Road to be the Best Chess Player in the World!-Chapter 500: The Test (II)

"Um?! Why would you do that, Brother Sheva?" Nayaka was taken aback when he saw the move. Not just him, but even Duta and Devi frowned, trying to calculate the strategy behind it. "Is there any tactical approach that I miss?" Nayaka mumbled, questioning himself.

The move that Sheva just made was basically sacrificing the black’s dark bishop for nothing. Sheva didn’t really gain compensation. Hell, if anything, that bishop should be worth more than 3 points of material, since its position was still good enough to control the long diagonal staring straight at the opponent’s kingside.

It was too good to be true, and that was why the three teenagers didn’t believe that Sheva would make such a basic mistake. Hell, if anything, this only made them suspicious, as they were also his fans and knew that Sheva was fond of a crazy sacrificial move like this.

However...

"Don’t flatter yourself, I’m just trying to make this interesting for me," Sheva said plainly, not even turning his eyes from the board. "You haven’t reached the point where you can threaten me yet. If I didn’t do this, you wouldn’t have any chance to fight back."

There was no mockery or insult in his tone, as if he just spoke about the weather outside. However, the plain truth behind his words was one that hurt the most. After all, it was true that the truth was sharper than any lie in the world. Hearing that, Nayaka scowled, the frustration built inside him was about to erupt.

"Don’t think that just because you are a GM, you can be arrogant like that!" He spat, taking the free bishop aggressively.

"Yeah, show him, Brother Nay!" Devi also cheered, somehow feeling aggrieved by Sheva’s hurtful words. Duta also nodded, giving Sheva a hateful stare.

Gone were all the praises and admiration they had for Sheva a moment ago. Right now, they all stared at the older boy with hostility, as if they were so eager to eat him alive. Sheva couldn’t help but nod secretly, feeling satisfied with their reaction. This was indeed what he wanted to see after his provocative remarks.

’They are too in awe of me, thinking that I am some sort of omnipotent who couldn’t be beaten, and this prevents them from unleashing their best potential.’ He muttered to himself. ’Now that they are angry, at least, they would ignore my identity, and while their messy emotion would make their game sloppy, at least, nothing would hold them back anymore.’

Yeah, it was a deliberate scheme from Sheva, wanting to see Nayaka and the others go all out against him. It worked quite well, as he could see the genuine reaction from them. Unfortunately, he forgot one thing. His level was way higher than the boy in front of him, that, even with one bishop down and him trying his best to lower his level, Nayaka failed to really make a big threat against him.

"Damn!" The boy almost slammed the table aggressively. "I should have something here, right? How could I not find any opening to attack?!" He growled, yanking his hair in irritation.

It wasn’t just because of Sheva’s provocation or the eagerness to prove himself, but his irritation also came from the fact that his time was getting so close to zero already. Nayaka started panicking, his eyes moving rapidly to find the best solution here. Sheva couldn’t help but sigh when he saw this, and after glancing at the other two teenagers who were also falling into anxiety, he finally decided to let them join the fun.

"Devi, Duta, help him." He ordered shortly.

"Um?!" All of them were taken aback.

"What are you waiting for?! Start thinking!" Sheva barked, forcing them to work together. "I tell you what, you can lose this game against me, but if you cannot last longer than twenty moves from now on, there will be a punishment, understand?!"

"Yes, Sir!"

Although it was humiliating—especially for Nayaka—to be ordered something like this, they couldn’t deny the order. Moreover, Nayaka also understood his limitations, so relying on Duta and Devi was definitely the best choice here.

"Okay, stop daydreaming! Brother Nay, stop hesitating! Just go with your usual reckless style! Duta, keep your eyes open for any possible leak! I will be responsible for maintaining the tempo and making sure that we don’t chew more than what we can!"

Sheva had to admit that Devi really had the knack of being a leader. She could see the problem in Nayaka’s style and formed a plan to combat the current situation by using what they were best at, giving them a slight hope of prolonging their lives in this game. Honestly, if chess were a team sport, she would excel in every aspect as a captain.

’Yeah, she is just the second Sister Medina, huh? Even their strictness is the same.’ Sheva grumbled inwardly.

The other two boys also delivered quite well. With Devi in command, they moved like a well-oiled machine, even starting to push Sheva back a little. This time, Sheva could see clearly the potential of each other’s style.

’Once in the zone, Nayaka’s attack is dangerous, but he often forgets about defense. Duta is the opposite. He is too focused on stabilizing the position first, not wanting to take the initiative to attack.’ Sheva calculated. ’As for Devi... I have never expected that her tempo control is amazing... It seems I can also train her in that direction...’

Still, their teamwork really impressed Sheva, and somehow, this reminded him of the last day before he went back from Wijk Ann Zee. However, the difference was that their teamwork was better than when he, Pragg, Vincent Keymer, and Nodirbek fought together.

’Unfortunately, your overall ability is still too low.’ Sheva grinned ferally, startling the three teenagers. ’Oh, well... It doesn’t matter. Let’s show them a tidbit of the top of the mountain. Hopefully, they weren’t too traumatized by that.’

With that in mind, the chilling aura around Sheva got stronger, sending a shiver down the three teenagers’ spines. They stared at each other hesitantly, not knowing how to react. Nevertheless, the three of them realized that this time, they accidentally woke up the beast from its sleep, and they had to be ready for the beating they would soon receive.