The work of the Go master

As Harushima Shika reminisced, she drew circles on the table with her finger, as if her thoughts were caught in a vortex of circles.

More than a month ago, the game ended, and she defeated Yixin 2 to 1.

After the game ended, Isshin didn't disappear immediately; instead, he had time to hug his opponent and talk to him for a long time.

"Now it's up to you. Bravely run towards the other side of confession," Yixin said.

"Yeah, I know... but I'll most likely be the one getting confessed to. With that guy's current skill level, it seems pretty difficult," Harushima Shika muttered.

"You don't need to worry about that. I've already paved the way for you." Yixin smiled knowingly.

Soon, Isshin told Harushima Shika how the path to victory had been paved—

"First of all, the rules are based on medieval Go, with the placement of stones and the return of the head. You have practiced medieval Go for so long in order to play against me, and you have already mastered the advantage of the first move. It can be said that the moment I disappear, you will be the strongest medieval Go player in the world."

"Since they've already adopted the rules of medieval Go, let's go all the way and not give any komi. White moves first, and Black moves second. If this condition is met, and you guess right and successfully steal the white stones, you'll break their amazing winning rate with white. This way, your advantage will be even more firmly established."

Hearing this, Harushima Shika couldn't help but retort, "Hey! If that's the case, even if I really killed him, it doesn't mean I'm stronger than him!"

"Oh dear, I didn't say you should be better than him. I'm just telling you how to win him over... Love is ruthless." Isshin raised an eyebrow at Harujima Shika.

Who knows what methods this guy used to get his mother back then!

"What if... I can't guess the white pieces?" Harushima Shika raised the most worrying point.

"Don't worry, you'll definitely get the white pieces." As Isshin spoke, he placed his palm against Harushima Shika's.

The two white chess pieces were handed over to Harushima Shika by Isshin.

"Does that mean I have to guess even?"

“That’s right, exactly.” Isshin nodded with a smile.

"Does that mean there's a special effect on the pieces that allows me to guess correctly 100%?" Harushima Shika stared at the two pieces, trying to sniff out something fishy.

"No, these two chess pieces were just something I grabbed from the chess box; they have no effect whatsoever."

"Hey! Be serious!"

"Although these two pieces don't have any special effects, you only need to do this, and they will immediately generate magic..."

He spoke mysteriously, but instead of telling Harushima what to do next, he handed her a pouch-like object.

"Open it the night before the final, and you'll understand... Oh, and don't open it beforehand, or the spell's magic will wear off." Isshin confidently gave a thumbs up, beaming with joy.

Soon, Yixin disappeared.

These two chess pieces and this small brocade pouch were the only things he kept.

In the living room, Harushima Deer was playing with the two chess pieces and the little brocade pouch on the coffee table, feeling utterly speechless.

This reminded Harushima Kashima of a scene from the Three Kingdoms period, where people would leave behind a brocade pouch, implying that opening it would have miraculous effects. Zhuge Liang did this every day.

Before his death, his father left behind this brocade pouch, which has a hint of a last-minute plan to pacify Liaodong. However, compared to Guo Jia, Qingdao Lu thinks his father is more like Jiang Gan... who knows, it might contain a treacherous plan to kill Cai Mao and Zhang Yun.

Harujima Deer played with the small brocade pouch with a melancholy expression, showing no intention of opening it, as if something was hanging in her heart.

"Alright, Sister Deer, my afternoon chores are done. You can tell me anything that's on your mind." Zero sat down in front of Harushima Deer, holding a cup of pure English black tea in her hands.

"I...I don't have anything on my mind."

"It's because you've clearly understood each other's feelings, but recently your relationship with your brother hasn't progressed at all, right?" Zero smiled elegantly, her eyes piercing through a thousand thoughts.

"Wait, wait! How do you, a little girl, know so much about how we understand each other's feelings—"

Her spellcasting was interrupted.

Zero skillfully picked up the teaspoon and swiftly fed it into the mouth of the deer, causing it to let out a sudden whimper.

"How does it taste?" Ling asked with a smile.

"not bad......"

And so, Harushima Shika's aura was overwhelmed, and she could only obediently listen to the other party's lecture.

Although Zero is nominally the younger sister, I always feel that... she exudes the aura of an older sister, or even a mother, at all times.

"Don't worry about the progress of the relationship. It's only been a little over a month. Maybe your brother is still immersed in the great joy of victory and won't be able to get out of it for a while," Zero said.

Is that so...?

"In short, don't worry about the progress of the relationship. Nothing is progressing right now; it's all paving the way for a big leap forward in the future. Just wait for the right time."

As Zero spoke these words, the lake deep within his eyes rippled gently, as if he had foreseen this moment in the future.

.......

.......

Compared to the two girls in the living room who were studying life and emotions, Ke Zhiguang's situation was much more serious and complicated.

Inside the school's examination hall, Ke Zhiguang stared solemnly at the exam paper before him, as if facing an apostle's attack.

This is the first exam after the winter break.

It's embarrassing to admit, but he originally wanted to use his prestige to show off at school, but he didn't expect that the school was having exams today... He practically walked into a trap.

Here's what happened—

This morning, he strode into the school gate with a brisk pace, and all the students watched his arrival, as if this man had his own dashing background music.

As expected, his arrival caused a sensation. A group of students rushed up to him, and even the security guards came up with autograph books, their faces flushed.

So far, he already holds six titles, with only the last one, the Moon Goddess, yet to be obtained. However, given Ke Zhiguang's current strength, acquiring this title is as easy as an emperor visiting a concubine.

With such an outstanding student on campus, the shrewd school administration certainly wouldn't miss this opportunity to promote him. They put up posters for him and erected a bronze statue. The Go club that Ke Zhiguang had once joined naturally developed into the largest club on campus, even replacing the student council. His popularity was unimaginable.

Just then, some random student chimed in, "I never expected that Senior Ke Zhiguang could find time to take the exam in addition to his Go studies. He's amazing!"

This statement resonated with everyone, who all concluded that Ke Zhiguang had come specifically for the exam and had made thorough preparations.

In the next shot, Ke Zhiguang is sitting in the examination room. Although he remains calm and doesn't reveal his true colors, his forehead is already sweating.

What should we do?

Although he now possesses complete memories, knowing everything from controlled nuclear fusion to the deepest ocean,... this strange knowledge doesn't seem to apply to exam papers from a hundred years ago.

Just as he was in deep anxiety, someone handed him a small note.

The unexpected assist warmed Ke Zhiguang's heart. He then quietly raised his gaze to look at his ally—it was Xingcai.

She was certainly not handing the answers to Ke Zhiguang as a test taker, but rather as... an invigilator.

Thinking about it, it makes sense. The current Go club is incredibly powerful, and its minister wields immense authority, so it's perfectly reasonable for him to be sent to supervise the exam.

But... how much power has she, a high school sophomore, been granted the authority to proctor exams for seniors? Is she truly destined to be the queen of the school?

With her help, Ke Zhiguang walked out of the examination room with his head held high, once again receiving a round of applause.

"Senior, I really didn't expect you to dare walk into my trap on exam day. If it weren't for me accidentally proctoring this exam... ugh, occupational hazard, I just keep saying that," Xingcai said, "if it weren't for me accidentally proctoring this exam, you might already be nailed to the pillar of shame by now?"

"Ahem, I'm sorry, I'll check the calendar before I go out next time," Ke Zhiguang said modestly.

"There won't be a next time. The next time is graduation. Are you perhaps interested in repeating a year of high school and clinging to the title of 'student'?" Xingcai said with a cold laugh.

"Now that you mention it, I really do want to..." Ke Zhiguang stammered, before his next words were interrupted by his complicated thoughts.

Before I knew it, the glory of being a student was almost over. The goal I had loudly declared on the stage of the gymnasium had actually been achieved, and I had successfully obtained the title of Yuchengqi before graduation.

Time really flies.

After defeating Yagami Kunikyo, he was in a daze for a while, feeling weak and listless, like a student who had just finished the college entrance examination. He forgot to celebrate and cheer up, and wondered if everything was over.

His situation was similar; he spent more than ten days relaxing, immersed in ease and tranquility. However, as he gradually adapted to this state, he also began to feel clarity and reality. What had ended was just a story, not life. Since he wanted to live... he should hurry up and go show off a bit!

So he picked up his trophy and went to visit every acquaintance he knew, first Uncle Qiu and Xun, and then Lin Ying, the shop manager from the next street.

He also visited the University of Tokyo and met with Shōmiya and Hakumeng. When he stepped through the Akamon Gate with the trophy in his hand, he immediately received respect from Japan's top university—applause from the people around him.

He also paid a visit to Shuicheng's home. She had recently finished her entrance exams and was waiting for her results at home. He believed that the championship trophy would bring her good luck.

In short, he had gone through every corner of his memory during this period, not letting go of any opportunity to pretend... He never expected to almost make a mistake at his own school, which was his most important base.

"Come to think of it, I haven't actually spent much time at school, but why do I always find myself wanting to wander into this place?" Ke Zhiguang said, looking at the sign for Yunjing High School at the school gate.

"Perhaps it's because being a student naturally brings an air of youth and vitality. Everyone who's tired of working in the workplace always thinks about finding a bench on campus to sit down and quietly relax," Xingcai said, looking up at the sign.

"If I could, I'd really like to be a high school student forever." Ke Zhiguang spread his arms, his smile tinged with a hint of helplessness.

Youth and vitality—that's certainly a great answer.

"So, I'm officially saying goodbye to my campus youth and going to pursue a new youth." Ke Zhiguang waved to the campus sign. Although it was still a cold day, his eyes suddenly seemed to sparkle with the image of cherry blossoms in spring.

After finishing the last round of pretending, Ke Zhiguang returned home.

Now it's time to get down to business...

"It's starting!" Harushima Shika stumbled in from the entrance hallway, as if she had some important news to announce.

"It's started?" Ke Zhiguang instantly understood the other party's abstract answer.

Perhaps not long ago, the Moon Sky title match was announced.

Ke Zhiguang quickly went to the TV in the living room and, as expected, found that Nichikaze was being interviewed by the media and announcing relevant event information.

This moment came suddenly.

"We can finally begin, you two?" Zero leaned against the dining table, looking at the two with great interest.

Ke Zhiguang and Qingdao Lu both fell into deep thought.

Both sides felt that there was a slightly awkward, mysterious atmosphere during the preparation period for the match...

Chapter Two: Girlfriends, let's go!

"The Moonlit Battle is officially revealed! Ke, Rising Star, Master, Strategy, Dream Paradise, Dragon Throne, Imperial City Chess, and Light-wielding, are about to reach the pinnacle of the seven titles that truly belong to him!"

"Unprecedented in history! The path to kingship for an eighteen-year-old!"

"One day, an earthquake struck Tokyo. According to the investigation, the cause was that the bed suddenly collapsed while Koji Mitsuko and her harem were playing happily."

"Damn it! How did someone from the joke department end up here? Get out! This is a proper news venue!"

After the announcement of the Moon Battle, the chess world was once again abuzz with excitement, and the outside world paid close attention to it.

Logically speaking, the month-long Imperial Chess series of battles has already exhausted everyone's enthusiasm. If it doesn't cool down for more than half a year, it is expected that everyone's expectations will not be fully satisfied.