Chapter 9. Part 4. Muscles, That is the Symbol of Masculinity (2)
'Body training!'
Lumián wore an expression of deep emotion.
Not physical fitness training. Body training. That slight difference was giving Lumián tremendous inspiration.
During his days as an old knight, he had focused more on accumulating and wielding aura rather than training his body.
He had no choice. His physical potential was significantly lower compared to other knights.
Without testicles, the source of male power, one cannot achieve proper results even with strength training.
It was a painful truth. Despite being a man, he had to bear the same penalty as female knights.
Watching fellow knights easily surpass the years of blood-soaked effort he had put in, Ryan Fromhart had given up expectations regarding physical strength.
'I did reach a certain level with just endurance, precision, and aura utilization skills...'
The lingering regret he had always felt was unavoidable.
But now, the situation had changed.
A 15-year-old young body. His thing was strong, and his testicles were strong too.
It meant masculine power was flowing abundantly. Lumián smiled broadly as he looked at the exercise equipment.
'Wonderful, this new body!'
But his focus was slightly strange.
It wasn't the expectation of becoming a better knight. Well, of course he had such thoughts, but at least that wasn't at the center.
'In this life... I can build a magnificent body!'
Lumián began his reverie.
Broad shoulders, solid chest muscles, abs firmly planted as if they could be used to do laundry!
These could be called essential elements of a popular man.
At least from his previous life's experience, that was true. Especially as women's age increased, their preference for men with good bodies grew even stronger.
"First, let's lightly warm up our bodies. If you don't stretch properly, your ligaments and joints can be damaged. Not just now, but make sure to stretch well regularly too!"
Professor Arnold, who spoke energetically, demonstrated in front of the cadets.
Despite having muscles so bulging that even an ogre would flinch, his body was extremely flexible.
Lumián nodded. For a knight, flexibility was one of the most important virtues. He watched Professor Arnold with sparkling eyes and diligently followed his form.
'He's working hard. His name was... Lumián Callard, wasn't it?'
Professor Arnold watched such a Lumián.
He was a boy who always looked weak. He remembered last year's appearance, seemingly lacking confidence, always looking around cautiously.
Since he couldn't stand by and watch someone looking so defeated, he had provided special guidance a few times from the side. Each time, the boy would make expressions as if he might die at any moment, becoming the subject of other children's teasing.
'So after that, I didn't deliberately approach him.'
He had been considerate, thinking the already fragile child would struggle more.
But today, the feeling was a bit different.
First, his eyes were different. Unlike before when he had eyes like rotten pollock, Lumián was now looking at him with such intensity that light seemed to shine from his eyes.
The surrounding reaction was also subtly different.
In the past, there would have been children avoiding his gaze, making snide remarks, or sneering. But now, not a single one of those nasty kids remained.
Rather, he could even sense something like anticipation in the eyes of the children glancing at the boy.
Arnold wore an interested expression.
'Did something change during the break?'
That seemed to be the case.
He still couldn't tell what had changed.
But regardless of how he had changed, he was certain it would work positively for Lumián.
Arnold grinned. When his rough face twisted, the children shuddered, but he paid no mind.
"Good. Now we'll begin proper training in earnest! Your records are all written here, so don't even think about slacking off!"
"Ugh..."
"I already feel like I'm going to throw up..."
The children whispered in quiet voices. Though he heard all their words, Arnold paid no attention.
A short while later, hellish training began under the guidance of Professor Arnold and the assistants.
"Seven!"
"Grrrgh!"
"Eight!"
"Grrrgh!"
"Nine! One more left!"
"Gaaaaah!"
"Good, let's do two more. You can still squeeze out more!"
"Gaaaaaaaah!"
"If I help you, you could probably do five more. Put more effort into it! Maintain tension in your body!"
"..."
It was truly a terrible sight. The cadets in the training ground continued their grueling and tedious training while under the sharp gazes of the assistants.
They couldn't help but work hard. Professor Arnold would personally go to children who were half-heartedly exercising and assist them from the side.
The cadets who received his merciless guidance had to undergo hard training that made the sky turn yellow. Some cadets even vomited into buckets in the corner.
Watching such children, Professor Arnold laughed heartily.
"You rascals, you can't even endure that much and expect to become knights? Building aura is important, but without the body as a foundation, you're nothing more than half-measures! Understand?"
"Yes..."
"Speak up. Before I give you extra lessons, I'll ask once more! Understand?"
"Yes!"
"You. Yes, you in the back glancing around. Your voice was the quietest, so I'll need to give you special guidance."
"H-hiek!"
The freckled boy pointed out by Arnold wore a terrified expression.
Among the many professors at the academy, he feared Arnold the most. So he had tried hard not to stand out, but in the end, he couldn't escape his clutches.
The freckled boy whimpered like a cow being dragged to slaughter. The surrounding children pitied him but looked away lest the attention turn to them. And they pretended to focus on their exercises.
Just then, a cadet approached Professor Arnold.
The professor's eyes widened. He called out the cadet's name.
"Lumián Callard, right?"
"Yes! Thank you for remembering me, Professor."
"Right. What's the matter? I'm busy right now with a cadet to instruct."
When Arnold glanced at him, the freckled boy trembled.
Lumián paid no attention to this.
And he said something no one in E class could have imagined.
"I'm sorry for interrupting, Professor. If you have time after instructing that cadet, would you be able to give me some guidance as well?"
"...!"
"...Crazy!"
"Shh!"
Low exclamations of shock burst out here and there before instantly dying down. The cadets looked at Lumián with expressions of disbelief.
Wait, he's requesting guidance from Professor Arnold on his own?
Doing something that crazy?
That was the thought that simultaneously crossed everyone's minds.
"Hoh, is that so?"
Professor Arnold stroked his chin.
This kid had definitely changed.
Except for being slightly taller, his outward appearance hadn't changed, but at least his mindset was worlds apart from last year.
He could feel will in his eyes. It didn't seem like words spoken from momentary bravado.
'Interesting. This kind of guy is fun to push.'
"Alright. I can't refuse the request of a cadet who showed courage. Hey, you there! Sorry, but I'm going to help this guy first, any complaints?"
"N-no! It's fine!"
The freckled boy answered quickly. There was no way he had any complaints.
He was thus saved just before being swallowed by the tiger, and Lumián took his place.
'What is he really thinking?'
Pretending to work even harder than before, the freckled boy glanced sideways at Lumián.
He thought maybe he volunteered because he was confident he could endure Arnold's guidance, but no. The guy was lifting the equipment looking like he was dying, anyone could see.
'Guess his body hasn't changed despite getting much stronger.'
It was even lower than the weight he was lifting himself. The guy suddenly seemed easy to handle, but when he recalled the morning events, his confidence deflated.
Damn, that guy. He obviously got some elixir during the break and built up a lot of aura. It must be incredibly expensive, how did he get it?
Cursing internally, the freckled boy turned his gaze away. That annoying guy, he hoped he would suffer greatly.
"Twelve!"
"Hup!"
"Thirteen! Don't rest in between!"
"Hup!"
"Fourteen! Breathe in between! Before you throw up everything inside!"
Just as the freckled boy hoped, Arnold worked Lumián ruthlessly. Rough breathing and flowing sweat, a distorted expression showed his condition.
But Lumián didn't give up. He achieved exactly what Arnold demanded without taking shortcuts.
"Hmm, time's up."
"Huuuh."
Until class time was nearly over, Arnold spent his time instructing only Lumián. The children left the training ground in relief, glad they weren't the sacrifice.
But Lumián couldn't do that. Arnold asked a question of him, who was completely exhausted.
"How was it, manageable?"
"Hah, hah. It was, huu, good!"
"Hoh, really? Then I can stick by your side every week from now on?"
Words that would have made other children recoil and shake their heads.
But Lumián didn't do that. Rather, he nodded as if he had been waiting for this.
"Yes! It's an honor! Huuu, I'll work hard!"
At this point, even Professor Arnold couldn't help but be surprised.
He honestly spoke his mind.
"A guy who used to look all frail and lacking any spirit has come back as a completely different person after not seeing him for a while. Is it really an honor? Someone didn't threaten you into this, right?"
"Huu, hup. Receiving personal guidance from the renowned Knight Professor Arnold, how could I not be happy? Please continue to guide me in the future!"
Lumián spoke with a determined expression.
His desire for a cool body was tremendous. If it meant being popular with women, he could endure training ten times harder than this.
He had actually done so before. What completed him in his previous life was ceaseless effort rather than slight talent.
"Pff. I like it."
Seeming pleased, Professor Arnold laughed out loud.
He patted Lumián's shoulder, who was still collapsed on the floor, and spoke.
"I'll expect the same next week. Stretch diligently so you don't get injured, and use aura to increase your recovery. Understand?"
"Yes!"
"Voice is good for someone lying on the ground. Hahaha."
Following the history professor, now Professor Arnold too. Another person who thought highly of Lumián was added.
It wasn't just the professors.
The E class cadets also exchanged various conversations while looking at Lumián, who had changed completely from before.
"What happened? Did he really take some elixir?"
"Does that make sense? How would a mere country baron get an elixir? And unless you have decent skill, you can't properly digest an elixir. If the body can't accept it, you could become crippled."
"Maybe he took it with a gambler's mentality? How he got it... I don't know that either."
"Beyond that, the atmosphere has definitely changed. He wasn't that kind of kid..."
"Damn, if only I could get an elixir too!"
"By the way, the kids who went to the infirmary, is it certain Lumián did that?"
Surprise, bewilderment, envy. Various emotions swirled among the cadets.
The biggest emotion was jealousy. When the failing student who had been at the bottom of the class suddenly showed outstanding performance, the children reacted with denial.
Talk circulated that abilities raised with elixirs were just bubbles, and he would show his true bottom before long. Some children also said they didn't like him showing off during class.
But about two weeks after the semester started, they all had to acknowledge one thing.
'He's working incredibly hard.'
The quantity of effort. And the quality.
That was Lumián's biggest change as seen by outsiders.