Chapter 682: The First Day of the Tournament!
A week passed by like flying, and without anyone noticing, it was finally the day that the tournament would start. Right now, Sheva had already found himself standing in front of the hotel where the venue was, looking at so many people carrying their own chessboards here.
"Damn, this should be just an internal tournament, right?" He blinked in surprise. "Why in the hell do so many people come to watch?"
Indeed, this was the first day of the tournament, and the crowd gathered there had already been quite big. Usually, this only happened either in the middle of the tournament, once things got heated, or probably even in the last one, where the winner was about to be determined. So, it would be a lie if Sheva said that he expected this scene today.
"Well… I mean, this is a titled tournament, where all the best and most historical players in the country gather. You will expect so many heroes of the past to arrive here as well, and there is no way those chess nerds outside will miss this occasion." Bagas shrugged casually. "Anyway, just tighten your mask, brother. Don't let them notice you here, or you will never be able to come inside."
Sheva shuddered immediately at the image, pulling down the hat to cover his face as well. He followed Bagas straight to the hall, where all the participants had already gathered. Surprisingly enough, though, Sheva found so many unfamiliar faces here, as if he were completely on a different planet.
"What the hell? I thought this was going to be a titled tournament!" He whispered in astonishment.
"Well, yeah, the people you saw here are all titled players. A shock, right?" Bagas snorted, not even stopping his walk. "I mean, you haven't even met more than 20 titled players in this country, and suddenly, they all gather here like they are about to face a chess invasion from the other country. This is madness, actually. Oh, and get ready, because you will have to socialize a lot today."
Sheva's face grew paler in a second the moment he heard that. Sometimes, it didn't feel real that he was already the biggest player in the country's history, as he still got shocked by anything that the top player treated as normal.
True enough, once someone recognized him, the boy had to get dragged into so many polite conversations, with most asking about his career, his plan, or even his impression on Magnus Carlsen. Sheva was extra polite today, answering each one of them with a genuine fake smile on his face. However, it was clear that he was suffering inwardly.
Fortunately, Bagas came to the rescue, dragging him out of the crowd so decisively. He didn't even care about how many people he offended there, not even greeting them one by one. No, the boy just grabbed Sheva's collar as if his best friend were a dog, yanking him quite violently.
"While I appreciate the help, can you be a little bit gentle?" Sheva asked speechlessly, still feeling sore on his throat.
"Eh, that's the quickest way, you know?" Bagas shrugged once again. "Anyway, let's go! We have to meet Sister Medina first, right?"
Sheva just nodded silently, continuing to follow Bagas. In the end, they arrived at the official room, and there, Medina and Dita Karenza were already sitting, having a conversation with a middle-aged man whom Sheva seemed to be familiar with.
"Master Irfan?! You are here as well?!" Sheva exclaimed in surprise.
"Yup! I am the arbiter of this tournament! Surprised, right?" He asked with a playful smile.
Yeah, the man there was his first-ever coach, Irfan Aditya. Honestly, it had been a long time since Sheva met this man, and the boy himself had already forgotten about him. Even though there was no animosity between them, Sheva still felt resentful of all the harsh critiques the man threw at him in the TePe Sigeman tournament, especially when the man himself didn't know his situation there.
However, all the grievances melted away immediately when he saw the man in this situation. Sheva didn't hesitate to hug him, not showing any awkwardness anymore.
"So, you are the arbiter? How so?" Sheva asked.
"Well, I have already passed my arbiter examination, and I have received permission to hold a tournament in Asia-Pacific. Medina got in touch with me a few weeks ago, and here we are, with me participating not as a player but as a ruler here. Awesome, right?"
Sheva nodded rapidly, not expecting the man's change of career here.
Meanwhile, Bagas, who was responsible for the broadcast, asked, "So, how is the preparation? I can at least get a room, right?"
It might be a basic or even borderline stupid question, but he had to ask that. After all, Bagas still remembered how he didn't get any individual room in Sweden, having to mingle with the other journalists in the media room. That was probably the most awkward and uncomfortable moment he had had in his chess broadcasting career so far.
"Don't worry, we have one." Medina nodded, pointing at the door behind her. "Just go there and set up your own laptop. We will also coordinate with the camera team on the spot so that you can have a better look."
"Oh, thanks!"
Right after that, Bagas vanished into that room, leaving Sheva with the others there. They chatted about a lot of things, mostly their past experience and plans for the future. While Irfan himself was not as good as those players he shared the room with, the man still tried to instill some wisdom as they all were going to the World Cup together.
Sheva also started to catch similar faces, from Laysa, Anna, Claudia, Arfan, Novendra, to Master Susanto himself. However, he didn't greet any of them, knowing that they had to concentrate on their own first.
He even did the same for the girls, knowing that any single distraction would make them explode on the spot. However, that didn't mean he would worry less, as inwardly, he couldn't help but mutter, 'You girls have been practicing under me for so long, so please, any of you! Get the winner of the women's section!'