I spent the entirety of the next day in the hospital under observation. When I asked why, Donny said that it was a precaution since Reverenth had to knock me unconscious. Regardless of why I had to stay, I still felt like it was unnecessary.
It didn't take long for me to be discharged the next day. Alex was the one who got me, since she could do her college classes online, as well as making sure I took the prescribed pain meds on time. Getting home, I thought that I'd be able to relax, but Reverenth had other plans.
"There's only 10 months before the war starts. So, while your shoulder heals, we'll be working on war tactics and strategies. One of the ways you'll be learning is by playing shogi." Reverenth said after I sat down on the couch.
"Shogi? What's that?" I asked, confused.
"It's a game, like chess, that's based on war strategy. Just like chess, the goal is to capture your opponent's King. However, the rules and pieces are a bit different." Reverenth calmly explained.
"Different how?" I asked, skeptical about this training method. At my question, Reverenth brought out a 9x9 board with game pieces on it.
"We'll take 5 Pawns and toss them down. The number of red or black Pawns determine who goes first. Then we each move one piece or drop a piece. The objective of the game is to capture the other player's King." Reverenth said, matter-of-factly.
"And what are these pieces on the board?" I asked, glancing at the unfamiliar pentagon shaped game pieces.
"You have the Pawns, Bishop, Rook, Lances, Knights, Silver Generals, Gold Generals, and the King. If you flip the Pawns, Knights, Lances, Rook, Bishop, and Silver Generals over in a promotion zone, then you can promote them from the black side to the red side, and they'll be a higher rank." He said, pointing to each piece.
"And what did you mean by dropping a piece?" I asked, confused by the phrase.
"That means, instead of moving one of your own pieces, you can play a captured piece instead. It has to be unpromoted side up and you can't drop a Pawn into a column with another unpromoted Pawn." Reverenth replied.
"I'll give it a try. No promises that I'll be any good at it, though." I said reluctantly.
"All I ask is that you try. If needed, we can always do more traditional methods." Reverenth said, finding a compromise.
That was how I spent most of my day, getting beaten in shogi. When my brothers got home from school, they gave me my homework and the notes that they took. The assignments were easy enough, so it wouldn't take long to finish all of my assignments.
"So, how's strategy training going?" Adam asked as we waited for dinner.
"Horrible." I grumbled, and then told them what Reverenth had us doing. They proceeded to laugh at my misfortune.
"If you guys want, I could play a round with you? That way, you can learn it as well." Reverenth offered as he walked into the living room.
"We're good, but thank you for the offer." Josh quickly said, politely declining Reverenth's suggestion.
"Alright, but be ready for another game after you're done with your homework, Andrew." Reverenth answered before speaking to me.
"Don't you think we've played enough?" I asked. It seemed like Reverenth didn't know
what it was like to be tired.
"Come now, you're actually doing pretty good at it. Do you really want to lose the
progress that you've made?" Reverenth asked. When he said it like that, I couldn't easily refuse. Resigning myself to a round or two before bed, I got started on my homework.
It took me about two hours to do my assignments, then we had dinner. Tonight, mom had made lasagna and a salad, and it was delicious. As we ate, my dad asked how my training was going. For the second time that day, I explained what Reverenth and I were doing.
"Well, how is that going so far?" My dad asked before taking a bite of lasagna.
"Reverenth said I was doing pretty good, but he still keeps beating me." I grumbled, not
knowing what I was doing wrong.
"I've never played shogi before, but try thinking outside of the box. Think of a move
that'll surprise your opponent." Dad suggested, trying to help me.
"I'll try that. Thanks, dad." I said, getting up from the table after dinner was over. Reverenth and I made our way to the living room, where the game was set up. We tossed the 5 Pawns down, and the majority was black, so I made the first move. As the game progressed, I made a move that made Reverenth pause.
"Why did you make that move?" He asked, wanting to hear my reasoning.
"Because, whether or not I want to admit it, Pawns are expendable." I said, looking at the
board.
"Smart. I wasn't expecting you to make that move." He said, impressed. The game
continued until I managed to capture his King and win.
"Congratulations, Andrew. That was a very well played game. We'll call it a day here.
Go, get some sleep." Reverenth said as he put the game up.
"Thank you. You might be a slave driver, but I appreciate you training me." I said
sincerely.
"Of course. I'm only hard on you because you have great potential. As you get older,
you'll be an amazing King." He replied, just as sincerely. After that, I took my last dose of pain meds and then went to bed.