"In that case, thank you for giving me this opportunity."
The black-haired little girl spoke politely to Eriri, then naturally sat down in the seat across from Ginko Sora.
Seeing this, Ryou Tsukiyomizaka had no choice but to stop and stand beside the black-haired little girl.
"Hello, my name is Machi Kugui. Please take care of me!"
Unlike Ryou Tsukiyomizaka's domineering aura, Machi Kugui greeted Ginko Sora with a polite tone and gentle demeanor, perfectly befitting her refined upbringing.
"Hello."
Ginko Sora replied with an expressionless nod, then began resetting the shogi pieces on the board.
Machi Kugui also fell silent, focusing intently as she prepared for the match.
Once both had finished setting up, they decided who would go first with a round of rock-paper-scissors.
This time, Machi Kugui won, earning the first move in their game.
...
As the match began, the dojo once again fell into silence, broken only by the occasional clack of shogi pieces landing on the board.
Machi Kugui's playing style was completely different from Ryou Tsukiyomizaka's—hers was primarily defensive.
However, her defense failed to effectively stop Ginko Sora's aggressive offense. As the match progressed, Ginko Sora's moves maintained their steady pace, while Machi Kugui took longer and longer to decide on each turn.
This match ended even faster than the previous one. In just twenty minutes, Machi Kugui was completely overwhelmed by Ginko Sora's attacks and ultimately forced into defeat.
Although she had expected this outcome, seeing herself lose so quickly to a girl several years younger left Machi Kugui feeling rather conflicted.
With a soft sigh, she bowed slightly to Ginko Sora and said sincerely:
"I lost. Thank you for the match."
"You were pretty good too."
Ginko Sora nodded, acknowledging Machi Kugui's skill.
"Thank you for the compliment!" Machi Kugui smiled warmly at Ginko Sora before turning her gaze toward Eriri. "And thank you for giving me this opportunity."
"No need to thank me. Ginko will probably come here often to study, so feel free to visit and play with her anytime~"
Eriri said with a gentle smile. For this polite eight-year-old girl, she held a rather favorable impression.
Hearing Eriri's words, Ginko Sora lifted her head and glanced at her, but said nothing—silently agreeing with Eriri's statement.
Machi Kugui nodded quickly. "I will. After all, Kyoto isn't that far from here."
After saying this, her tone faltered slightly. Hesitation flickered across her young face as she asked tentatively:
"Then... will you be coming here often too, Miss Eriri?"
"Probably not."
For Eriri, shogi was just a pastime—no different from mahjong. Naturally, she wouldn't come to the Shogi Association regularly, especially since she wasn't even from this world.
The only times she might visit would be when Ginko Sora or Keika Kiyotaki had important matches.
Upon hearing Eriri's answer, Machi Kugui's expression dimmed with disappointment.
After witnessing Eriri's overwhelming skill at shogi, she had secretly entertained the thought of becoming her disciple. However, she hadn't dared to voice that desire.
Though she already had a teacher in Kyoto—a professional shogi player—she wasn't officially that person's disciple. If she wished, she could change mentors anytime.
Her original plan had been to grow closer to Eriri through frequent meetings, then ask to become her disciple once they were familiar enough. But now, it seemed that plan would no longer work.
After a brief moment of hesitation, Machi Kugui gathered her courage and said softly:
"Um... may I ask you for a favor?"
"Go ahead, let's hear it."
Eriri smiled and gestured for her to continue.
"Can I... become your disciple?"
Machi Kugui looked at Eriri nervously, her small hands clutching tightly at the hem of her skirt—showing just how tense she felt inside.
Under her anxious gaze, Eriri slowly shook her head.
"No, I can't."
Eriri's tone was calm and gentle, but she didn't offer any explanation for her refusal.
That simple answer shattered all of Machi Kugui's hopes. The courage she had mustered vanished in an instant, replaced by a desperate urge to flee the room as quickly as possible.
But before she could move, Eriri's voice came again.
"However, you could become the disciple of the girl standing behind you. She's more than qualified to be your teacher."
Eriri's gaze flicked toward Keika Kiyotaki, who stood slightly behind Machi to her left.
Before Machi could respond, Keika's surprised voice rang out.
"Eh? Eriri-nee, you want me to take her as a disciple? But I'm not even a women's professional player yet!"
She pointed at herself in disbelief, her expression filled with shock.
"Do you mean to tell me that, with your current skill, you still can't become a women's professional? Or is it that you don't have the confidence to teach a child?"
"Of course I can become a women's professional! But being someone's teacher, that's..."
Keika clearly knew her own ability well—becoming a women's professional player would be no problem for her.
The real question was what rank she could achieve.
As for taking on a disciple, the thought had never crossed her mind. After all, she was still quite young.
But since Eriri had said so, Keika couldn't bring herself to refuse. She lowered her gaze toward Machi Kugui, who was now looking back at her curiously.
"Little one, do you want to become my disciple?"
Hearing this, Machi didn't answer immediately. Instead, she pondered silently.
In terms of shogi ability, Keika was likely no match for her current teacher.
However, it was clear to anyone that Keika and Eriri shared an unusually close relationship. If she became Keika's disciple, she would undoubtedly gain more chances to see Eriri.
With that thought, her hesitation disappeared.
She nodded seriously and said with determination:
"I want to become your inner disciple!"
"Very good. From now on, you're officially my first disciple!"
Since she had decided to accept her, Keika wasn't going to treat it half-heartedly.
"My name is Keika Kiyotaki. You can call me 'Master,' or just 'Sister Keika.' If your family agrees, you can even move in with me. Oh, and by the way, Ginko lives with me too—she's my father's inner disciple."
"Sister Keika, who is your father?" Machi asked curiously.
The surrounding shogi players also perked up, curious to hear the answer. Many of them already had a guess based on her surname—and their suspicions were soon confirmed.
"My father is Kousuke Kiyotaki, 8-dan."
As soon as Keika said that, the dojo was filled with murmurs of surprise.
Although Kousuke Kiyotaki had yet to reach the rank of 9-dan, his reputation in the shogi world was well-established.
After all, anyone who could achieve the rank of 8-dan was among the elite of the profession.
Even Machi Kugui and Ryou Tsukiyomizaka, standing nearby, couldn't help but show astonished expressions at the mention of his name.
"So she's the inner disciple of Kousuke Kiyotaki 8-dan. No wonder she's so strong at such a young age."
The onlookers' eyes turned toward Ginko Sora, their gazes filled with admiration—as if witnessing the rise of a future prodigy.
"Oh right, I haven't introduced everyone yet. This is Frieren, my good friend. She just started learning shogi today, but she's already incredibly skilled~"
Keika cheerfully placed her hand on Frieren's shoulder as she introduced her.
Then she turned back toward Eriri and continued the introductions.
"And as for this person, I don't even need to say much—Eriri, my beloved elder sister. I'm not exaggerating when I say that even though she's never competed professionally, her shogi skills are without a doubt the best in the world!"
Keika spoke proudly, her tone filled with deep admiration as her eyes shone with reverence toward Eriri.
However, almost no one believed her words. If she had claimed that Eriri's beauty was the best in the world, everyone would have agreed wholeheartedly.
But to say she was the strongest shogi player in the world—that was a bit hard to believe.
The only one who believed Keika without hesitation was Machi Kugui. Her eyes burned even brighter as she gazed at Eriri, filled with awe and determination.
...
After the matter of accepting a disciple was settled, Eriri and her group left the Shogi Association together with Machi Kugui and Ryou Tsukiyomizaka.
Soon after, Machi reluctantly followed her chauffeur into a black luxury sedan, which drove off from the association's entrance.
Before she left, Keika made sure to give Machi her home address and phone number, telling her to discuss things with her family first before visiting.
As for whether today's sudden "apprenticeship" would actually be made official, that would be decided later.
Ryou Tsukiyomizaka, on the other hand, was a Tokyo native. She usually trained at the Kanto Shogi Association and rarely visited the Kansai branch. She had only come today to accompany her family for fun.
By now, it was already past six in the evening, and the sky was growing dark.
None of them had the energy to continue wandering around, so Eriri decided to take everyone back to the Kiyotaki residence through spatial teleportation.
When they arrived home, Kousuke Kiyotaki—who had been waiting eagerly—immediately approached them. Since Eriri was visiting and had just taken Ginko Sora as a disciple, he suggested they all go out to celebrate with a big dinner.
However, his proposal was quickly interrupted by Eriri.
"No need to go to that trouble, Uncle. I've already prepared dinner. Let's just eat at home tonight."
"You've prepared it already? Don't tell me you ordered it from a hotel restaurant?" Kousuke asked curiously, though he gave up on the idea of going out.
Before Eriri could respond, Keika's excited voice rang out.
"Eriri, don't tell me—it's food made by Sister Aoi, isn't it?"
Hearing his daughter's words, Kousuke's face immediately lit up in understanding, his expression full of anticipation.
Although Keika had never visited the Saekano world herself, she had received several of Aoi Kujou's dishes through red packets sent by Eriri in the Multiverse Chat & Friendship Group.
As the one in charge of cooking at home, Keika had shared those dishes with her father. The two of them could never forget the taste of Aoi Kujou's exquisite cooking.
However, neither of them had the nerve to directly ask Eriri for more. It had already been over a week since the last time they had tasted Aoi Kujou's cuisine.
Now, hearing that tonight's dinner might all be Aoi Kujou's dishes, both father and daughter couldn't contain their excitement.
Under their eager gazes, Eriri smiled and nodded.
"That's right—it's all made by Aoi-nee. There's plenty of food, so eat as much as you want."
Saying that, Eriri took the still-bewildered Ginko Sora by the hand and headed for the dining room.
Seeing this, Keika and Kousuke hurried after them, while Frieren, as usual, quietly followed Eriri's lead.
Moments later, the five of them gathered in the dining room.
The room wasn't very large, and the square dining table was simple, but it was more than spacious enough for five people to eat comfortably.
Without hesitation, Eriri began pulling out dish after dish from her storage system.
In an instant, the once-empty table was covered with steaming plates of freshly prepared food.
The spread was incredibly diverse—vegetables, meats, seafood—all made from the finest ingredients.
Of course, dinner wouldn't be complete without Aoi Kujou's special fruit juice drinks. A few ceramic bottles filled with vibrant juices appeared alongside the dishes.
As the delicious aroma filled the room, Kousuke couldn't help but swallow hard, and his stomach growled audibly despite not having felt hungry before.
—
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