Road to be the Best Chess Player in the World!-Chapter 453: The Second Invitation?!
"Say, what?!" Sheva jumped instantly, his face was a pure shock. "What do you mean by that?!" He demanded, wanting to know whether his ears were playing a trick here. However, Bagas’s next explanation shattered all of that thought instantly.
"It is exactly what I said!" The fat boy repeated his words again. "You have been invited to another tournament! This time, the Prague Chess Festival is extending its olive branch for you! Even though it is still the challenger section, at least, you get another one!" His breath was heavy as he was in full excitement.
It was the first Sunday of the new year, and right now, Sheva was preparing for the Tata Steel Tournament next week. While he was excited for another invitation, this came out of nowhere, making his brain crash.
"Really? You get another one?" Anna asked with envy in her tone.
Yeah, Anna and Claudia were also there to hear the news, and it was quite rare for the big sister to have that tone when talking about Sheva’s career. Well, she couldn’t help it, though. The girl herself also sent a lot of emails to some of the women’s events trying to pitch herself, yet her luck was far worse than Sheva’s.
"Uh... Ahaha..." Sheva could only scratch the back of his head awkwardly, not knowing how to respond to that.
"So, Prague Chess Festival?" Claudia chimed in. "I have never paid attention to that tournament before. Is it strong?"
"Hmm... Well, how should I put this... It is better if you could read the list by yourself." Bagas had his fingers dancing on his phone for a while before giving it to them all. The three teenagers gathered immediately, crowding over the phone to see what Bagas wanted to show them.
"The tournament is definitely not as big and as high as the Tata Steel Tournament, but even in the challenger section, the lineup is quite solid." The fat boy explained. "As you can see, the average rating of the section is 2548. You can also see some familiar faces, like Mateusz Bartel, the Polish dude who won the silver medal behind you in the Olympiad, Shev, and Erwin L’Ami, the Dutch veteran who you will play in Tata Steel next week. So, I can say that this is a good tournament. Also, I know that you have been eyeing this one for a long time, right?"
Sheva didn’t say anything. However, his silence was basically the answer they needed. After all, Bagas also remembered how his best friend was aiming for the Tata Steel and Prague Chess Festival to begin the year, and at that time, he felt like Sheva was just daydreaming.
’Oh, who would’ve thought that I would be the clown here...’ The fat boy couldn’t help but sigh.
"Anyway, enough about me!" Sheva said, trying to change the topic. While he was ecstatic about the invitation, the boy didn’t want to mention it for now, especially since the two girls didn’t look happy at all. "What about you two? Any plan on how to start the year?" He asked curiously.
If anything, though, this only made them both pout more. "Well, except for the Jakarta International Chess Festival (JICF) next March, we will have to wait until May before going for the tournament abroad. We couldn’t help it, though! This semester is exam time!" Claudia threw hands exasperatedly.
Bagas choked, and Sheva himself had to hold back his laughter for that ridiculous reason. "Oh, yeah... Sometimes, I really forget that you guys are still students..." He could feel the corner of his mouth twitching.
Indeed, sometimes, Sheva forgot that he was older than they both. Anna was currently in her final year of high school, while Claudia was also in her final year of middle school. They would have the exam to determine their future in April, so no matter how good they were in chess, no parents would allow their children to go all over the world during this period.
"By the way, are you going to play in JICF too, Shev? Can you play there too, please?!" Claudia suddenly pleaded, startling Sheva a bit.
"Not that I wouldn’t play there, but why do you want me to play there?" He asked confusedly. Even Bagas himself was interested in the answer.
"Hmph! That is because some seniors are talking shit about you, thinking that you are being so arrogant and even dare to scold Magnus on the Internet!" Claudia folded her arms with an angry pout. "You need to knock some sense into them, Shev!" She used her fist threateningly, even though the object of her anger was not here.
Sheva himself turned around at Bagas and Anna, alarmed. This was something that he had never heard before. However, based on those two’s reactions, it was clear that they were also shocked by the news. Still, after thinking about it, Sheva couldn’t help but chuckle, finding the source easily.
’It should be coming from Brother Novendra, huh?’ He sighed in exasperation.
Indeed, out of anyone else, the only person Sheva could think of who had a grudge against him would be Novendra, the GM whose face was destroyed by Sheva completely in the Olympiad. Since that time, they didn’t have any contact with each other, yet Sheva didn’t mean that the man would be so petty, talking about him behind his back.
"Oh, well, sure, I will play." Sheva smiled, deciding on the spot without hesitation. JICF was the second event that he had ever played, but at that time, he was still quite green, fighting in the lowest level of that tournament. This time, though, since he got the invitation for the master section, it would be great for him to grind his rating without having to go far outside of the country.
As for Novendra... ’Well, it would be good to assert my dominance a little bit, rubbing his achievement directly in his face. Hehehe...’ The boy smiled evilly.
"Really?" Claudia had her eyes widen, not even noticing the dark aura surrounding Sheva. "Really?! Really?!" She shook Sheva a little, asking for confirmation. Seeing the nod from the boy, she couldn’t help but jump excitedly. "Yes! With you, me, and Big Sis, we are going to dominate the entire field together!"
Sheva just shook his head in exasperation once again. However, inwardly, he also started calculating. ’Tata Steel, Prague Chess Festival, and JICF... The new year sure is quite busy for me, huh? 2023... Please, be kind to me!’
