Chapter 108: A Coach Issue
Honestly, it would be a lie if Sheva said that he wasn’t curious. After all, even though he was a member of Irfan’s club, his contact with the leader wasn’t that much. Besides a few formalities and sparring matches in the past, he couldn’t remember the last time they chatted casually outside of chess matters.
Hell, he himself had never received any guidance from the man, which was a shame but understandable considering the man himself was always busy guiding Anna. It was a logical move for a coach to put more focus on his best student. So, to hear that Master Irfan wanted to talk to him—to them, to be more exact, as Anna and Claudia were included in this conversation too—was a bit surprising.
"Are you sure you don’t know anything about this?" Sheva asked once again, trying to press Anna further and pry her mouth open about this matter. In the end, it was Claudia who had had enough of it.
"Can you be a little bit more patient for a moment?!" The little girl snapped. "You know that you can ask him directly after this, right?!"
Sheva just rubbed the back of his neck awkwardly while Bagas himself chuckled from the driver’s seat. "Don’t worry, we are just ten minutes away from Master Irfan’s home. You can get a proper conversation later, okay? Just be a little bit patient."
Sheva could only nod begrudgingly at that.
Fortunately, since it was Tuesday at noon, the traffic wasn’t that bad, so the journey itself was pretty fast. They arrived quicker than the schedule, and once they were out of the vehicle, Claudia didn’t hesitate and barged into the building as if she owned it.
"Master Irfan! We are here!" She shouted loudly while also ringing the housebell.
"Ia! Be a little bit polite!" Anna hissed at her sister’s antic, a little bit embarrassed.
In return, Claudia just rolled her eyes as if Anna had just said the most ridiculous thing in the world. "This is Master Irfan, who we are talking about, Big Sis. Politeness is definitely on the bottom tier of his priority." She said as a matter of fact.
"Indeed, she is right, Anna." Right after that, Irfan suddenly opened the door, greeting them all with a wry smile. "Still, I would appreciate it if you didn’t shout like that. It would be embarrassing if the neighborhood came out and reprimanded us, right?"
"Sorry for her rudeness, Master Irfan!" Just like the usual, it was the big sister’s job to apologize for her little sister’s mistake.
"Eh, don’t worry about it. Come in! Also, ask Bagas and Sarah to come here too!" He invited all five teenagers inside his house. "So, what do you want to drink? Water? Coffee? Tea?" He asked casually.
"Just a glass of water, please." Sheva didn’t hesitate to state his request.
"Me too! It is a bit exhausting to drive all the way here." Bagas added.
"A cup of tea, if it is not bothering you, Master Irfan," Anna asked politely.
"A glass of water, just like the boys, please." Sarah also chimed in.
"A cold orange juice, if you have, Master!" Claudia also joined the fun. Hearing her request, though, everyone snapped their heads, looking at the girl in disbelief. Claudia was flustered a little bit at their reaction. "What?! Master Irfan offers if I want anything to drink, right? And I also said if he had it! It is not my fault!" She tried to defend herself. Anna just covered her face, too embarrassed to acknowledge that Claudia was her sibling.
"Don’t worry about it. Just like what Claudia said, don’t be too polite here. Since I offer drinks, of course, I have already prepared for that too. Wait a second." Irfan chuckled before going back to his kitchen, probably preparing for their request.
Meanwhile, all the other four teenagers tried their best to avoid Claudia’s eyes, not wanting to get associated with her. The girl herself could only grin sheepishly, knowing that her behavior was a little bit too much. However, that only showed how close she was to Master Irfan, something that Sheva had never seen before.
"Here, please, enjoy your drink." Five minutes later, Irfan came out with a tray full of drinks, and it didn’t take quite a long time before everyone grabbed theirs and relieved their thirst.
While letting them relax a little bit, the man also didn’t forget about the small talk, asking about how their lives were, their current health, and what they were busy with right now. All the teenagers there answered casually, knowing that Irfan was trying to inquire something from them here. In the end, it was Sheva who lost his patience first as he asked, "Master, not intending to be rude here, but can you just ask straight to the point?" Unsurprisingly, both Claudia and Anna nodded in agreement, even though the latter was slightly hesitant.
"You youngsters sure don’t know how to take it easy, huh? Always rushing like there is no tomorrow..." Irfan sighed like an old man. "Anyway! What I want to ask here is related to your future."
"Master... You are not trying to kick us out of your club, right?!" Claudia gasped dramatically.
"What?! Of course, no!" Irfan retorted immediately. "You guys are the best players that I have ever had for this club! There is no way that I would let you leave just like that!" The little girl sighed in relief when she heard that, and the others just rolled their eyes, knowing that she was just being a drama queen here.
"So, what is it that you want to talk about?" Anna took over the conversation, knowing that she was the only one who could lead this conversation into a serious one here.
"Well, how should I say this..." The man pondered for a moment. "You know that even if you all have been members of the club for a while, I have so little to offer and guide you, right? I mean, I know that I didn’t interact that much with Claudia and Sheva, but Anna, I have already trained you for a while, and you should notice that I am not really that good of a coach, right?"
Anna hesitated for a moment, but under the questioning gazes from the others, she finally nodded. "I wouldn’t say that you are a bad coach, but..." She trailed the words behind, letting the others interpret them by themselves.
"I know it." Irfan smiled in defeat, making Anna and the others feel guilty for thinking so. "I have already guessed about it for a long time, but my defeat against you a few days ago definitely confirms it. You didn’t play anything close to what I taught you, but you still could win against me. It should tell me how bad my coaching skills are, right?"
"... Sorry..." Anna bowed her head deeply, feeling guilty.
"Oh, don’t be. I know my limitations." Irfan shrugged nonchalantly. "That is why I am going to offer you something here. Listen, I have a friend outside who is basically semi-retired now and wants to build his career as a chess coach. I can assure you that he is more capable than I, as he himself is a grandmaster. Would you like to try learning under his guidance?"