Chapter 34
Chapter 34
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 34
Chapter Title: The Jump Rope Gift
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Outside, rain had been pouring for a full week straight, but the atmosphere inside the mansion was more electric than ever.
The momentum of the servants sent from the main family had completely fizzled out, adding to the warm and fuzzy vibe. Even the people the butler had arbitrarily fired before had all come back.
'The plan is to boot out every single one from the main family as soon as we hire their replacements.'
Grandfather might get a little peeved, but the justification was firmly on our side now.
After all, it was the main family servants who had dared to insult our late mother, spied as agents, and betrayed their master.
The fact that we weren't demanding compensation for damages was already a huge concession.
Having reclaimed her authority as acting butler, the nurse was hustling to hire replacements as quickly as possible, all to purge the main family servants.
"Miss, I've prepared your birthday gift a little early. Would you accept it?"
I nearly jumped.
I raised an eyebrow at the sight of Lea sprinting down the hall from the far end, clutching a box that screamed "gift" to anyone who saw it, then lowered it again.
"How'd you even get your hands on something like this?"
"Because you're the one who saved me, Miss!"
It was a bit embarrassing.
I hadn't really done much to help, yet here was Lea gazing at me with sparkling eyes—it felt too much for what I'd done, and my cheeks heated up.
Best to unwrap the gift quick and move on before the praise barrage started.
"Oh my gosh! This is...!"
"Oh, do you know what it is? It's a jump rope, something we use back in my rural hometown. There, they'd make kids who weren't growing tall do this."
The rumor about my height worries had already spread everywhere, which was embarrassing, but her thoughtfulness made it all the more precious.
To prepare this just to see me happy, without even waiting for my birthday...
I pulled Lea into a big, tight hug to show my thanks.
"Thank you. You're the best, Lea!"
"Thank you, Miss!"
As Lea and I shared our happy moment, Betty—burning with jealousy from the sidelines—slyly wedged herself between us.
"A jump rope? How does it work? That rope looks pretty sturdy— isn't it dangerous?"
"This isn't dangerous!"
Seemed like it wasn't a common item in this world.
No choice but to demonstrate, then. And it wasn't just because my body was itching to jump rope.
'Everyone's curious!'
Conveniently dressed in thin, comfy indoor clothes, I herded the maids en masse toward the indoor training hall.
I'd heard all the knights still at the mansion were recovering from injuries, yet the place was packed with people training anyway.
"You've arrived, Miss!"
I'd expected it to be empty, but there were so many people.
As the weight of their attention dragged my eyes downward, the maids started clapping.
"You can do it, Miss!"
"Of course she can! She's the best lady in the whole mansion!"
The only lady in the mansion is me—does "best" even mean anything in a one-person ranking?
Uncomfortably scanning the crowd, I decided to demo quick before they broke into a full cheer chant.
Jumping rope was dead simple.
Even now, after dying and being reborn, it was etched clearly in my memory.
"You jump like this."
With the thwack-thwack of the rope, I hopped over it nimbly, and the knights burst into laughter.
One massive knight even let out a groan like it was too cute to handle.
"Kids really are the best. Look at those sturdy knees!"
"What are you talking about? No other kid could jump as well as our Miss! I mean, she's the daughter of Captain and Lady Lucy!"
"Miss, can I give it a try too?"
This rope's too short for you, probably.
Even so, I handed it over as the knight requested.
As expected, the big guy cleared it once like some kind of stunt, then immediately snagged his ankle on the rope.
The knights erupted in giggles at his failure.
The man who spectacularly flopped groaned and hunched over slightly, clutching his knee.
"Knew it wouldn't work. My knee from that last injury's acting up..."
"How bad was your knee hurt?"
"Nearly got severed clean off. This house-sized monster swiped at me with its claws—so strong. Lucky I dodged, or I'd be dead... urk!"
"No graphic details in front of the Miss!"
"S-sorry, Miss."
While Betty chewed him out, I crouched down and inspected his knee, exposed beneath his training shorts.
"Nearly severed," he'd said, and sure enough, there was a deep scar right by the kneecap.
Amazing he could even walk. For an ordinary person, it'd require crutches—a massive injury.
Thanks to his knightly muscles holding it all together, at least walking wasn't an issue.
In Korea, I'd recommend a hospital, but knee surgery wasn't a thing here.
'For this knight, the only option is consistent lower-body training to preserve those muscles.'
The moment the supporting leg muscles gave out, even basic walking—not to mention daily life—would become impossible.
Judging by the scar's size and depth, the joint and ligaments were definitely damaged.
Bone damage? Hard to say, but not impossible.
"Train hard."
"Yes. I ran a hundred laps here this morning alone!"
"Not running!"
I waved my hands frantically, and the man blinked in surprise.
No matter how backward their rehab knowledge was, making someone with this knee run?
Every exercise carries injury risk, but running—where both feet leave the ground and absorb full impact—is especially brutal on the knees.
I mentally assessed his condition.
Pain was there, but daily life seemed fine.
Running a hundred laps around this huge training hall without limping? Monster-level recovery.
'But this guy's going to keep living as a knight.'
No retiring anytime soon—he needed his body in top shape. Overtraining an already injured knee was a disaster.
Yet he couldn't abandon thigh muscles either.
I recalled one of my old PT clients, a soccer player.
He'd wrecked his knee too—a chronic issue for soccer pros.
Not a slash wound like this, but similar spot.
'The exercise I had him do after partial recovery...'
Wall squats.
Squats—which I'd already taught Dietrich—were fantastic for lower-body strength.
But loading weight directly on the knee? Worse than useless.
That's where wall squats came in for folks with bad knees but who couldn't skip thigh work.
Squats against a wall.
'If there's a bouncy ball, wedge it between the wall and back.'
Less effective than regular squats, but worlds better for knee protection.
"Come over here."
"Pardon?"
Bewildered but obedient, the knight backed up to the wall as I instructed.
"Slide down like this, real slow. Keep tension all the way."
"Like this?"
"Yeah. Then up nice and slow. No pressure on knees. Hurts otherwise."
True to his knightly prowess, he grasped it instantly.
Wall leans with perfect angles on the ups and downs.
"Do a hundred of these a day. Got it? No running."
"Miss, you're worrying about a lowly knight like me too?"
What?
I took a wary step back from the man whose eyes were gleaming too intensely.
Sensing my weakness to praise, the other knights swarmed like they'd spotted prey. "Miss!" echoed everywhere.
Someone save me!
"Seniors, big trouble! Knight Gilla's back...!"
I whipped my head toward the knight who'd burst in shouting.
The air grew heavy in an instant.