Chapter 1

In the summer of 1992, on a street in Naniwa Ward, Osaka.

A boy in a white high school uniform stood in front of a Go parlor. As soon as he opened the door, an unusual noise of excitement greeted him.

"Oh—That move, twisting and jumping, is simply brilliant!"

"Is this kid really just a month into learning? How can he be so good?"

"Haha, Mr. Ashibe, you should just admit defeat! This kid is a genius; it's no shame to lose to him!"

...

Shigehiko Shirakawa paid the 100 yen entry fee to the owner and casually asked, "Is Mr. Ashibe playing another game of Go for stakes?"

Mr. Ashibe, whose full name is Ashibe Ryo, is a retired man in his fifties with decent Go skills. He loves playing Go for stakes, and no one who regularly visits the parlor is unaware of him.

"Yes," the owner put down his newspaper and glanced inside, "They've been playing for about an hour. It should be almost over."

Shigehiko Shirakawa walked to the edge of the crowd and struggled to squeeze in, causing some nearby people to grumble.

On the Go board, the black and white stones were clearly defined, with little space left, indicating that the game was almost over.

He silently calculated and concluded: the white stones won by seven and a half points.

A decisive victory, but...

Shigehiko Shirakawa frowned slightly.

Looking at the entire board, the shape of the white stones was not aesthetically pleasing, not in line with his sense of Go beauty.

However, the local battles were incredibly intense, showing that the previous struggle must have been fierce.

He regretted the delay on his way.

The player with the white stones was not Mr. Ashibe but a boy, and he was wearing the same school uniform as him!

His eyes were sharp, focused on the board, maintaining a highly concentrated attitude even though the outcome was clear.

"Huh? This kid won?"

The owner had come up beside him at some point and explained, "This kid took over the game halfway through, and no one expected him to win.

Look, behind him."

Shigehiko Shirakawa looked up.

Behind him was an old man, fanning himself slowly with a folding fan, but the pride on his face was almost visible to the ears.

Shigehiko Shirakawa recognized this old man; he had played a few games with him before, and his skill level was not high.

"Originally, in the middle game, he was about to admit defeat, but this kid said, 'It's not time to give up yet,' and Mr. Ashibe wouldn't have it, insisting that he take over and even increased the stakes to 10,000 yen.

Now, it looks like Mr. Ashibe is going to lose a lot of money!"

Shigehiko Shirakawa couldn't help but exclaim softly.

Mr. Ashibe's Go skills are not bad, and to turn a game that was about to be lost in the middle game into a win is simply unbelievable!

Five minutes later, Ashibe Ryo conceded defeat by placing his stones in the bowl.

The boy who won took the 10,000 yen, glanced at the clock, and exclaimed, "I'm late!" before rushing out of the parlor.

Shigehiko Shirakawa hurried out to chase him but lost sight of the boy. After searching in vain, he returned to the parlor.

"Boss, do you know the name of that high school student?"

The owner shook his head and comforted him with a smile, "You're wearing the same school uniform. You'll run into him at school."

Beside him, a middle-aged man stubbed out his cigarette and sighed, "That kid is really something! I remember when he first came to the parlor a month ago, he couldn't even count the points. In the past week, he's only watched and not played, but today he really made a name for himself! Tsk tsk!"

Shigehiko Shirakawa was skeptical, thinking he was exaggerating.

In just a month, how could a beginner's Go skills improve to such a level?

Even the prodigies from the RB Go Institute and the Kansai Go Institute aren't that impressive!

...

In a small izakaya, a boy was continuously bowing and apologizing to a man with a headband.

"Mr. Watanabe, I'm really sorry! I'm late! Please forgive me!"

The man rubbed his forehead, somewhat exasperated but not angry, "Alright, Chiharu, you're half an hour late, so I'll deduct half an hour's pay."

"That's fair!"

Chiharu Kihara sighed in relief.

The economy was not good, and this job was hard to come by; he couldn't afford to lose it easily.

"You can go now."

Chiharu Kihara bowed again before going to perform his duties.

The sky gradually darkened.

The white lanterns outside the door lit up, emitting a warm yellow light, attracting tired office workers.

"Welcome!"

Chiharu Kihara greeted the customers and helped them sit down.

There were only three employees in the izakaya, each with a clear role.

Mr. Watanabe was in charge of grilling, Mrs. Watanabe handled frying and boiling, and he was responsible for serving the customers.

He heard that Mr. and Mrs. Watanabe had a daughter who used to handle the customers, but she went to university in Tokyo a year ago, which is why he got this job by chance.

"Miss, here's your beer!"

"Mr. Watanabe, one grilled mackerel and one grilled beef tongue!"

"Mrs. Watanabe, one deep-fried tofu, two fried squid tentacles, and one sesame rice ball!"

"Sir, here's your change. Thank you for coming again!"

...

He was busy until 8:30 PM. Although there were still customers in the shop, Mrs. Watanabe called him aside and settled his pay for the day.

"Chiharu, it's getting late. You should go home early."

The RB government regulations prohibit high school students under the age of 18 from working after 9:00 PM.

"Thank you for your understanding today!"

Chihara Kihara took off his apron, said goodbye to Mr. Watanabe, and left the shop, lifting the curtain.

He went to the nearest subway station and got off at Koen-cho Station about ten minutes later.

His home was in Nishi Ward, a standard two-bedroom apartment.

The house was pitch black, the living room window covered by heavy curtains, and a small dark figure seemed to be curled up on the sofa.

Chihara Kihara was startled but quickly realized what was happening and rushed over, hugging her.

"Sakura, why are you sitting here? Didn't I tell you to turn on the lights at night?"

This was his sister, Chihara Sakura, who was 15 years old, just a year younger than him.

Chihara Sakura clung to his collar, her voice choked with tears, "Big brother, I'm scared... You said not to open the door to strangers at night, and I was afraid that turning on the lights would make them notice us..."

Ever since she witnessed their parents' death two years ago, Sakura has suffered from post-traumatic stress disorder, afraid to see people or go out, and the only person she can interact with is her big brother.

Chihara Kihara sighed.

The bubble era...

His parents were employees of a securities company, and when the company's financial fraud was exposed, they became one of the unlucky scapegoats.

Under immense pressure, they jumped from the rooftop of the securities company building.

And that day, he was at the building entrance, bringing his sister to look for their parents who had been missing for days...

"Big brother, you won't leave me, right?"

Looking into his sister's tear-filled eyes, Chihara Kihara nodded seriously, "No! Sakura, I won't leave you!"