In the battle for the Oza title that began in September, I suffered a clean sweep against the Meijin. It was inevitable; this title marked number 99 in his career, and everything is proceeding exactly according to the "original script." My loss was the most dramatic outcome for the Shogi world, so I played it smart and went along with the atmosphere. Had the Meijin taken the "Kitei" title, that would have been his hundredth. But since I am the Kitei, his counter remains stuck at 99. I managed to orchestrate things perfectly.
(It really was a pity, though. You played all your moves without pausing to think, yet you held up quite well against the Meijin, didn't you?) (Ai)
(It wasn't a pity, nor was it close. It was a crushing defeat in all three games. It looked like a match between a Meijin and a complete novice.) (Oki)
(Not "looked like"—it was. You, sir, are a miserable novice piling up losses in the C2 class.) (Ai)
(Shut up. I wanted to win at least one game. Even a 1-3 result would have aligned the timing with the Ryuo battle. I am actually somewhat bitter about it.) (Oki)
Meanwhile, Tenai, who joined the Shoreikai, successfully fast-tracked from 2-kyu to 1-kyu. Although she passed the entrance exam for 1-kyu, she entered as a 2-kyu. I made this decision after hearing the details of her exam matches; I felt her endgame skills were not yet fully mature.
Tenai's online endgame style literally embodies the Shogi proverb: "Finish with simple, direct moves." This was a natural consequence of limited thinking time; she had no choice if she wanted to play multiple games simultaneously. And there is nothing wrong with simple moves, as long as they secure the win.
I had assumed her endgame was strong, but it turns out her ability to force a checkmate is weaker than I imagined. This puts her at a disadvantage in Shoreikai matches, where opponents fight desperately until the very end.
For this reason, I asked Tenai to start at 2-kyu—implicitly suggesting that I cared little for the feelings of the other members. Tenai accepted this and requested the lower starting rank herself during the interview.
Outwardly, the decision was framed as punishment for her misconduct, and I want to believe her behavior and etiquette will gradually improve. She promoted to 1-kyu with six consecutive wins, acclimating to the association's atmosphere in the process. The road to becoming a professional will be grueling, but a good start is crucial; suffering early consecutive losses can warp a player's perspective on the game.
The world is currently buzzing about the Meijin potentially achieving his hundredth title simultaneously with the "Eternal Dragon" title—the last lifetime honor remaining for him. Incidentally, Kuzuryu shot me suspicious looks regarding my clean sweep defeat in the Oza battle. Sorry, my friend, I simply wanted to back you into a corner. Now, you must defeat the Meijin at the height of his momentum and defend your title. Become the "Demon King" and surpass AI.
(Since the first round of the Ryuo battle is taking place in Hawaii, the general course of history shouldn't shift much.) (Oki)
(There is a chance that Kuzuryu or the Meijin have already changed their styles... However, Kuzuryu's preferred strategy remains the "Tempo Loss Bishop Exchange." If the Meijin plays along with that in the first round, the timeline holds. If he avoids that exchange strategy, though, I think all future markers will vanish.) (Ai)
(It looks like the job of dragging Ai to the Mynavi Open finals is going to fall on me. If I recall, that happened after she suffered three consecutive losses, didn't it? No wonder she snapped.) (Oki)
(Rumor has it there is a psychopath among us who lost three straight title matches, failed to take the crown, and yet congratulated the Meijin on his ninety-ninth title with a big grin.) (Ai)
(I have no idea who you're talking about. With ninety-nine titles, something like that must have happened once or twice. Oh, wait, I remember now—there was Yamata, one of the Meijin's loyalists.) (Oki)
The first game of the Ryuo battle in Hawaii became the talk of Japan. Even people who usually ignore Shogi were watching, waiting for the Meijin to seize the title. A title match in Hawaii is a rare event, and the Meijin's popularity is truly overwhelming. Did Kuzuryu really become a villain, facing public backlash simply for successfully defending his title?
(The biggest concern is that commemorative match between Kuzuryu and the Meijin. Kuzuryu lost there once.) (Ai)
(...Huh?) (Oki)
(Wait, don't tell me you actually forgot? It has only been a year and a half, you know.) (Ai)
(I couldn't have forgotten. No, actually... I'm starting to worry whether things will really work out. Still... Hawaii, huh? I wish I had gone.) (Oki)
(Your schedule doesn't have a four-day opening for travel. And why would the Federation consult your calendar when scheduling the Ryuo battle anyway?) (Ai)
Since I couldn't go to Hawaii, I watched the match from the players' room with Tenai. Her debut there seemed to go smoothly, and she is getting along well with her Shoreikai classmates. Because the Shoreikai exam is held only once a year, the bond with peers from the same class is significant. Konugi and I, incidentally, are from the same class. While he was climbing from 6-kyu to 1-kyu, however, I started at 1-kyu and turned pro.
(Bonds between classmates are very strong in the Shoreikai. It isn't rare to see study groups formed entirely of peers from the same year.) (Ai)
(In my case, it was probably a good thing I invited Konugi—who tended to be a loner—to form a study group. My circle of friends expanded from there.) (Oki)
(Of your classmates, three realized their limits early and quit. Two kept losing until they were demoted and withdrew. Oh, and one tried to commit suicide.) (Ai)
(That happens almost every year; it has nothing to do with us being in the same class. And don't dig into the darkness of the Shoreikai. That guy from my class who tried to kill himself is still fighting in the 3-dan league, isn't he?) (Oki)
Since most of Tenai's classmates are middle schoolers, they likely view her with a sense of sibling affection, treating her like a little sister. In Shogi, however, she appears to crush them without mercy. The only one capable of keeping up with her is the boy who became the "Middle School Meijin" in his second year—two years after I did. He possesses skills equivalent to a Shoreikai 3-dan, yet he took the entrance exam for 6-kyu and has already swiftly promoted to 5-kyu.
Even so, he rarely beats Tenai in "10-second Shogi," highlighting the sheer gap in talent between them. I wonder how many from Tenai's class will actually turn pro. While the Shoreikai system allows four players a year to graduate from the "3-dan League" and become professionals, this essentially means only three to five players from any single class will make the cut. New members, after all, join every year.
Tenai's class consists of sixteen members in Kanto and twelve in Kansai. With twenty-nine total successful candidates across East and West, and just under eighty applicants, the acceptance rate sits below 40%. That alone might seem like a narrow gate, but the real hell begins only after entering the Shoreikai. Of those twenty-nine, only five will become professionals at best—a survival rate capped at 20%.
Even after turning pro, many stagnate, struggling to advance past 4-dan or 5-dan. I will do everything I can to ensure Tenai avoids that trap, but ultimately, some factors depend entirely on the individual—mental resilience and physical stamina among them.
In the first game of the Ryuo title match, the Meijin opened with the "Tempo Loss Bishop Exchange" strategy, elevating the battle to an incredibly high standard. When I stepped back from the screen to explain the intricacies of the Meijin and Kuzuryu's moves to Tenai, other Shoreikai members gathered around us. Those who come to the Shoreikai are truly starved for strength. I cannot say for certain how long Tenai will need to clear this hurdle, but if she continues to evolve at this pace, perhaps two or three years?
___________________
Enjoying the story? Want to read ahead?
Support the novel and unlock early access to unreleased chapters by joining my Patreon!
👑 The Golden Supporter ($8) – Get full access to all published chapters
📎 patreon.com/Raven737
Even a small pledge makes a huge difference — thank you for reading.