fine if I turn the tides in our favor?"
Without further ado, she quickly typed something on her keyboard. And just like that, Hashimoto, stuck in contemplation, sprang back to life like a fish finally finding water.
The commander's 30-minute countdown timer would pause when they pressed enter to account for the time lag between transmissions. Then, when the opponent made their next move, the countdown would begin again.
It was Horikita versus Sakayanagi. I was hoping that they were evenly matched. If they were, Horikita might have been able to maintain her advantage until the very end. But I didn't think it would turn out that way. Sakayanagi had entered the match with absolute confidence. Based on the recent events, it was clear that the exceptionally skilled move that Sakayanagi had given Hashimoto had left Horikita anxious.
So, she had to think. She had to consider how she would fight when her opponent had changed to someone much stronger than her. And she had to be resolute. She had to make use of the time she had saved during the opening of the match and make her move.
"Maybe I didn't give her enough of a handicap."
When playing against Horikita, Sakayanagi always responded quickly, taking less than five seconds to make calculated moves that targeted Horikita's weaknesses. Despite creating an opportunity for herself, Horikita's advantage vanished quickly, leaving her with only a slight lead.
As a beginner, she likely felt despair at being matched against an opponent whose power was far beyond her reach and found herself cornered with no way out. After a few minutes, Horikita was left with no options.
The dividing line between winning and losing had been reached, and Horikita couldn't handle the pressure. So, the narrator intervened and signaled to Horikita through her headset, taking over the thinking for her.
It was no longer a battle between Horikita and Sakayanagi but rather a one-on-one fight between Sakayanagi and the narrator.
"At long last... our match can truly begin."
"I guess so."
Although I had only 30 minutes, it was enough to complete the task. Sakayanagi and I continued conversing while typing on our keyboards.
Each move took anywhere between 10 to 20 seconds. Every time I pressed the enter key to send our instructions, the countdown timer stopped decreasing.
By observing the match's progress, I could predict how it would end. We moved our pieces without a break on the chessboard's surface.
[Oioi! What quite otherworldly play style are you guys using here...!?]
I heard Hashimoto's voice calling out through the large monitor as he followed instructions he had just received.
[Our match sure seems pathetic in comparison...]
[...You can say that again.]
Their shock was understandable. The difference between them and us was clear: between an amateur and a professional. It may not have been clear to them which side had the advantage just by looking at the board.
But it went even further than that. I was forced to understand this fact when I first started playing the game, which still holds true. I gasped as I realized Sakayanagi's skills were so profound that I couldn't help but want to show my respect.
I wouldn't be surprised if she made a name for herself in the world of chess in the future. I learned how to play chess as a child in the White Room and played against many professional instructors, but she was better than all.
"So what do you think, Ayanokouji-kun? Have my moves managed to reach your heart?"
"Yeah. Painfully so."
Even after the match went past the halfway point, instead of opening the gap between us and spreading my tiny lead, it took the full extent of my ability to prevent her from closing in on me.
If I made even one mistake, she would probably break through all at once.
"No need to worry. After all, Ayanokouji-kun would never make a careless mistake."
"If that's the case, I wouldn't mind if you gave up."
"That's a rather unreasonable proposal. If you don't make a mistake, I'll use my strength to surpass you and break through from the front."
At one point during the match, Horikita and Hashimoto were stunned into silence, realizing they were mere pawns in our game. As we progressed into the match's second half, Sakayanagi's hand suddenly stopped moving.
Usually, I could predict her next move, but she became lost in thought. The fast pace of our game had Hashimoto on edge, sensing Sakayanagi's confusion.
After a few minutes of silence, Sakayanagi made a decisive move, but I was determined not to let her gain the upper hand. However, this time, it was my turn to stop and consider my next move.
"Ah, what a delightful match this has been! I don't care about the spectators anymore. I want this to be one I'll remember for the rest of my life!"
I wasn't sure how well-versed Hoshinomiya-sensei and Sakagami-sensei were in chess. However, considering their knowledge, they were likely able to recognize the exceptional nature of this game.
Time flew by, and a couple of minutes had already passed. All the time I had saved up was slowly slipping away.
[What... What are you doing, Ayanokouji-kun?]
Through the large monitor, I could hear Horikita's uncertain voice as she sat and waited for my instructions.
[You've only got around five minutes left...!]
I am well aware of how much time I have. This chess game is complex, as it represents the thoughts of four different people on one chessboard.
The once dominant side is now on even ground, and my next move will determine whether we live or die. No matter how long it takes me to analyze the situation and decide on my next move, it will be worth it.
"You're not somebody who'd let something on this level stop you, right Ayanokōji-kun? Please show me what you've got."
Sakayanagi was not interested in winning the exam but in drawing out the full extent of my potential. Even if it meant she could enjoy herself, the outcome of the exam didn't matter to her.
With less than three minutes left, I had to abandon my initial strategy and create a new one that would lead me to victory. Just before the two-minute mark, I sent instructions to Horikita, who started moving again.
Sakayanagi's moves began to take longer than before, while my responses were quick. The endgame was approaching, and checkmate would be all but certain with my next move.
Sakayanagi still had some moves to make, but they were few. If she made a mistake, she would lose her last way out.
"Splendid..."
Sakayanagi spoke words of praise.
A minute passed, then two, then three. For the second time, Sakayanagi was lost in thought.
Her time was running out. Every precious second was slowly being stripped away.
Sakayanagi had been talking to me long ago, but now she had gone quiet.
[Oi oi oi!]
Hashimoto began shouting. Her remaining time dwindled to two minutes and finally fell below my own.
If she ran out of time, she would have no choice but to entrust the rest of the match to Hashimoto, ensuring her defeat.
[Sakayanagi! Are we going to lose like this!?]
Hashimoto probably wouldn't be able to devise a way to escape.
Sakayanagi only had less than a minute left now.
"Truly, truly splendid, Ayanokouji-kun. You've given me more than I could've ever asked for."
As her time dwindled, Sakayanagi sang me praises once again.
"Thanks to you, I've experienced firsthand what it's like to break out in a cold sweat. You were quite the formidable opponent."
Just as she finished talking, Sakayanagi then added a few more words.
"─This is the end."
Sakayanagi whispered these words, indicating her defeat, but Hashimoto couldn't hear her as the commander had no authority to end the game.
The player sitting at the chessboard had the right to admit defeat when the time was up. Alternatively, Hashimoto could continue playing until the final checkmate.
Therefore, the match was over once Sakayanagi expressed her willingness to admit defeat.
"It was a fun match. It is quite regrettable that it has to end."
She had less than 40 seconds. As she spoke, I could hear her typing something on her keyboard.
Her voice was calm, and instead of acknowledging her surrender, her words were meant to highlight her confidence in the ferocious move she had devised.
[...Atta girl, princess!]
She revived the black side and cornered Horikita. With just a minute left, Horikita sensed defeat, and her dreams of victory slipped away.
[Ayanokouji-kun...]
Without looking up at the camera, Horikita spoke my name.
[I don't want to lose.]
And then, she gave voice to her feelings.
[I...]
She gave voice to the words she needed to say.
[I... I don't want to admit defeat... I want to win...]
It was a cry from the bottom of her heart.
[Even now, I'm still thinking, racking my brain repeatedly, trying to come up with the move I need to make to win.]
It was an emotional plea, entirely uncharacteristic of her.
[But I can't think of anything that would work against Sakayanagi-san. You're the only one who can do something like that!]
I closed my eyes with only a few seconds left. The end was near. Our defeat seemed inevitable within the next 30 seconds, as the match would continue after this. There were no safe routes left.
I had to bet on my last chance to win this battle. I swiftly began typing on my keyboard, writing out the move that I had come up with. I hit enter, and my timer stopped. Horikita waited silently, almost as if she was praying for my message to arrive.
After around 30 seconds, her eyes widened, indicating that the long-awaited signal had finally reached her through the headset. I looked at Sakagami-sensei and Hoshinomiya-sensei, who were both eagerly watching the large monitor to see the outcome of the chess match.
[So you've still got some fight left in you... Ayanokouji.]
Hashimoto looked up at the camera with a complicated expression. He was smiling and not smiling at the same time.
Horikita made her move, and Sakayanagi's timer began counting down once again.
"Splendidly done, Ayanokouji-kun."
Upon seeing what move I had made, Sakayanagi praised me for the third time.
"I don't think I've ever experienced a match against such a complex, powerful opponent. You've managed to answer my every move with an equal or sometimes far greater move of your own."
She spoke, assessing what had happened. With my move, she had probably seen the end of the match.
"The move you made just now was certainly a perfect one. You're undoubtedly at a level that an ordinary person could only dream of reaching."
Sakayanagi's words were filled with emotion, and her voice trembled a little.
"─However."
Sakayanagi's voice quietly echoed throughout the room.
"With this, my victory is all but set in stone."
She typed her instructions onto her keyboard, and Hashimoto immediately carried them out. I responded with my own instructions, prompting a flurry of movements between us.
The end of the match was drawing near, and there was no conversation, only the sound of pieces moving across the chessboard. As we counted the remaining moves, Sakayanagi boldly sacrificed her queen, the most vital piece, to force the checkmate.
It was a high-risk, high-reward move that I had decided on during the eleventh hour when I had no other options. Horikita's hand stopped as she held onto a faint hope that my words would come flowing through the headset again, but she soon realized there was no way to prevent the checkmate.
The outcome had been decided.
[Ayanokouji-kun...]
But even so, there was something about it that Horikita couldn't give up.
[Answer me, Ayanokōji-kun... Is there nothing I can do anymore...?]
I took my hands off the keyboard.
[Ayanokouji-kun...!]
Horikita wanted to beat Class A more than anyone else. She trusted me, believing that I would be able to handle it or perhaps even win it. This was the final round, the seventh event, and I wanted to express my admiration for her gaining the upper hand against a tough opponent like Hashimoto.
However, the loss was not her fault at all. The opponent had made a better move than the one she had been instructed to make. Finally, the countdown timer for commander intervention stopped at 0, and our connection was disconnected.[...It was my loss.]
Horikita lowered her head to Hashimoto, more out of shame than courtesy.
[Thank you for the match.]
Hashimoto bowed in response.
"─And that's everything."
With that, Sakagami-sensei, who had been quietly spectating throughout the match, announced the conclusion of the seventh event.
"Class A has won the seventh event. Therefore, Class A is the winner of this special exam, with four wins and three losses. Class C's performance was also remarkable."
The last event was over. For the time being, I would have to come up with an excuse. After all, I had intervened as the commander, yet I still lost the chess match. Some people would inevitably be dissatisfied, wondering why I didn't leave everything to Horikita.
"That was a great match... right? Either way, Class C did a super great job."
Hoshinomiya-sensei attempted to console me with the same stuff as always.
"You're free to cry into my chest if it makes you feel better."
"Hoshinomiya-sensei."
As she messed around with me, Sakagami-sensei sternly called out her name.
"I-it was just a joke. A joke!"
She jumped back a little and hurriedly bowed her head to Sakagami-sensei.
"But, Ayanokouji-kun. You seem to be way more impressive than I thought. You got that awful tenth question correct during flash mental arithmetic, and you even fought on equal footing with Sakayanagi-san in chess. You also got the hard questions correct during the written test events. Oh! What's more, you can also run fast if I remember correctly..."
After saying all of that, Hoshinomiya-sensei pondered for a moment.
"The heck? Does this mean you've been hiding your abilities until now?"
"It just happened to work out well for me this time."
"I see, so it was just a coincidence, huh? That kind of thing does happen sometimes~... As if...! Yep, I think I understand the reason why Sae-chan has her eyes on you, Ayanokōji-kun. It's so not fair~."
No matter how much I tried to hide it, some things simply had to be shown to the teachers.
"Don't worry~. I won't go around telling other students about what I've seen or heard here~"
As she spoke, she patted my shoulder gently. And then, she brought her mouth close to my ear and said:
"Sensei doesn't dislike kids like you, Ayanokouji-kun, but if you become an enemy, Sensei might just end up hating you the most."
The smile on her face had vanished. Hoshinomiya-sensei left me with that and walked away.
From the look of it, I had inadvertently caused her to recognize me as a potential enemy of Class B.
"The exam is over. Students, please leave the room as soon as possible."
"Sakagami-sensei, should we return to our classrooms first?"
"No, you're done for today. You can go straight home if you want."
There was no need for the classes to reassemble today. I was grateful for that.
"The students are so lucky, aren't they? Getting to go back home and all."
"Hoshinomiya-sensei, let's get ready to clean up."
"Fine."
Sakagami and Hoshinomiya started taking down the equipment used in the multipurpose room for the event. Despite the intense battle that had just taken place, the room had a relaxed atmosphere.
After a while, Sakayanagi appeared from the other side of the computer, probably waiting for the teachers to move away from us.
"Many thanks for today, Ayanokouji-kun."
"Yeah. You too."
After the seventh event, the first thing we did was exchange pleasantries with each other.
Although it had only taken 30 minutes, she had been going full throttle the entire time, and her fatigue was probably considerable.
"It takes endurance to play chess. Horikita-san's marvelous response to Hashimoto during the opening and your extraordinary fighting style was even better than that. It truly was wonderful."
Sakayanagi had a satisfied look on her face. It seemed like she had brought out her very best.
"Honestly, you were far stronger than I had imagined. You blew through Horikita's advantage, and I lost. There's no doubt about it."
"That's not the case. It was a perfect match. It could've gone either way until the very end. Though you wouldn't disagree that the one move I made toward the end made all the difference, yes?"
"Your queen's sacrifice was brilliant."
It all came down to what happened on the large monitor's other side. My instructions had intertwined with hers, resulting in her superior instructions. There was no room for miracles or second chances.
Victory and defeat were determined and decided at the school's discretion. Even though we had put up a good fight, Class C lost to Class A, forfeiting 30 class points. Although this only seemed like a minor setback, we still had not seen what transpired in the other classes.
"Is there something you still want from me?"
"Something I want. Not particularly," Sakayanagi said with a gentle smile, nodding her head in satisfaction.
"I was simply looking forward to facing off against you. And now, that wish has come true. I'm satisfied."
I was relieved that I was able to fulfill her request. I didn't want to risk upsetting Sakagami-sensei by chatting for too long, so I stood up and prepared to leave.
Just as I was about to open the door, Acting Director Tsukishiro entered the multipurpose room.
"The two of you have shown me something worth seeing."
"Hello there, acting director Tsukishiro. Did you watch the special exam?"
"Yes. After all, those of us from the school are obligated to ensure there has been no injustice. I was in the other room, watching the two of you use commander intervention and watch as your match developed."
With that, he clapped his hands and praised the two of us.
"Neither one of you would give an inch. It was truly the definition of an evenly-matched fight. Those of us from the school collected some excellent data from it, too. I'm confident that this contest will be a great asset to the school for many years."
When I looked into the Acting Director's eyes, he stared straight back into mine with a delighted expression.
And with that, I understood everything without even talking to him.
"I'm quite glad you enjoyed the show, Acting Director Tsukishiro."
Sakayanagi bowed her head. Above all else, she felt a supreme fulfillment that our competition had finally concluded.
"Come to think of it, has the dust settled between Class B and D?"
"Yes. They finished about an hour ago."
A considerably fast resolution.
"Which class won?"
It seemed as though Sakayanagi was also interested in hearing the results.
"Class D won with five wins and two losses. It was a big upset."
So Ryuuen defeated Ichinose. This meant that they had gained 190 class points.
Class D, or instead, Class C, had come back to life.
And this also meant that we would have to start again from Class D.
"This must be quite a painful defeat for Ichinose-san. Well, I suppose it's understandable."
If it hadn't been for Ryuuen, Class B would've won the exam.
I wondered: Had he taken action for himself or his class?
Whatever the reason, something within that guy had started to change.
And at the same time, this also meant that a looming threat had returned for Ichinose.
"Alright, everyone, let's leave the room. The special exam is over. Teachers, please take your leave as well."
The Acting Director prompted both Sakagami-sensei and Hoshinomiya-sensei to leave.
"But, we still need to take care of─"
"We will take care of that on our end."
At the Acting Director's signal, several workers flooded the room immediately.
"Who are all of these people? They're not school personnel, are they?" Sakagami-sensei asked, his voice full of doubt.
"It seems that the government would like to get its hands on the data from this exam as soon as possible. That's why they've dispatched all these people, so please rest assured."
As the Acting Director had instructed Sakagami-sensei, She had to comply and listen attentively. The two teachers hurried to finish their remaining tasks and exited the multipurpose room with Sakayanagi and me.
The teachers headed towards the staff room without paying any further attention to us. Sakayanagi, however, looked at the workers with a doubtful expression. But before we could keep observing, the door to the multipurpose room was shut and locked from inside.
"Is something bothering you?" Acting Director Tsukishiro did not stay inside the multipurpose room and asked Sakayanagi.
"No. It's nothing."
"Is that so?"
At this point, I felt that I should also head back home. When I checked my phone, I found I had received a message from Horikita.
Horikita: Thank you for your hard work.
It was a short message. I'd indeed be hearing complaints and grumbling from her later.
"See you later, Sakayanagi."
I attempted to leave her with a few light words and head back home, but...
"─Could you please wait a moment, Ayanokouji-kun?"
"What is it?"
Sakayanagi called out and stopped me as I began walking down the hallway.
She should've still been relishing the sweet taste of victory, but her expression had instead begun to cloud over.
"... Was the move you made at the end the best choice you could have made?"
She seemed to question the conclusion I had reached after a lengthy period of consideration toward the very end of the match.
"You're the one who won. What more could there be to it?"
"No... I'm sorry. It looks like I've gone and imagined something silly."
"Aren't you happy that you beat me?"
"It's nothing like that. It's just, maybe, somewhere in the back of my mind, I was hoping that I'd lose to you."
Once again, I felt that she had an unusual way of thinking.
"I'll say this now: I didn't go easy on you."
"Yes, I know that."
But even so, Sakayanagi still didn't seem convinced for some reason.
Maybe in her eyes, I was simply that much more significant than I was.
"You're such a cruel man, Ayanokōji-kun."
Acting Director Tsukishiro, who was still standing in front of the door to the multipurpose room, interrupted our conversation casually with these words.
Sakayanagi turned and looked behind her, and I had to turn and look too reluctantly. The Acting Director approached us with a gentle smile and repeated himself.
"You're a cruel man."
"What do you mean by that, Acting Director Tsukishiro?"
It was not me but Sakayanagi who asked that.
"How about you give her the answer, Ayanokouji-kun?"
"What are you talking about?"
"You should've just told her, honestly."
After finishing his 'business' in the multipurpose room, the acting director clearly had some time to spare.
"Properly speaking, the winner of that chess match should've been Ayanokouji-kun."
As soon as he spat out these inexcusable words, Sakayanagi was bound to get caught up in them.
But why would this man go out of his way to put himself at risk by saying it?
"What are you talking about? I lost."
"Yes, I suppose you're right. You did indeed lose."
The Acting Director was speaking in a way that highlighted his true character.
"But, your input was different... wouldn't you say?"
Sakayanagi, listening to us silently, began to understand the current situation. And then, it dawned on her.
"How stupid... You're saying that the school forcibly intervened in our exam?"
Her reaction was undoubtedly fueled by anger. It went beyond regret or disappointment; Indignation was the better term for it.
"You're the one at fault, Sakayanagi-san. Not only did you refuse to follow my orders, but you even gave a protection point of all things to Ayanokōji-kun. I had no choice but to be a little forceful to take that away from him, wouldn't you agree? This is still a school, right?"
I see. So he was exposing all of this to get back at Sakayanagi.
"Good grief. If everything had gone as planned, we could've forced Ayanokouji-kun out of school this time. But, there seem to be quite a few overzealous teachers here at this school who are making my job rather difficult."
During the match, I carefully considered an instruction to send to Horikita. However, the instruction took about 30 seconds to reach Horikita's headset, which was much longer than the typical 10-second delay for my previous instructions.
This happened because the instruction was falsified within the computer system, resulting in a discrepancy between the input and the output.
"At the time, he was going to make a different move. It was even better than the best move we thought he could make. I had even gone so far as to prepare many personnel and machines to account for his options, but we were still forced into making a tough decision."
If they had changed it to a sloppy, unskilled move, it would've been painfully apparent that something unnatural had happened.
So, to avoid that, Acting Director Tsukishiro was forced to devise a difficult move that would still yield the desired result.
"In that sense, Sakayanagi-san did an excellent job at seeing through the weakness of the move we chose."
That was hardly even a compliment.
"Why didn't you say anything, Ayanokōji-kun?"
"Even if he had, it wouldn't have mattered. No, rather, he wouldn't have been willing to say anything to you in the first place."
Acting Director Tsukishiro went on to explain.
"It's simple. As a former White Room member and someone who forcibly snuck his way into this school, there's no way he'd want to draw attention to himself."
If word got out that Tsukishiro had interfered with me, it could give rise to some very troublesome issues later on.
It was frustrating, to say the least, but I had no other choice but to give up and accept it.
"Even if it's tragic, a victory is a victory. You should be grateful."
"...You're quite skilled at provocations, Acting Director. However─ know that you'll be paying dearly for that, alright?"
Upon seeing Sakayanagi's anger-filled smile, Acting Director Tsukishiro applauded again.
"For a child in your first year of high school, you say some exciting things. Have you gotten an inflated ego just because you're the playground princess?"
Generally speaking, if you were a student standing in the same ring as Sakayanagi, you wouldn't want to make an enemy out of her.
But to this man, she probably seemed like nothing more than a child talking bigger than they were.
"You said that I'll be paying dearly, so by all means, show me what you meant by that. Come on, quickly now."
A brief silence passed. There was no way that anything would have happened.
"Well, it's about time for me to go. We adults have plenty of work to do, after all."
Acting Director Tsukishiro began walking, deliberately pushing his way between us as he went.
"If possible, please choose to drop out of school voluntarily. That way, we won't have to get any other students involved."
Leaving me with those words, Tsukishiro left and headed down the hallway. After he was gone, Sakayanagi began to walk away as well slowly.
"Well, this has gone and ruined everything. How immensely unsatisfying."
"Sorry."
"You don't have to apologize, Ayanokouji-kun. I'm just disappointed that an adult must intrude upon children's affairs. He took my most precious memory and trampled on it."
She didn't seem to care that her victory had been flawed.
She couldn't forgive the fact that the integrity of the chess match had been trifled with.
"It's just─ don't you think it's somewhat unreasonable to ask me to accept it like this?"
Sakayanagi stopped walking and looked up at me.
"Yeah. You're certainly not wrong."
I had intended to keep quiet about Acting Director Tsukishiro's interference, but maybe it wasn't wrong that Sakayanagi had found out about it. Albeit only a bit, the situation had also left me feeling cheated.
"So, please play with me again, starting from the move just before the Acting Director interfered!"
I could've quickly rejected her proposal right then and there.
But, if I did, I felt something inside Sakayanagi would've broken. And something within me as well.
"I have no reason to turn you down, I guess. But where should we go?"
"Did you know that there's a chessboard in the library?"
"No... that's the first time I've heard of it."
"I occasionally use it to play chess. Let's go there and use that."
I had no reason to decline her proposal, so we went to the library. Nobody was there today, probably because the special exam was over and all the courses were finished.
I found a chessboard inside the quiet library and placed it on a small table suitable for two players. Sakayanagi skillfully arranged the pieces to their original state.
"Here, the same situation as earlier. Please, show me your true move."
I picked up the piece and placed it where it was meant to be.
~~~
Class A - 1388 cp (+130)
Class B - 830 cp (-90)
Class C - 436 cp (-30)
Class D - 447 cp (+190)