CHAPTER 332: A CONSECUTIVE BLUNDERS?! SHEVA IS ON THE LEAD!

The mistake itself was simple. Instead of continuing to push forward on the kingside, Sabino Brunello intended to solidify his position first, which was not a bad idea in theory. However, in this situation, not only did Brunello lose a tempo, but he also threw away his chance to castle on that side. With all of his kingside pawns marching forward already, his king would be stuck forever in the middle of the board, not being able to get out of that embarrassing position.

’More than that...’ Sheva’s eyes glimmered in excitement, his mind racing with so many calculations. ’I could easily break his center here, and this would make his defense collapse immediately. Now, the question is, how should I send this man to the shadow realm?’

After thinking for about 12 minutes or so, Sheva finally decided on his move order. While he could just prevent the pawn breakthrough in the middle that seemed to be the threat in the last move, he opted to move his knight first, getting ready to jump to the F6 square. Once it was there, he could give a check to the opponent’s king, and while it was just a one-time attack, the fact that Sheva could plant a strong foothold on the opponent’s territory would be a great investment in the future.

It seemed that Sabino Brunello also noticed the same here, and the man clearly didn’t like having a knight poking at his defense. So, before Sheva could check him, the man castled on the kingside, wanting to put his king on the safer spot on the edge of the board.

Unfortunately, if anything, it was considered another blunder, and Sheva himself also noticed that immediately.

’Okay, now, I need to think about it carefully...’ Sheva shifted a little, a wrinkle frown forming on his forehead. ’So... How should I capitalize this position...’

He also didn’t forget to take a quick glance at his opponent, just to find out that Sabino Brunello didn’t look worried at all. Well, it was understandable, since the man was a veteran in this game. There were not a lot of things that could shake him off so easily, and having played for years also helped him develop the strongest poker face in the world. There was no way Brunello would reveal his feelings even when he made a mistake, making it difficult for Sheva to read the man in front of him.

’Tch! The advantage is still too little. I need to tear the defensive wall down first.’ Sheva clicked his tongue in annoyance.

Indeed, he was a player who strongly believed that if the computer engine’s evaluation was still between -1 and +1, it couldn’t be called an advantage, and it also worked for his opponent. Even though right now, the computer showed that his advantage was 0.9, the boy still thought that the game was equal, so he needed to do more to get one of his feet closer to the finish line first.

In the end, he decided to lock the center, not allowing the black’s kingside to advance further. Sheva was also getting ready to let his knight jump, still believing that the F6 square was too juicy to be ignored. Now that the king was in such an open position, though, the boy also started to think of a way to get to that side as quickly as possible, not wanting to give his opponent any chance to react.

*Author note: If you want to visualize the position better, check the comment below.

However, it seemed that he didn’t have to work too hard in this game. Just right after that, Sabino Brunello made another mistake, which surprised Sheva a lot here. Hell, the boy even turned his head slightly, glancing at the Italian GM in disbelief.

’Is this fucking true or not? Is he really trying to give me a win or what?’ Sheva started to question himself, couldn’t even hide the doubt inside him. ’Three consecutive blunders? If I didn’t know anything, I would think that my opponent is a low-rated one, not a veteran GM from Europe!’

Yeah, even though the last two mistakes weren’t too much to affect the whole game, this time, it was a different matter. It seemed that Sabino Brunello didn’t like Sheva’s knight on the H5 square, so he decided to march his king forward to chase it away from his territory. A foolish decision, as it only brought the king closer to the crocodile’s mouth.

*Author note: If you want to visualize the position better, check the comment below.

"He is starting to get anxious." In the live broadcast, Claudia explained with a solemn tone about what was happening on the board. "Sabino Brunello knows that the knight on the H5 square is so strong, and even though it hasn’t jumped to the F6 square yet, the potential of it being a strong attacker cannot be dismissed easily. If anything, Sabino Brunello will welcome the knight on the F6 square, as forcing an exchange to happen for that strong piece would be beneficial for him. However, it is clear that Sheva also notices that, so he doesn’t bulge and just improves his position first."

"The knight on that square is so strong?" Bagas asked, slightly taken aback. "I still remember Sheva talked to me about knight on the edge is dim or something like that. Doesn’t the current position contradict that statement?" He couldn’t help but ask.

Claudia bit her lips, pondering for a moment about how to answer the question. "Indeed, we all have been thinking about that since the beginning of our careers. However, it all still depends on the situation. Just like this case, even though the square that the knight controls is limited, all of them are quite strategic, enough to force Sabino Brunello to chase that. Also, the Italian GM desperately needs to exchange his terrible dark bishop, so he probably hopes that Sheva would let his knight jump there."

Sheva didn’t know what Claudia talked about behind the scenes, but he also agreed that Sabino Brunello was eager to get his knight out of the equation as quickly as possible. So, after pondering for a moment, the boy did the most logical thing in this scenario.

He let his knight die, sacrificing it completely to lure the opponent’s king out of its protection.