When the bell rang, the room turned into a cacophony of voices as students began to talk and move around.
I stretched my arms up to warm my shoulders when I felt a tap on my shoulder.
"Hey, man, you nailed that answer," said the boy behind me.
My other self remembered this guy. His name was Yamato. We weren't exactly friends, but he was the only person I'd exchanged more than 10 words with since moving to this city.
"Oh? That? That was nothing."
"Nothing? That was really cool! No one ever dares to answer a question after one of the Four Queens raises their hand, but you went right up there and did it."
The Four Queens he was referring to were obviously Sona, Tsubaki, Akeno, and Rias.
I gave Yamato an awkward smile, rubbing the back of my neck as I tried to change the subject. "The question seemed simple, and, well... Someone had to break the silence, right?"
Yamato let out a loud laugh. However, his expression quickly shifted to one of concern. He leaned forward, speaking in a conspiratorial tone.
"But listen, watch out for Sona's fan club. Those guys have no mercy."
"Sona's fan club?"
Yamato pointed to a group of boys sitting in a row ahead of us. They had their eyes fixed on me like rabid dogs. One of them was literally biting his nails, while another was gripping the edge of the table so tightly that it looked like it might break at any moment.
"Yeah, them. I think they believe you disrespected Sona. They kind of have a blind adoration for her because she's the Student Council President. Better not draw too much attention to yourself for now."
I put a hand on my chin and smiled. "Really?"
*
The next class was Physical Education. In this class, the teacher usually let the students do whatever they wanted because his only responsibility was to organize a Sports Event every semester.
The boys played soccer on the school field, and the girls divided themselves between doing nothing and playing volleyball, which a few boys also joined.
I usually stayed on the sidelines during soccer games. However, I had a better idea this time.
As the boys headed to the soccer field in a group after leaving the locker room, Yamato noticed that I had stopped and, with a ball under his arm, asked,
"Hey, Nishihara-kun, you're coming to soccer, right?"
I nodded with a smile. "Not this time."
He stopped and looked at me with a raised eyebrow, clearly intrigued. "Something different? Like what?"
I pointed to the gym, where the girls were playing volleyball, with my left thumb.
Yamato followed my gaze and immediately broke into a mischievous grin.
"Ah... I get it. Man, you're smarter than I thought." He chuckled, nudging me with his elbow. "You know, I always say that volleyball is underrated."
I laughed at the implication but decided not to pursue it. Still, I realized Yamato wasn't entirely wrong. The sight of the girls playing volleyball was, in fact, an unexpected bonus.
The short shorts and bent positions certainly caught my eye, but luckily I've never been a very carnal man.
After a while, I was more distracted by their moves than by them.
Suddenly, a ball flew straight toward me. Instinctively, I raised my hands and caught it in midair before it could hit me.
"Oh! Sorry, sorry!" A girl with light brown hair ran toward me.
"It's okay," I said, getting up to hand her the ball.
When our eyes met, I noticed that her face was slightly flushed.
"Thank you," she murmured, clutching the ball to her chest. "You... don't want to play with us?"
"Me?" I laughed sincerely. "I don't know how to play volleyball. You guys seem to be doing fine without me."
"Afraid of being destroyed by a few girls, Nishihara-san?" The short-haired girl with glasses behind her asked.
It was Sona Sitri, looking at me with a rare, provocative smile — implicitly challenging me for earlier completing her answer.
'Even a Devil like her is proud?' I thought and smiled at her.
[Ding! The system proposes the mission "Paranormal Volleyball!"]
1 – Accept Sona Sitri's Challenge. (Reward: 1 Fusion Point)
2 – Accept Sona Sitri's Challenge and play well. (Reward: 3 Fusion Points)
3 – Accept Sona Sitri's Challenge and win. (Reward: 5 Fusion Points)
Considering that this time there was no alternative to rejecting this challenge, I would not earn any Fusion Points if I did not accept the challenge.
Still, I was not obligated to accept. Sure, 5 Fusion Points were tempting, but the task wasn't simple. Even so, I had wanted to do this from the start.
I had already tested Stygius Summoning and Hades' Blessing, but it was the Primordial Divine Vigor skill that excited me the most. Just how strong and agile was this my new body?
"All right." I shrugged at Sona Sitri. "I think I can learn more about volleyball through practice."