How many people have never jumped in their lives?
Unless someone was born with leg problems, anyone with an “average” body can naturally jump on two legs at least once in their life.
Of course, I’ve jumped too.
And I was still jumping now.
“Huff, heh…”
With my eyes closed, I couldn’t see the sun. But I knew the sunlight was beating down on the ground.
I couldn’t see the clouds floating in the sky, but I could tell they were there from the cloud-shaped shadows on the ground.
I was sprinting on a vast track that could not be compared to an ordinary school playground.
I heard school tracks usually measure around 200-300m, but here… it felt like it could measure in kilometers.
It felt more like running a marathon than just jogging around a track.
“Hek, ehk… Hek, ugh…”
I moved my legs. While one foot was supporting me, I swung the other foot forward.
This simple process consumed way more stamina than I expected.
‘How many laps have I done?’
Dragging my heavy legs, which felt like they were tied to boulders, I heard Professor Atra, who was standing with her arms crossed, say, “Six laps.”
Even amidst the exhaustion, those words stuck in my ears.
Professor Atra was leaning against a tree on the edge of the track, looking at me.
I didn’t dwell on why she was just standing there while I was suffering.
After all, someone who teaches combat at Shio-ram wouldn’t care about this little running exercise.
For her, this kind of running must be like eating cake.
So, I just continued running.
With my breath feeling like it could burst any moment, I couldn’t help but let out a chuckle.
I recalled myself exploring the training facility earlier, wondering how to use it. Now, that thought was utterly pointless.
‘Six laps…’
Six laps, huh? That’s quite an achievement.
I half expected to collapse after three laps, but I was still conscious even after doubling that.
Moreover, I still had some energy left. I controlled my breath as I gritted my teeth.
“Seven laps.”
My legs lost feeling. For the first time, I was thankful for not being able to see the front. If I were looking directly, my vision would probably blur, and I’d eventually fall.
“Eight laps… Stop.”
“Ugh.”
The moment I heard ‘Stop,’ my legs gave way. My body crumpled to the ground like a deflated balloon.
“Haah… haah… huff…”
I flipped my fallen body over. My heart felt like it was pounding right beside my ear. As I lay gasping on the ground, Professor Atra approached.
“Eight laps. Your physical abilities are overall deficient.”
She evaluated coldly as she rummaged through her pocket.
“Since you’ve just awakened, I’ll let it slide for now, but you won’t be able to use that excuse moving forward.”
What she pulled out was a water bottle. It was like magic; the bottle was dewy as she placed it next to my head.
“I’ll focus on the improvement of your physical abilities first before getting into the applications of your unique skills or mana manipulation.”
My mind was hazy, but I perked up at the mention of future training directions.
With trembling fingers, I tapped on my smartwatch.
[ㅅ ㅤㅣㄴ체? 이 」가ㅇㅛ??]
“…If it’s hard, just listen.”
My fingers struggled to press properly. Professor Atra glanced at the hologram and shook her head, telling me to just listen.
“Another professor will teach you magic later on, so I won’t cover that portion. My part is combat. I’ll teach you assuming you’ll be engaged in close combat. For that…”
She leaned down and pressed her finger firmly against my forehead.
“Your physical abilities must support it. In other words, before you develop fighting techniques, you must create a body that can fight. Do you understand?”
[메ㅔ]
“…Yeah.”
Professor Atra straightened up, checking the time.
“It took you a while to complete eight laps. That’s enough for today. We’ll start in earnest tomorrow, so prepare yourself.”
With that, she turned away without a second thought. As she disappeared beyond the range of my perception, I sat there panting, bemused for a moment.
I think it had been nearly 10 minutes since I fell, and I was still out of breath. I reached out with my trembling hand to grab the water bottle.
“Blergh…”
Lying down, I poured half of the contents straight down my throat. It didn’t taste great, but the refreshing chill was revitalizing.
I poured the remaining half over my head. My body, drenched and boiling with sweat, felt a bit cooler now.
‘This is tough…’
I needed strength to break free from my limitations. I made up my mind and braced myself for the pain that would come with it.
But when that pain crashed over me, it was unavoidable to feel the struggle.
‘Well, that ended early.’
I checked the time on my smartwatch, and it had barely been a bit over two hours.
Wait, has it really been two hours? It took me two hours to run eight laps? That meant I was averaging nearly 20 minutes per lap!?
Sure, my speed had dropped significantly after the first lap, but that was staggeringly long.
I shook my head in disbelief, raising my upper body.
‘Ugh…’
I almost let out a groan without realizing it. The moment I lifted my upper body, every part of me felt so stiff, I thought I might break.
I carefully pushed up with my arms, planting my feet on the ground.
After a prolonged struggle, I was finally able to get up. My body had settled down for a moment. It felt like my legs could break before, but now they were merely trembling.
I considered heading to the dorm but shook my head internally.
It was true that my body hurt and was exhausted. The urge to collapse onto my bed was creeping in, but I truly had a bit of leisure left.
To be precise, while my body was at its limits, my mind was pretty alert.
Dragging my trembling legs, I headed to the Library.
Having just rolled around, I figured it was time to engage my brain and read some magic books.
It was still early in the day, with the sun nowhere near setting.
.
.
.
When the next day arrived, I worried about whether I’d be in excruciating pain, but surprisingly, it wasn’t that bad. Sure, my whole body ached, but it was manageable.
The next day flowed similarly to the last.
In the morning, there were theoretical lectures. In the afternoon, I attended major courses divided by levels.
I got my attendance marked early at the Spring Room and received more candy from Hong Yeon-hwa.
After Professor Riana’s morning announcement, I attended the morning lecture.
I had lunch again with Hong Yeon-hwa. The problem was I still couldn’t bring up the subject of the tongue again. It was just too tricky of a topic to latch onto.
After that, I parted ways with Hong Yeon-hwa for my major class.
During my major class, I had one-on-one training with Professor Atra.
It was pretty much the same as the first day. Ultimately, it came down to running again.
“Today, we aim for ten laps.”
“……”
The hurdle was significantly higher than the day before. I hadn’t even shaken off yesterday’s soreness yet.
Surely, my trembling legs wouldn’t be so obvious… right? I cast a silent glance, begging her to reconsider.
“Alright, let’s start.”
Unfortunately, it seemed my earnest gaze didn’t reach due to my closed eyes.
I sighed internally as my feet hit the ground, nearly stumbling.
With relief, I took off running on the track again.
One lap, two laps, three laps…
‘Huh?’
As I raced mindlessly along, I started feeling something amiss after surpassing three laps.
I was exhausted. My legs ached. My breath was ragged, and my heart was on the verge of bursting.
But surprisingly, I felt better than yesterday.
The pain I felt on my second lap yesterday was now being felt on my third lap today.
“Ten laps… Stop.”
Finally ten laps. As soon as I heard the word ‘Stop,’ I flopped onto the ground.
– Thud.
Footsteps approached my head. Professor Atra looked down at me.
“Did you realize?”
“Haah… haah…”
It was an unexpected question, but I nodded. I was a little puzzled internally but began to grasp something.
“The Blessing of Growth allows students to achieve a level of growth at a pace different from before.”
One of the significant reasons why so many superhumans desperately wanted to enter Shio-ram—the Growth Blessing.
Its absurd effect enhances all positive aspects of growth. The multiplier is astronomically high.
“I believe your growth rate is set higher than that of other students.”
As a special admission student. I recalled that the protagonist in the original work also had a higher rate than the other characters.
“Thanks to that, your body has grown noticeably, enough to feel the difference in just one night. Do you understand so far?”
– Nod.
In other words, I had superior conditions compared to others.
“Well, sure, your physical level is still at the bottom, so you feel it more acutely, but the performance of that blessing is undeniable.”
Professor Atra placed the water bottle beside my head.
After emptying the bottle, I took a moment to lay down and catch my breath.
“So, even something as simple as running can result in explosive growth for your physical abilities. So run with all your might. Do you understand?”
– Nod.
“Alright, if that’s clear, get up.”
It seemed her reminder to prepare for the proper training wasn’t just empty talk. We ended running today, and…
As I barely got my body up, Professor Atra handed me a long object she had at her waist.
Receiving it, I felt a significant weight and heft.
It was the kind of sword commonly seen on the internet—Western style.
“From today onwards, we’ll also incorporate sparring. Considering your growth rate, I judged there wouldn’t be any problem starting today.”
As I examined the sword sheathed, she pulled out a wooden sword.
“Let me tell you in advance, I won’t provide structured training.”
“?”
“Swing the sword as much as you want. It’s not like I’ll get hurt, so there’s no need to hesitate.”
Something felt off with that statement.
Not providing systematic training? Swing it freely? No need to worry about getting hurt? What does that even mean?
I felt a chill creeping in.
– Chills.
“…!!”
My hair stood on end for a moment. Without thinking, I swung the sword sheathed.
Bam! My arm jolted violently. I gripped the handle of the sword tightly. I almost dropped it. Unable to absorb the shock, my body was knocked back.
“Hmm?”
Professor Atra let out an intrigued sound. I steadied my stance and squinted my eyes.
“Have you held a sword before?”
A sudden question.
In a daze, I tapped on my smartwatch.
[ㅇ ㅏ?뇨]
“…Really.”
She nodded as if she understood something from my answer.
An ominous feeling washed over me.
Before I could even ask what she understood, Professor Atra gripped the wooden sword tight.
“Then, here I come.”
‘Please don’t come near.’
I couldn’t say it. I didn’t even have time to tap my smartwatch. Professor Atra was charging at me.
The fierce sound of wind closing in unnaturally laid out a future in my mind.
I could foresee the hard times ahead.
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