Boom!
Thud!
Two loud impacts rang out in quick succession as the volleyball slammed hard into Itachiyama's court.
For a moment, every single player on Itachiyama froze in place.
What the hell just happened?
Weren't we just clawing back momentum? How did the point gap suddenly stretch back to four?!
On the other side of the net, Sakusa Kiyoomi stared at Akashi Asuka, expressionless, silent, and only one thought echoed in his head:
He's so fast.
Akashi… was just too fast.
Sakusa had always prided himself on his speed, but just now, he saw it clearly. Even with more than two body lengths between them and his arm already halfway through the swing,
Akashi Asuka appeared in front of him in the blink of an eye, perfectly reading the arc of his spike and shutting it down with clinical precision.
"Something's not right with him…"
What had started as a gut feeling was now a certainty.
Akashi Asuka was in an abnormal state.
And Sakusa was right. At that very moment, Akashi had fully entered the state of "Clear Mirror, Still Water", but this time, he had done so intentionally.
This mental state, known as Clear Mirror, Still Water, was something most players could only stumble into by chance.
Even with the help of his cheat-like system, Akashi had never been able to lock it in as a permanent skill.
But in the process of trying, he'd discovered a workaround, a method to trigger this state deliberately:
He needed a "key."
It worked like a psychological anchor, a form of autosuggestion.
Initially, Akashi had wanted to create this trigger himself, but quickly realized it was impossible.
It was like trying to hypnotize yourself or fool yourself with sleight of hand, it just didn't work.
Of course, it might also be because his mastery of Clear Mirror, Still Water wasn't quite refined enough yet.
So in the end, he had to rely on an external "key", something tangible to act as a mental switch.
And Akashi's chosen key?
Ryuhei Sanashita.
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14–10.
Oikawa Tooru still had the serve.
And for his second toss, Oikawa didn't hold back,
Just as the referee's whistle blew, he unleashed his Super High-Speed Jump Serve.
Boom!
Whether this serve landed or not didn't matter to Oikawa.
Its purpose was clear: Disrupt Itachiyama's rhythm. Shatter their concentration.
Winning or losing, that wasn't something Oikawa could control.
But when it came to getting inside people's heads, he knew he could beat anyone.
And whether it was luck or skill,
That serve of his did land in Itachiyama's court.
Clean. Untouched.
Thud.
The heavy sound of impact felt like it hit Itachiyama right in the chest.
As the scoreboard flipped once more, the weight on their hearts sank lower.
15–10.
That seemingly reckless serve became the final straw that broke Itachiyama's back.
Sakusa Kiyoomi twitched slightly as he stared across the net at Akashi Asuka.
He suddenly felt like he was playing a game of cards.
He had just put down a measly pair of threes,
And the other side responded by slamming down a king bomb.
Game over.
Even if they were the reigning national champions from last summer, there was no way Itachiyama could close a five-point gap against Aoba Johsai in half a set.
That serve from Oikawa had sealed the fate of Set 1 – Aoba Johsai vs. Itachiyama.
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Ten minutes later.
Set 1: Final Score – 25:22.
Aoba Johsai takes the lead.
During the break,
"How long can you hold that state?"
Oikawa walked over and handed Akashi a water bottle.
He already knew what Akashi was doing.
After all, when Akashi first began experimenting with this "state," his initial choice for the "key"… had actually been Oikawa himself.
But it didn't work.
Oikawa was too unpredictable. His mind was too chaotic,
Or perhaps, there was just too much "evil" in it.
The "key" got corrupted before it could do its job.
"I think I can hold it for half a set," Akashi replied, eyes closed as he assessed his condition.
As his mastery of Clear Mirror, Still Water grew, so did the duration he could sustain it.
Now, barring any major disruption, he could likely maintain it for a full set if needed.
"Half a set, huh?" Oikawa stroked his chin. "That should be enough. If all goes to plan, we'll finish the match in the second set."
Back when Akashi first showed Oikawa this technique, Oikawa had thought it was totally over-the-top.
A skill like that? Sounds like something straight out of a chūnibyō's fantasy.
But when Akashi demonstrated it for real,
Oikawa immediately realized something terrifying.
The difference between people... could be bigger than the difference between a person and a dog.
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While Aoba Johsai was calmly strategizing for the second set, the atmosphere in Itachiyama's bench area was heavy and silent.
There was no doubt.
In Set 1, Akashi Asuka had completely crushed them.
The only real highlight Itachiyama had was when Motoya Komori managed to dig one of Akashi's spikes head-on.
To be honest,
At that moment, not just Itachiyama but even the crowd thought a comeback was about to begin.
And yet, reality smacked them across the face.
There was no comeback.
They didn't even manage to flip the page, let alone the score.
Even Komori, who had seemed their brightest hope, quickly lost his confidence under the relentless assault.
Every spike from Akashi was like a hammer pounding away at his spirit.
That one miracle dig? It became the exception, not the rule.
"No matter what, we have to take Set 2."
The coach had spent the entire break racking his brain for a solution, but came up empty.
So instead of a plan, he just gave the team a dose of pure adrenaline.
Oddly enough, it worked.
At this point in the match, what else could they do but fight?
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Set 2 begins.
Almost as if prearranged, both teams launched straight into full-out offense the moment the whistle blew.
For Aoba Johsai, everyone except Watari joined the attack.
For Itachiyama, it was much the same, leaving only Komori in the back row while the rest pushed forward to score.
But there was a crucial difference.
Itachiyama was going all-out because they had no other choice.
Aoba Johsai was going all-out to make the most of Akashi Asuka's remaining time in the Clear Mirror, Still Water state.
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Completed version available on Patreon.com/Veltoria