Chapter 4

"At this point, all we can do is theorize. We simply don't have enough information to make any concrete conclusions about the school yet. For now, let's just refrain from doing anything that could come back to bite us in the future." Ryuzaki said rather matter-of-factly.

Everyone nodded. It seemed like everyone came to the unanimous conclusion that we were already potentially on thin ice, so doing anything we could be punished for could end up even further jeoparadizing our class.

"Back to the original matter, Ayanokōji you should tell us a little bit about what you're good at and what you did before coming here. Since we seemingly need to collaborate as much as possible to even stand a chance at this school, it would be quite uncomfortable having a completely unknown factor in our class." Light said to me, bringing the topic back to the introductions.

"Also, there's no need to make sure you give a good introduction or anything. Since our class is only seven students we'll likely end up as quite a tight-knit group, especially since a lot of us are similar here - at least from what I've seen thus far." he continued, and urged me to talk.

"Ah, right. Similarly to Lelouch, I used to play quite a lot of chess. I've also read a lot of books during my time. I'm quite confident in both my academics and physical ability."

I decided to give a vague rundown rather than go into the specifics about my true abilities. At this stage, revealing things like that to who are effectively strangers certainly wouldn't do me any favours. My introduction seemed to satisfy my classmates enough though.

"See, that was much better than your... Initial introduction. It seems like we have quite a lot of chess players here. Shiro and I have also played a lot of chess games; thousands, in fact." Sora said.

I wasn't sure if he was complimenting my second introduction or mocking my first. In any case, nobody seemed bothered that I had given such an awkward initial introduction so I should be thankful for that.

"That's certainly intruiging to say the least. I'm not a serious or regular chess player, but I have played my fair share of chess matches. From what I understand, chess isn't a game where if you're good enough, you can easily destroy any top-level player every time. You said that you and your sister together have never lost a game before, but I find that rather hard to believe if you have indeed played thousands of chess games." Ryuzaki pointed out.

He makes a good point. Chess isn't like a video game where the absolute limit of what is possible in the game is far beyond what a human can consistently do. In a first-person shooter game for example, if there was a human who could consistently aim equal to the abilities of an aimbot it is believable that they could win every match they play. In chess however, hundreds of years of theory have been developed which the top players use, and there is a clear ceiling on how much you can improve. The absolute best you can possibly perform in chess, which is always playing the best possible move, is not too far above what is currently achieved by grandmasters. Top level players rarely play a bad move, and almost always play a very solid move and frequently play the best move.

Thus, even if there was a person who was above what humans are currently capable of in chess, he wouldn't be so far above everyone else such that he could crush his opponent every match. To never lose a match, you would have to be able to consistently play at a near perfect level. Not to mention there will be some anomalous games, such as if your opponent happens to play a very good game, or if you're off your game on that day. If Blank truly has never lost a chess match before, then they are a terrifying force to be reckoned with.

"In that case, would you like Blank to prove our superiority right now? Since our class is small, we were able to finish our introductions rather quickly. We still have about half an hour before we have to go to the entrance ceremony, that's plenty of time for a game, right?" Sora said, adopting a more condescending tone than usual.

Sora, on behalf of Blank, had challenged the entire class to try and beat them at chess. Glances were shared around the room as he waited for an answer. Admittedly, I also wanted to judge how strong Blank actually was, to see if they could live up to their claim. However, I didn't want to be the one playing.

"Hey, how are you going to play. None of you have a board with you, right?" Kururugi asked.

"We don't need one. At least, anyone that does need one has no right to even challenge Blank in the first place. Right, Shiro?" Sora replied, his cocky aura growing.

Shiro simply nodded her head. It was true that players who have had a lot of experience in chess could visualize positions and even play entire games in their head. The world champion, Magnus Carlsen, has played multiple games against other masters at the same time while blind before, and won all of them. If anything, Sora's challenge proves that he has actually played a lot of chess before.

"You're quite arrogant. Perhaps, that level of cockiness can only be achieved if you actually have never lost before. I, Lelouch Lamperouge, will grant you your first loss right here then, Blank." Lelouch said.

Both Sora and Lelouch were quite arrogant, they gave off the impression if being used to being superior to their opponents. Because of their attitudes, their prides were on the line for this upcoming game. If either of them wins convincingly, it will be a big hit to their opponent's ego.

"Confident, eh? Well then, how about we make this match more interesting? Ishihara-sensei mentioned that we can transfer points earlier, and you mentioned that you used to gamble on chess matches. So then, I propose we bet on this match. If you win, Shiro and I will each give you 10,000 points. Conversly, if we win, you will give us 5,000 points each."

Sora's proposal was certainly skewed in Lelouch's favour. If Lelouch wins, he gains 20,000 points total from Blank whereas if he loses, he only has to pay up 10,000 points. Also, he will get the opportunity to size up two of his classmates. Were I in his position, I would accept the proposal.

Of course, Lelouch seems to be quite confident in himself and has a history of gambling. In fact, he said he has a history in gambling on chess - if anything, you can say this is his specialty. For this reason, I have no doubt that Lelouch will accept this offer as well.

"Sure, I'll take you up on that. I'm no stranger to betting on my own victory after all, especially because I usually win." Lelouch smirked.

At this, Sora took out his school-issued phone and opened the recording function. Then, he began to speak in a manner that was unusually formal for him. (A/N: It's never mentioned where the students get the phones from in the Light Novel, so I'll just assume they were given out before the first day along with the acceptance documents)

"I, Sora am betting points on behalf of Blank, which consists of myself and Shiro, against Lelouch Lamperouge in a game of chess. Should we win, Lelouch will have to pay me and Shiro 5,000 points each. Conversly, if Lelouch wins, both Shiro and I will pay him 10,000 points each. If the game results in a stalemate, no points will have to be paid by either side. Do you both agree to these terms?"

"Yes"

"Yeah"

With that, Sora stopped the voice recording and slipped the phone back into his pocket. Then, he picked up his chair and moved it opposite Lelouch's desk, and sat down. Shiro then joined him and sat on his lap, which surprised me and quite a few others. I wasn't too sure since I'd never actually seen a sibling relationship before, but I was relatively confident that most siblings aren't that close with each other.

"Sorry about the voice recording but I'm sure you can understand. We've only known each other for around twenty minutes so there's not exactly a great deal of trust between us. Ishihara-sensei said that stealing and extorting points from each other is strictly forbidden, so this recording should be sufficient evidence to ensure the bet is fair." Sora says as he settles into his chair and looks across the desk at Lelouch.

"Don't worry, I understand. Making sure both parties uphold their sides of the deal is essential to gambling, after all." Lelouch says calmly.

If anything, I'd certainly found myself an interesting school. Or perhaps, these were just interesting people. Most other classes right now were probably either still doing introductions or talking about mundane things with their new acquaintances like what they're going to buy. Class E however seems to have already launched into competition after having shared very in-depth insight into the school itself - something no regular high-schooler would be discussing during the first half-hour.

As I watched the first ever game played during this year at the Tokyo Metropolitan Advanced Nurturing High School commence, I couldn't help but wonder. Perhaps, it wouldn't be too bad to become a part of this group, as opposed to trying to blend in as ordinary for the next three years.