Chapter 692

Opening LINE, the icon showed several unread red dots.

Furukawa Masahiro, Yasui Ryouto, Araki Jua, and Tsukishima Rin had all sent messages.

He first clicked on Furukawa Masahiro's conversation window.

【Furukawa Masahiro: Natsume-kun, did you watch the live broadcast of today's match?】

【Natsume Chikage: I did, why?】

The message was replied to unexpectedly quickly.

【Furukawa Masahiro: That player named Honda Takashi, do you know him? Or did you have some conflict with him before? Otherwise, how could he openly clamor like that in front of the live broadcast camera?】

【Natsume Chikage: I don't know him; today was the first time I saw him.】

【Furukawa Masahiro: Since that's the case... then why exactly?】

【Natsume Chikage: I heard from the seniors that there seems to be a long-standing feud between our Private Tsukikage and their Private Tenhou schools. That's probably the reason why people over there would act like that.】

【Furukawa Masahiro: This... is truly an unprovoked disaster. However... I am quite curious, if you meet him in the match, what do you plan to do?】

Natsume Chikage's fingers paused on the screen, then he slowly typed.

【Natsume Chikage: Win. And then let him know that clamoring comes with a price.】

Furukawa Masahiro on the other side of the screen saw this reply, and a gratified smile appeared on his aged face.

A person who plays chess can be humble, but one must not lack backbone.

Natsume-kun had more spirit and sense of responsibility than he had imagined.

It was worth him waiting so late for a reply.

【Furukawa Masahiro: That is excellent; I fully support you.】

【Natsume Chikage: Thank you for your support.】

【Furukawa Masahiro: By the way, are you free to come and guide Caixu on Saturday and Sunday? That girl is nagging in my ear every day, saying she wants you to come and teach her.】

【Natsume Chikage: Sorry, it might have to be on Monday, the day of the match. I have things to be busy with on Saturday and Sunday...】

【Furukawa Masahiro: That's fine too, Monday it is. I'll bring Caixu to watch your match then, and after it ends, we can go back together.】

【Natsume Chikage: Okay, thank you for the trouble.】

After replying to Furukawa Masahiro, Natsume Chikage clicked on the message Yasui Ryouto had sent after ten o'clock at night.

【Yasui Ryouto: I'm so angry, the more I think about it, the angrier I get! Those guys from Private Tenhou actually dared to mock Jua like that during the match! If I meet them in the match, I'll definitely slaughter them one by one!】

【Natsume Chikage: Same here!】

The message was replied to almost instantly.

【Yasui Ryouto: That's good! By the way, the next fifth round match is a special format; you need to defeat two opponents in a row to advance. Although you won against Asahina, you must not take it lightly; you must train hard these few days, you know?】

【Natsume Chikage: Ah? Consecutive battles? What consecutive battles?】

【Yasui Ryouto: Σ(⊙▽⊙"a You kid, don't tell me you didn't read the text message sent by the organizer carefully? Isn't it written clearly on it?】

Natsume Chikage was stunned, hurriedly exited LINE, and flipped out the match notification text message he had received earlier.

He had only paid attention to the match time and location before and really hadn't read the other details carefully.

Looking at it now, the text message indeed clearly stated: The fifth round match adopts a special format; after winning the first match, the player must immediately play a second match against the winner of another match happening simultaneously. Only those who win two consecutive matches can advance to the next round.

However... it wasn't a big problem; he had the confidence to handle it.

【Natsume Chikage: If it weren't for you reminding me, Senior, I really wouldn't have noticed. Thank you very much!】

【Yasui Ryouto: You kid... you're too careless, not even reading the match text message carefully? Forget it, anyway, that's the situation. The next match is extremely difficult; playing two matches in a short time is a huge drain on both brainpower and physical strength. Remember not to eat too much before the match, but you must replenish enough sugar, otherwise, you might really faint from hypoglycemia during the match. In the history of shogi matches, this situation is not uncommon, you know?】

【Natsume Chikage: Got it, I'll definitely pay attention. Thank you for the reminder, Senior!】

【Yasui Ryouto: Alright, I won't nag anymore. I've taken leave for these few days, planning to stay home and focus on preparing for the next match, so even if there are messages, I might not be able to reply in time; just letting you know in advance.】

Yasui Ryouto on the other side of the screen put down his phone and sighed lightly.

In his view, Natsume Chikage's strength ceiling probably stopped at the level of Asahina Akatsuki.

Being able to break into the fifth round all the way was already a miracle.

Wanting to go higher... the hope was truly slim.

You have to know, the remaining players in the fifth round were already gathered with strong players, not lacking quasi-professionals, professional players, and perhaps even title holders.

Now, with the harsh "two consecutive battles" format, the probability of encountering top-tier experts increased sharply.

He wasn't "worrying" about Natsume Chikage anymore; he almost concluded that Natsume Chikage would inevitably stop here.

But reminders still had to be given.

Even if he really lost, Natsume Chikage could accumulate valuable experience from this high-intensity match and learn how to face opponents far stronger than himself.

This was the most important harvest.

【Yasui Ryouto: I won't say more; I'm going to continue studying the chess records. Let's work hard together for the next match!】

【Natsume Chikage: Mm, you work hard too, Senior!】

Subsequently.

Natsume Chikage clicked on the message sent by Araki Jua.

【Araki Jua: I'm so angry!! If I had known, I should have scolded him harder this morning! How come I only scolded him five or six times before the official staff pulled me away, preventing me from properly scolding him!】

Natsume Chikage looked at this energetic message and felt somewhat amused.

But seeing that Senior Araki seemed to have recovered from the blow of the day and had become full of energy again, he felt much more at ease.

【Natsume Chikage: Don't worry, Senior; in the next match, if Senior Yasui and I meet them, we will definitely vent this anger for you!】

The message was replied to quickly.

【Araki Jua: 【○? ｀Д?? ○】 That's a must! No matter what, you have to crush their spirit for me!】

【Araki Jua: Once you meet them, even if you lose, you must show your momentum! And if they dare to mock you, you must definitely mock them back! Don't lose the momentum even if you lose the game! Anyway, fighting is not allowed on the field, and scolding people will at most get a criticism from the staff, which is nothing, you know?!】

【Natsume Chikage: Definitely!!】

【Araki Jua: Very good, very spirited! But looking at you, you don't seem like someone who would scold people; go learn how to retort later! Otherwise, if you can't even win a scolding match, that would be truly shameful!】

【Natsume Chikage:... Okay, Ai-nee.】

Afterward.

Natsume Chikage clicked on the message sent by Tsukishima Rin.

【Tsukishima Rin: Natsume-kun, are you asleep yet?】

【Natsume Chikage: Not yet, why?】

【Tsukishima Rin: Today I saw Araki-san's mood still seemed a bit low because of the match. Do you have any way to make her truly happy?】

Natsume Chikage thought for a moment.

【Natsume Chikage:... Let Senior Yasui accompany her more, or just date her directly?】

【Tsukishima Rin: (。^＿^。) I know this method too. But for now, the progress between the two of them seems a bit slow, and I'm afraid it's hard to have a breakthrough in a short time.】

【Natsume Chikage: Then bring her some delicious desserts? When people are sad, eating some sweets will make their mood better.】

【Tsukishima Rin: This idea is not bad. Do you have any recommended shops, Natsume-kun?】

【Natsume Chikage: As for that... I rarely eat sweets, so I don't know which shop is particularly good.】

【Tsukishima Rin: Oh right, I remember the coffee shop where you work also provides desserts? Can we go to your place?】

【Natsume Chikage: Of course. Rather, I still have unused employee coupons here. If you come, you can just use them.】

【Tsukishima Rin: (*￣? ￣*) That's great. Shall I bring her over to your place tomorrow?】

【Natsume Chikage: Mm, no problem.】

【Tsukishima Rin: It's not early now, get some rest early. Good night.】

【Natsume Chikage: Good night.】

After replying to everyone's messages.

Natsume Chikage, as usual, clicked on the document editing APP on his phone.

The ghostly blue light illuminated his focused profile, and his fingers began to dance lightly on the virtual keyboard, converting the words in his mind into paragraphs on the screen.

Near twelve o'clock at midnight.

Natsume Chikage finally typed the last period of "Snow Country".

He looked at the "163,000 characters" displayed in the document statistics bar and let out a long, silent sigh of relief.

A sense of relief surged into his heart, causing the corners of his mouth to rise involuntarily.

As long as this completed novel was also submitted, his income source would have one more guarantee.

Although recently, after finishing this novel, it seemed he had more free time.

But that was nothing.

Recently, because of Mitou Orihime's side, he originally needed to learn painting. ===== CHAPTER 693 =====