After the fourth game of the Queen Title match, I shifted all training games to "Diversion Shogi." In the Queen match, Tinei secured two consecutive victories and then suffered two consecutive defeats. She is under immense mental pressure, and had it not been for this situation, Tenai would never have accepted something like Diversion Shogi. The first type of Diversion Shogi we played was the "Eight-Directional Knight."
The "Eight-Directional Knight" is a shogi variant where the Knight piece's movement increases to literally cover all directions, making its movement identical to the Knight in Chess. This is a frightening variant that can cause visual illusions, even for professional players, leading to their defeat. Incidentally, we decided that promotion makes its movement like a regular Promoted Knight, so not promoting it is the better choice. Combining the Gold General's movement with the Eight-Directional Knight's movement would make the piece overwhelmingly powerful and completely disrupt the game's balance.
「If I move the Pawn to 7-6, and the Pawn to 5-6, then jump with the Knight to 6-8, I can protect four Pawns at once.」 (Tenai)
「Ah! I overlooked the piece's back threat!」 (Ōki)
「Damn it, there are too many possibilities to read simultaneously.」 (Tenai)
The second type is "Shō Shogi" (Small Shogi), where a piece called the "Drunken Elephant" is placed atop the King. The total number of pieces on the board increases by two, totaling 42 pieces. Can I describe the movement of the "Drunken Elephant" as being similar to the Silver General's movement but with the ability to move sideways? In short, it is a King that cannot move backward, and upon promotion, it becomes the "Crown Prince," whose movement matches that of the King. The rare rule here is that even if the King is checkmated, the game does not end in a loss as long as the "Crown Prince" is still alive.
In the original Shō Shogi, captured pieces are not allowed to be reused, but we will not implement this rule because it deviates too much from standard shogi. Therefore, I restricted dropping to the "Drunken Elephant" piece only. If I didn't restrict this piece, penetrating the King's area would become too easy.
「Just adding one piece changes shogi dramatically.」 (Tenai)
「I wonder, is it better not to risk attempting to promote the Drunken Elephant to Crown Prince?」 (Tenai)
「... The known theories and previous ways of thinking are completely useless here.」 (Tenai)
The third type is "Lion King," where the King can move twice in one turn. This does not simply mean the King's movement range doubles; it allows for techniques like "Stationary Capture." For example, if a Gold General is dropped in front of the King and the situation would normally be a checkmate, in this version, the King can capture the piece and return to its original position in the same turn.
... Given its nature, which easily causes illusions, especially in checkmate positions, this game is the most volatile in terms of results. Well, the difference in level between "Ai" and Tenai is like heaven and earth, and since "Ai" makes no mistakes, Tenai cannot win against him. However, when she plays against me, the game is sometimes exciting and evenly matched.
「The potential for this "Stationary Capture" is truly terrifying.」 (Tenai)
「I fell into the illusion again...!」 (Tenai)
「Playing on three boards with these rules simultaneously will make my brain explode!」 (Tenai)
When playing these three types simultaneously, errors and illusions occur that do not happen normally. Tinei even lost once due to an illegal move (a rule violation), and there is no doubt that her fixed concept of shogi has been completely shattered.
In my previous life in college, playing this "Diversion Shogi" to kill time led to astonishing increases in playing strength, or helped players whose development had stagnated resume growth. Of course, some players' standard shogi level declined due to excessive play of these variants, but I am confident Tinei will be fine.
『Won't you teach her "Chū Shogi" (Middle Shogi)?』 (Ai)
(Absolutely not; Middle Shogi, with its 12x12 board and huge number of pieces, would be overkill.) (Ōki)
Most importantly, playing with different rules than usual adds a special kind of enjoyment. Training with enjoyment is better and more effective than training with suffering.
『Shogi with special rules disrupts reliance on past experience. While it may occasionally weaken one's level, it certainly increases the ability to read the immediate position.』 (Ai)
(In addition, the "Eight-Directional Knight" forces shogi to become complex and multi-dimensional, regardless of the player. There is a possibility that her perspective on shogi will change, and if things proceed in the right direction, she might become suddenly stronger. Well, it's somewhat like gambling.) (Ōki)
『Doing something like this during a crucial title match is the thinking of a failure who disregards the consequences.』 (Ai)
(However, in her current state, she won't be able to catch up with Ms. Sora-san, whose power has awakened. I didn't expect Ms. Sora-san to develop this quickly... Or, to be precise, she didn't "develop" as much as she shed her psychological burdens.) (Ōki)
There is not much time until the fifth game of the Queen Title match. After having her accompany me in "Diversion Shogi" for three continuous days, we naturally returned to delving into research and preparation for the confrontation with Ms. Sora-san.
As for me, the match to defend the Ki-Ō (Shogi Emperor) title is approaching. This year's challenger is the Meijin (Grand Master). He reached the challenger determination finals last year too, so it is understandable that he comes as a title challenger, but winning the final tournament of the Ki-Ō for two consecutive years while in the middle of defending his Meijin title? Is he a monster or what?
... Since "Ai" confirms that the Meijin has become stronger than last year, I feel I would commit a disaster if I played, so the role will certainly fall to "Ai." Honestly, I went overboard with many things during the "Electronic Brain Battle" (Den-Ō-Sen), so I think I will leave things to "Ai" for a while. That was not shogi played by humans, and it caused a major global sensation.
In fact, that global sensation attracted attention to shogi, leading to an increase in events, which consequently doubled my work. Shogi AI development also flourished, and some researchers became interested in examining my brain. I even underwent a brain wave reading with Kozuryū at K University previously.
『The active regions were completely red the entire time, and that was an entertaining sight in itself.』 (Ai)
(Kozuryū's brain was also almost completely red as long as he was thinking about shogi. But in my case, my brain was completely red even when I was eating ice cream or solving simple arithmetic problems.) (Ōki)
『Many things became clear to us from that experiment. Although the K University students were terrified.』 (Ai)
(I truly did not want to see the prestigious K University students and their professor in a state of panic.) (Ōki)
It seems the Meijin also underwent brain wave data examination in the past, but my examination was more precise. In fact, they initially thought the device was malfunctioning. This is natural; when the brain is in a state of maximum operation even while eating a favorite food that is supposed to grant relaxation, suspecting a device malfunction is the logical choice.
In the end, when it was proven not to be a malfunction, the researchers looked at me as if they were watching an impossible, mythical animal. May every single one of you develop a split personality, then. If you become dual-natured, you can reach this level relatively easily.
『Stop talking nonsense. Fundamentally, the idea that the second personality strives to execute the orders of the primary personality is not common, is it?』 (Ai)
(Firstly, I don't have much knowledge about split personality, so I wouldn't know... You are an excessively comfortable and obedient personality from the start, so you must be an "extra feature" I acquired upon reincarnation, correct?) (Ōki)
『Haaah. How many times are we going to have this discussion? I am a personality created to entertain "Ōki Haru" in his free time. If you don't admit that soon, I will sulk, understood?』 (Ai)
(Sulk all you want. Regardless of your anger, you are ultimately a "shogi machine" whose mood instantly improves the moment the game starts.) (Ōki)
No one knows who will win the fifth game of the Queen Title match. I am rooting for Tenai and want her to win, but I must prepare myself for the worst-case scenario.
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