The day of the tournament had arrived.

  People had gathered around the city center to witness the great Boris Kleier play.

  All eyes were on him, the man, the myth, the legend of the game.

  He was a stranger to defeat and a friend to victory and he planned to keep it that way.

  The first game was an exhibition between him and a local champion, who was all in all not that great.

  Amongst the people walked a group of boys and girls that were there not to witness the greatness, but to try their best to see it fall.

  Irren arrived late to the exhibition match with Micah, Jon, Anesya and Maria at his side.

  They all had different expressions, all thinking differently, all of them went there to support their friend but upon arrival, their objective started to become more and more unclear.

  Jon as always had wondered off to talk with girls. This was an inevitable and they knew it.

  Jon was a loyal friend until he saw a group of girls, after that, he was nowhere to be seen.

  Anesya’s curiosity had been peaked by the puppet show nearby and she had wondered off to watch it.

  And Micah, well he was there more for Boris Kleier than he was for Irren.

  Maria was the only one who had come here to support her friend against anyone and anything he would come across.

  She stood by his side and tried not to get separated from him when walking among the people.

  The exhibition match was rather quick. Local champion was not matched and he was defeated in less than 10 moves.

  Irren watched and analyzed the pattern of Boris’s game very closely, he caught on little detail of Boris reaching for his ear, every now and then, but it was leading to nothing.

  He didn’t play any differently than usual, nor did he make any changes, he just carried on.

  “What has you worked up Irren?” Maria asked him.

  “Well, from the obvious one that I may have to play that man, I can’t seem to work out few things.” Irren responded without looking at her.

  “What things?” She asked curiously.

  Irren thought for a minute, then he told her

  “I have played the champion before in the streets and I did beat him, but he played fabulously. He made one mistake that costed him the game, if not for that he played flawlessly.

  Here he made mistakes which only a beginner would make.

  A decent player would never make that sort of mistake, let alone a champion.”

  Maria looks at him confused:

  “If you have beaten him, why didn’t you become the champion?”

  Irren wasn’t expecting that question, his mind was elsewhere, a lot of questions on his mind requiring answers. Answers for which he was thinking very hard, but this was not the question he was seeking an answer for at the moment.

  “It was not a tournament, only a friendly match, plus I never really cared for being city champion” He responded.

  “I understand. What do you think happened to him? Why do you think he made those mistakes?”

  “I don’t know Maria, might be because he was drunk or had too much to smoke. Could be either one really. He is just as known if not more as a drinker and smoker than a champion.”

  “I don’t know, you hardly ever get a chance to play someone like this and to waste a chance like that, in this manner is, difficult to understand.”

  Maria said.

  “It is, but what can we do, it’s his choice what he does to himself I suppose.”

  “I suppose you’re right. Now let’s forget about all this nonsense and focus on you. You got a tournament to win.”

  Terren walked to the register where competitors were assigned and found the man.

  “You a competitor?” He asked Irren.

  “Yes sir.”

  “Name?”

  “Irren”

  The man looked through the paper, trying to find the name

  Irren was starting to grow nervous

  “What if my name isn’t here at all?

  Did Micah fool me Was he fooled?

  But those weren’t the only questions that bothered him.

  The one that bothered him the most was who he was going to face as a first opponent.

  His face had gone all tensed up, cheeks red, sweat running down from his forehead, waiting for an answer from the organizer.

  “Irren, Irren, Irren, Irren. Found it.”

  “You are up against Yovien.” He told Irren.

  Irren’s face gradually calmed down, Yovien was a weak player who Irren had defeated countless times and he was not afraid to do it again.

  “You play after Boris and Rykard” The organizer added.

  Irren didn’t say a word. He just turned around and went back to Maria.

  “So, who is going to be your first victim?”

  Maria asked upon his return.

  “Yovien, who will probably be the only clear victim of today”

  “Don’t say that all here will fall victim to you.”

  “Even Boris?” Irren asked her with a glimpse of doubt..

  “Even Boris.” Maria answered in confidence.

  “Thank you Maria for believing in me.” Irren thanked her.

  “Always, I know you’re the best, but now you have to prove it.”

  “I will” Irren said confidently now, as if Maria’s words had somehow brought up the confidence in him.

  Just then Boris had finished his match, and it was time for Irren to play.

  He sat down at the table and immediately felt nervous. Not because of the game or the opponent, but the people that surrounded him. He had never really been one for crowds and gatherings and now he was the one being spectated by people.

  Yovien sat across him.

  The players shook hands, wished each other good look and the game was on.

  Both played with precision at the beginning and at some point Yovien had Irren in his grasps, there was no escape and Irren’s heart was beating faster than most. He was losing to an opponent against whom he had never lost before. Yovien just had to convert rest of the game and take the two points off Irren, when he made a fatal mistake, which evened the odds.

  Irren thought to himself

  “A mistake, this is my chance to at least achieve a draw”

  He continued on playing and the game went on and progressed in an equal position, neither player was giving up and time was running short.

  Only few seconds worth of sand had remained in the hourglass and Yovien made a reckless move, trying to win.

  The move was a mistake, which Irren spotted, and played the move to put Yovien now in a position where the game would only last two more moves until his game was over.

  A case of literary theft: this tale is not rightfully on Amazon; if you see it, report the violation.

  Yovien slammed a fist on the table and got up.

  This meant his resignation.

  He didn’t shake Irren’s hand and stormed off with nothing, instead of the two points which he was likely to take at the begging or the one which he was guaranteed if he had not gone greedy.

  Irren won his first match, but much harder than he expected.

  That one match was enough to make him understand the difference between playing in the streets and in the tournament.

  He went back to Maria and told her, “this is not going to be easy at all.”

  Maria smiled at him

  “No one said it would be easy.”

  “No, but didn’t expect it to be this difficult either.” Irren told her and went to check who he was up against.

  He walked over and saw his next opponent- Lyonel, who was better known as Lyonel the little, as he was just as tall as an eleven-year-old.

  Nevertheless, he was not to be underestimated. He was a much stronger opponent than Yovien and more experienced.

  They sat down for a match, but this one went much better for Irren.

  He had adapted to the crowd a bit and tried to ignore them. Pretended they weren’t there and it was just another day playing somewhere in the street.

  The game went in his favor and he defeated the dwarf in 24 moves.

  They shook hands and Irren returned to Maria again, this time satisfied and confident.

  Irren had four points, which currently place him only behind Boris, who had 6, but also had played three matches already.

  The rest of the tournament went on with extreme speed as most of the contestants were not much of the much for Boris and Irren.

  They flew through them with lighting speed and deadly precision, making no mistakes.

  Irren played with deadly speed and his attacking style, suffocating opponents it attacks until they eventually gave out.

  Boris played more tactically, took his time and slowly dismantled his opponents one by one.

  Both with amazing, no one could choose a clear favorite.

  One thing was clean.

  Boris was known and cheered by many even before he arrived to play.

  Irren was a nobody before he started playing and now his name was being chanted by many around him.

  People got to know this young man who was a true master at the game and played in such style that made it amusing to watch.

  After the tenth match Irren had grown fond of this situation and started to put on a show for the people, which is essentially what everyone wanted.

  He taunted his opponents, mocked them and destroyed them in style.

  He laughed and thrived, completely missing his only supporter Maria, who was utterly disappointed with his actions.

  She knew he was not the person who would act in such way, but he did anyway and for what? To entertain these people?

  Is he a player or a clown? Maria thought to herself before leaving, disgusted by Irren’s actions.

  In the end the top of the table read 30 points to Boris, 30 points to Irren, this could only mean one thing.

  The organizer walked out and announced

  “The score is tied, the tournament will now go to the game of four, may the best one win.

  The number four was for the number of games that had to be played between the two players if the tie occurred.

  If the score was tied after 4 games, they would play another one.

  And another until game 7.

  After which they would count check who had beaten who quicker and the winner would be determined based on that. But it never got that far.

  Irren understood what was coming, he had to take on Boris, four games, with no way back.

  He looked around, his gaze looking for Maria’s but it was nowhere to be seen. Irren, consumed by pride and arrogance thought to himself

  “I don’t need that bitch anyway”,

  Then he took one deep breath and looked over to the table.

  Across the table sat the formidable opponent Boris, whose face was stone cold.

  Irren also straightened his face, calmed himself and sat down to the table, ready for a battle.

  “Ready old man?” he asked arrogantly.

  Boris stayed quiet.

  This caused Irren to panic,

  He didn’t care; he didn’t even take him worthy to answer.

  The first game kicked off and Irren started in style,

  Attacking Boris with all his pieces, trying to suffocate him but Boris kept slipping away, until he slipped up that gave Irren the upper hand.

  In that moment the crowd saw Boris show the first signs of disturbance. He didn’t look angry, he wasn’t

  But he went from cold to visibly annoyed in that first match.

  Irren kept on pressing and he kept on defending, but Irren held the high ground.

  The time ran low and it seemed like it was going to be a draw in the first, as neither seemed to have any way to prevail.

  That’s when Irren’s arrogance got the best of him and he pressed on for a win in the last seconds.

  Boris used this to his advantage and started wiping Irren’s pieces off the board one by one until Irren was only left with one and if it weren’t for the clock, he would have been absolutely crushed.

  He stood up from his chair and went on to get water.

  He thought to himself

  “How did I make the same mistake Yovien did?”

  Still the arrogance getting better of him making him think he was not foolish enough to make such mistakes but in reality he was a bigger one for believing that.

  He went on the second match, which was disastrous for him.

  He couldn’t even start an attack before Boris put him in a cage and eventually took his emperor down.

  Irren was devastated. Sweating like a pig, he had finally been brought to his senses by those losers that he was no great, he was a boy who had gotten overconfident and now was one game away from losing.

  He needed support at that time, more than ever, but the supporter was nowhere to be seen.

  His arrogance had taken her away, just like it took away his fair judgment and respect for the opponent.

  He remembered everything he did, and most of all the words

  “I don’t need that bitch anyway.”

  And thought to himself

  “You’re the bitch. You had one supporter and you managed to drive her away, for what? Entertainment of few useless drunks.

  He thought of it and concluded that he had to get Maria back, as soon as possible.

  The crowd cheered for him, all screaming his name, all waiting for a comeback.

  Irren didn’t care anymore, he only thought of Maria, and the words he had decorated her with.

  Only in his mind but he hated himself for it, because this was more of a betrayal than saying it to her face.

  He went up to Boris and didn’t even sit down at the table as he offered him his hand.

  “Well played, I resign.”

  Even Boris looked shocked, confused of why he would abandon the game, he was putting on a good fight and was the only one who had given him any competition.

  “You abandon your place at this time boy? Why? The game is far from lost, positions much worse than this have been won.”

  Boris spoke to him in such a voice which he never used.

  He truly wanted to play, because he saw potential and talent in this young man.

  “I know, but I have greater matters to attend to.” Irren responded.

  Boris then got up and shook his hand.

  The crowd threw numerous insults.

  It soon became clear that people only watched him for show, and he felt even more stupid for trying to put one on for them earlier.

  The prize went to Boris, but the runner up wasn’t leaving empty handed either.

  Some 200 silver.

  It was nothing compared to the grand prize, but for Irren and his family, it meant three months of pay.

  He left without seeing any one of his friends, Jon, Micah, Anesya he left them all behind and headed to the beach near the spot where he and Maria used to sit as kids when times were rough.

  He went up there and saw Maria sitting on the ground with her back against a tree.

  She didn’t even look at him.

  She still had a look of disappointment written all over her face.

  Irren went closer to her and tried to sit beside her, as he usually did but she moved away from him.

  “Maria, I”

  “You what?” Maria didn’t let him finish.

  “I messed up, I know but it was my first time experiencing people’s love. Surely you understand.”

  “Understand?! Understand what Irren?

  Instead of focusing on playing well, being respectful and showing some manner you turned into a clown, a performer, and an undisciplined brat who had never learned any manners.”

  Irren, hearing this went quiet.

  He knew Maria would be angry, but he didn’t expect her to be this mad.

  But she was right, after all he did forget all his manners and acted as a performer.

  He felt deeply ashamed.

  “I am sorry, for all of it.”

  “I don’t need your apology, hope you enjoy your prize, you lost quite a lot gaining it.”

  Maria said furiously.

  “This prize?” Irren asked and showed her the two hundred silvers.

  “What is this? Where’s the rest of it?”

  “I resigned the game. I got the runner up prize.”

  “And that’s making your action better how?”

  Maria still wasn’t done.

  “It doesn’t” He answered “And nothing will, but now I understand that manners and being respectful is the only thing that separates me from the drunks and street wanderers.

  “I understand if you won’t forgive me, but I beg you to find it in your heart.”

  Maria still stood on her ground

  “Forgive you? Irren you lost control over a Borkem tournament, what happens when something bigger comes up? You’ll come to me and tell me” fuck off you whore, d don’t need your tiny peasant ass anymore?”

  Irren felt even more ashamed now as nothing bigger was required, he had already called her a bitch in his mind, which told him enough about himself.

  “I am sorry Maria, I truly am, I understand if you can’t forgive me now. I am not deserving of that. But please tell me a way to prove it to you that I am not that person.”

  “Which person is that Irren? The one that humiliated 15 men for others amusement? Or the one that did it for money?”

  “Both?” Irren responded without hesitation.”

  “I don’t see the way of you proving either one” Maria told Irren.

  Irren thought for a minute

  Weighed everything a thousand times. Was all that really worth upsetting a loved one, was this money worth having?

  He thought for a minute then stood up.

  Maria stood up as well.

  “Well” Irren started” I can’t prove the first one wrong. But I can prove that I am not the one who will do all that for money?”

  “Really, and how do you plan that?” Maria asked him and walked closer.

  Irren smiled and told her

  “Like this”

  And swung the sack filled with silvers in the air, ready to throw it in the sea when Maria tackled him to the ground.

  “You idiot! Your family needs that money, what are you doing?”

  “If this proves it, then this money has no value and isn’t worth keeping.”

  “Then you have already proven it my friend” She told him and climbed off of him as they both made it to their feet.

  “Go home Irren, go to your family and tell them the news.” Maria told Irren and turned to leave.

  “Does that mean you forgive me?” Irren asked her and anxiously waited for an answer.

  Maria turned around, smiled at him and said

  “I was never mad at you. I just wanted to make you see yourself clearer.”

  “Well, you did” Irren responded.

  “Yes I did. And I am very satisfied.” Said Maria and left without saying anything else.

  Irren rolled his eyes, looked out to the sun, which had gone half under the sea.

  “It’s getting late, time to go home to surprise the family I guess.” Irren thought to himself and started to walk home.