CHAPTER 45: ANNA’S DOMINANCE!

Much to their surprise, though, right after both Sheva and Claudia went out of the hall and checked their phone to see Anna’s game, they found out that Anna was having the day of her life. She was crushing Gerry Mandagi, her big rival, in a spectacular way. Hell, the game went one-sidedly, and Gerry didn’t even have a chance to fight back for the entire game.

"It is +4.8 for Anna?!" Sheva stared at his phone in disbelief. "What the hell is she smoking right now?!" Claudia gave him a confused gaze, not knowing what Sheva was talking about. That was when he realized that it was a slang used by teenagers around his age, and the little girl next to him was just 12, four years younger than him. "What I mean is, how could she suddenly get this strong? Is he supposed to be her rival?" He fixed his phrasing.

"Well, it is Big Sis whom we are talking about. Of course, she is awesome!" The smile on her face showed how proud Claudia was of Anna. Hell, she even forgot to ask about the meaning of the slang Sheva used before, focusing completely on the phone in his hand. "Also, she has been waiting to face him for six months, you know? She is so eager to take revenge for the defeat she suffered in the last national tournament. So, of course, Big Sis is way more motivated than before."

Sheva just nodded his head a little, could see Claudia’s point. "Still, I cannot believe that she would go for the same King’s Gambit as me." A teasing smile suddenly formed on his face. "I didn’t expect I would inspire a stronger player like her."

"Oh, don’t think too much about yourself!" In return, Claudia scoffed sarcastically. "Even without seeing you, I am sure she would also figure out this kind of opening. The gap between you both is still quite large."

"Of course, I know." Sheva shrugged nonchalantly, not even denying every single part of the girl’s argument. Then, the grin on his face gave Claudia a bad feeling as he added, "Still, can you say with confidence that Anna would be hooked by this opening if she had never seen me using this one?"

Claudia scowled, but also knew that the boy was right on point here. Even though Anna’s playing style was always aggressive and full of tactical approach, she had never touched the King’s Gambit before, courtesy of everyone telling her that it was a bad opening. It wasn’t until Anna saw Sheva’s crazy style that the girl was willing to explore more, and as a result, this became one of her favorite openings instantly. Claudia could see that, but she would never admit it in front of Sheva loudly, not even if hell froze.

For a moment, those two teenagers spent their time in silence, only the sound of two masters commenting on the game could be heard faintly from Sheva’s phone. It was already dark outside, yet since this was a tourist place, the surroundings were packed with humans.Fortunately, there was a clear sign in front of the museum where they were playing that it was prohibited to enter this place since there was a chess tournament happening inside, so both Sheva and Claudia didn’t have to worry about getting swarmed by people outside of the fence.

Tak!

Tak!

Tak!

At this point, they both couldn’t put their concentration on the phone anymore. They both were too exhausted to deal with that. It seemed that two games in one day really took a toll on them. Fortunately, Anna was very clinical in her endgame, not giving Gerry any chance to maneuver his way to save his ass. In the end, after shuffling his pieces for a while before getting entangled in the web of trap woven by Anna once again, the boy let out a deep, disappointed sigh and offered her a handshake.

He resigned.

"Yesh!" Claudia clenched her fist unconsciously, celebrating the win that her big sis just got. "Sheva, come on! Let’s go and meet her!" Her eyes shone brightly, all the exhaustion on her face earlier disappeared instantly.

"Why would we go? We don’t even have any access to the main hall. Let’s just wait for her to get out." Sheva sighed helplessly. "Don’t worry, she won’t go anywhere else. Just be patient and let your big sis have her moment first."

Inwardly, though, he also felt proud after watching the girl win her game. Sheva stared intently at his phone, watching how tension slowly ebbed away from the girl’s shoulder, with a little smile gradually forming on her face. However, even with the satisfaction after winning the game, he could see that the girl wasn’t content at all. No, she was still hungry, and if anything, this win only made her feel more eager.

’Good.’ Sheva nodded satisfactorily. ’She still doesn’t forget her initial target.’

Yeah, even though right now, Anna wanted nothing but to jump and scream crazily, she still maintained her composure, knowing that her target hadn’t been achieved yet. She still got 3 points out of five rounds, and to earn her final norm for the WGM title, the girl would at least need 2.5 points more. Out of the final four rounds of the tournament, the best scenario was, of course, to get two wins and one draw. That would also boost her rating more and catapult her position into the top five women chess players in Indonesia. However, one win and three draws were still acceptable, so the girl wouldn’t force herself too much for the rest of the tournament.

After exchanging pleasantries for a while with the awkward boy who was also her opponent a moment ago, Anna finally left the hall. However, the moment she stepped out of the room, a small figure suddenly dashed so quickly like a bullet before crushing onto her.

Brugh!

"Big Sis! You win!" Claudia, the culprit of the commotion, didn’t even care about the stares she received from the others. No, all of her attention right now was on her big sister as she stared at her with eyes full of admiration. "You finally beat his stupid ass! Serve him right for being rude to you!"

"Ia, what did I tell you about talking behind people’s backs like this?" Anna sighed helplessly, having been used to her little sister’s antics. "Also, why are you here alone? How is your game going? Where is Sheva, by the way?"

"Oh, him?" Claudia clicked her tongue in annoyance. Somehow, she felt a little bit strange whenever Anna talked about Sheva, as if the boy wanted to steal her big sister straight away. "He is there." She pointed her finger in the left direction where Sheva was just waving his hand at them.

"So, how is your game?" He asked with a big smile, even after knowing the final result.

Anna was taken aback for a moment, but the smile that she had been holding back for a while was finally back as the girl grinned widely. "Good. Everything is under control, so don’t worry about it."