Episode 17.
"Yoonchan. Remember this well. The human body has no limits. Let's take the pull-ups you're doing now as an example. If you use every last ounce of strength you have today to finish 100, then next time, you'll be able to do those 100 as if they're nothing.
It's because the moment you surpass your limit, your body perceives it as ordinary. Surpass your limit and do 100 today, then 101 next time, then 102. That's how you build it up. Keep stacking it like that, and someday your body will change so it can do over 1,000 pull-ups."
That was the motto of the sweat-drenched man's high-intensity hell training.
Renew your limits every day.
If you keep renewing them like that, even a garbage body can reach the realm of superhumans.
'It's a crude method, though.'
Of course, it was also a method that ordinary people couldn't put into practice.
Because to accomplish it, one needed the resolve to overcome the endless pain that followed, and a body with enough durability to overcome those limits.
Fortunately, both I—
"I-I'm gonna die…."
—and Hero, who was still jumping rope while groaning in pain, met those conditions.
The part I had been most worried about was his mental fortification, but that issue was resolved when he accepted my sudden proposal.
"Keuheuk…."
Of course, I wasn't exactly in a position to worry about others.
Unlike Hero, this rotten carcass of mine, which had never exercised a single day in its life, had reached its limit long ago.
"Y-you. Your face is purple…."
Hero checked my haggard appearance and sent me a worried look.
"Kehe…."
But I didn't even have the strength to answer.
What little strength remained wasn't for answering, but for swinging the jump rope.
Beep beep beep beep!
The alarm began ringing the moment I finished swinging it.
"…Kkeuheup…."
Exactly 2 hours and 30 minutes.
I had set the jump rope time taking Hero's physical condition into account.
Of course, I hadn't considered my own garbage body at all, but it was difficult to compare myself to him.
Because my endurance, honed through surviving the apocalypse, was beyond the realm of normal humans.
Thud!
Collapsing unsightly was unavoidable, but.
"Huk… is it… this… overbearing…?"
Though he couldn't form a proper sentence, it wasn't hard to understand what he meant.
"Keuheuk… I'm… heuk."
Clearly, that was an overpace.
To the point where one round of jump rope should finish the day's schedule.
But was I going to allow that?
Crack.
I chewed what I had prepared in advance.
The pungent yet sweet fragrance that shot up—it was wild ginseng.
『+99(★) 7-Year-Old Mountain Ginseng
Category: Consumable (Medicinal Herb)
Durability: None
Base Effect: Moderate Stamina Recovery, slight Stamina increase for 30 days
Enhancement Effect (9/99): Stamina increase duration changed to 3 months
Enhancement Effect (15/99): Moderate increase to Stamina recovery amount
Enhancement Effect (20/99): Temporarily changes Health condition to 'Good'……
Enhancement Effect (99/99): Temporarily increases Stamina by 300%
Max Effect (Max): Permanently increases Stamina by a minute amount
Transcendence Effect: Massive Stamina Recovery (Active)
Description: A 7-year-old mountain ginseng. A wild ginseng focused on Stamina recovery, completed through transcendence strengthening.』
Mountain ginseng that had undergone transcendence strengthening.
And one that focused solely on Stamina recovery effects at that.
Was it possible to choose effects arbitrarily and strengthen them?
It was possible.
Mountain ginseng had various effects.
Starting with the representative Stamina recovery, to anti-cancer, heart and stomach function, immunity strengthening, and so on.
And the effects strengthened through my enhancement ability were random.
Anti-cancer could become the main effect, or heart or stomach function strengthening could become the main effect.
Yet the effect of the mountain ginseng I ate was concentrated on Stamina recovery.
Naturally.
Because I had filtered out only the ginseng with Stamina recovery-focused effects from among the random ones.
Dozens of transcendence strengthenings had taken place to obtain this single ginseng.
So, how was the effect?
"Awesome!"
Vitality coursed through a body that had been struggling to even breathe.
Though not completely fresh like at the beginning, I recovered to a decent physical condition with just a slight fatigue.
"…?"
A gaze full of questions pierced toward me.
Seeing me suddenly recover my energy, he must be wondering what kind of trick this was.
"Eat this."
I personally handed the mountain ginseng to him.
Of course, it was also the same massive-Stamina mountain ginseng I had eaten moments ago.
Crunch.
He chewed and swallowed the mountain ginseng.
And then.
"Uh, uhh…."
Surprised, he raised himself up.
"How is it? Feeling a tiger's energy surging up?"
"…What is this? How…?"
"I told you before. It's good for the body, but there's no way to explain it."
"Is this even possible?"
"If it weren't possible, would we be moving right now?"
"…."
He was speechless.
"Don't try to understand it with your head. As you live in this world, you'll occasionally encounter things you can't understand with common sense. When that happens, just think 'I see,' and move on. No matter how hard you rack your brain, nothing will come of it."
I told him this while conscious of the approaching apocalypse.
When that time comes, the world's common sense will be overturned.
Those who tried to understand that absurdity would fail to overcome the approaching chaos and madness, becoming the apocalypse's first victims.
Of course, Hero—the guy in front of me—would probably make it through on his own.
'But I can't let him meet the same end.'
I refuse to accept the same ending as before my regression.
I will clear a path so that he can survive until the very end with me.
Because I never want to feel that shitty feeling I felt back then again.
"…So. What are we doing now?"
"What else would we do?"
I threw red gloves at him.
"We have to pound the sandbag diligently."
Boxing?
I don't know the first thing about it.
But I do know one thing.
'If you work your body hard, the flesh grows.'
The words Hero had said to me before my regression—I returned them word for word to the current Hero.
*
Pow!
The sound of punches digging into the mitts was refreshing.
"Minseok, nice!"
Master Choi, holding the mitts, exclaimed in admiration.
Though he hadn't reached the top, he had been a pro boxer who had hovered within the domestic featherweight top 10.
That's why he could know for certain.
'This kid has what it takes!'
All sports are like this, but boxing especially requires talent.
Muscle development, durability, dynamic vision—so many diverse talents were needed, and in that regard, Minseok was a blessed individual.
It had barely been three months since he started coming to the gym.
And yet.
Swish!
He not only dodged an unannounced mitt drill with astonishing dynamic vision and reflexes,
Pow!
but dug precisely into the pocket and drove a fist into the ribs.
Strong.
The impact transmitted to the inside of the mitt was on par with that of a pro who had trained for several years.
'No. This is a fist that could go straight to being a ranked fighter.'
Master Choi, who had raised numerous pros and ranked fighters, could be certain.
Minseok's fists were speaking right now.
They were saying he wasn't some run-of-the-mill pro, but had what it took to go to the world stage, to challenge for a title.
"Wow!"
"Amazing, isn't it?"
The aspiring pros watching this, and.
"As expected!"
"That guy's the real deal."
The active athletes were also busy exclaiming in admiration.
Even to them as professionals, Minseok's talent was astounding.
And the one who knew that talent best was Master Choi.
"Good, very good!"
He approached Minseok, who was catching his breath, and gave him a thumbs-up.
"…So. What do you think about what I said before?"
He asked meaningfully, waiting for his rough breathing to recover.
"You mean…?"
"Going pro."
"Ah!"
A week ago, when exactly 50 days had passed since Minseok started coming to the gym, Master Choi had revealed his true feelings.
"You meant going pro, right?"
"Exactly!"
Minseok hadn't come to the gym to become a pro.
It was for the simple reason that it seemed fun.
But as they say, an awl in a bag will tear through it sooner or later.
Having confirmed that astonishing talent, Master Choi couldn't help but court(?) Minseok, a gem in the rough.
"I don't usually say things to this extent, you know? But Minseok, you really overflow with talent. To the point where I can say you're the best I've ever seen."
That wasn't a joke to coax him.
"I guarantee it, if you learn properly, domestically? No, you can go to the world stage. I will make sure of it."
A world-class talent rarely seen domestically.
Because he was so confident of that, he had put aside all his pride and had been persistently persuading him for 10 days.
"Hmm. Well, what should I do…."
Minseok's gaze, stroking his chin with his glove-free hand, landed on the counter.
"…."
Precisely speaking, it was directed at Choi Yeonji, who had been looking toward the entrance since a moment ago.
'He said he was interested in Yeonji.'
He was showing it so openly, how could I not know?
'If he turns pro, he'll cause a huge stir in the boxing world. He wouldn't be a bad match for Yeonji.'
If it were an ordinary athlete, he would have strongly opposed their dating, having lived a hard life as a boxer himself.
But a young man with this much talent was different.
A guaranteed successful athlete would earn a lot of money, and then he surely wouldn't have to live the hard life he himself had lived.
'…If I just help set them up a little.'
Just as Master Choi was nodding internally, having grasped Minseok's aim.
Ding-a-ling—
The bell installed at the entrance rang, and one person revealed himself.
"You're here?"
She greeted him with a subtle smile she hadn't shown until now.
"…Hello."
It was Hero, bowing his head.
"You haven't been around lately. Is… something wrong with your health?"
"No. My body's fine."
"Really?"
She quickly scanned Hero's body, checking his condition.
"Then what. You're not slacking off, are you?"
As if!
He had worked toward going pro for three years.
Whether it rained or snowed, no matter how hard and tired he was, he came to the gym and sweated.
That effort was something everyone acknowledged.
It was simply that lacking talent, he couldn't get results commensurate with that effort.
'That bastard.'
Seeing the two talking affectionately, sparks flew from Minseok's eyes.
'That nerd bastard, I didn't like him from the start.'
It wasn't just the problem of him talking affectionately with Yeonji, whom he had marked as his.
'Disgusting.'
Having dominated as a predator since his school days with his innate physique and athleticism.
That's why he could tell at a glance.
That Hero was always the bug he had trampled on, the one he loathed.
The fact that he had to breathe the same air as these nerds couldn't help but be unpleasant.
"Master."
"Yes. Have you decided…."
"Let's put that aside for a moment. I still have energy left, so would a round of sparring be alright?"
"Sparring?"
"Yes."
From Master Choi's position, this was naturally welcome.
"Great. Who do you want to try with? You sparred with Jeongwon last time, so how about Seongjin this time?"
"I'd like to choose my opponent."
"Yeah? If that's what you want, we'll do that."
Master Choi, completely smitten with Minseok's talent, intended to grant him every convenience.
"Hey."
Minseok looked at Hero.
"How about a round of sparring?"
The way he flicked his hand was clearly a provocation.
"You…!"
Yeonji stepped forward at that arrogant attitude.
Not long ago, he had taken a severe beating without being able to put up much resistance.
Now that two weeks had passed, there was no way Hero could be a match for Minseok.
Swish.
But she could advance no further because of the arm stretched out in front of her.
"…."
Hero stopped Yeonji and instead stepped toward the ring.
"Let's do it. Sparring."
The one who had naturally been expected to refuse readily accepted the sparring.