A frog that's seen a snake.
That was the perfect description of me right now.
"Wow, they say you never know what life will throw at you."
Her eyes, brimming with an unconcealable glee, were fixed on me.
"I never dreamed I'd see you here."
I had no idea why this little devil was here.
As far as I knew, Shin Yu-jeong was supposed to have enrolled at Korea University's Hunter Campus. Why would she forsake all those top-notch facilities to work out alone in a shabby place like this?
Her gaze, like that of someone who'd just found an amusing toy to cure her boredom, constricted around me.
The memories of what she and her friends had done to me became ropes, binding my entire body.
"Don't tell me you came here to work out?"
"Uh, yeah."
As I managed a nod, her eyes moved up and down, scanning my body.
Her smile deepened.
"Come to think of it, I heard you became an Awakened Being."
"Yeah…"
She must have heard from the ajumma.
"You little punk, looks like you've made it in life, huh?"
Shin Yu-jeong, who had been looking down at me, crouched to meet my eyes.
"So, what's your trait?"
"Um…"
I didn't have one.
But if I told her the truth, she'd obviously give me shit, asking where in the world you could find an Awakened Being with no trait.
I had no choice but to make something up.
"It seems to be… a magic-related trait. Something that lets me handle mana a little better…"
The moment I answered, her eyes widened slightly.
"…You're not bullshitting me?"
Her expression was one of disbelief.
Then again, only a tiny fraction of Awakened Beings showed an aptitude for magic, so it was only natural she wouldn't believe me right away.
"It's true…"
She curled one side of her lip into a smirk.
"And if there's no proof?"
Was she telling me to show her something to prove my words?
It didn't matter to me whether this little devil believed me or not.
But if I didn't show her anything, she'd just give me more shit, so I had no choice but to give her a little demonstration.
"Hoo."
I gathered the surrounding mana and added a touch of change.
What I wanted was fire.
Not the lighter flame I flicked on my finger every day, but a sphere made by clumping mana into a ball.
Magic Missile, a non-attribute spell and the foundation of all magic.
By imbuing it with an attribute, I created a Fire Missile, the basis of elemental magic.
I just couldn't understand the way mages thought.
Why would they attach the name "missile" to a spell that was just a basic sphere?
I thrust the thing that had formed in my palm in front of her face.
"See… right?"
I answered curtly before I could stop myself.
I couldn't help it.
I'd used up almost all my mana to create this, leaving my reserves dangerously low.
If I'd used just a little more, I would have collapsed from mana exhaustion again.
Shin Yu-jeong was staring intently at the Fire Missile I'd created on my palm.
"It's real…"
The sphere floating above my palm gradually shrank before vanishing completely.
It couldn't be helped.
Even after a spell is cast, it consumes a small amount of mana to maintain it.
I had to get rid of it quickly, because I really felt like I would collapse if I kept it up any longer.
"Th-this should be enough, right?"
"Huh? Oh…"
She was acting a little strange.
She seemed dazed, her mouth hanging open for a while now.
Maybe this was my chance.
Time was still ticking away.
I had a mountain of things to do today and no time to waste here.
"Well, I'm gonna go work out then…"
I casually said to the dazed Shin Yu-jeong and turned away.
But then.
"Ah, wait, wait."
A hand landed on my shoulder.
Fuck.
I should have just left without a word.
I turned back around.
"What…"
I was getting a little annoyed.
You lose weight best when you keep the momentum going during a workout, but thanks to her, the body I'd worked so hard to warm up on the treadmill was cooling down.
Sensing my irritation, Shin Yu-jeong's face twisted into a scowl.
"Did you just get annoyed with me?"
Yes.
"N-No, of course not."
The words that came out were the exact opposite of what I was thinking.
At that, her expression returned to normal.
"Right? You weren't, were you?"
"…Of course."
I'm not the type to get pushed around like this, but whenever I'm in front of her, my body just naturally shrinks away.
Is this that PTSD thing I've only ever heard about?
The girl, who was now sporting a refreshing smile, wrapped her arm around my shoulder.
"Hey, piggy, you want to lose weight, right?"
"Yeah…"
"Consider it my treat. This nuna will teach you how to work out!"
Ah, for fuck's sake.
"Haa, heuk…!"
My lungs, which had developed a decent capacity, were screaming.
Give me more air!
Sorry, this is my limit…
"H-Hey. I think I'm really… heuk, gonna die…"
"Yeah, no. People don't die that easily."
To get straight to the point.
"Alright, one more!"
"B-But you've been saying… cough! just one more for a while now…"
"Right. So just one more."
Working out with Shin Yu-jeong wasn't bad.
She was a surprisingly good teacher.
Even when I whined about how hard it was, she'd push me to my limits, insisting I could still do it.
"Uweck! Cough, cough!"
I started dry-heaving.
If I'd eaten a lot before coming, I might have thrown up right there.
"Oh, piggy."
As Shin Yu-jeong looked down at me splayed out on the floor, her eyes held a hint of pride.
"You've got some willpower, don't you?"
It seemed she was quite proud that I'd followed her lead.
To be honest, I was half-forced to follow.
Every time Shin Yu-jeong's expression turned grim and her voice dropped, this cowardly body of mine would sense danger and squeeze out strength it didn't even have.
"Hey, drink this."
Shin Yu-jeong handed a plastic bottle to my collapsed form.
Seeing the whitish liquid, I figured it was a protein shake.
"Thanks, I'll drink it…"
"You bet."
Mm, banana flavor.
My hungry body drained the bottle in one go.
"Is it good?"
"Huh? Yeah."
I handed the plastic bottle back to her outstretched hand.
"Hey, get up."
Shin Yu-jeong half-forced my sprawled body to its feet.
Grabbing my sweat-drenched shirt, she led me to a scale in the corner of the gym.
"Get on."
As I carefully stepped on, the needle on the scale fluctuated wildly, just like my belly fat.
My weight appeared on the digital panel below.
112KG.
I was sure I was 113KG when I got here, but I'd lost a whole kilogram after that intense workout.
"Wow… you really are a pig."
Shin Yu-jeong, who had checked my weight from the side, delivered a cutting remark that stabbed me in the chest.
Tsk, I had nothing to say.
At my height, this weight was something anyone would call a pig.
"Memorize this weight. If you're heavier than this when I check tomorrow, you're dead. Got it?"
"…Tomorrow?"
What was she talking about?
When I stared at her, unable to understand, she glared.
"What, were you planning on coming for just one day?"
"That's not it…"
I was planning on working out every day.
"Are you going to teach me tomorrow, too…?" I asked cautiously.
"You don't want me to?"
"No, I'd love that, but…"
I meant it.
This girl was a good coach.
When I worked out alone, I'd inevitably lose motivation and think, I should rest now, whenever it got tough. But with someone next to me pushing me hard, that didn't happen.
"Aren't you busy?"
Korea University's Hunter Campus.
The one and only hunter training institution in the Republic of Korea.
Shin Yu-jeong was a student there.
From what I'd heard, their curriculum was pretty demanding. Wasn't she busy?
"I'm not busy tomorrow."
"Ah, I see."
If she says so, what can I do?
All I have to do is sit back and enjoy the show.
Smack!
"Ack!"
The moment I stepped off the scale, she slapped my back with a cheerful smile.
"I'll give you 15 minutes. Hurry up and wash up. We're going home."
Ah, right. She lives in the same direction as me.
She was being pretty generous.
Dragging my exhausted body, I went into the locker room, stripped, and entered the shower.
"Ahhh, that's the stuff."
The facility itself was old, as if it had been built a long time ago, but that came with an advantage.
There was no one else here.
"How is this place not out of business?"
A quick internet search told me there were four gyms in this area.
The other three were all recently built with the latest equipment.
This place had basically lost its competitive edge.
If it goes bankrupt before my 12 months are up, they'll give me a refund, right?
"Hoo."
Washing myself with warm water seemed to relieve some of the fatigue that had built up in my body.
As a side effect, my body felt completely drained. I changed back into my clothes and left the locker room, heading for the exit.
"You're finally out."
Shin Yu-jeong was waiting for me, leaning against the counter.
What the hell.
"You're already done showering…?"
Don't girls usually take longer to shower than guys?
That's why I used up the full 15 minutes, but how fast did she finish?
"How long does it take to rinse off some sweat?"
She spun around.
"Let's go."
"Uh…"
As I was about to trail after her, I saw the middle-aged guy—no, the manager—sitting at the counter, staring at me with a horrified expression.
I was about to ask him what was wrong, but…
"Are you coming or not!"
"…Coming!"
She was glaring at me from the front, so I just let it go.
She's so damn bossy.