Chapter 2
Chapter 2
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 2
Chapter Title: The Demonic Stone
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Kang Geohan.
In his previous life, he had been a bodybuilder, enjoying a brief period of glory. But a tragic traffic accident had taken it all away.
‘Please…… please…… let me recover.’
He had been desperate. His body was everything to him. How hard had he worked to build it bigger and more beautiful?
‘I……! How could I have built this body!’
For years, he had lifted heavy iron day in and day out, enduring immense pain.
All that effort and those dreams had vanished in an instant due to the accident.
‘Who cares about compensation! Insurance money! Give me back my body! Fix it like it was!’
At first, he was angry.
Then he despaired.
Finally, he pulled himself together and underwent grueling, relentless rehabilitation.
‘……Is this as far as I go?’
But his drastically reduced strength and flexibility never recovered beyond a certain point.
He had no choice but to give up his career as an athlete, and the grand, beautiful body that had been his life’s goal became an unattainable illusion forever.
That was Kang Geohan’s previous life—a miserable existence that ended in death.
But now, Kang Geohan was happy.
‘……I get another chance!’
Sweating through workouts.
Massive muscles.
Just thinking about it made his chest burn with excitement.
‘I can aim for a body even bigger and cooler than in my last life!’
A second chance.
Even though he was a serf,
even though everyone saw him as a scrawny pushover.
Kang Geohan was happy.
And there was even a stroke of luck fueling that happiness.
‘I wasn’t crazy after all……!’
He couldn’t help but laugh.
‘How am I supposed to read it if it’s in Korean?’
Because he couldn’t read Korean, he had mistaken heaven-sent gifts for madness all this time.
But now that he had recovered memories of his past life, he could read those gifts.
For example, when he looked at common weeds growing by the roadside, information would float in the air like this.
[Noktia Grass]
Contains a small amount of vitamin B.
300g remaining until optimal daily vitamin B intake.
The hallucinations that had plagued him since childhood were all like this—packed with useful nutritional info!
‘Jackpot! This is a jackpot.’
Kang Geohan was thrilled by this ability.
‘It replaces all those vitamin pills and supplements. Oh, heavens!’
In bodybuilding, half the battle was damaging muscles by lifting iron; the other half was supplying enough nutrients for those damaged muscles to rebuild bigger and stronger.
But what if nutritional info appeared right in front of your eyes? Even telling you the optimal intake amounts?
Now all that was left was joyful iron-pumping and satisfying muscle growth!
‘Such an incredible power…….’
Others might prefer flashy superpowers like levitating objects or conjuring flames in midair, but to Kang Geohan, this was the best.
‘I can even cure my depression with this. Game over.’
Kang Geohan looked down at himself and marveled once more.
‘It’s really the best.’
It wasn’t just nutritional info windows. When he looked at people, he could see their exercise-related stats and body composition too.
[Kang Geohan]
Height: 176cm
Weight: 55kg
Willpower: 4.8(+6)/18
Strength: 6.8/7
Fat Mass: 6.36kg
Muscle Mass (Skeletal): 20.03kg
‘176cm tall and 55kg. A total anchovy among anchovies…….’
But he could improve that going forward; for now, he focused on this mystical ability.
‘No need for an InBody scan. Actually, it’s way better than InBody since it quantifies willpower and strength too!’
Kang Geohan called this his InBody window.
‘Nutrition Info Window’ and ‘InBody Window.’
Using these two abilities, Kang Geohan had quickly improved his depression.
When he first regained memories of his past life, his willpower was a measly 2.1.
Depression had dragged it down from a potential max of 18 to 2.1.
‘But thanks to the Nutrition Info Window, I could still do drug therapy in this dire situation.’
Depression was ultimately a disease caused by deficiencies in brain neurotransmitters like dopamine or serotonin, and proper supplementation could lead to quick improvement.
Kang Geohan glanced at the mountain of weeds he had blanched and eaten over the past month.
[Puria Grass]
Helps maintain serotonin levels in the brain.
2kg remaining until optimal daily serotonin intake.
Sure, 2kg sounded easy, but it was tough even for meat—what about grass? Still, Kang Geohan had done it.
By efficiently using his willpower, he had gathered and blanched massive amounts of grass every day.
That was how he had achieved his current willpower stat.
[Willpower: 4.8+(6)/18]
His base willpower had risen, and the Puria Grass—acting like antidepressants—provided an extra 6 points, giving him a total of 10.8 points.
Only then could Kang Geohan smile again.
‘Now I can act human.’
Kang Geohan’s innate max willpower was 18 points—a very high level.
But the mind is fragile; it can buckle or break just like a physical form.
Having witnessed his mother’s murder right before his eyes and then losing his father tragically, Kang Geohan’s mind had shattered long ago.
Just as a broken leg can’t walk, a broken mind couldn’t either, so his willpower had hit rock bottom, leaving him listless his whole life.
A mental state where he couldn’t even lift the Demonic Stone, let alone a fallen leaf.
But now, the steady intake of massive amounts of Puria Grass had served as his cast and crutches.
Now Kang Geohan could walk.
He could be reborn and challenge himself—and dream—once more.
He even had 21st-century Earth-level abilities: the Nutrition Info Window and InBody Window.
What was there to fear?
That was why,
‘Willpower 10.8 points. Strength 6.8 points. Not exactly above average. But still……!’
He would definitely lift it.
‘This chance won’t come twice.’
While everyone else froze before the Demonic Stone, Kang Geohan burned with determination.
* * *
Burjozi Baron gripped his cane irritably.
“What are you doing! Next!”
Six out of the ten promising candidates recommended by the squad leaders had already failed.
They were all sturdy-looking boys and girls, but few could even lift the Demonic Stone to knee height, let alone overhead.
Some had even vomited blood and passed out.
The gathered youths grew even more terrified.
The baron vented his frustration.
If a Giant Rider candidate emerged from the serfs, the kingdom would grant a huge reward—but if none did, he got nothing.
He had shut down the factory for a day for no reason, only to injure able-bodied serfs.
Just one.
If even one succeeded, he’d get a massive reward!
“Lifting the Demonic Stone isn’t just about raw strength! It’s willpower! Willpower is key! Do it with the resolve to die!”
Hearing the baron’s shout, Thomas from Squad 9 stepped up to the Demonic Stone. He took a deep breath.
‘Mom……!’
Yesterday, he had strutted around in front of his friends.
He had kicked Kang Geohan to feel superior.
But now, only his mom filled his mind.
His mom, working at the factory every day in place of his runaway dad. His mom, who sometimes sobbed at night. His mom, exhausted from work all day yet somehow getting tomatoes—his favorite—and making stew.
‘……I’m becoming a freeman.’
He recalled how Billy’s mom had beamed when Billy awakened his gift.
Clench!
Thomas grabbed the Demonic Stone with both hands.
‘Nngh!’
It was heavy. He barely lifted it to shin height, but it wouldn’t budge further.
The egg-sized Demonic Stone growled. A terror like it would devour him crushed his chest.
But Thomas gritted his teeth anyway.
‘This isn’t the Demonic Stone. This is gold. Fancy clothes. This is family…… and above all, freedom!’
Fueled by blazing greed and desire, Thomas squeezed and twisted the stone upward.
Willpower.
Burning willpower for gold, for family, for freedom!
“Grrrrr!”
Ooooooh!
The crowd buzzed. It was the first time—the stone had risen past the knees to chest height.
Even the bored kingdom examiner unfolded his arms and leaned forward with interest.
Thomas’s face turned beet red.
‘Just a bit more, just a little…….’
He was almost at full arm extension, but the stone refused to move again.
Sssssss!
Steam poured from the Demonic Stone like a chimney, and vapor began rising from Thomas’s nose and ears too.
The power emanating from the stone felt like fire igniting his entire body. Cold sweat poured out amid excruciating pain, his body shaking violently.
But Thomas thought,
‘You gonna drop it here? Keep living like that bastard forever?’
He thought of Kang Geohan.
The punk who pissed him off just by existing.
The log-like loser.
But the most suffocating part……
‘Being in the same boat as that trash……! Both serfs……!’
Terror. The kind where death seemed better.
‘I…… I’m different!’
For his mom.
To prove he was completely different.
‘Fine by me if I die! I’m becoming a freeman too!’
In that instant, something clicked open. Was it the heavy door of his limits?
“Raaaaagh!”
Thomas gritted his teeth and pushed the Demonic Stone up. Sweat streamed down; his arms, no longer feeling like his own, miraculously nudged it higher bit by bit.
The stone brushed his nose tip, and finally, finally……
‘……Huh?’
Thud!
The sky spun into view, then his head exploded in pain. His arms were extended, the Demonic Stone above his head.
‘Did I lift it?’
But something was off.
‘Why does my head hurt so…… much…….’
Then darkness swallowed him.
* * *
Kang Geohan watched Thomas collapse backward.
‘Impressive grit.’
He had pegged him as just a local bully…… but he was something else. He had nearly lifted the Demonic Stone.
He got it up to forehead height, but his willpower ran out right there, and he passed out.
‘With better technique…… he would’ve done it.’
In his eyes, he could see Thomas’s fallen InBody window.
[Thomas. Willpower: 0.1/15]
It was a first. No one had ever depleted their willpower so thoroughly. Most kids gave up shaking when it dropped to 3.
‘The baron’s right—lifting the Demonic Stone is more about willpower than strength?’
Kang Geohan’s gaze hardened.
‘But a 15 willpower failed. I’m just over 10…….’
By simple math, Kang Geohan had no chance of success.
He’d have bet on himself at 13…….
‘Guess I’m relying on experience and technique.’
But there was no backing out anyway.
He’d do it.
No one in this world could match his confidence in lifting things.
“Ha…… so close. Next!”
Kang Geohan continued his calm image training as he heard Burjozi Baron’s voice.