April has arrived, and Tenai is now in the fourth grade of elementary school. In public circles, Kuzuryū is called the "Loli King" or "Rich Daughter's Husband" because he knelt before Ai's parents (to beg them to allow their daughter to join the Training School) during the Training School examination. I feel like I will be called the "Loli King" soon too. But this world does not need "twoLoli Kings," and Sora-san will ensure Kuzuryū remains the sole one.
I won the title of "Wise Expert", but that does not mean I will be called "Ōki the Wise Expert," just as Kuzuryū is called "Ryū-Ō (Dragon King)." This is unavoidable because it is not one of the Seven Major Titles. Although, I believe it will become one of the Eight Major Titles in the next year or two.
(Ugh, a five-hour single combat with thinking time against the strongest computer program is akin to torture for ordinary professional players. And it is not just one game, but a series of three games, leaving no room for the professional player to make excuses.) (Ōki)
『You defeated the training program with a Lance handicap, but they handed you a version one level weaker than it.』 (Ai)
(Can I win as usual without consuming thinking time?) (Ōki)
『You can win. At the very least, it is stronger than the programs you have been using as punching bags so far, yet you can still win without consuming thinking time.』 (Ai)
「Excuse me.」 (Developer)
The person who entered my private lounge before the match was the developer of the Shogi program I was about to face. His name... I don't recall it.
The ensuing conversation was quite subdued. He mentioned that he had also uploaded my game records, but the number of my publicly published game records does not even represent one-hundredth of the number of matches I have played in this half-month.
In public circles, there are suspicions about me cheating by using a computer program in my matches, but these doubts will vanish as soon as I surpass the program. In any case, since all my moves are made without consuming time, when exactly am I supposed to find time to cheat?..... Hmm...
By the way, Tenai said she would not come to cheer for me, but I saw her disguised with Akira-san at the venue. Apparently, she came to cheer after all. Well, it is Mount Hiei anyway. It is a place relatively close to Kobe. And since she seems to be a history enthusiast, the Enryaku-ji Temple on Mount Hiei might be a place she wishes to visit.
(Well, the opponent has arrived. Is the one who will perform the "piece toss to determine the first player" the robot Popper-kun? ... Doesn't this inevitably mean the professional side will move first?) (Ai)
(It just means they allowed a human to hold the pieces and then drop them. Well, regardless, if I move first, I will not lose.) (Ōki)
The coronation ceremony for the Wise Expert (Ken-Ō) Championship concluded, and as a result of the "piece toss" performed by the robot Popper-kun, it was decided that I would move first. Since Ai is the one moving first, there is no room for loss.
「It is now ten o'clock, so please begin the match.」 (Supervisor)
「I wish you good fortune.」 (Ōki)
(Push the pawn on the far flank (1-6).) (Ai)
(... What?) (Ōki)
The first move that Ai wanted to play was pushing the pawn on the far flank. What is he thinking?
The first game of the Computer Shogi Battle began. It was Ōki's turn to move first, but Ōki did not make a move for thirty minutes after the match started. He was supposed to typically play without consuming time, but he showed no movement.
「Hey, what should we do about this? This is almost a broadcasting error!」 (Supervisor)
Kuzuryū, who was commissioned for analysis on the large board and previously enjoyed (but in a bad sense) popularity on the "Nico Live" broadcast, was worried about the board situation, where nothing had moved for thirty minutes after the first move. In contrast, Ōki's internal quarrel with Ai had not yet concluded.
(You must concede a move; in fact, I will make you concede two moves. This action is necessary to prove that you are stronger than the program and to eliminate the malicious rumor that "your victory was solely due to the advantage of the first player (Sente-ban) in Shogi.") (Ai)
(Oh my God, this is so boring! This concession is ridiculous and unnecessary! Since we will play three games, and the second game will be with me as the second player (meaning the opponent will start), I will have a chance to prove my strength in all situations! There is no need for this "drama" in the first game!) (Ōki)
(I will prevent any damage to my Master's reputation until the second game. (Meaning we will play this weak move that is equivalent to a concession.) But let me tell you, if you play any move other than "Pawn on the far flank (1-6)," I will not assist you in this match anymore!) (Ai)
(... Fine! I understand! I will play it, I will play it then!) (Ōki)
(Finally!) (Ai)
After 31 minutes and 40 seconds from the start of the match, Ōki finally played his first move. It was pushing the pawn on the far flank, a move rarely seen except in surprise attack tactics.
This in itself was an event, but the next few moves were an even bigger one. Every time Ōki played a move, the hall filled with whispers, and the professional player who was working as an analyst stopped thinking, handing the entire analysis over to Kuzuryū.
「... Can I really explain this?」 (Kuzuryū)
「Please... please do your best. Master Kuzuryū, you can do it.」 (Analyst)
After the first move (Pawn 1-6), Ōki continued to play without consuming time. With the third move (Pawn 9-6) and the fifth move (Pawn 5-6), Ōki's Shogi became incomprehensible and defying analysis. When he shifted the Rook to the 5-8 square on the seventh move (5-8 Hisha), the hall violently shook. The reason was that Ōki, a traditional Static Rook (Ibisha) player, had shifted the Rook, and his opponent was a computer program that considered Static Rook to be the correct opening method.
「Umm, if I have to explain this, he is now playing the Center Rook (Nakabisha) while keeping the King in place (I-Gyoku), a move that completely destroys the advantage of having pushed the pawns on both flanks. There is a possibility of advancing the Bishop (Kaku) to 9-7, but... perhaps this is a declaration of intent from the 6th Dan Ōki, stating that the advantage of the first player is not necessary for me when facing a computer program. As for the Center Rook style, I have never seen him play a game with it before, so it is unknown to me.」 (Kuzuryū)
Kuzuryū had never seen Ōki opt for the Center Rook style. And certainly, the same was true for the audience present in the hall. Except for Ōki's sole student.
「... It is unreasonable for shifting the Rook to be a kind of handicap when playing against a computer program in an even game.」 (Tenai)
Naturally, continuing with such moves would severely weaken the evaluation value (Hyōka-chi). Nevertheless, the evaluation value did not drop significantly during the first few moves of the opening phase. What was strange was that as the board progressed, Ōki's evaluation value began to recover, despite the computer program always choosing the best move indicated by the engine.
At the sixtieth move, the computer program's evaluation value finally turned negative. The program was using time to read deep into the board and select its moves, whereas Ōki was playing without using time, except for the first move.
The available thinking time for both of them was five hours, yet neither of them consumed much time as the match approached its end. Ōki's consumption of thinking time was 32 minutes, while the program consumed 1 hour and 19 minutes. Neither of them was paying attention to the available thinking time.
The result was decided before noon. With the decisive move played by Ōki, the computer program's evaluation value suddenly dropped by approximately 150 points into the negative. The program attempted to attack Ōki's formation in the endgame, yet it could not even break through. In the final position, there was a vast gap resembling the difference between heaven and earth.
Ōki's massive victory was announced, and many people mistakenly believed that humans could still defeat computer programs in Shogi. In the second match, held a week later, Ōki achieved an overwhelming victory while playing as the second player. Consequently, the curtain closed on the Computer Shogi Battle, which had attracted public attention, with Ōki winning two consecutive matches.
....
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