[Ding...]
[To grind harder than your rivals, first grind harder than your teammates. Out-grinding teammates is a basic skill for any Grind King.]
[Congratulations. During daily training—long-distance running—you exceeded your teammates' volume by double and completed a low-level grind.]
[Earned: Stamina Grind Points +0.1]
······
The sudden system notification jolted Akashi Asuka back to reality. Looking around, he realized with surprise that the entire field was empty. Sometime while he was lost in thought, every other volleyball club member had already left.
At the same time...
On the system panel, tiny '+' symbols appeared beside both Endurance and Cardio under the Stamina category.
Akashi Asuka's spirits lifted instantly.
'I think I'm starting to figure out this lousy system's preferences.'
Simple and stupidly easy to use. With a thought, the 0.1 Stamina Grind Points vanished from his panel. In their place, Endurance rose from 70 to 70.1.
A second later...
A faint warmth trickled through his body for a moment.
Then Akashi Asuka tested his legs. He didn't feel anything different.
Which made sense. A 0.1 increase wasn't supposed to make him tremble with power or suddenly punch through walls. That would've been weird.
'If doubling teammates' training volume counts as low-level grind... what about tripling it?'
Sensing the system's pattern, Akashi Asuka kept running. Today's club training hadn't been intense. Even after ten slow laps around the 400-meter track, he still had energy left.
But as the distance grew longer, his breathing turned heavy. His legs felt like they were filled with lead.
Still, the thought of quitting never crossed his mind.
It wasn't because Akashi Asuka had superhuman willpower. Anyone who'd actually gone through sports training knew one truth: the moment your body hits exhaustion... that's when real training begins.
[Ding...]
[Congratulations. During daily training—long-distance running—you exceeded your teammates' volume by triple and completed a mid-level grind.]
[Earned: Stamina Grind Points +0.2]
The system chimed again after Akashi Asuka finished fifteen laps.
This time, he slowed to a stop, hands on his knees, gasping for air.
He was curious what counted as high-level grind—but his body had clearly hit its limit. Pushing further wasn't an option.
Besides...
He wanted to save some energy to test the system in other ways.
Without hesitation, he dumped the newly earned 0.2 Grind Points straight into Endurance. It climbed to 70.3.
After resting a few minutes on the spot...
Akashi Asuka dragged his sweat-drenched body back toward the gym.
Evening had fallen—past five o'clock. Though summer was approaching and sunset came later these days, the sky had already dimmed.
Back at the gym...
Most club members had gone home. Only one person remained: Nishimori Tomohiko, the first underclassman Akashi Asuka had met after transmigrating. He was quietly tidying up equipment and sweeping the floor.
As Akashi Asuka entered, Nishimori was just about to wheel the last crate of volleyballs into the storage room.
'Wait.'
"Hey, Nishimori. Hold on. Don't put that crate away yet. Leave it here—I'll handle it later."
"Eh? Akashi-senpai... are you going to practice more?" Nishimori asked, surprised.
"Yeah. I'll train a bit longer. You head home first. I'll clean up after."
With that, Akashi Asuka grabbed the cart and headed toward the net, ready to test a new way to trigger the system.
But then...
A hesitant voice came from behind him.
"Umm... if... if Akashi-senpai doesn't mind... I could... help toss balls for you..."
"Hm?"
Akashi Asuka turned. Nishimori stood there, fidgeting nervously, eyes darting everywhere.
'Are you a setter?'
"Y-yes... I'm not as good as Mishita-senpai yet, but... for practice... I should be okay..."
Nishimori kept his head down, shrinking into himself. His voice grew smaller with every word.
Akashi Asuka felt a little speechless.
The senpai-kouhai hierarchy in Japanese schools was stricter than in most countries—almost like a rigid class system. Add Akashi Asuka's "delinquent" reputation on top of that... and Nishimori's naturally timid personality...
Honestly, just speaking up like that probably took every ounce of courage the kid had.
What Akashi Asuka didn't know was that Nishimori's inner panic was far worse than he imagined.
'I'm dead. I spoke to Akashi-senpai without being spoken to first. Everyone's already gone home. If he gets mad... there's no one here to save me!'
'Mom... I messed up big time...'
As Nishimori pictured his own funeral and wondered where his mom would bury him...
A voice cut through his thoughts.
"Thanks. We'll practice spiking. Just stand nearby and toss the ball to me."
"Eh?!"
Nishimori blinked in shock.
"What are you standing there for? We don't have much time. Let's get started."
Akashi Asuka pushed the ball cart to the net and waved him over.
"O-okay! Coming right now!"
Nishimori snapped out of his daze and hurried to the net. Watching Akashi Asuka stretch his shoulders nearby, he thought...
'Wait... Akashi-senpai doesn't seem as scary as everyone says...'
As he pondered this, Nishimori tossed a ball into the air. At the same time, Akashi Asuka leaped high.
Next second...
BOOM!!
The silent gym erupted like thunder had struck the floor. The volleyball slammed down like a bullet, bounced violently, and rocketed straight into the wall.
Nishimori, seeing Akashi Asuka's spike up close for the first time, froze with wide eyes.
'...Mom, I take it back. Akashi-senpai is absolutely terrifying.'
······
'Not bad. Volleyball actually feels pretty fun.'
Akashi Asuka rolled his shoulders, satisfied with that spike.
Truth was, if Nishimori hadn't spoken up, he'd planned to practice jump serves alone. But with a setter here? Obviously he'd focus on sharpening his spikes.
According to the original Akashi Asuka's memories, the Miyagi Prefecture Junior High School Volleyball Tournament was less than a month away.
With so little time left, strengthening his strong points made more sense than patching up weaknesses.
"Akashi-senpai... how many spikes should we do?"
"Let's start with a hundred."
"What?! Senpai's doing that many?!"
"A lot? Basic skills need volume to reach breakthrough. A hundred spikes isn't much at all."
"I see..."
Nishimori's eyes lit up with understanding.
······
Thirty minutes later...
[Ding...]
[Secret extra practice is a must-have trait for any Grind King.]
[Congratulations. During daily training—spiking—you exceeded your teammates' volume by double and completed a low-level grind.]
[Earned: Spike Grind Points +0.1]
(End of Chapter)