As soon as I joined the opposing team, Sona raised an eyebrow.
"You chose the opposing team? Interesting."
"I like challenges," I replied.
She gave a slight smile. "Let's see how long you can last."
Behind her, Tsubaki adjusted her glasses and muttered something to the president, who nodded.
I didn't need to be a genius to figure out they were already strategizing to knock me out early.
Meanwhile, on my side, the girls gave me curious looks. One of them smiled shyly when I looked at her and said,
"It's okay if you don't do well in the first match, Nishihara-san. We'll try to make the game easy for you."
"Thank you for that," I said with a cordial smile, which made her widen her eyes and turn away.
At that moment, as everyone took their places, I glanced to my right.
Rias, Akeno, and the girls from the first match were now resting. Most of them were drying their sweat with towels or sitting on the edge of the court, but Rias was actively looking at me.
I confess I was a little surprised by her stare, but then I winked at her.
The old Akihiro Nishihara had never interacted with her, so her natural reaction was to widen her eyes.
[Ding! The Master has achieved "Surprise Eye Contact" with Rias Gremory. Reward: 2 fusion points!]
Back in the game, Sona was preparing to serve, and the target was obviously me at the back of the court. The ball crossed the gym like a missile just a second after Sona threw it up and hit it hard.
"There's her deadly serve," I heard a girl next to me whisper as the ball was still in the air.
I had only a split second to react, but to me, it was as if the world had slowed down. My eyes were able to clearly see the movement of the ball, and my body responded quickly.
Taking a step back to adjust my position, I delivered a near-perfect header, sending the ball back to their side.
The ball flew close to the net, catching Tsubaki, who was in front, by surprise. Tsubaki tried a quick defense but ended up sending the ball out as she fell with her chest on the ground.
"Point for us!" one of the girls on my team shouted, raising her arms as she looked at me.
"That's it, Nishihara-san! You got the first point!"
"You don't seem like a beginner!"
"That was really good, but next time a surprise shot like that probably won't work. Try sending it to our setter or another teammate, okay?" said the teammate who seemed more experienced and strict.
I nodded to her. "Yes, captain."
"Eh?! You don't have to treat me like that!"
The girls on my team laughed at the strict teammate's reaction.
Standing beside the court, Akeno and Rias watched the game with expressions of interest now. Both were still sweaty from the previous match, and Rias seemed slightly annoyed at having lost.
"He's better than I expected. It's not often that someone can defend Sona's powerful serve."
Rias had her arms crossed. "Especially when Sona isn't holding back."
I was listening to the conversation with part of my sharpened hearing and was surprised by what Rias said. Sona not holding back didn't necessarily mean she'd used magic, but the physical strength of a noble devil was far beyond what most humans possessed. Yet I hadn't found that serve difficult at all.
A smile appeared on my face. "The Primordial Divine Vigor skill has taken my body to another level."
"Hey, Nishihara-san, here's the ball. It's your turn to serve."
I caught the ball that was bounced to me and went to the back of the court.
I wasn't actually ignorant about volleyball. Even someone who'd only watched a few games in their life knew the basics—position rotation, set sizes, and basic plays. So, I wanted to serve like Sona served and like the best volleyball players served—over the top.
The general expectation in the gym was the same. The girls whispered among themselves about it.
"Will he serve over the top? I bet it would be a really strong serve."
"He's got the power; otherwise, he wouldn't have stopped Sona-san's killer serve."
"He's tall. It shouldn't be difficult for him."
I had a mission: to beat Sona Sitri. However, I wasn't going to disappoint the spectators when they wanted a serve over the top.
So, I threw the ball up, jumped, and hit it when I thought the moment was right.
When my hand collided with the ball, I felt as if every fiber of my being was focused on that movement.
The sound of my palm striking the leather surface echoed through the gym, and the ball shot like a comet toward the opposite side of the court, whistling as it tore through the air.
The impact of the ball on the floor was the only thing that made the girls on the opposing team realize that it had already passed under the net. It had moved so fast that it disappeared from their view.
The sound of the impact was like thunder, reverberating off the walls. For a moment, even the floor shook, and then everything fell silent.
Everyone stopped. Players, spectators, and even the girls chatting distractedly at the edge of the court froze, wide-eyed, staring at the ball bouncing and rolling across the floor before it finally deflated.
"If that had hit someone..." I heard someone murmur.
The shock was clear on everyone's faces. How could anyone have that much strength?
Even I was stunned. 'I didn't put that much power into it, did I?' I thought, breathing a little heavily.
"Was that a point?" Tsubaki asked.
A girl off the court raised her hand. She was holding a flip phone. "I recorded it! Maybe you can see where the ball landed," she said.
Everyone, literally everyone, crowded around her as she adjusted the angle of her phone to show the video.
The recording was focused on Sona Sitri, not me, and showed the exact moment the ball passed her and hit the ground outside the opponent's lines, almost hitting the wall from so far away.
"Definitely out," confirmed Sona, adjusting her glasses. Her tone was neutral, but I noticed her swallow hard.
I forced a smile. "I'll try to control my strength next time."
"Please," said a girl from Sona's team, her voice trembling.
*
Back on the court, the looks I received ranged from admiration to fear and curiosity.
The last thing I wanted was to hurt anyone or cause more damage to the gym, so I held back now that I understood the extent of my agility, strength, and speed.
The rest of the match felt more like training for me. Whenever I tried to use force, I felt it would be too much and held back, so no other attack was as strong as that first one.
As the game continued, it became clear that Sona's team had experience and synergy to spare. Their quick moves, physical strength, and strategic plays kept my team on the defensive.
Despite my efforts to contribute, we were no match for their flawless coordination.
When the game finally ended, the score was 2 sets to 1 for Sona's team.
[Ding! The Master chose option 2! Reward: 3 fusion points.]
A difference of only two points would have changed the result, but I couldn't expect too much of myself — not when I was still learning to control the extraordinary abilities I'd recently acquired.
"Good game," Sona said at the end, offering a handshake. Her smile was slight, but the eyes behind her glasses showed respect.
"Good game," I replied, shaking her hand.
As I left the court, I noticed Rias talking to the girl who had filmed my serve. The girl had also recorded other moments of my match and nodded vigorously at whatever Rias was saying.
When I was about to focus my hearing to eavesdrop on their conversation, Rias noticed me watching. She narrowed her eyes at me, then said goodbye to the girl and returned to the court.
What were they talking about? Was it about me? Well, that was quite likely. But it didn't matter, I had already tested that the more these characters were interested in me, the more Fusion Points I received.