Ryuuou no Oshigoto! - Volume 5 - Chapter 3.4

  DIAMOND

“What …… What’s this ……?!”

Seeing that blog update–––felt so bizarre that words wouldn’t come out.

“I-Is …… this really …… Keika playing against Ms. Shakando ……?”

At first, I thought I had their turns mixed up, so I go back and check. I was certain that the defender taking control of the match and pulling away was Ms. Shakando and the one struggling to keep her formation intact was Keika …… 

But, it’s the opposite.

“H …… how did this happen? Where did the match turn ……?!”

Mind racing, I scroll back through the match record, back to the beginning and start over.

Falling behind in the mid-game, Keika was on the brink when Ms. Shakando got a Pawn into her territory on the 61st move.

The skill level between them looked too great to overcome at that point–––.

But, on the 76th move.

Keika had just finished forcing Ms. Shakando’s Rook out of place with the three Pawns she had on her piece stand and jammed her own Rook into a favorable position to put the King in check.

That hard-fought, muddy sequence Keika made happen slightly … ever so slightly knocked Ms. Shakando off her pace.

Now with the match flow under her control, Keika started playing her own tune on the board.

She’s so focused on her dynamic Rook and Bishop sweeps to bring the match up to her tempo, I bet she’s forgotten that her opponent is someone far above the clouds, the four-time Queen. It’s like all she’s thinking about is how to get the best move onto the board …… That win no matter what happens mindset of hers is coming through loud and clear on the match record.

If Ms. Shakando’s Shogi is a delicate piano sonata, then Keika’s is a round of drums and flutes set to a folk song. Every stubborn, muddy Kansai player’s spirit is pulsing in her fingertips.

“How’s this going to end?! Who’ll come out on top?!”

Now caught up with the real-time updates, I’m on the edge of my seat, almost diving into my computer screen each time I refresh the page every thirty seconds.

I can’t even blink.

Each move seems to put that player ahead. That’s how close these formations are.

But, at this rate–––.

“Keika could ………… against Ms. Shakando?”

Late game.

Both are in one-minute Shogi. Both Kings are in danger as a Practice League member exchanges blows with the Women’s League legend on a terrifying tightrope where the slightest mistake will send one plunging to the hell below.

Who ……? Who would’ve ……?!!

Who could’ve ever seen this coming?

I know Keika better than anyone, but I can’t believe it’s happening. Ms. Shakando, the one who toyed with Big Sis in a practice session, is getting overwhelmed by Keika–––.

At last, the final stage.

It’s Ms. Shakando’s turn.

If she puts her Knight at 7 Four, she’ll win. But if she moves it two squares over to 9 Four, Keika will take the victory. It all comes down to this.

Both put Keika’s King in check … but couldn’t have more different outcomes.

Only two squares.

The difference between those two choices changes a life.

“Which one will it be ……?!”

Ms. Shakando chooses––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––9 Four.

Keika did it. She won.

“…………… Intense ……”

That’s the only way to describe it.

Amazing Shogi.

I’ve just seen incredible willpower with my own eyes.

That wasn’t some dress-up doll.

No one else could have played like that.

Really, the only one in the world.

That’s the Shogi that only Keika can play.

Just as people’s hearts take so many shapes, Shogi that has real emotion in it takes on its own unique characteristics.

I’m holed up in a dark room by myself, but the bright light coming from that Shogi is lighting up everything I see.

The room should be cold, with no heater on in November, but …… That Shogi burned hot enough to make me sweat all the way down to my fingertips.

“……… Intense ……!”

I practically shout to myself and replay the whole match again from the top.

After her first attempt to apply pressure in the early game failed, Keika was consistently overwhelmed by Ms. Shakando’s display of skill and got systematically driven back into a corner.

But–––she was strong from then on. She didn’t break.

She let the best move slip by over and over, failed and got muddy.

Never giving up, she willed herself to get back up and keep moving forward. It was that kind of Shogi.

Even going against someone as skilled and renowned as Ms. Shakando, Keika didn’t flinch a single time. And she was the one who charged in without a second thought when her opponent shook just a little bit. It was like a beacon for her.

There were no flashes of brilliance, no moves that really stand out like diamonds in the rough.

If it was some stuck-up guy in the Sub League, they’d probably say, “I’d rather die than make that move.” Just clumsy, irritating Shogi …… 

That’s how I know it wasn’t skill that led to Keika’s victory.

It was–––an unyielding determination to win that did it.

The courage to believe that victory would come and keep pressing forward.

No one could break it, it would never break and was more beautiful and solid than anything else …… That’s the Shogi I saw.

Each move had the everlasting glint of a gemstone.

“Whoa ……”

Now I want to see what the arena looked like during the match, so I open up the blog history.

There’s a picture of Keika here so magnificent it blew my expectations out of the water.

“I-Is this … really, her ……?!”

It’s a picture of Keika staring at the board so hard that her face is twisting into a knot.

There’s another one of her where she looks like she’s about to cry but is determined to keep fighting.

An update says that Keika never left the board during the lunch break. Instead, she sat there with a painful look on her face, her hand on her chest as she kept repeating. “I can do this!—I’m strong! I won’t lose!” to convince herself to keep going.

“Keika’s always so gentle …… Who knew she could get like this in front of a board ……?”

But almost immediately, I realized how important this match was to her.

If she won–––Keika qualifies for the Women’s League.

“…… I guess dreams do come true. Even dreams I didn’t think were possible ……”

Another blog update comes in, this one with a picture of her right after she won the match.

It says that rather than saying, “I lost,” when she threw in the towel, Ms. Shakando lowered her head and said this:

“Congratulations. You’ve become strong.”

Keika couldn’t keep her tears back after hearing that … at least that’s what the article says.

There’s a picture of her looking down and away, pressing a handkerchief against her eyes.

And in the background, Ms. Shakando is looking at her with a kind smile …… 

Ms. Shakando, the one who once told me flat-out that low level players had no place in the Women’s League, is wishing the best for Keika now that she can join …… From the bottom of her heart.

“…………That must’ve been … an amazing match ……”

The left hand holding her handkerchief to her eyes and the right hand still squeezing the daylights out of her knee even after the match ended show just how much time and effort she’s devoted to Shogi over the years.

“She’s been giving it …… everything she has ……”

Lost heart so many times. Always wondering if it was worth it.

Chasing the dream that rather than getting closer day by day kept drifting further away …… She made a miracle happen. No one else. She did it.

Keika as she is today …… is blinding to me right now …… 

Another blog update.

This one has a video of her post-match interview attached to it.

“…………”

I’m on the fence about if I should press play or not.

…… Is it okay for me to watch this right now?

There’s a part of me seeing her achieve her dream …… A part of me that’s jealous, and that’s pitiful …… Watching it scares me.

But I have to.

Keika’s note told me to watch. I’m sure she wasn’t just talking about the match. She must want me to see what she looked like during the match and after, too. Everything.

So.

“…………”

I click on the play button. My finger trembling just a bit.

“–––Now you finally have the Women’s League qualification you’ve always wanted. How do you feel now that the dream has come true?” the interviewer asks and Keika responds like she’s only just realizing it herself.

“Ah …… that’s right. Of course it was in the back of my mind, but–––.”

This should be the happiest day of her life now that she’s achieved her lifelong dream, but rather than talk about how happy she is, Keika goes in a completely different direction.

“I …… wanted to show something.”

“–––Show? Like, delivering a message?”

“Yes. Um …… How to explain it …… That, miracles happen? I spent a lot of time thinking about what makes the impossible possible. Because, I mean, I needed nothing short of a miracle to beat Shakando-sensei today, right?”

“–––Did you find an answer?”

“I did …… At least, I feel like I did. The one thing that makes miracles happen …… But it wasn’t anything special. Far from special, it’s something very normal that happens every day …… I’m sorry. I don’t know how to put this ……”

“–––You can take all the time you need,” the interviewer says. 

Keika tries to speak, opening her mouth only for the words to get stuck. But she keeps trying and keeps talking out of sheer willpower.

Keika is desperately trying to get a message across …… But to whom?

My heart rate picks up.

“A child who started off so weak and got strong out of nowhere, started beating adults one after another …… And one day ends up defeating opponents who should’ve been unbeatable. I wanted to show that that kind of miracle actually happens quite a bit in the Shogi world …… Basically, that someone with no talent like me could, umm ……”

Words fail her again.

She keeps opening her mouth, but no words come out. Only tears …… 

“Uhh …… I’m sorry about this. I’m just so dumb, and so bad at Shogi …… I have no idea how or what to say ……”

Squeezing her handkerchief, Keika looks down at the floor like she’s frustrated with herself and for some reason apologizes on the day her dream finally came true.

Then she looks up, tears streaming down her face, and says, “Sorry. It’s not something I can put into words. That’s why I tried to show it by winning today’s match. Basically–––.”

She forces her messy face into a smile.

Looks at the camera–––looks at someone who should be watching through that camera and says with all the might she can muster …

Something that only those who have fought with everything they had, only those who claimed victory with their own strength can say with the most unshakable confidence in the world.

“No effort goes unrewarded. I fought to prove it.”

“Did you watch? Yaichi?”

Tears like gemstones sparkle their way down her cheeks and off her chin.

More solid and beautiful than diamonds, her effort turned into crystals.