At this time, in a large mansion near their family's hot spring inn.
Akina took her phone to a resting room.
This room had a sliding door that opened onto an elegant courtyard with a bamboo grove and a babbling stream.
It was an excellent place perfect for resting, sipping tea, studying, or working.
Generally, wealthy families with the means liked to build such rooms.
There was a corridor outside the door connecting to other areas. This layout was a common architectural style in anime.
"So this is the chessboard Kaito-san made with his ability..."
She turned on the light in the room, accepted the gift, took out the item, and then designated a place to set down the chessboard.
The chessboard, with its scenery like a sunset over the clouds, left her utterly stunned.
Too beautiful...
So beautiful that she didn't feel it was made by Kaito, but rather born from nature, an artwork carved by the uncanny workmanship of nature over countless years!
When she took out her phone and searched for it, it was indeed the case.
Among the world's top ten precious ores ranked, there was one called [Sunset Opal].
However, whether in size or appearance, the chessboard Kaito gave her daughter completely surpassed the sunset opals in online pictures.
"Kaito-san is truly amazing."
Akina praised from the bottom of her heart. Then, following the instructions for use she received, she found a button around the chessboard and the hidden drawers for the pieces in various directions.
Pressing the button, golden fine lines indeed appeared on the chessboard (the 'sky'), and connecting these lines formed a Go board.
Pressing it again, those glowing golden lines changed into a Xiangqi board, then a Shogi board, and then a Chess board.
"It seems Kaito-san is very thoughtful."
She didn't like Shogi, but that didn't mean she knew nothing about it.
Picking up a Shogi piece, she touched it as if handling a priceless object, then placed one on the board.
Snap...
The sound was crisp and pleasant, and it also gave a feeling of playing the game while suspended in the sky.
This feeling was truly wonderful.
"Mom, I've finished all my homework! Can I play Shogi with Brother Kaito you mentioned now?"
Thump, thump, thump, thump...
Ai came bounding in with light steps, looking for Akina. When she saw her mother in the room where she often studied in the afternoon, looking at a chessboard, the notebook in her hand was flung to the floor.
"Woah—!!!"
Her large sky-blue eyes sparkled with starlight.
Ai leaped onto the large chessboard, frantically stroking it. The beret on her head flew off to the side, and her antenna (her soul) spun wildly with excitement.
Clearly, she was captivated by the beautiful chessboard.
Even if she didn't like chess, she would still be stunned by it.
"Mom, did you buy this chessboard specially for me? It's so beautiful!!"
"This doesn't seem like it's made from ordinary stone, and it doesn't look like glass either. Could it be jade? But such a large piece of jade..."
"Mom, you didn't sell off the other branches of the family business, did you..."
The more she thought about it, the more absurd it seemed. But thinking carefully, if it really was jade, she might indeed have to sell off many branches.
"It's not that. It's a meeting gift from that Brother Kaito for you."
Akina reached out and stroked her daughter's hair, replying with a slight smile.
"Huh, huh! A meeting gift this valuable?"
"Mom... could it be that Brother Kaito is trying to woo you?"
Ai's personality was very lively and bold. Although her thinking was a bit naive, she knew a lot of things, so sometimes she could be a little black-bellied, a little dark, etc.
Regarding this kind of issue, the clever Ai quickly thought of this point.
After all, giving such a high-value gift and using her as an excuse to give it, wasn't that a case of giving gifts to someone to seek something in return!
Wait, that didn't seem quite right?
Anyway, the point was, Brother Kaito wanted to get on good terms with her, so she could help him out or something.
In short, his real intention lay elsewhere!
Ai declared herself the modern-day Ai Holmes! She had seen through the conclusion!
"W-what are you saying! Kaito-san is just a friend!"
Hearing her daughter's words, Akina was so angry she reached out and grabbed her daughter's cheek, pinching it hard.
"Mom, mom, I was wrong, I was wrong, please spare your cute daughter."
"Hmph, that's for talking nonsense."
Releasing her daughter, Akina couldn't help but sigh.
There was a reason Ai said these things.
In this regard, Akina's experience was actually similar to Sephie's.
First, they were both among the first batch to enter the chat group, and on the first day, they both drew Dimension Travel Cards (C-rank).
Sephie drew a card that could travel to a world with many monsters, and also to a world with a universe overlord named Boros.
So, Sephie's husband, as the current universe overlord of their world, excitedly traveled over to pick a fight with him.
Anyway, as long as you held the Dimension Travel Card, you could return anytime, although you could only go back and forth a total of 10 times.
But Sephie's husband, Gid Lucione Deviluke, never returned after traveling, and Sephie, without the travel card, had no way to find him.
As for her, she drew a Food Wars world travel card (C-rank).
It also led to another world, with the same total of 10 round trips.
At that time, like Sephie, she didn't hide the chat group from her husband and also showed him the reward she drew.
It was said that the status of chefs in that world was very high, and their cuisine was amazing. So, her husband couldn't resist taking the travel card and setting off, wanting to further his studies at the Totsuki Academy mentioned on the card,
Dreaming of becoming the world's top chef.
As a result, 2 months after leaving, he returned with his hands severed...
Afterwards, her husband committed suicide, and she became a single mother from then on.
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A/N: Sigh, as expected, once the protagonist appears, someone inevitably suffers misfortune because of his existence.