Chapter 1
Chapter 1
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 1
Chapter Title: Squat Hell
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Director Kang of Root Nursery alternated her gaze between the two children sitting in front of her.
Haejin's fourteen-year-old hair was a tangled mess from being yanked, and thirteen-year-old Haejeong had dried blood crusted under her nose.
"Haejin, you're the big sister, so you go first. What happened?"
"I just wanted to use the tablet for a sec, and Haejeong grabs me by the hair out of nowhere."
The old tablet that had sparked the fight sat on the coffee table, one corner cracked.
Director Kang swallowed a sigh at the sight.
In the meantime, the kids had started bickering again.
"It was my turn to use it right then."
"I just needed to look one thing up real quick and I'd give it back."
"Liar!"
"Keep sassing me and I'll tell Director Kang on you."
"Both of you, stop it."
Director Kang stepped in before things really escalated, but the two were still fuming and grumbling under their breaths.
Sending them off like this would definitely spark round two.
Couldn't have that.
"When you're mad, there's a better way to solve it than fighting."
The girls' eyes narrowed in suspicion.
"You're middle schoolers now, so it's time I taught you that method."
With a meaningful smile that brooked no argument, Director Kang rose from the sofa.
Ignoring the kids' dubious stares, she cleared some space, spread her feet shoulder-width apart, and took her stance.
"Watch closely. Just lower yourself down like this."
Squeeze your glutes, but keep your back as straight as possible.
"Don't let your knees go past your toes. Keep 'em in line... haa, like this. Put the power in your thighs and hold."
With arms crossed, she loaded her thighs and held for a moment, regulating her breath before standing back up.
Then she sat down and grinned at the two kids staring blankly at her.
"Alright, both of you, up. I'll check your form."
And so began Root Nursery's unique reconciliation ritual, better known as Squat Hell.
The infamous ordeal, whispered about by graduated big brothers and sisters, that kicked off for middle schoolers whenever they messed up—it left the two looking a bit queasy.
But Director Kang, soft-faced as she was, never backed down when it mattered.
"Hey now, Haejeong, butt too far back. Tuck it forward."
"Teacher... this... hurts so much...!"
"You've only done ninety. One more set and you're free. Haejin, don't lock your knees."
"My thighs... are on fire...?"
"It's fine. Humans don't spontaneously combust that easily."
What the heck does that mean?
Haejin and Haejeong screamed internally in unison. They didn't dare yell it out loud. If they had the energy for screaming, they needed to save it for their thighs.
Their thigh muscles quivered, glutes clenched tight, sweat poured down their rigidly straight backs.
Meanwhile, Director Kang calmly held her squat and counted.
"Five, six, seven... four, five..."
Our director can't count past seven, huh!
In the end, they did fifteen reps—five more than the promised ten—before escaping Squat Hell.
By Director Kang's math, that was 100. By standard decimal counting, 147.
"Ready to make up now? Or keep fighting? If you don't want to make up, I'll assume you're still mad and have you do another set."
"Sis, I'm sooo sorryyyy!"
"Little sis, forgive meeee!"
Before Director Kang even finished, the orphanage sisters were hugging it out.
Maybe because they'd sweated hotter than tears, their reconciliation was more passionate than usual.
Director Kang smiled warmly at the sight.
Her palms gently stroked their damp hair.
"If you wanna fight again, go ahead anytime. I won't punish you for it. Kids grow up fighting, after all."
"We swear we'll never fight again!"
Director Kang never hit the kids or forced them to apologize.
She just made them squat with her.
Some grumbled that it was corporal punishment, but most didn't rebel.
Not only did the sixty-something director squat alongside them without complaint, but she always ended with a kind word.
"Next time you're upset or angry, do some squats first."
Haejin, a second-year middle schooler in the throes of puberty, pouted.
"Doing this doesn't fix whatever made me pissed... mad in the first place."
"It might not seem like it solves anything right away, but strong muscles and stamina will help support your emotions and your life down the road. Trust me."
Young Haejin didn't fully grasp Director Kang's words back then.
She only understood them after turning adult, leaving the orphanage, and juggling college and part-time jobs on her own.
In that hectic, grueling life, her constant ally was none other than her core muscles.
A little less exhausted, a little less strained, a little less down.
It even naturally led her to become a trainer at a rehab center after graduation.
Her whole life owed a debt to the core strength Director Kang had instilled.
—Haejin sis, you heading out?
After finishing her last PT session of the day and wiping down the equipment, Haejin glanced at the clock and picked up her phone.
"Not yet. Just finished class."
—If you come late, you won't sleep and have to climb right away. It's getting dark too, so head out early.
"Got it. You guys book the dorms and go on ahead."
—Roger!
It was the president of her hiking club.
The small group of eight young folks Haejin's age climbed mountains year-round, seasons be damned.
Today's plan was winter Seoraksan, based on the forecast: snow tonight tapering off, clear skies tomorrow without a cloud.
Haejin finished up, got in her car, and turned the key.
'Climb with lanterns in the dark, see the winter mountains on the way down...'
Speeding out of Seoul onto open roads, Haejin indulged in pleasant fantasies.
Kuhhh. A groan like a hardcore alcoholic escaped the lips of Haejin, who avoided booze to prevent muscle loss.
That was the moment.
Shattering her happy thoughts, her car spun wildly on what looked like ordinary asphalt highway.
Bam—!
Black ice sent it skidding straight into the guardrail.
Blink, blink...
She blinked over and over, but consciousness was fading.
Something hot trickled over her eyes.
'Ah, what about my clients with sessions left...'
That was the last thought of muscle maniac Kang Haejin before death.
"Hyah!"
Ralph, a kitchen servant at the Kalenberg estate, grunted as he hoisted a sack of flour.
Third one.
One more sack, and the heavy lifting was done—simple cleaning left for the day.
So let's do this right!
Straightening his legs and bending only at the waist, Ralph was hit by a bolt of scolding.
"Nooo!"
"Pardon?"
Ralph looked up, still half-bent, sounding a bit dazed.
A toddler waddled into view, barreling toward him.
Mariella Kalenberg.
The youngest daughter of the estate's master, Lord Leopoldt, and Lady Lucy.
The three-year-old little lady ran up, planted a hand on her hip, and glared down at him.
" Lifting heavy stuffs wiff bad form gonna hurt your back!"
Even with her stern face, her cheeks puffed like fresh-baked bread, robbing it of any real menace.
Ralph nearly burst into a goofy grin but managed to compose himself.
One phrase stuck out, though.
'Lifting like this hurts your back?'
Lately, his back had been aching weirdly, tormenting him nightly. Hard to ignore.
"Then how should I lift it, miss?"
What does a three-year-old know? But her confidence was so bold, he blurted the question.
"Good form! When lifting heavy from floor, put knee down first like dis..."
Mariella slowly dropped one knee to the ground, lowering her body close to the floor.
Then extended her hands forward to grip the load, distributing weight to her legs as she rose slowly.
Ralph gaped at the fluid motion.
"Does that really not hurt your back?"
"Yup! But to be super safe and strong, do core exercises every day to make back tough!"
"Core exercises? What's that?"
Mariella blinked wide-eyed at Ralph's question, standing frozen for a moment.
Then she tilted her head to the left.
"Weally? You don't know?"
Ralph's face twisted in bewilderment.
You're the one who brought up core exercises... and now you're asking me what they are?