Too Many Money-Making Talents
“…… Mumyeong?”
A fleeting Chinese voice reached my ears.
I reflexively raised my head and looked over.
It was Lu Yuan 6-dan.
He was staring fixedly at the Go board, his expression serious.
'What did he just say?'
It was a short, low voice with a fleeting pronunciation.
I had been concentrating so hard I hadn't heard it properly.
But it felt like a vaguely familiar word had been heard.
'Focus.'
I immersed myself back into the game.
The midgame clash was the most critical moment.
One mistake here would decide the winner.
Tap!
I placed the next move.
It was the spot he least wanted to avoid, the exchange he wanted to dodge, at the precise timing.
I poked it right at the boundary.
“Um.”
A short sound escaped from Lu Yuan 6-dan's mouth.
He responded once on the left and once more on the bottom right, but always one move late.
He chased thickness, while I took liberties.
When he pushed into the center, I blocked the side.
When he tried to solidify the liberties, I dug out the base.
I denied him any breathing room.
When he tried to steal the flow, I suppressed it again.
Controlling my breathing, I maintained high-intensity pressure.
As a result, I completely opened the subtle difference in the formation from the opening.
The clock ticked without pause.
Time passed, but Lu Yuan's hand still didn't move.
He just stared fixedly at the board.
'No escape route.'
It was an unfortunate word for Lu Yuan 6-dan, but all of black's moves were blocked.
A better move, a way to change the flow, a way to create a comeback.
No matter how much he pondered, it didn't come out.
Now it was time to accept reality.
Tap.
At the end of the game, Lu Yuan 6-dan placed the next move.
He aimed at my dead group.
'Desperate move... those stones aren't capturable.'
The intention was clear.
He used the aim to threaten, then invaded the incomplete territory to induce a loss and aim for a last comeback.
But I wasn't sloppy enough to fall for such obvious traps.
More than that, I was already one move ahead.
Tap.
Soft but firm, I placed a move neutralizing the aim move.
The sacrifice disappeared, and the territory was sealed without room to play.
The group lived, and the flow continued without shaking.
Click.
In the Go bowl, his hand that had been picking up stones stopped.
He bit his lower lip tightly.
Lu Yuan 6-dan withdrew his hand weakly from the Go bowl.
He looked down at the board quietly.
“......”
His expression was calm, but his eyes showed confusion and resignation, along with an unwilling, unacceptable self-awareness.
In the end, he couldn't place the next move.
Instead, he held two stones in his hand and quietly placed them outside the board line.
Resignation.
'I won.'
My clenched fist gained strength.
Now three wins.
One match left for the main round.
At that moment, a short breath and a glance one beat late came from Lu Yuan 6-dan as he slowly raised his head.
“You...... are you Mumyeong?”
I couldn't understand all that because I don't know Chinese.
But one word was clear: Mumyeong.
I could guess what he was asking and wanted to know.
'He couldn't not know.'
I expected it.
If Lu Yuan 6-dan is a pro of that level, he wouldn't not know my style after playing twice.
Now I had to face him head-on.
I smiled shortly and lightly, then nodded.
“......!”
At that moment, Lu Yuan 6-dan's expression shook.
His eyes said everything: shock, bewilderment, doubt, and acceptance.
“Your Go...... is it really......”
He couldn't finish.
His lips trembled, and he looked down at the board again heavily.
Traces of defeat, the frustration of being defeated twice by the same opponent, and complex emotions weighed on him now.
“Thank you for your hard work.”
I quietly cleaned the stones and stood up.
More than the joy of winning 3-0, the relief of having revealed myself came larger.
Leaving Lu Yuan 6-dan, who was as hard as stone, behind, I left the preliminary hall with slightly lighter steps.
Creak.
The door to the game room opened, and someone came out behind.
“Excuse me.”
I turned around reflexively.
It was Jang Yu-na 2-dan, with a referee necklace around her chest, dressed neatly in black pants as she approached.
“Hello.”
I greeted naturally.
Actually, I had been aware of her existence since before the game.
'She was staring too obviously.'
Jang Yu-na had been sticking to me the whole time.
If anyone saw, they might have thought she was being monitored.
“Nice to meet you. We know each other, right?”
“Yes. I remember. Senior Jang Yu-na.”
She nodded, took a breath, and approached with a somewhat determined expression.
“Sorry, but I have something I want to ask.”
Her tone was cautious, but the conviction inside was clear.
“I think I asked once before.”
“Yes.”
“By any chance, are you Mumyeong?”
The question not deviating from expectations.
She had sensed it from the beginning.
That she'd hear this question from this person.
'Someone who knows more about Mumyeong: my style, my sense, my psychology.'
The person who understands me deepest was Jang Yu-na.
So, I didn't want to feel sorry for her anymore.
Because she helped my Go grow and face pros.
“Yes. I'm Mumyeong.”
“......!”
Her eyes widened.
She didn't expect such a straightforward answer.
I met her eyes and quietly added, “My real name is Kim In-ha.”
After a beat, smiling, I said, “I'm just a normal office worker.”
“Ah.”
Jang Yu-na took a short breath.
“Haha... what? It was real?”
The laughter at the end was light but strangely empty.
She put her hand to her forehead.
“I was right. In-ha really was Mumyeong... and really, an office worker.”
“Sorry.”
I smiled awkwardly and lowered my head.
“I couldn't tell the truth.”
At that time, why was I so unsure?
The real me, Kim In-ha, bank security guard, the person who endures day by day watching his back.
'Revealing the name 'Mumyeong' is revealing my entire life: my skill, my potential.'
I hesitated whether it would be painted over and belittled because of the 'me' in reality.
So I hid it as an excuse that it's bothersome.
'Now it's not.'
I felt like I could be a bit more bold.
My Go, my talent, wasn't at a level to be underestimated.
“No. I wasn't asking for an apology... ”
Jang Yu-na shook her head.
“There must have been a reason. I understand well.”
She smiled gently and took one step closer, extending her hand.
“I'll introduce myself formally. I'm Jang Yu-na, pro. I'm a streamer and also... right now, I'm your fan too.”
I quietly took her hand.
A slight incoming force contained resentment, joy, and complex emotions.
We smiled and released our hands.
After removing the mask, the moment we faced each other as people and people, only warmth remained.
“I'd like to talk longer, but I still have to go into the referee room.”
“Yes. Then, let's talk next time.”
“Next time?”
She approached closer again, close enough to feel her breath.
Confusion flashed in my eyes.
Tap.
She took out her smartphone and handed it to me.
“Give me your contact.”
“Eh?”
“Haa... Mumyeong. No, In-ha.”
She took a small breath and smiled, but that smile was somewhere harsh.
“Do you know how much trouble I went through because of your call block?”
“Because of me?”
“Yes. Really... I didn't even check the messages. There were many schedule changes and discussions. Haa.”
Jang Yu-na sighed deeply.
The heart pain without saying it is felt.
“Details, talk on the phone.”
“Yes.”
I smiled awkwardly and nodded.
She turned and headed to the preliminary hall.
Then suddenly stopped and turned back.
“Ah, congratulations on advancing to the 4th round. I was going to say this first, but I was late.”
“Thank you.”
A short but deep bow lingered in my chest for a long time.
After she completely turned away, I stood still there.
Then suddenly, I muttered to myself, 'It's refreshing.'
The fact that I didn't hide it, the fact that I revealed my name for the first time, somehow made me feel a bit more refreshing.
I quietly patted myself and stepped forward.
“Let's go up. Higher up.”
* * *
'Even though In-ha told me he's Mumyeong... I guess I have to keep it a secret for now?'
Jang Yu-na muttered to herself as she returned to the preliminary hall.
Not officially revealed, not given permission, she couldn't say it out loud yet.
'Ugh, I want to say it. It would be a huge topic.'
The master Mumyeong of Samgukji Baduk, actually an amateur player.
Just this guarantees YouTube views and topic content.
'Next time I drop a hint... eh, eh?'
The preliminary hall was quiet and desolate, with intermittent sounds of placing Go stones and a tense air flowing even with no breathing.
In the very center, about 5-6 people gathered at the innermost table: referees, pros who passed the preliminary, and those who didn't.
Their gazes fixed on one game.
Byun Woo-bin 5-dan.
Tap.
He extended his hand and placed a stone.
“Um.”
Someone let out a short sound, another opened his mouth and let out a cheer, and another swallowed a fake cough.
These gathered were pros, including normal pro players.
The depth of one move, the direction of reading, the immediate sensing of the wavelength that the current move would bring.
So everyone knew that move just now, among hundreds of games, was a 'brilliant move' in the hands.
It saved the group, broke the opponent's thickness, and turned the axis that controls the situation into a turning blow.
'Really, seeing that move...'
'No special move.'
'Byun Woo-bin, it was fortunate not to have met in the preliminary.'
Common opinion of pro players who watched this move, regardless of nationality.
And among them, Jang Yu-na who had left for a moment and returned.
'So amazing.'
She lightly rubbed the goosebumps on her arm.
Leaving the process, the move just placed was a move that any pro would want to try once, a brilliant move that pierces and penetrates the board.
Jang Yu-na subtly observed the opponent's expression.
Japanese Koba Yushi 9-dan, experienced internationally, with a reputation for skilled reading.
However, now 'It's over.'
His expression collapsed, his eyes shook.
He couldn't catch up with the wavelength of this move yet.
Go is played with the heart.
If the heart collapses, this game is decided by that.
Jang Yu-na slowly turned her gaze to the bracket attached to the stage.
Integrated Preliminary D Group, 4th round: Byun Woo-bin vs Kim In-ha.
The moment she checked the name, Jang Yu-na's eyes shook slightly.
'Ah, they're facing.'
The rookie player carrying Korean Go and the amateur-born maverick.
Naturally, the former should win for 'true seed'.
But she couldn't predict the result rashly.
Momentum and completion, coldness and composure, two completely different flows colliding head-on.
'...... I don't think In-ha will lose.'
She was Mumyeong.
No, her belief in In-ha was clear.
However, if the opponent was Byun Woo-bin riding the recent peak of rising trend, the story changes.
Jang Yu-na bit her lip slightly.
'...... It should be fine, In-ha?'
A top player, Byun Woo-bin is already close to that level.
Perhaps within 2 years, or 1 year, a player aiming for the world.
No, surely it will be.
The size of talent, concentration at the turning point, the sense and determination to read the board.
All of these are already reaching the stage of completion.
So the anxiety budding in her heart grows a little, very little, like a snowball, quietly but definitely swelling.