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3:30 PM.
The dismissal bell rang at Sengoku Junior High School. Akashi Asuto arrived early to the volleyball club and began warming up.
Soon, the other club members also arrived, and the coach started outlining the training plan for the day.
However, just as everyone was about to begin, the coach suddenly stopped Asuto.
“Wait, Asuto. Starting today, your training content will change.”
After saying that, the coach called out, “Nishison, come here. From now on, you’ll be Asuto’s Setter. From today until the match, except during practice games, you will handle all of Asuto’s Sets.”
Nishison Tomohiko, whose name had just been called, froze for a moment before turning pale with shock. “Huh? Me? I’ll be Asuto-Senpai’s setter?” But Mishita-Senpai…”
“It’s fine. For this period, Mishita and Asuto will train separately. Before the match starts, they’ll sync up again.”
This sudden decision by the coach shocked not only Nishison Tomohiko but also the other core members of the volleyball club.
The only person who wasn’t surprised was… Asuto.
If he guessed correctly, the coach’s current thinking was exactly the same as his own.
And sure enough…
While the other club members carried out their basic training and practice matches, Asuto focused on only one thing:
“Spiking.”
With less than half a month left before the Prefectural Athletic Meet, it was better to focus on one point and maximize his offensive power than to try to fix his almost impossible weaknesses in such a short time.
Core strength, spiking technique, and vertical jump ability were the key areas he needed to strengthen in the next two weeks.
And so…
For the rest of the training session, the gym was constantly filled with sharp, explosive sounds as the other members practiced drills and played scrimmages… like firecrackers going off.
…
[Ding…]
[Grinding yourself is just the basic operation of a true grind king.]
[Congratulations, Host! In daily training of Spiking, you exceeded your planned training volume by one time and completed a Low-Level Involution Grind.]
[Reward: Spike · Involution Grind Value +0.1]
…
Because of the change in training plan, Asuto could no longer gain Involution Grind Value by outworking his teammates; after all, their training content was now completely different.
But if he couldn’t out-grind others… he would out-grind himself.
In his previous life, secretly increasing his training volume behind the coach’s back was something Asuto often did.
The difference was that, back then, he had to consider his body’s limits; therefore, he would usually only increase his workload by about 30%.
Now, however, with the System providing protection, he pushed his training to the absolute limit and gave it his all.
After all, besides earning Involution Grind Value, high-intensity training improved his skills.
Having developed the good habit of “never wasting anything” since childhood, Asuto would never waste this extra training opportunity.
In one hour, he spiked nearly 300 balls.
His hands were practically numb from the effort.
And the consequence of that…
Nishison Tomohiko got scolded by the coach.
Setting over 300 balls in a row is an enormous physical strain for a setter.
Asuto was exhausted, but he was good at hiding it.
The “acting skills” he had honed in his previous life through secret overtraining allowed him to maintain a completely calm expression, no matter how tired he was.
But Tomohiko clearly didn’t have that ability.
“Sorry, little bro. You’ll have to take the blame this time. I’ll treat you to a meal next time.”
As he watched Nishison Tomohiko being lectured by the coach from a distance, Asuto silently apologized.
Right now, though, Asuto really couldn’t take the blame for this. It wasn’t that he was afraid of being scolded; rather, he was worried that, if the coach found out about his extra training, he might strictly forbid him from secretly increasing his workload in the future.
After all, an athlete secretly training on their own wasn’t entirely a good thing.
Professional coaches carefully calculate the intensity of each training plan to push athletes close to their individual limits.
Increasing the workload under such circumstances often doesn’t lead to improvement; instead, it increases the risk of injury.
Soon enough,
Nishison Tomohiko, who had just been scolded by the coach for “slacking off in training and having poor stamina,” walked back.
“Sorry about that, Nishison…”
Seeing him return, Asuto felt he should apologize. But before he could finish, Nishison suddenly raised his head, his eyes shining.
“Asuto-senpai, you’re amazing.”
Asuto: “?”
“Your stamina is incredible.”
Asuto: “???”
‘Something’s off with this kid… very off.’
…
Training was a monotonous process.
Although athletes were often full of passion and intensity on the court…
Off the court, however, their daily training usually consisted of repeating the same movements hundreds or even thousands of times:
Spiking.
Jumping.
Muscle training.
Asuto practiced these three areas rigorously every single day without the slightest slack. His serious attitude even began to draw strange looks from the volleyball club coach.
After all, in his memory, although the previous Asuto didn’t slack off in training, he wasn’t particularly serious either.
The other members of the volleyball club didn’t really notice these changes in Asuto.
Their training had been separated.
The only thing they could feel was that the power of Asuto’s spikes was growing stronger with each practice match.
Before they knew it, the day of the Prefectural Athletic Meet had arrived.
…
As soon as the coach led the team into the Miyagi Prefectural Gymnasium, a wave of noise surged in from all directions.
The squeaking of shoes against the floor and the cheers from the stands instantly made the scalps of the volleyball club members tingle.
Even Asuto felt his heart stir with excitement.
It wasn’t that he had never participated in large competitions before, but he had never played in front of this many spectators before.
Junior high volleyball competitions simply didn’t attract as much attention as high school matches. However, since today was the opening ceremony of the Prefectural Athletic Meet, more than half of the seats were filled with spectators.
The opening ceremony was pretty much the same everywhere:
First, everyone lines up for photos.
Then, someone came up to “say a few words.”
Two hours later… the opening ceremony ended.
Then, the matches officially began.
According to the pre-match draw, Sengoku Junior High School’s first opponent was Yuishi Junior High School.
It was a relatively unknown school in Miyagi Prefecture, similar to Sengoku Junior High.
The team changed into their uniforms in the waiting area.
When the staff came to notify them, the Volleyball Club members, feeling a mix of nervousness and unease, stepped onto the court.
(End of Chapter)
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