Road to be the Best Chess Player in the World!-Chapter 424: The Other’s Situation

While everyone was still drunk by his achievement, Sheva had already moved on, setting his eyes on the next bigger thing here in Dubai. Not because he had a better or broader vision, of course, but this GM title came really out of nowhere. In Sheva’s mind, even though the boy had already predicted that he would get the title in this tournament, it wouldn’t come this soon.

Yeah, even Sheva himself didn’t expect that his performance would be this ridiculously good. While he was confident in his own ability, the boy was not arrogant enough to think that he would come and sweep the entire floor for the first five rounds of the tournament. At least, he estimated one or two draws, especially in the last three games. Who would’ve thought that he still underestimated himself?

He beat three of the top five players in this tournament mercilessly, standing tall on top of the mountain while also looking down at the struggle of those below him. In just five rounds, he had already gained a clear one-point advantage, with the closest competitor having only 4 points, and those were Praggnanandhaa, Arjun, and Alexandr Predke, the three he had beaten, as well as another Indian player, Aravindh Chithambaram.

If Sheva was not wrong, his next opponent should be this Aravindh, who wasn’t that easy of an opponent. However, after the successful last three rounds, Sheva was confident that he could beat anyone in this tournament. Even though he got pushed back, as long as he wasn’t defeated, his advantage would still be too great for anyone else to chase. 𝒇𝙧𝙚𝓮𝔀𝓮𝒃𝙣𝓸𝒗𝒆𝒍.𝙘𝒐𝒎

That was why he could say confidently right now that he was aiming for the champion.

"Anyway, what about the others?" Sheva suddenly asked, as if he remembered something. "I haven’t heard anyone’s result yet, right?" He asked Medina for confirmation.

"Oh? Our king finally has time to grace us lowly pheasants with his concern?" Medina asked sarcastically, with the corner of her lips twitching madly. "Thank you, Oh, Great King, for your concern. I assure you that we are doing fine." She even did the fake bow as if she were a true pheasant in the middle-aged era.

This time, it was Sheva who became speechless. "Fine, fine, I am sorry for only focusing on myself! Can you tell me, though?" He asked annoyedly.

Medina’s gaze softened for a moment as she shook her head. "No, you don’t need to apologize. This is a significant achievement, and you will have to deal with numerous things afterward. I myself understand it, and I am sure the others are also the same. Everyone is too immersed in joy today that they don’t even care about their own performances. Still, I appreciate your concern." If anything, this showed how loyal Sheva was to his friends, which made it comfortable for Medina to follow him all along.

"Yeah, yeah, no need to become sentimental like that," Sheva grunted, trying to hide his embarrassment. He really wasn’t that good in a heart-to-heart talk like this. "Anyway, back to the topic, please. How are you guys doing today?" It would be a lie if he said he didn’t feel guilty for forgetting about them.

"Oh, we are really not doing great this time." Medina sighed helplessly. "Out of five of us, we got three draws, one win, and one defeat. Poor Duta, the moment he plays against a higher-rated opponent, he always crumbles under the pressure."

Sheva nodded silently. He knew Duta’s situation. The boy was talented as hell, but somehow, in a real game against a higher-rated opponent, all of his talent suddenly got sucked into the abyss. He couldn’t perform in his best form. This was a mental problem, something that the boy had to deal with by accumulating more experience, or this would only become the mountain that would prevent him from reaching his potential.

Sheva could offer help, of course, but since Duta hadn’t asked first and was not desperate enough, he didn’t want to act like a saint here.

"So, Duta lost, huh?" Sheva muttered under his breath. "What about the rest? You get another draw, Sister Medina? You should start winning the game sooner or later, you know?" He asked teasingly.

"Oh, shut up! You don’t know how annoying those Indian youngsters are." Medina grumbled, clearly not happy with the teasing. "They are all playing like a fucking robot! Honestly, I don’t know what the Indian Chess School taught them, but I don’t believe they could enjoy the game for so long!" She ranted.

"If Mister Sagar heard this, he would be heartbroken, you know?" Sheva smiled wryly.

Still, he couldn’t blame Medina for thinking like that. Indeed, one common characteristic that all the Indian players shared was that they played so precisely, even like a robot. Even the boldest players like Pragg and Arjun could play like a cold machine if they wanted to, removing all of the human sense from their games and completely replacing it with the cold calculation that only considered the best move.

However, in Sheva’s mind, this cold calculation was just their basic skill. What made Arjun, Pragg, and the other Indian prodigies strong was that they had their own characteristic. Their human side was what made them truly difficult to deal with, so the ability to calculate like a true machine was not something that they truly chased.

"So, you got a draw? What about the others? Who got the win?" Sheva asked.

"Who else? Of course, it would be Ia." Medina said shortly.

"Um?! Ia?!" Sheva was taken aback. Then, something clicked inside his head before he finally asked, "Her opponent should be another Indian youngster, right?"

"Oh? How do you know?" This time, it was Medina who was startled.

"It is easy. Out of all of us, Ia is probably the one whose playing style is closest to following the computer engine, always aiming for precision. That is why, when even you, Laysa, and Anna, who like to play tactical games, failed to break through your opponent, the one who could do that is Ia, outmatching them in their own game."

The explanation was logical and understandable, as Medina didn’t really have any argument to answer. In the end, she could only sigh, muttering, "Well, yeah, that is our current situation right now. It is not bad, but it is not great either, definitely. We really need to start winning the game and get back in shape, or we will lose too much before that."