One Sunday, I headed to the professional players' room to watch the decisive match between Sora Ginko and Konogi, upon which both their promotions to 3-dan depended. Upon arrival, I found Oishi (Gyousho) sitting alone. Damn, this is bad. Does this imply Karaka-san will walk in later? Honestly, I had absolutely no desire to get caught in the crossfire of their expected conversation, but leaving immediately would look strange, so I sat down to watch.
「Are you that worried about Miss Sora?」 (Ōki)
「...That is none of your concern. Drop it.」 (Oishi)
「Is that so? Ah, I am going to hide now, so please do not give me away, agreed?」 (Ōki)
「Huh?」 (Oishi)
The moment I finished my brief exchange with Oishi (Gyousho), I heard heavy footsteps approaching, so I scrambled to hide under the desk immediately. It was a sufficiently large desk, so I likely would not be discovered.
『Oishi (Gyousho) shot you a cold look of mixed pity and exasperation, just so you know.』 (Ai)
(Wait, Karaka-san is going to talk about Shogi software and the like, isn't he? Naturally, I want to hear that. Ah, he is here.) (Ōki)
「Well, well! If it isn't Oishi (Gyousho)! Coming to the Association headquarters even on a Sunday—what a passionate and diligent researcher you are!」 (Karaka)
「You disgust me, so speak normally.」 (Oishi)
「Very well, I shall.」 (Karaka)
Since I had concealed myself perfectly, it seemed Karaka-san did not notice me. That is only natural; who would expect someone to be hiding under a desk? Consequently, Karaka-san began speaking under the assumption that I was absent. Despite his biting sarcasm, I—knowing what he hides behind that mask—...well, I felt as though I might burst into tears at any moment.
「You have always been terrible with machines, Mitsuru-kun. We are now in the era of 'Remote Desktop,' where you can view your home computer screen via your smartphone, you know? Even smartphone software has recently become stronger than the average professional player.」 (Karaka)
『Just as I suspected, his evaluation and perspective on Shogi software have changed, haven't they?』 (Ai)
(That is likely your doing, Ai. ...Still, it is a good thing I won the "Ken-O" (Wise King) title. I intend to win this year as well, so I am counting on you.) (Ōki)
『Starting this year, Google—the developer of AlphaGo—has begun pouring its resources and focus into the world of Shogi as well. It will be an extremely grueling battle, you know?』 (Ai)
(Nevertheless, we should be able to win for a few more years... Current software can only play a few tens of millions of matches over a span of three weeks.) (Ōki)
Fundamentally, "Chie" accumulates strength by repeating self-play matches between Version A and Version B. A single match takes less than ten minutes, and he can play over a hundred matches a day. However, since he utilizes hundreds of "mental Shogi boards" within my mind simultaneously, the number of matches "Chie" has played against himself up to this point... must be at least one hundred million, right? Wait. Although that figure seems massive, if other software programs continue playing against each other for a full year, their match count will naturally surpass ours, and we will lose in terms of quantity.
『That is precisely why I am telling you it will be a grueling battle. Are you an idiot, Master?』 (Ai)
(Quiet. Tentatively, we will not lose this year. However, just as you predicted, Ai, they might overtake us next year or the one after that.) (Ōki)
「Software has already surpassed the total number of games played by humans throughout history. Even 'experience,' which was humanity's last stronghold, has been overtaken and crushed.」 (Karaka)
「For me right now, software is 'God'.」 (Karaka)
「Even that Meijin whom professionals worship and call a god—if he faced the software, he would lose nine times out of ten! It is time to look reality in the eye.」 (Karaka)
「...If what you say is true, then why does this kid keep winning? Hey, come out of there.」 (Oishi)
「Ouch! That hurts! Please don't kick me with your shoe. Ah, nice to meet you, Karaka-san. I am Ōki.」 (Ōki)
「W-Were you hiding there from the start? Why would you do such a thing?」 (Karaka)
「No, I just thought hiding might be a better option...」 (Ōki)
While I was concealed under the desk, Oishi (Gyousho) kicked me, forcing me out of my hiding spot. It was painful, and I aroused Karaka-san's suspicion, so the idea of hiding was evidently a failure. However, the conversation was intriguing, and I am glad I managed to overhear it.
「In this year's 'Electronic Mind War,' the Shogi software from Google, the developer of AlphaGo, will be participating, correct?」 (Ōki)
「That is correct. And don't you think even Ōki-kun might be unable to defeat this year's software representative?」 (Karaka)
「I will win for sure. My experience is not fragile enough to shatter against a mere few tens of millions of games.」 (Ōki)
『...Can we really win?』 (Ai)
(Don't be a coward, Ai. I will look incredibly foolish if I lose after boasting like this.) (Ōki)
『Alright, I will do my best. Since you said we will win, we will win. I do not want to make my Master a laughingstock.』 (Ai)
Having flaunted my confidence before Karaka-san, I left the professional players' room. During their conversation, they occasionally touched upon the match between Sora and Konogi, but events seem to differ from the original story, as Sora is in a dire position.
As I exited, I caught a glimpse of the monitor, which indicated that Sora was on the verge of resigning. It appears Konogi has been buffed slightly in an irritating way.
「Oh, Ten'ai. Did you win?」 (Ōki)
「I won, of course. I achieved two consecutive victories today.」 (Ten'ai)
「Is that so? Lately, your record fluctuates between two consecutive wins or a win and a loss. So far, your record after being promoted to 1-dan is three consecutive wins, correct?」 (Ōki)
「Correct. I need five more consecutive wins, or nine wins against four losses, to be promoted to 2-dan.」 (Ten'ai)
Ten'ai's matches seemed to have ended early, and she had come downstairs, so I struck up a conversation. When matches are between Dan holders, the allotted thinking time increases, reducing the daily schedule from three games to two. While I listened to Ten'ai explain the details of her matches today, I heard a commotion upstairs. Amidst the cheers, the phrase "elementary school student reaches 3-dan" was repeated. That noise is undoubtedly disturbing the other players.
「Ah, so Sora-san couldn't win.」 (Ōki)
「That means she won't make it to the 3-dan League for the upcoming season... Honestly, that Konogi is a real monster.」 (Ten'ai)
「Ten'ai has also lost to him several times. However, he still has weaknesses, and we shall see how he fares in the 3-dan League.」 (Ōki)
「Weaknesses?」 (Ten'ai)
「His overconfidence makes him rush his attacks more than necessary. Also, his overall vision of the game is significantly distorted, and there are many things Konogi is ignorant about.」 (Ōki)
With this victory, Konogi was promoted to 3-dan and will participate in the next league, while Sora, whose win count was reset after the loss, will not be able to catch up in time. Most likely, she will participate in the 3-dan League around the same time as Ten'ai later on. This also implies the possibility that Sora will focus her efforts fiercely on defending her "Queen" title.
...Since her match with Karaka-san, we have seen her lose often, which might lead one to believe the current Ten'ai could defeat her, but the reality is their levels are very close—a 50-50 split. The deciding factor will be: who evolves more during the title matches? In Sora's case, I find it unfair that she can summon Kuzuryu with a single phone call. And that "Loli King" never refuses research and training sessions with Sora.
True, she missed the promotion to 3-dan for now, but her win rate has risen recently since reaching 2-dan, and it seems she will reach 3-dan soon. Sora not ascending to 3-dan now means Kagamizu-san's chance of promotion has increased.
Predicting the members promoting to 4-dan next season is a bit difficult. Sakanashi-san, shaken by his first loss to Sora, went on to lose four times in a row, only to bounce back and achieve 14 consecutive victories. As for Kagamizu-san, he ultimately lost to Sora and missed his promotion. Konogi, too, was unable to maintain a perfect winning streak after his loss to Sora.
Since all these factors have changed and the cards have been shuffled, it is impossible to know what will happen. In terms of pure strength, Konogi is a head above the rest, followed closely by Karaka-san, Sakanashi-san, and Kagamizu-san, but in the 3-dan League, no one knows what might occur. Nevertheless, I believe Konogi will manage to break through, don't you?
___________________
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.