Classmancers - A MOBA Esport Story - Part 3

Vol.19 Ch.9: Finally, a Chance!

I assume they are getting used to the speed of my serves. Fiona reasoned. In that case, it is time to mix things up a little.

WHAM. Fiona struck the ball but she didn't exert her usual strength. Instead, she focused on technique. If the enemy team were expecting yet another straightforward serve, then they will be in for a surprise.

At first, the ball traveled toward the edge of the court as usual. It was slower than previous serves, but it was still decently fast. At a glance, none of the girls could tell Fiona slowed down her attack on purpose.

Only once the ball got closer, its erratic movements became more pronounced. It seemed to float and dance in the air, defying the laws of physics.

"G-Got it!" One of the girls stepped forth, confident she would be able to receive this slower serve. However...

"Eh!? Wha-!?" The girl jerked as the wild ball approached her. A moment ago, she was 100% certain she got into the best possible position for receiving this serve. But, just then, the ball started drifting away all of a sudden!

It was as if the ball had a will of its own. It saw the receiver and chose to avoid it at all costs.

"W-Wait...!" The girl leapt after the fleeing ball and stretched her arms as far as humanly possible. She successfully made contact but this was not something one would call a recieve. Instead of going up, the ball only slipped off her arms.

In the end, the ball hit the floor while leaving the girl bewildered.

"Eh? But I... Huh?" The girl examined her own hands in confusion. It must have felt unbelievable for her considering how straightforward the serve seemed at first.

"Excuse me!?" Cornelia was the first to exclaim, as usual. "Do you mind explaining how in the world you managed to mess up such a simple receive!? There is surely a limit to how much of a pleb a person can be, and you have just passed that threshold!"

"Now, now." Daniella stepped in at the first opportunity and turned to Fiona. "That was a floater, wasn't it? It was a little hard to tell because of the speed."

"Yes, it was a floater," Fiona confirmed.

"Whew. I haven't seen you do one of these in a while, but it was incredibly sharp!"

"I am glad you think so," Fiona said. "I have been polishing my floaters for quite some time now, so this is a good opportunity to test them out in a real match."

"Wow. You're already such a strong player, but you're still getting ever better, huh."

"Of course." Fiona nodded. "Perpetual self-improvement is the essence of sports."

"Yeah, I guess that's right." Daniella could only smile wryly at that grandiose statement.

Technically, it was correct. For the players, sports were all about honing their skills to become a better and stronger version of themselves.

However, most players improved slowly over a prolonged period of time. A newbie usually grew up quickly at first, but at some point, they were bound to hit "the wall"; the point at which personal growth became slow, and practice stopped feeling rewarding.

Everybody was bound to run into this wall at one point or another, except for the Landberht Princess, apparently. The girl has been improving nonstop ever since she joined the club.

At this point, she was already the best player in the club all around. And yet, she continued evolving even further.

Does her talent have no limits? Daniella wondered. Is this what people call a "genius"?