CHAPTER 96: AN UNEXPECTED EXPOSURE!

"Oh! That’s Sheva! He is finally here~!"

"Can I have a photo first?!"

"Shit! Don’t cut the line! I want his sign first!"

"Hey, don’t push around! Be patient!"

"Sheva! Good job! Your game yesterday was nuts!"

"Ha! What do you know about it?! You watched the game with the computer engine! No need to pretend that you understand!"

"What the hell are you trying to say?!"

"Wait, wait! Stop! Stop! What the hell is going on here!" Sheva raised his voice instantly after being surrounded by a large crowd within seconds. Fortunately, the people here were quite civilized, knowing how to follow orders. Sheva panted slightly, somehow getting overwhelmed by the sudden attention here. After taking a deep breath, his gaze suddenly got sharper as he asked, "So, care to explain to me what is happening here?"

The people there stared at each other silently for a moment before one of them, a teenager around Anna’s age, asked hesitantly. "Are you saying that you don’t know anything about it?"

"What are you saying about?" If anything, the question only made Sheva confused. He turned around at Bagas, who also had just arrived after parking his car first, before asking, "Is there anything I should know that I miss?"

"I don’t know." Bagas also had a similar expression. "Can you please explain what is going on here?" He asked the teenager politely.

"Oh, well, it is quite a big thing..." The teenager took out a phone from his pocket before getting busy with it. A moment later, his eyes lit up instantly before he gave the phone to Sheva and Bagas. "Here, this should explain why we are here."

Both Sheva and Bagas stared at each other for a moment before they turned their attention to the phone. To their surprise, they saw the GothamChess YouTube channel was there, and the latest video, uploaded about three hours ago, popped up at the top. The title was short, just like any other video, but somehow, it caught Sheva’s attention immediately.

100+ MOVES! 9999+++ ELOs?!

"Wait, this is talking about our game?!" Sheva widened his eyes in disbelief. "Are you fucking sure that this is the game from yesterday?!" He turned his head to the people around him questioningly.

"I mean, not many of us would know about your game yesterday if not for this recap." One of them shrugged nonchalantly.

Sheva and Bagas themselves just ignored that, completely immersing in the video that they were watching right now. Indeed, the infamous GothamChess channel, the American IM, Levy Rozman, really took his time reviewing yesterday’s game. Hell, the man even researched both Sheva’s and Arfan’s background a little to explain why the game was incredible, and Sheva was flattered about that. He didn’t expect that just a month after he officially became a professional chess player, he would catch the attention of one of the biggest men in the industry.

"Damn, this is incredible..." Bagas also whispered in disbelief; his eyes were still locked on the screen. However, unlike Sheva, whose mind was still in chess, Bagas’s brain worked quickly, thinking of the implications of this exposure. "Man, this is going to help you in the long run. As long as your rating climbs higher, it wouldn’t be hard to put you in the middle of the current famous chess names like Magnus Carlsen or Hikaru Nakamura!"

"Bah! You are thinking too far! Comparing me with those big names is like heaven and earth! The gap is still quite massive!" Sheva shook his head quickly to wake up Bagas from his daydreaming. Still, it would be a lie if he said he wasn’t flattered. He just didn’t expect that the game yesterday would be that huge. "I wonder if Arfan also receives the same attention..." He muttered to himself.

"Oh, yeah! We also got one from him!" Unexpectedly, someone answered that. "Look! This is my photo with him!"

"I got his signature on my chessboard!" Another one chimed in.

"Hey, that is a good idea! Once they are famous enough, the item with their signature would be a rarity!" The next person added.

Sheva could feel the corner of his mouth twitching at how the people around him—his ’newest’ fans—were scheming about how to rip off money from the items with his signature. Still, he didn’t bother complaining, especially since the seventh round was about to begin in ten minutes.

However, he didn’t diminish the people there, accepting their request for a photo or a sign one by one. Even though it was a bit tiring to fake a smile over and over again, the boy didn’t complain, feeling like this simple gesture could make someone’s day far better instantly. This has always been his feeling toward the fans since the day two little children in Hanoi approached him bravely to ask for a photo with him.

Fortunately, the people here weren’t that many, so it was over within five minutes. Right after that, Sheva said goodbye to Bagas and fist-bumped each other first before leaving, going straight to table 2. There, Claudia had already been waiting for him, her big, round eyes burning with determination.

"So, are you done with your little ’meet and greet’ session?" She asked with a rare playful tone.

"Yeah, sorry to make you wait." Sheva scratched the back of his head sheepishly. "Still couldn’t believe that the real GothamChess would recap my game like that. It is a bit embarrassing, honestly." He chuckled awkwardly.

Sheva also didn’t forget to check the table next to them, where Arfan was already there chatting with his opponent. Once their eyes met, the younger boy didn’t forget to wave his hand at him. Even though they hadn’t spoken to each other after their game, they still felt connected after trying to kill each other yesterday. That was probably why they could act like a close friend instantly right now.

"I don’t know, you guys are that close..." Claudia commented casually, noticing their interaction.

"Well, it couldn’t be helped. We both had just created a legendary game yesterday. It is not a surprise that a connection is formed between us." Sheva shrugged nonchalantly. Claudia could only nod begrudgingly as she knew something like that could happen. "Anyway, I am still pretty tired and didn’t get a good sleep last night. Care to go easy on me?" He asked playfully.

In return, Claudia just snorted back, saying, "There is no way I would go easy just because of that. You are not fooling anyone here, you know? If anything, it would only make you dangerous. So, get ready, because I will come to bite you next."