Chapter 66

Chapter 66

Chapter 66 A Divine Move (11)

The final match between National Champion Han Seun and AlphaGo AI, hailed as a showdown for the ages, had just begun.

Right here in this old, run-down coffeehouse.

For a showdown of the century, it should have been taking place in a proper arena with broadcasting stations in attendance. Instead, the setting was even shabbier than the gaming tournaments held at neighborhood PC cafés when I was a child.

At this historic moment, when South Korea's representative Go player was once again challenging a computer on behalf of humanity,

all humanity could offer was a Wi-Fi password, a cup of coffee that cost 3,500 won, and a whole pitcher of cold water I'd thoughtfully provided in case he got thirsty.

Of course, there were reasons things had turned out this way.

I'd only recently learned that the OnGame Go scene had long since become distorted.

With Go AI software released as open source, it had reached the point where players couldn't tell whether their opponents were human or AI.

Things had become even more twisted when AI development companies began openly using their victories over renowned online players as promotional material.

Apparently, things were a little better at the higher ranks because high-performance AI still couldn't be run on ordinary home computers, but even there, players competed while suspecting one another.

Once distrust takes root, no amount of proof of innocence can erase it.

And the culmination of that distrust was this very final.

Interest in Go had faded at an astonishing rate after a computer claimed the top position, and most of the comments from those awaiting the match were predicting National Champion Han Seun's inevitable second defeat.

Even Sani had taken the hint and gone upstairs, so I put on earphones alongside the Elder Nine-Tailed Fox and quietly watched the match on my phone.

(AlphaGo, playing white, has opened the attack with a knight's move. As expected, AlphaGo's opening strategy is fierce. This is perhaps the most distinctive characteristic AI displays after occupying the star points.)

(That's right. It likely judges that undermining an opponent's territory while expanding its own in the same area is the most efficient way to play. Since AIs can read farther ahead than professional players, attacks like these tend to work very well.)

-Tap.

(Han Seun, 9-dan, defends without difficulty.)

(But once AlphaGo forces its opponent onto the defensive, it rarely relinquishes the initiative, does it?)

-Tap.

(Just as expected! It's attacking another star point simultaneously. By creating a chaotic battle, it's trying to force mistakes. If this continues, the game will unfold much like the match Han Seun lost last time.)

-Tap. Tap.

As more stones appeared on the board, the commentators' voices grew increasingly animated.

The stones tangled together in every direction, forming territories in the blink of an eye. And anyone could see that white controlled the larger area.

(Was this challenge too much for him again? There seems to be almost no opening for black to break through. Park Gidong, 9-dan, how do you assess this match now that we've entered the middle game?)

(The match isn't over yet. Chaotic battles and aggressive play are Han Seun's specialties too. I'm certain he'll find a breakthrough!)

-BigStone: Nope. He's lost.

-Gyeonhwonjigan: What are you talking about! He lost again!? Has he been completely wiped out this time!?

-winbd1224: Humans seriously can't beat AI at Go anymore. OMG.

-MinukLegend: What an anticlimactic ending lololol

-Zgeugeugeuk: If AlphaGo wins the prize money, will they at least replace its computer case? Isn't this just AI exploitation? lol

-BachelorsAssociation: All he did was defend until it was over. Tsk.

...

'Has he lost?'

Even the Elder Nine-Tailed Fox, who had no particular interest in Go, seemed absorbed in the match. He silently mouthed the question to me.

I shook my head slightly.

He hadn't lost.

He was simply waiting for the right moment to counterattack.

-Tap.

(Ah! Just as we were speaking, Han Seun, 9-dan, has placed a stone deep inside enemy territory! This position is remarkably similar to the one Han Seun faced yesterday.)

(That's right! This move clearly aims to create an opportunity by eating away at the opponent's territory from the very center!)

(But isn't this attack far too reckless? Wouldn't it be virtually impossible to create two eyes inside enemy territory?)

(What are you talking about?! This attack is absolutely going to succeed! National Champion Han! National Champion Han! Can you hear me? You can't lose! You have to win this time!)

(Park Gidong, 9-dan! P-Please calm down a little! We need objective commentary...)

(Do you have any idea how much National Champion Han suffered after losing to AlphaGo?! National Champion Han!)

-Gyeonhwonjigan: LMAO the ninth-dan gatekeeper has lost it lololol

-timeniy: Holy shit lololololol

-GameRecordCollector: lolololololol

...

While the commentator desperately tried to restrain Park Gidong, 9-dan, who looked ready to burst into tears, the chat window was practically flooded with laughter.

It also showed just how important the next move was.

-Tap.

And at last, the move that drove a wedge into the opponent's heart was played.

Truly a divine move.

(Han Seun, 9-dan! A brilliant connection! And at last! He's succeeded in bringing down AlphaGo's enormous fortress!)

(National Champion Han! Seun! Well done, Seun! Can you hear me? You did it! Waaaaah!)

(P-Park Gidong, 9-dan! Please don't go out in front of the stage! Park Gidong, 9-dan!)

While the commentary broadcast and chat window erupted into chaos, National Champion Han Seun, sitting in the coffeehouse, remained completely composed.

He merely removed the earphones from his ears and put away his laptop, showing not the slightest sign of happiness.

After gathering his belongings, he approached the counter and held out a ten-thousand-won bill to pay for his coffee.

"Keep the change. I stayed far too long. I had something important to do, and this place was so comfortable. Well, then."

"Just a moment, please."

"Yes?"

I bowed slightly and called out to National Champion Han Seun just as he grasped the door handle to leave.

"Congratulations... on your victory. I enjoyed yesterday's game."

"Then, could you be...?"

Instead of answering, I pointed to the business registration certificate hanging on the wall.

"Dangsan-ri... Coffeehouse..."

"Yes. Please visit again sometime. We have quite a few customers here who enjoy Go."

This was a coffeehouse.

We didn't particularly welcome new customers, but we didn't turn away those who came either.

Especially customers who had come seeking us with desperate hearts at the end of their despair.

____________

A week had passed since National Champion Han Seun defeated AlphaGo.

"Delivery!"

"Yes, I'm coming out now."

"The names are Gi Seong, Gi Seon, Gi Eun, and Kim Jinseong... Huh? These are all different recipients."

"Yes, they're right here."

"Ah."

The delivery driver had been puzzled because all the recipients had different names, but when he saw three immortals awkwardly raising their hands, he nodded as though he finally understood.

"All right, delivery confirmed. Have a good day!"

After the driver left, we gathered around a table and spread out the packages we'd received.

They were the deliveries we'd been waiting for so eagerly.

Four enormous twenty-one-inch tablets.

Of course, I'd bought one with my own money, but the others were prizes the immortals had earned by securing clean victories while I was asleep from exhaustion.

There was no time to set them up one by one.

The expectant gazes boring into my back were making me uncomfortable, so I had to get the tablets into their hands as quickly as possible.

I switched on all four devices simultaneously and installed the OnGame Go application.

Then the immortals, each holding a tablet, immediately began their matches with practiced movements.

"Playing like this really is convenient."

"And the glass board is much larger than before, so there's no risk of placing stones in the wrong positions."

At 1.2 million won per tablet, they'd better have performed well.

It seemed a little wasteful to use such expensive devices exclusively for Go, but this would dramatically reduce the amount of time I spent being tormented by the immortals.

That alone made the money I'd spent on one of them worthwhile.

"After all that commotion, you actually managed to win those things. Are you satisfied now?"

"Yes. It's been a long week."

"The Celestial Realm probably noticed that you opened the gate to the underworld. But since the immortals have been coming down without any particular intervention so far, it seems they intend to let the matter pass."

"I didn't realize it would be such a serious affair."

"That's because it's something no one else can do. Opening the gate to the underworld in the mortal world is something perhaps only Yama could accomplish. Heh heh. Somehow, your Divine Eyes grow stronger by the day."

"That's because I never particularly thought to use them before. Even now, I don't."

Of course, there was a difference between who I was now and who I'd been in the past.

If a moment came when I truly needed to open my Divine Eyes, I would no longer hesitate.

I'd already accumulated more than enough regrets caused by hesitation in the past.

"Would you like another cup of coffee?"

"That would be nice."

"I want milk!"

"Me too!"

"All right, just a moment."

And so another uneventful day began.

-Jingle.

"Welcome back."

"Hello. I came because... I thought we might play a game of Go."

National Champion Han Seun gave an awkward smile at having stated his purpose so abruptly and showed me the folding Go board he was holding.

Apparently, even with four tablets at our disposal, I was destined never to escape Go entirely.

_______________

At the same time, in the office of the Fifth Deceased Soul Guidance Team.

"Deputy Manager."

"What?"

"What should I do? I've run out of things to write."

"I'm sorry. I'll make sure this never happens again. Due to my lack of ability, to prevent a recurrence..."

"I've already written all of that. But there are still so many lines left. Sob."

Employee Shin Jihye looked miserable as she sat before her written statement of misconduct.

No matter how hard she racked her brain, she couldn't think of another sentence to write.

No, the very fact that she had to write a statement in the first place felt unfair.

How was it the grim reapers' fault that the soul had already attained release when they went looking for it?

If she'd made any mistake, it was her own rash decision to volunteer for this posting out of a sense of duty.

But complaining about the injustice wouldn't fill the pages of her statement.

Employee Shin Jihye picked up her pen again.

"I'm finished!"

"Already?"

"Employee Shin, you'll get used to it if you write enough of them."

"I don't want to get used to writing statements of misconduct! And I have absolutely no idea what to put under preventive measures! The soul simply attained release. What could we possibly have done?"

"We have to find him."

"But a soul that's attained release would have gone straight to reincarnation, wouldn't it?"

"No, not the soul. I mean the bastard who caused its release. If we leave him alone, the register of the dead will be torn to shreds. You'll probably get to write those statements you love so much every single day."

"Th-Then we have to find him quickly!"

"That's why I'm telling you to hurry up and finish writing."

The scenario Deputy Manager Oh Changsik had described was the worst possible outcome for both of them.

One statement of misconduct for every soul released.

If the culprit happened to be in good condition and released another two or three souls in a day, statements of misconduct would be the least of their worries. They might find themselves endlessly filling out every kind of document related to the matter.

-Scratch. Scratch, scratch.

Backed into a corner with no way out, Employee Shin Jihye began filling her statement with densely packed writing without stopping.

All so they could find the person responsible for this disaster as quickly as possible.