Road to be the Best Chess Player in the World!

Chapter 168: Home Sweet Home


Three days passed pretty quickly, and during that short period, a lot of things happened for Sheva. First, his effort started to get recognized by the public, not just from the YouTube channel that Bagas runs, but also from some sports journalists from the news company. During this period, he had already been interviewed twice, all of them asking him about his first GM norm and his target for the future.

The boy also got paraded by his mother around the neighborhood, being the subject of his mom's bragging whenever someone asked how he had been. She would always answer the question with the same surprised expression and asked back, 'How do you know that my son got an interview with some big news companies?!', which, while at first it was a fun game, later on, Sheva could feel the hostility toward him.

Well, it couldn't be helped, though. He himself also didn't want it, but somehow, the boy suddenly turned out to be the 'Neighbor's son' that all the people around him used as an example for their children. A few times Sheva went outside, he could hear the subtle murmurs from parents to their children, and all of them were about the same topic.

'Look at him, a good boy who knows how to take care of his mother!'

'I am so envious! If only my son could be half as good as him… What did I do to deserve such a lazy bastard as a son?!'

'Try to be like him in the future, okay? Don't just play a game! Try to achieve something and make your parents proud!'

Yeah, those were the kinds of conversations Sheva overheard whenever he passed through his neighbors. While at first, the boy was a little bit embarrassed to be used as a standard, nowadays, he was already numb to the stares and praises around him. Not that he didn't appreciate it, of course, but with every complaint from parents to their children, he would also receive a hostile glare from the children themselves, which was enough to make him shudder out of fear.

'Please, don't blame me, everyone.' He muttered his apology inside his heart. 'I was also in your position just a few months ago. Please, don't judge me here…'

Indeed, a few months ago, when the boy decided that he wouldn't go to university to help the family's financial problem, Sheva also received a little jab from his mother here and there. He just never expected how the tables would turn so quickly, to the point that he would be the one causing it right now.

Still, three days passed, but Sheva's state definitely worsened as time passed by. His sleep quality was poor, and his face turned pale due to the lack of energy. Hell, even his mother noticed that and asked worriedly whether he was sick or not, just for Sheva to deny it immediately. After all, the boy knew why his condition was so poor this time.

'System, this should be the day that your reward arrives, right? Please, don't play a trick on me. I cannot do this anymore…' His tone was half begging, having been waiting for this time to come for three whole days since the boy landed in Jakarta.

[Don't worry, Host. Your reward will come in within the next few minutes. Just wait patiently.]

Well, it wasn't that much reassuring. Sheva still didn't know how reliable the system was, so he couldn't help but worry. Also, he had already expected a lot from this reward, so it would be bad if the result was disappointing.

PING!

PING!

PING!

PING!

As he was waiting, though, a barrage of notifications suddenly popped up on his phone. Sheva checked it quickly, just to find out that Bagas sent four new messages in the span of 20 seconds.

Bagas: Shev! Shev! Shev! Wake up!

Bagas: Come to the usual café! There is something big happening!

Bagas: You need to come quickly, or I SWEAR you will regret it!

Bagas: Come on!

Sheva's heart skipped a little bit when he saw the message, having a hunch that this was related to the system's reward he was about to receive. However, no matter how much he asked, the system was still tight-lipped, not uttering a single hint for him. Helpless, Sheva changed his clothes into a decent pair immediately, intending to see what kind of urgent thing Bagas wanted to talk about.

The café that Bagas talked about was a place close to Irfan's house where Sheva usually went for lunch with the others after the club meeting was over. The place was nice, quiet, and pretty private, making it enjoyable to hang out with friends.

After tidying his appearance, Sheva went to his phone quickly, ordering the motorcycle taxi—GOJEK—to pick him up from his house. It took him more than twenty minutes to arrive at the café, and it was probably the longest twenty minutes in his life. The boy kept checking the time on his phone anxiously, and whenever they were stuck in traffic, he would scowl loudly, letting the driver know that he was in a hurry.

Sheva knew that it was rude, but he couldn't help it. This was related to the reward he would get from the system, and his curiosity started to kill him.

Fortunately, they arrived soon, and once the vehicle stopped, Sheva jumped out of it immediately. "Here, Uncle! Just keep the change for you!" He said while giving the driver the money. The boy didn't even wait for the driver to answer or say anything, just rushing inside immediately like there was no tomorrow.

"What the… What the hell…" Sheva's breath staggered heavily; exhaustion started to kick in. He was also dumbfounded at the sight of Bagas sitting close to the counter, accompanying a beautiful woman there as the fat boy chatted animatedly, oblivious to Sheva's frantic pursuit. "What the fuck… What the fuck is going on here?" Sheva couldn't help but murmur.

Fortunately, Bagas noticed his presence immediately, and without hesitation, he waved at his best friend enthusiastically.

"Shev! Come here! We are talking about your future, so you need to be involved in this conversation!"

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