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The Knight's DelusionAuthor: Sakaguchi Ango
| Original Title | 桂馬の幻想 |
|---|---|
| Author | 坂口 安吾 |
| Genre | Popular Fiction |
| Author Type | Male Author |
| Summary | In the midst of a high-stakes shogi match against a revered opponent, young prodigy Kido Rokudan abruptly abandons the game, vanishing without explanation. His sudden departure—a breach of etiquette in the rigid world of professional play—leaves observers baffled. Seeking respite, Kido encounters Nomura, a journalist, near a mountain stream and confesses an unsettling vision: the face of a teahouse girl mirrored the lethal “four-five knight” move from his match, a hallucination sharpened by battle-taut nerves. The girl, Miko, exudes an unnerving severity, her presence blurring the line between intuition and delusion. Though Kido returns to clinch an improbable victory, his obsession with deciphering her cryptic connection to the game festers. Months later, he disappears entirely, drawn back to the mountain teahouse where reality unravels further. Miko, now revealed as a shrine maiden with an iron will, dominates the narrative’s shadows—her motives opaque, her influence over Kido spiraling into a surreal coexistence. The story weaves tension between strategic brilliance and human fragility, leaving readers to question whether genius and madness share a board. |
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