Breaking the Prodigy’s Serve

"It is mine!" Cornelia dashed toward the flying ball like a bull, almost ramming into her own teammates along the way. She absolutely had to reach this ball and drive it right into the enemy court, no matter what! The serve streak of the Landberht scion had to be broken!

Admittedly, this set was quite sloppy, hardly befitting to be spiked by a noble such as Cornelia. Nonetheless, it was an admirable effort from the captain to turn that difficult ball into a set instead of offering it to the enemy as a free ball.

[Daniella may not be a noble, but she is no regular commoner.] Cornelia admitted as she jumped at the ball. [As a noble, it is my duty to make the best out of this hard-earned opportunity!]

It was going to be a clumsy counterattack, but it also had a surprise element to it. Nobody on the enemy team was expecting Daniella to go for a set from that position, or that Cornelia could spike this ball. The enemy blockers were severely unprepared for this development!

"Go, Cornelia!" Daniella shouted. "Hit it with everything you've got!" [Beat that damn prodigy! Show that hard work can compete with talent!]

BAM! It almost sounded like an explosion. Cornelia clearly poured every last bit of her strength into this attack.

WHISH! The ball dived straight into the enemy court like a missile!

Despite the awkward forms of both the setter and the spiker, somehow this attack turned out legit. It packed a lot of force and it headed toward the far end of the court, making it hard to defend against.

[C'mon, make it in...!] Cornelia felt sweat forming on her forehead. [Just don't go out. Don't go out...!]

The ball headed straight toward the enemy baseline. It was going so fast it was hard to tell whether it'd land in or out. And, knowing Cornelia's record definitely wasn't making this any more reassuring. Ugh, the nerves!

On the bright side, the enemy team should have an equally difficult time telling whether this ball was heading toward an out. Therefore, they'll surely have to try to receive it, unless all of them were too fazed by this surprise counterattack.

Fortunately, there was one player who didn't seem fazed at all. She stepped in at lightning speed to intercept the incoming ball.

Thud. Cornelia's powerful shot crashed into something but the impact it produced was oddly dull.

"Wha…?" Daniella's jaw dropped. "Why is she…?"

This wasn't some lucky clutch receive. No, this particular receiver was at the right place at the right time. She elegantly made the ball bounce upwards in a beautiful arc as if it were the easiest thing in the world.

And, that receiver was none other than Fiona.

[Admirable effort.] Fiona praised as she watched the ball go up. [It was a splendid display of team play under such difficult circumstances. However, it is not good enough.]

Under normal circumstances, Cornelia's spike was so strong that even Fiona had a hard time receiving it perfectly. However, that was not the case at all in this exchange. Both the setter and the spiker had to improvise on the spot, which greatly affected their form.

So, despite what they might have believed, Fiona's serve ultimately remained unbroken throughout the entire development. The enemy failed to properly receive her jump floater, therefore they had a hard time transitioning into a proper attack, which was exactly what a good serve strived to achieve.

Nonetheless, the attackers poured their everything into this. Therefore, watching the ball fly through the air in such an elegant arc delivered a mental blow.

"She received it...?" Daniella muttered. [And, she made it look so easy, too...]

It was a clutch play that Daniella and Cornelia barely managed to squeeze out of that tight situation. Cornelia stopped the ball from falling to the ground, Daniella turned that shanking ball into a set, and Cornelia somehow got into position in time to spike it. It was such a stressful sequence of plays!

They both did their best in that situation, no doubt about it. That ball could've easily been a free ball for the enemy, but Daniella and Cornelia went the extra mile to make sure that wouldn't happen. And, they even succeeded in mounting an attack! Or, so they thought.

In the end, for the prodigy that was the Landberht Princess, the whole play amounted to nothing more than feeble resistance. After all, it was an awkward attack produced by two "commoners", so how could it ever hope to measure up to "her majesty"?

[No. Enough mopping!] Daniella slapped her cheeks. "They'll likely send the ball to Karen, so make sure you have her marked!"

The enemy's next attack was imminent. Judging by everybody's positions, it made the most sense for them to set the ball for Karen in this situation. If the blockers near the net get into position in time, they should be able to wall off this attack...!

And indeed, it seemed like Daniella's prediction was on point.

"Set it to Karen, please," Fiona requested while her ball was still high in the air. The upside of her clean receive was that it gave the team a moment to breathe in relief and get into perfect positions for the next attack. On the flip side, it also gave the other team time to rearrange their defense.

Fiona was too far from the net to join this attack, so it was best to leave it to Karen. Out of all the other options, she was surely going to handle this best.

"Okay, let's go!" Karen grinned as she dashed toward the net. Her movements were so obvious that they surely telegraphed the incoming attack. She could definitely learn to be more discrete about such things, but since it was Karen, it should be alright even with this handicap.

"Karen!" Fiona called out and showed a slow spiking motion with her hand.

"Got it, sis!" Karen grinned and dialed up the telegraph. "Here I go! Try to stop me if you can!" She shouted toward the enemy blockers, to make sure they were wholly concentrated on her incoming attack.

The setter already got the ball up, so it was showtime! "You think you can block this!?" Karen provoked the blockers further as she jumped toward the net.

"I shall stop you at once!" Cornelia was one of the two blockers on the task. "I swear that on my honor as a von Galen!" 

"Heh, it looks like that 'honor' of yours gonna go straight into the trash can where it belongs! You never gonna block this super mega ultra shot!" 

The ball finally appeared within Karen's reach. She stretched her arm all the way to the back, making a show of how powerful her spike was about to be.

Naturally, the blockers responded at once. Karen was well-known in the club for delivering strong spikes, so nobody had a doubt that the upcoming attack will be a challenge.

In particular, Cornelia jumped up at the first opportunity that presented itself. The girl was a simpleton like that. She always fell for simple provocations.

[Here goes, my super shot!!!] Karen swung her hand with all her might, about to deliver a devastating spike that wouldn't lose to Cornelia's strength!!!

[Nah, just kidding.] Right before Karen's hand struck the ball, she slowed down and only lightly tapped the ball.

"Wha-!?" Cornelia exclaimed as the ball hovered over her, outside the reach of her hands. No matter how hard she stretched her noble arms, she was unable to stop that high ball.

"H-How cowardly of you!" Cornelia barked. "How dare yo ugo for a feint after spouting all those plebeian provocations...!" 

"Heh. That's what they call 'strategy', von Asshat." 

The ball was going slowly, painfully so. It didn't look like a threatening attack in the slightest, especially not after how much Karen hyped up her "powerful spike".

However, what this attack lacked in power it compensated for with its surprise factor and height. The ball went over the blockers and then dove straight to the floor.

Such a slow ball should've been easy to receive. However, none of the girls saw this sneaky attack coming, so nobody's body responded in time.

The libero did slide forward in the end, but she didn't make it in time. With a faint thud, the ball hit the floor and rolled away.

"I-It cannot be..." Cornelia gritted her teeth.

This one point felt so heavy. The chance to break Fiona's serve was right there! Cornelia almost made it happen!

Alas, the accursed Fiona Landberht deflected the attack without any trouble. And, she then converted that receive into an elegant attack with the thanks of her fake sister.

The score was now 6-2. There was no end in sight to Fiona Landberht's ongoing serving spree. Could nobody put a stop to that noble!?

[I'm… I'm a fellow noble…] Cornelia clenched her fists. [I… I must be able to stop her… Yes, I should be more than capable of doing that, and yet…]

She couldn't. Thus far, every attempt ended in failure. Why couldn't she do it? Why!?

While Cornelia was busy beating herself down, the captain tried to inject some positivity into the team. "Okay, we were close this time!" Daniella said. "Let's break her serve with the next one!" 

"Yeah..." "Right..."

"Hey!" Daniella called out. "What's with these dejected replies!? I don't hear your voices!" 

"Y-Yeah!" "Right!" 

"Yeah, that's more like it." Daniella nodded in approval even though she knew everybody was just putting on a strong front. Even she was starting to lose heart here.

[I mean, who wouldn't, right?] Daniella wryly. [A difference of four points is pretty much game over…]

And, it wasn't even over yet. They failed to stop Fiona's streak, so she'll serve once again.

In the end, it took Daniella's team three more rounds to finally put a stop to the prodigy's oppressive serves. At that point, the score was already 9-2. The match felt practically unwinnable.

Naturally, everybody on the team felt dejected. Even though the initiative was passed back to them, they didn't feel like they'll be able to utilize it in the slightest.

Even Daniella quieted down, unable to bring out her voice like before. She couldn't help but feel crushed by this depressing difference in points.

And yet, in the face of all that despair, there was one team member who retained her usual loudness. "At long last, our noble counterattack begins!" Cornelia announced proudly for some reason as she faced the enemy team. "Now, it is YOU who shall struggle to break OUR serve streak!"

"Heh, fat chance." Karen shrugged. "You're the only server on that team who's a bit difficult. Everybody else is just okay. I mean, I guess Dani's serves can get intense too, but that's about all your team is packing."

"Hmph." Cornelia lifted her chin in response. "Even when the plebian serve itself is nothing to write home about, I shall ensure the streak will keep going!"

"Oh? How exactly?"

"It is simple," Cornelia explained. "I'll block each of your attacks and score points. Yes, it's that simple."

"Heh, 'simple', she says." Karen cracked a laugh. "Achieving all this stuff is like literally the entire challenge of sports, you know?"

"A lowly challenge for one as noble as myself."

"Pft, yeah, sure. Alright, let's see you pull that off then."

"That I shall!" Cornelia responded without an ounce of hesitation. It felt like the enemy's huge lead didn't affect her at all.

[This always amazes me.] Daniella smiled wryly. [Where does this girl pull all that confidence from? We're lagging behind like crazy here, yet she insists we can turn this around with no problem. That's madness.]

Surely, the situation was getting to Cornelia as well. There was no way she could truly remain unfazed by such a big point difference.

Nonetheless, Cornelia carried herself with unbounded confidence even now. It was honestly amazing how the girl wore the mask of confidence so convincingly.

[Does she actually believe all the things she's saying?] Daniella wondered. [Anyway, this isn't good. I can't be outdone by a junior like this. If a junior is strong enough to not give up here, then I should be even better than that.]

"Alright, girls, listen up," Daniella called out. "I'll be honest, the current difference in points is rough. But, keep in mind that all these points were pretty much earned by Fiona alone. Her turn is over now, so just reset your brain. Forget the lead she built. Let's just score more points than them from here on out!"

This successfully injected some energy into the team. They couldn't fully regain their usual vigor, but at least they raised their heads and got ready to fight to the bitter end.

Despite the great achievement, there was someone who didn't quite agree with this approach. "It is fine that you want to keep the team motivated," Fiona said. "However, it will not do you any good to ignore the fact you have failed to stop so many serves in a row. This is a problem you will most certainly have to face again in this very match, so you better prepare yourselves for it."

"Geh..." Daniella groaned as she saw a few of her teammates drop their shoulders in dejection. [Thank you very much for the "encouragement", Fiona! Grrrrr!]

However, the Landberht Princess paid no heed to any of that and continued. "With that said, keep in mind that I held nothing back with my serves," Fiona explained. "It is not often that we get to play each other so competitively, therefore I chose to respect the occasion by pouring everything I have got into this."

Daniella laughed dryly in response. "I'm pretty sure nobody would've put it against you if you held a little back, haha..." 

"I do hold back during practice, but a match such as this is a serious competition. Tackling the full extent of my serves should be a valuable lesson for all of you."

"More like a soul-crushing lesson…" Daniella rolled her eyes.

"Hmm." Fiona nodded. "Yes, I can see how failing to stop this many serves in a row may become quite disheartening."

"Yeaaaaah, 'quite' doesn't even begin to describe it."

"But, in the end, you did put a stop to it. And, you have improved with each attempt, which is an experience that I am sure will stick with you beyond this match as well."

"Yeah, we did stop it... after you scored 9 points." 

"Yes, that was a rather long serve streak," Fiona said. "However, forgive me if I sound arrogant, but I believe I rank among the top servers in the country for my age, especially now that I have mastered the jump floater as well."

"Yeah, I don't think anybody is going to argue with that." 

"In that case, you should realize that you have challenged and broken the serve streak of such a high-profile server. In other words, that streak was a glimpse of the worst it could possibly get for you at the peak of the nationals."

"Heck," Karen added. "Even at the nationals, I dunno if we gonna meet anybody who can serve half as good as you do, sis."

"I doubt that is the case, but I am flattered you think so highly of my skill." Fiona smiled softly. "Anyway, this is the gist of what I wanted to say. You may feel down about how many points I have taken from you, but you should not avert your eyes from the fact it happened. Instead, keep in mind that you are facing one of the best servers and prepare accordingly."

"Got it." Daniella nodded. "Next time, we'll cut you off way faster."

"At the very first serve, in fact!" Cornelia added. "Though I admit your noble technique is nothing short of impressive, I shall crush it thoroughly in the next round!" 

"I am looking forward to it." On that note, Fiona returned to her position on the court.

In an official match, the referee would have surely scolded them for holding such a lengthy conversation in the middle of the game. However, the main goal of this scrimmage was to help the girls improve, so the coach allowed it.

[It's weird.] Daniella thought. [It wasn't a "pep talk" or an "inspirational speech" or anything. But, it still somehow managed to lift everybody's spirits.]

This was certainly something only the "Landberht Princess" could achieve. While Cornelia's big talk about being a "noble" was always disregarded as a joke, Fiona's gallant figure and elegant mannerisms made everybody feel like they were in the presence of real royalty.

[But, she's still an opponent we've got to beat.] Daniella shook her head and focused on the next play. [Princess or not, we're going to take her down!]

That's what Daniella sincerely believed. Unfortunately, things didn't go that smoothly...