Chapter 812

"How about... we go celebrate?"

"I know there is a very good dessert shop nearby..."

Her eyes were bright, full of expectation.

Suzuki Takayuki beside her felt his heart gripped hard by an invisible hand the moment he heard these words.

The pain was clear and sharp.

Akatsuki...

I just lost the match... you didn't even look at me, didn't say a word of comfort...

Now, you are taking the initiative to invite him to celebrate victory...

A strong sense of sourness and loss overwhelmed him.

But at the same time, another stranger emotion followed—a kind of near-masochistic "relief and joy."

However... that's fine too.

Seeing her so active, trying so hard to approach Natsume-kun...

Isn't this what I hoped to see?

Tanabe Yuto beside him adjusted his glasses silently.

The look behind the lenses flickered.

His thoughts were eerily synchronized with Suzuki Takayuki's at this moment.

Although there was unwillingness and hidden pain, reason told him this was a "good thing."

He also nodded imperceptibly, his mood seemed not bad either.

A crisp, childish, yet full of "sovereignty-claiming" voice exploded like a little cannonball.

"No——!"

Furukawa Saio had no idea when she broke free from her grandfather's "restraint."

She rushed over like an agile little rabbit, stretched out her two little arms, and held Natsume Chikage's arm tightly, firmly.

She raised her little face, glaring at Asahina Akatsuki angrily, like a little beast guarding a treasure.

"Big Brother already promised Saio!"

"He's going to teach Saio shogi later!"

"Saio is first!"

Saying that, she also shook Natsume Chikage's arm forcefully, looked up and asked:

"Right, Big Brother?"

Natsume Chikage was stunned, and showed an apologetic smile to Asahina Akatsuki:

"Um, yes."

"That's how it is."

He bowed slightly.

"Sorry, Asahina-san."

"This time I'm afraid not."

"..."

The expectation and shyness on Asahina Akatsuki's face solidified and faded at a speed visible to the naked eye.

She seemed to be instantly petrified, frozen in place.

In her beautiful eyes, the luster dimmed, replaced by thick disappointment and a trace of... resentment.

She looked at Natsume Chikage gloomily, and then looked at Furukawa Saio, who was holding his arm tightly and full of "triumph."

That look made Natsume Chikage a bit unable to handle it.

But she didn't give up.

Taking a deep breath, she cheered up again, and asked with a tone carrying a last glimmer of hope:

"Since not this time..."

"Then... can it be next time?"

"Next time, when Natsume-kun is free?"

Natsume Chikage's peripheral vision keenly captured the eerie expressions on the faces of Suzuki Takayuki and Tanabe Yuto behind her—almost identical, mixed with "heartache" and "excitement."

The corners of his mouth couldn't help but twitch again.

These two guys... what on earth is going on!

Feeling more and more wrong...

Intuition told him it was better to stay away from these three.

At least for the current stage, keeping a distance was the wisest choice.

Thinking for a while, he decided to adopt the safest response—vague, without giving any definite promise.

"Haha..."

"There will be a chance... let's talk about it when there is a chance."

Seishin Middle School.

Class 2-A.

The class just ended.

The lingering sound of the bell was still echoing in the air.

Natsume Ruri couldn't wait to take out her phone from the drawer as soon as the teacher announced the end of class.

Her slender fingers were trembling slightly due to nervousness and expectation.

Brother's match... how did it go?

She understood that her brother usually almost never touched shogi, let alone systematic training.

Being able to break into the fifth round was already an amazing miracle.

And the opponent in the fifth round, she heard, was a very, very strong professional reserve.

Ordinary people couldn't possibly win.

Therefore, her heart was full of contradictions—eagerly hoping that her brother could continue to create miracles, yet secretly worried, afraid that her brother would taste the taste of failure, afraid that he would be dejected.

Not far away, Kaga Reisa and Ando Chizuru, as well as several other classmates with good relationships, had long noticed her movements.

Everyone quietly gathered around.

They all knew that Natsume Ruri's brother, Natsume Chikage, had a very important shogi match this morning.

They were also very curious about how far that handsome and somewhat mysterious brother could go this time.

"Ruri-chan, how is it?"

"Did Brother Natsume win?"

Small urges and concerned inquiries rang in Natsume Ruri's ears.

And when the phone screen finally refreshed, and the clear news headlines and flashes came into view—

"Private Tsukikage Academy dark horse Natsume Chikage, defeats semi-pro shogi player Suzuki Takayuki, strongly advances to the sixth round!"

Below was also a close-up of Natsume Chikage's profile thinking intently in front of the shogi board.

Natsume Ruri held her breath instantly.

She widened those clear eyes like glass, and couldn't help but cover her cherry-red lips that were slightly parted due to surprise with her little hand.

Shock, disbelief, and the ecstasy that followed, washed over her heart.

Brother...

Won?

That brother who usually spent most of his time at home playing games, or chatting with her, occasionally being pulled by Dad to play a guidance game, but always losing quickly, and then being teased by Dad for "having no talent in shogi," and then turning to continue playing games...

Actually... won?

And the one he won against was the semi-pro player whom Dad, an amateur player, revered and thought was difficult to reach in a lifetime?!

Brother...

Brother he... was he actually this amazing?!

A huge sense of pride, mixed with amazement at her brother's hidden depth, instantly filled Natsume Ruri's chest.

Her eyes flashed with incomparably brilliant, incomparably excited brilliance.

Her little face flushed red with excitement. ===== CHAPTER 813 =====