Haikyuu!!: The Disaster of Gamers

On Saturday morning, before the sparrows outside the window had even started their morning meeting, Lu Ren had already opened his eyes.

He lay on the bed for two seconds, tentatively moving his thigh, which felt like it had been disassembled and reassembled yesterday. The expected soreness didn't come; instead, he felt a long-lost lightness. It seemed that the violent female healer's methods, though cruel, were indeed highly effective. This was probably what was meant by "punishing teammates to enhance buff effects."

Lu Ren got out of bed, quickly washed up, and spread out a yoga mat on the floor. He didn't do anything too strenuous; he simply followed a few basic stretching poses from "Volleyball Tactics Illustrated," opening and closing himself up like a folding chair. If he didn't warm up his body beforehand, he'd definitely lag when entering a dungeon.

At breakfast, Lu Ren ate an extra fried egg than usual, explaining that he had to eat a full set of attribute-boosting dishes before starting a raid.

As soon as I slung my bag over my shoulder and stepped out the door, Qingze Yazhi was already waiting at the intersection. She wasn't wearing her school uniform today, but rather a light tracksuit, her ponytail tied high, and she was carrying that thick scorebook in her hand.

"Good morning, all-around boy." Yazhi looked him up and down, then shoved a sports drink into his arms. "Looks like last night's 'maintenance' went well; you didn't turn into a zombie today."

"Thanks to you, my health bar is fully restored." Lu Ren unscrewed the cap and took a sip. It was lemon-flavored, a little too sour. "Let's go check out that Demon King-level dungeon."

The two walked side by side toward the school. The campus was quiet on the weekend, with only the faint sound of shoes scraping against the floor coming from the direction of the gymnasium.

Pushing open the stadium doors, a wave of heat and shouts hit you.

"One more ball!!" Hinata Shoyo's voice was extremely penetrating, making Lu Ren's eardrums buzz.

Inside the stadium, several people were already practicing enthusiastically. Ryunosuke Tanaka was shirtless, waving his jersey, while Tobio Kageyama was practicing ball-setting against the wall, his gaze as focused as if he were performing some kind of precise surgery.

Sawamura Daichi, holding a writing board, nodded when he saw Lu Ren enter: "You're here? Then everyone's here."

Everyone immediately stopped what they were doing and gathered in the center.

The atmosphere was somewhat awkward. Hinata and Kageyama stood together, but there was a palpable tension between them, a sense of "let's ignore each other." Tsukishima Hotaru stood beside the net pillar, her face bearing that signature mocking smile, while Yamaguchi Tadashi behind her remained like a dutiful accessory.

"Today's 3-on-3 has very simple rules." Sawamura Daichi looked around at everyone. "Best of three games. This will not only determine whether Hyuga and Kageyama can officially join the club, but also to observe the practical abilities of you newcomers like Riku Ren, and thus allocate your future positions."

Lu Ren stared at the group assignment sheet in Ze Cun's hand and suddenly had a bad feeling.

"The groups are as follows," Daichi Sawamura read out. "Team A: Tobio Kageyama, Shoyo Hinata, Ryunosuke Tanaka."

As expected, these three together form a high-burst, high-aggro melee team.

"Team B..." Sawamura Daichi paused, his gaze falling on Lu Ren, "Lu Ren, Tsukishima Hotaru, Yamaguchi Tadashi."

The air was quiet for a second.

Lu Ren turned his head and looked at the blond, bespectacled man next to him who was a head taller than him. Tsukishima Hotaru was also looking down at him, a smug smile playing on her lips, as she pushed up her glasses: "Oh dear, looks like I'll have to guide two newbies through the game. That'll be tough."

"I'm sorry, Tsukishima, I'll try my best not to hold you back!" Tadashi Yamaguchi immediately declared.

Lu Ren's eyebrow twitched slightly.

What kind of hellish group is this? On the other side is a genius setter with protagonist's halo and stamina monster, plus a powerful second-year outside hitter. And on my side? A self who hasn't even reached the maximum level yet, a seemingly timid follower, and a trash-talking guy.

Is the matchmaking system broken? Did a Bronze player infiltrate a Challenger player, or is it intentionally letting this random NPC experience the hardships of life?

"Um, Captain Earth," Lu Ren raised his hand, looking serious, "I'd like to request a change of uniform... ah, I mean, a change of team."

Sawamura Daichi paused, then asked, "Why?"

"We're incompatible." Lu Ren pointed at Tsukishima Hotaru and said bluntly, "This player's chat channel is too dirty, seriously affecting my gaming experience. I'm afraid I'll lose my temper and start a PVP (player versus player) battle with him halfway through the game."

Hotaru Tsukishima chuckled lightly: "Oh? So the so-called 'gaming prodigy' has such poor mental fortitude? Can't even handle a few honest words?"

"Look," Lu Ren said, shrugging, "he's still putting out a good show."

Sawamura Daichi rubbed his temples, looking at the opposing team with a slight headache.

Over there, Tanaka Ryunosuke was wrapped around Hyuga Shoyo's neck, yelling, "Today we'll show these first-years what the seniors are made of! We're going to smash them to pieces!"

Hinata Shoyo's face was flushed red as he clenched his fists and shouted, "Ohhh! Smash it!!"

Although Kageyama Tobio did not speak, he exuded a black aura that seemed to say, "Those who stand in my way will die."

"Um... Lu Ren." Sawamura Daichi pointed to the excited trio, "If you want to switch, I can transfer you there and bring Tanaka instead. Would you like to go over there?"

Lu Ren looked in the direction the captain was pointing.

It was like a burning furnace over there. Every second was consuming enormous emotional energy, and everyone seemed to be acting out the climax of a shonen manga. Just watching it made it hard to breathe and caused my sanity to plummet.

If I went there, I'd probably get patted on the back by that senior Tanaka until I vomited blood, and I'd be forced to shout along with that short guy with orange hair.

Lu Ren imagined himself caught in the middle, forced to shout "Long live youth!"

A chill ran down my spine.

"Never mind." Lu Ren decisively withdrew his hand, turned around expressionlessly and returned to Tsukishima Hotaru's side. "I suddenly feel that this place is pretty good. After all, it looks like that place would exhaust people."

Compared to physical overload, mental pollution is slightly more tolerable.

"A wise choice," Hotaru Tsukishima said coolly. "The result is the same anyway. With that 'king' over there, they'll probably win easily—if our 'theoretical master' doesn't drag us down."

Lu Ren took a deep breath and hardened his fist.

He turned around, took a half-step forward, and shortened the distance between himself and Tsukishima Kei. Although there was a slight height difference, his deadpan eyes, honed from staying up all night playing games, were now radiating an astonishing sense of pressure.

"Listen, Four-Eyes," Lu Ren said in a low voice, "ditch that damn trash talk during the match. If your taunts cause your team to wipe out, or if you intentionally betray your teammates, I don't mind turning on 'friendly fire' mid-match. Trust me, I'll be very accurate."

Hotaru Tsukishima's smile froze for a moment, seemingly surprised that this seemingly lazy guy would suddenly become so aggressive. He looked down at Riku, a hint of interest flashing in his eyes: "Oh? Well, I'm quite looking forward to seeing how you're going to aim."

The air between the two seemed to spark, crackling and popping.

"Um... Lu Ren, Tsukishima just has a sharp tongue..." Yamaguchi Tadashi hurriedly stepped between the two, acting as a human shield, "We're all teammates, let's keep things peaceful, keep things peaceful!"

"Alright!" Daichi Sawamura's whistle interrupted the infighting. "On your marks! The match is about to begin!"

Lu Ren retreated to the back seat and stretched his wrists.

Although I said I wanted to just coast through, now that I'm in the dungeon, there's no reason to quit so easily. Besides, that guy on the other side named Kageyama has a really long, red health bar above his head; he's definitely a boss worth taking down.

"Hey, newbie," Tsukishima Hotaru said without turning her head, standing in front of the net. "Don't end up not even being able to touch the ball."

"Mind your own business." Lu Ren stared at the volleyball in Kageyama's hand across from him, his pupils slightly contracting, his brain beginning to automatically load data models.

"If the ball leaks out, I'll take the arms off your glasses."

A sharp whistle rang out from Daichi Sawamura.

Game start.