CHAPTER 357: THE LADIES ARE THRIVING!

"Oh! What do we have here?!" Bagas jumped from the chair, abruptly, startling everyone there. The boy didn’t care, though, just staring at the screen like a madman with a microphone being so close to his mouth. "The first decisive action is finally on the board! Carisa Yip makes a huge blunder, giving away a chunk of advantage to Anna!" He exclaimed excitedly. If people could hear his voice without knowing what he was broadcasting about, they would’ve thought that it was a boxing match that they were listening to.

"Yes, this is what we have been waiting for. Fortunately, the first big action is in our favor." Sarah added while also subtly dragging her boyfriend’s shirt to pull him back to the chair. She was quite helpless here, not knowing how to control her man better. "So, it is -4.7 out of nowhere for Anna. Where do you think the mistake lies, and what should Anna do to capitalize it?" She asked the two experts next to her in an attempt to change the topic.

Claudia just looked at their antics amusedly. If only it was Sheva next to her, the girl wouldn’t hesitate to gloat at him. However, she had a good relationship with Sarah, and the older girl even treated her as a little sister, sometimes treating her to ice cream or any viral food that they were interested in. So, she didn’t have the heart to do so and just shifted her focus to the game.

"I can tell you that this is a fatal blunder due to a lapse in judgment." She explained. "Carisa Yip is so eager to simplify the position, probably feeling confident with the endgame situation later. However, she did the sequence in the wrong order here. She should be exchanging the knight with her light bishop first, and after that, the queen exchange could be initiated. Now that Carisa Yip skipped the first part and jumped to the second one immediately, with the right sequence, Big Sis has a chance to be up a bishop, which is a massive advantage at this point. Here, let me show you how the sequence would be."

After a quick demonstration on the board, everyone made the simultaneous ’Ah...’ sound as if they were enlightened.

"Chess sure is a cruel game, huh?" Bagas couldn’t help but sigh. "The idea is correct, but one wrong move in the execution phase, and BAM! Everything is over!"

Boriela: Yeah, I also feel the same way here...

Jokara67: Damn! Look at Carisa Yip! It seems that she has just realized her own mistake!

Hilda99: Poor girl... Look at how stressed she is!

Yeah, even though Carisa Yip was an opponent, at times like this, no one had the heart to mock the girl for her blunder, especially when they all saw the instant regret on her face. Hell, some even thought they saw tears dropping from the girl’s face, which was pretty extreme considering the game was still far from over.

Unfortunately, Anna was in her cold-blooded mode here. The moment the girl saw her opponent’s mistake, she struck immediately, not showing any mercy to Carisa Yip. Her move was ruthless and decisive, as Anna knew that mercy to her opponent was a cruelty to herself. This was not the time to involve her emotions, so she just avoided looking at her opponent’s face at all costs.

’I am so sorry, but no matter how much you shed your tears, I will never show mercy here!’

After playing at a fast pace since the beginning of the game, Carisa Yip finally slowed down, taking her time slowly while also trying to regain her calmness. Laysa, who saw on board 4, couldn’t help but feel astonished.

’Oh, Anna, you crazy girl! You even make her collapse like that! You are so cruel, maybe I have to follow your step here!’

True enough, after having that thought, the gears in her brain suddenly started moving, dragging each other like a well-oiled machine to let her think faster. Laysa took a deep breath, knowing that this would make her more exhausted than ever. However, since her best friend was so determined to win the game, the girl would never forgive herself if she couldn’t catch up with her.

’Yeah, there is no way I would be left out of the party!’

-0-

"Oh, what is going on here?! It seems that Laysa is also starting to get serious on board 4!" Sarah exclaimed. Unlike her boyfriend, she was calmer when announcing something. However, the excitement laced in her tone couldn’t be hidden so well, as she watched her other friends also thriving in the venue.

"She makes great progress, marching her soldiers on the queenside forward, occupying the enemy’s territory without giving up too much of her defense," Arfan explained. "This makes her opponent panicked, and instead of making a pawn break that could defuse the situation, she moves back passively, giving Laysa a tempo advantage to prepare a massive wave of attack in the future."

All the people in the broadcast chat were so excited when they saw this. For all the veteran chess fans, they all knew about Anna and Laysa’s rivalry in the past, going back and forth to win the national tournament like it was no one’s business. To see them representing the country, fighting alongside each other in the highest stage of the world, and even thriving, was something that they had dreamed of for a long time.

It was like seeing Tsubasa Ozora and Kojiro Hyuga joining the Japan National Team in anime.

For the next hour, both girls were moving like a machine, bulldozing their way through the opponent’s defense without mercy. Of course, it wasn’t just a one-sided match. Both their opponents, Carisa Yip and Abrahamyan Tatev, still put up a decent fight, not wanting to lose so badly in such a crucial round.

Unfortunately, Anna and Laysa were in their hottest form right now. It took a while, but in the end, after fighting for almost three hours, they both ended the game almost simultaneously.

It was funny to see them both getting startled to see each other winning at the same exact time, especially since it was not planned at all. However, after exchanging glances for a second, the two best friends grinned widely, and without hesitation, they high-fived each other enthusiastically.

"Good job!"