Chapter 481: Playing shogi with you is quite interesting. Shall we have another round?

Above the board.

Furukawa Masahiro's eyes were as calm as an ancient pool without wind.

Not a single ripple was to be seen.

His move was not swift.

Yet it carried a unique, almost rhythmic cadence.

And deep within his consciousness.

The entire board was no longer a layout on a wooden surface.

It felt transparent, as if he could instantly perceive many paths forward.

Then, from the silent storm of thought, he would pluck the optimal move.

And then.

Place the piece.

A cycle repeated.

At this moment.

Furukawa Masahiro sat silently in this realm of the "peak."

However.

He keenly sensed a hint of something unusual.

Natsume Chikage's moves were, surprisingly, just like his own—calm and without a ripple.

Natsume Chikage's expression remained as usual, his speed of play consistently steady.

Almost the very second Furukawa Masahiro's fingertips left a piece.

His own piece would land with a crisp sound.

Without a moment's hesitation.

Furukawa Masahiro's brow furrowed almost imperceptibly, then immediately softened into a helpless, faint smile.

He mused to himself: Is it that I have grown old, and my reputation no longer holds weight?

This boy is so young, he likely has never heard of my title, "Long Wang."

Otherwise, how would he dare to respond so swiftly, almost without a second thought?

Does he truly not consider me an opponent worth taking seriously?

However.

As the former Long Wang who stood at the pinnacle of shogi, Furukawa Masahiro would naturally make Natsume Chikage learn the price of such contempt.

He wanted to make this exceptionally talented boy understand what "strength" truly is.

So that in the future, when facing him, he would never dare to play so casually again.

This—

This was the first lesson he, as a senior, would teach Xia Mujun!

Never underestimate any opponent!

At this moment.

Furukawa Masahiro was not thrown off by Natsume Chikage's fast pace.

He maintained his own unhurried rhythm.

Deep thought.

Move.

Deep thought again.

In shogi, "speed" itself has no meaning.

Only "correctness" is the true royal road.

He placed a few seemingly ordinary moves.

Above the board, an invisible web had quietly spread.

Several subtle traps and foreshadowings lay like fangs lurking in the dark.

Waiting only for the opponent to make a single wrong step to pay a heavy price.

However.

Natsume Chikage's responses seemed completely oblivious.

He continued to place his pieces calmly.

Every step landed precisely on the edges of those "traps" that appeared safest and most insignificant.

Furukawa Masahiro felt neither sorrow nor joy, his gaze deep.

Every step of Natsume Chikage seemed to be within his vast calculations.

No surprise there.

His style of play was now on full display.

On the surface, it looked peaceful and gentle, devoid of any killing intent.

Like a kind mother, on a beautiful, sunny afternoon, holding her baby in the courtyard and humming a gentle lullaby.

Serene.

Peaceful.

Causing one to lower their guard.

But no one knew.

That the baby in the mother's arms, who appeared to be sleeping soundly...

From the very beginning.

Had already been a cold, dead infant.

Yes.

From the very beginning—

After observing many games between Natsume Chikage and Caixu, the moment Furukawa Masahiro took up his pieces, he had already nearly grasped Natsume Chikage's playing style and cognitive inertia.

It could be said that from the start of this game, he had already foreseen Natsume Chikage's endgame.

That "star of death" symbolizing annihilation and the end had long been hanging silently behind the boy, flickering quietly.

Waiting only for that final, finishing move to fall.

You can never perceive from what moment you have already fallen into a dead end.

And this.

Is exactly Furukawa Masahiro's Dao of shogi: observation, research, and crushing!

Furukawa Caixu, who had originally intended to rest, was already captivated by the game between her grandfather and Natsume Chikage.

She knelt at the side of the board, eyes unblinking.

However, that little face, usually brimming with a radiant smile, was now covered in shock and solemnity.

She only felt that today, her grandfather was displaying an unprecedented level of "strength."

It was even a kind of... "seriousness" she had never felt before.

In the past, when playing against her, her grandfather had perhaps never revealed such a posture.

But today.

He had devoted his entire heart and mind to Natsume Chikage.

This was enough to prove that Big Brother's strength had already forced out some of her grandfather's true power.

Furukawa Caixu raised her little hand to wipe away the fine beads of sweat that had unconsciously seeped onto her forehead.

Her expression was somewhat strained.

She knew that with her current level of shogi, it was already difficult to fully calculate the final outcome of this game. ===== CHAPTER 482 =====