Chapter 459: Pure love god of war! The bet is made again!

In the competition venue.

Tenth shogi table.

Natsume Chikage was closing his eyes to rest, adjusting his breathing, quietly waiting for the opponent's arrival.

Not long after.

A slight sound of footsteps came from far to near, and finally stopped opposite the shogi table.

A familiar figure pulled out a chair and sat down gently.

Natsume Chikage, whose five senses were now far sharper than ordinary people's, clearly sensed the opponent's arrival even with his eyes closed.

He slowly opened his eyes.

When he saw the high school student face with a few scholarly airs and a middle-part hairstyle, his expression couldn't help but become somewhat strange.

"Tian Bian-kun... my opponent, is it actually you?"

"Yeah." Tian Bian Youren sat up straight, a complex and indistinguishable smile appearing on his face, "This is really too coincidental, so coincidental that I... somewhat want to laugh out loud."

Tian Bian Youren remained silent for a long time after learning that his opponent was Natsume Chikage.

Subsequently, the listless and annoyed expression that had been shrouding him from morning until now was swept away.

Replacing it was a strange sense of relief, even mixed with a trace of celebration.

He looked up at the big clock hanging on the side of the venue and found that there was still quite a bit of time before nine o'clock, when the match officially started.

He refocused his gaze on Natsume Chikage, thought for a moment, sighed softly, and his tone became serious:

"Natsume-kun, before the match starts... if you don't mind, can you listen to me tell a story?"

He paused and added:

"Of course, this story is related to you, very related. So I hope... you must listen to it."

Natsume Chikage paused, clearly not knowing what the other party's sudden request was for.

But these words instead aroused his curiosity.

After all, he basically only had one encounter with this person, and there shouldn't be any profound connection.

"Just say it."

"Thanks."

Tian Bian Youren slightly emptied his gaze, as if looking at the distant past, and began to recall:

"Before I entered high school, originally... I didn't like shogi much."

"But one day after school started, when I was dragged by other classmates to visit various clubs, I fell in love at first sight with a girl..."

His voice became gentle, carrying obvious nostalgia.

"And the scene where she existed, that moment, was frozen in my heart forever."

"By the window of the club room, the wind chime swayed gently with the breeze blowing in from outside, making a crisp sound."

"And she sat there quietly, playing shogi with her opponent with all her heart. The breeze blew up the hair by her ears, her posture at that moment, that focused expression... it was too beautiful, so beautiful that I didn't know what words to use to describe it."

"So... in order to get close to her, I resolutely joined the shogi club, and then began to learn shogi day and night, almost crazily. Everything I did was just to be able to get closer to her."

"I kept fantasizing that if I could win against her one day, I would muster the courage to confess to her."

"However, it was also at this time that her childhood sweetheart—Ling Mu Longzhi—transferred to our school."

Talking about this, Tian Bian Youren's expression was obviously dim, and a trace of bitterness emerged.

"Ling Mu Longzhi... his strength is really too strong, so strong that it makes people feel desperate."

"Even stronger than Anjing Liangdou in your school, at only seventeen years old, he was only one step away from becoming a professional shogi player."

"Even she, who could easily defeat me, could only be easily teased by Ling Mu Longzhi, with no power to fight back."

"Watching the two of them chatting and laughing in the club room, watching Ling Mu Longzhi being able to use the name of 'guidance' to spend more time with her... while I could only study shogi scores alone in a corner. My heart... really hurts."

His fingers curled unconsciously.

"I often fantasize, hating myself for having too little time to play shogi; if I could be like him, immersed in this path since childhood, maybe I could compare to or even surpass Ling Mu Longzhi."

"Hating myself for not knowing her earlier."

"Hating myself... for being too weak."

"But what's gratifying is that her conditions for choosing a partner are much higher than ordinary girls, and her vision is also high, so she has never dated any boys."

"Even her childhood sweetheart Ling Mu Longzhi, who has always liked her, seems to be the same."

"Also because we have known each other for a long time, the fact that he and I 'both like her' was naturally known to the other party."

"Ironically, he is really a good person. Even knowing that I like the same girl, he didn't get angry at all, but instead treated me as a competitor worth taking seriously."

"After that, I even chatted with him about what we liked about her, and the more we talked, the more... we even became good friends, good brothers."

"It is also because of this that he and I are increasingly reluctant, and both understand that once one person confesses first, the other party will inevitably, inevitably withdraw from this subtle triangular relationship."

"So, even knowing that the person I like is by my side, we have never taken that step, thinking about maintaining it for a period of time and maintaining the status quo."

"However, just when this triangular relationship seemed very stable... you appeared."

Natsume Chikage heard this, a drop of cold sweat seeped from his forehead, and he realized something.

It's over... even though he didn't do anything, why did he always have a subtle feeling like he had "cuckolded" the two of them?

As for the girl Tian Bian Youren mentioned.

He could know with his knees that it must be Chao Rina Xiaoyue.

Tian Bian Youren continued to explain sadly:

"After you appeared, this fragile triangular balance was instantly broken."

"In these days, her thoughts have gradually been placed on you..."

"Even when discussing shogi and reviewing games with us, she didn't forget to take out her phone, look at the photos of you competing for a while, and the topic always revolved around you."

"Before hearing her and Huang Mu Jie say that she didn't like you, I thought it was true."

"But just yesterday, when I was at school, I heard her chatting with her best friend, saying that she actually likes you, hoping that her best friend could give makeup advice and chat advice..."

"Until now, I finally understood... women, sure enough, are all saying one thing and meaning another."

"At that time... my heart was really broken, and at the same time I understood that I didn't have any chance at all."

"So I was distressed all morning, repeating: if I could muster the courage to confess to her before she met you... would the result be different?!"

"But it's clear that... there is no if."

Natsume Chikage's sweat increased, not knowing what to say.

Tian Bian Youren saw that he didn't ask further, but was somewhat confused:

"Why don't you ask me what I plan to do?"

Natsume Chikage wiped the cold sweat that didn't exist and asked cooperatively:

"Uh... what do you plan to do?"

Tian Bian Youren said this, took a deep breath, and said in a deep voice:

"Before answering your question, I want to ask a question."

"Actually, I have privately understood your relevant situation. So I know that even if Xiaoyue confesses to you now, she will still be rejected by you." ===== CHAPTER 460 =====