Endurance Training (1)

I waited a moment, and the quest finished generating. When I'd done the Velocity Increase quest, the process had taken long enough that I'd considered going off to grab a meal first — but this time, surprisingly, it wrapped up fast.

"…Pretty similar to the Velocity Increase one."

I nodded as I slowly read through what had appeared on the Status Window. Just like the Velocity Increase training, I had to complete the daily objectives for fourteen days — and once again, skills were locked out.

The difference was in the direction.

Where the Velocity Increase training had demanded maximum output day after day, this quest was clearly asking for staying power.

Shuttle runs and distance running are the first things that come to mind when you think of conditioning work. I'd done both more times than I could count, so I knew them well. Both left you wanting to collapse flat on the floor when they were over — but their purposes were a little different.

Shuttle runs focus on building muscular endurance through constant acceleration, deceleration, and direction changes. In the way you have to wring out power in short bursts, recover for a beat, then repeat the same motion, they aren't that far from what a pitcher does on the mound.

Running is different. No acceleration. No cutting. You just ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠hold a steady pace and keep going. Your breath gets shorter and shorter, your heart hammers like it's about to burst, and you still can't stop. Enduring that state is what builds your cardio.

"Whew. Still, Average is a lot easier than Hard."

On pure intensity, the training was no joke. But true to an Average difficulty, there was nothing that made me think, Is that even possible…? from the jump. All I had to do was show up and work honestly.

And surprisingly, the endurance training also included a lifestyle management objective. Skimming the list, nothing looked particularly burdensome. It wasn't that different from how I already lived, and I could keep it without much conscious effort.

Eat lunch first, then get this done and come back.

I'd already been to the training center today, but I'd fully recovered with Diamond Body before accepting the quest, so there was no fatigue left in me. And if there was no fatigue left, there was no reason to put the work off until tomorrow.

And so the fourteen-day journey to become a better pitcher began once more.

It was already the seventh day of the quest. Halfway through the fourteen days, and I was still grinding through the daily objectives without complaint. There was no special trick to it. You ran the prescribed amount, and when ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠your lungs started to burn, you just held on.

At least a routine had formed. Shuttle runs needed the most space, so I finished them first thing in the morning by renting an empty studio corner at the gym, came home to rest and refill my tank, then closed out the day with the run in the afternoon.

If you asked which of the two was harder, it was the running, hands down. A ten-percent incline… you don't understand it until you've lived it. It's hell. Even at only three kilometers, it made the ten-kilometer runs from the velocity quest feel like nothing at all.

"Sss… haah…"

I tried to hold on by controlling my breathing as carefully as I could, but the edge of my ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠stamina was starting to show. Sweat poured down like rain, and keeping a steady rhythm of breath was getting harder by the second. Pushing further like this was going to be a problem, so I hit the stop button and gradually slowed the belt.

"Hah… hah… hah…"

I stepped off the treadmill and braced my hands on my knees for a moment, catching my breath. Heat rolled up through my whole body. My heart was still slamming against my ribs like it had lost its mind.

Damn… still 1.3 kilometers left.

My thighs had gone past sore into a burning heat, and my calves were cinching tight like they were about to cramp any second.

"Haaah…"

I scrubbed a dry wash over my face and was just standing up for a sip of water when—

"Excuse me… you're the baseball player Han Doyoon, right?"

A familiar young woman approached, towel in hand.

Oh… the one who lays out a yoga mat and stretches every morning?

I'd run into her often enough while doing shuttle runs at the start of the day.

And then—

Oh… oh…

—gulp.

I swallowed hard without meaning to at the lean, trained body in front of me. Skin-tight leggings. A tank ‍‍‌‌⁠​​⁠‌​​‍​​‍​‌​⁠‍‌‍⁠⁠‌⁠‌‍‌‍‌‌‌‍⁠​‌​‌​‌‍‌‌‌⁠‍​​‌‍⁠‌‌⁠⁠top cut deep enough to show the line of her collarbone. My eyes moved up and down her before I could stop them.

W-wait. Where are you looking. Get a grip!

I snapped out of the daze and jerked my head aside. My wandering gaze finally settled, mercifully, on the philtrum above her upper lip.

"Yes… that's me."

When I answered, she smiled bashfully and met my eyes.

"Do you live around here? You come to the gym a lot."

"Ah, yeah."

I kept staring at her philtrum. She studied my expression and took another step closer.

"I'm a real fan. It's completely different from watching you on TV… seeing you in person, you're even more…"

She trailed off into a mumble.

"…Sorry, what was that?"

I asked because I hadn't quite caught it, and she ducked her head, shy, and said softly,

"…Even more handsome."

W-what? Am I really… that?

Honestly, I wasn't ugly — but I wasn't the kind of guy people said was handsome to his face like that, either. Warmly good-looking, sure, I could buy that. This reaction was a little much.

Well… she said she's a fan, so maybe the fandom is coloring it…?

I was still slightly flustered when she pulled out her phone and tipped her body a little closer.

"Um… Doyoon. Could I get just one picture with you?"

"Uh… sure. But I'm mid-workout, I'm pretty sweaty, and I don't look great…"

"It's fine! That makes it even more— ah, never mind. Just a second."

She edged another half-step in and checked the angle while standing right beside me.

"Hmm… this way your face gets cut off a little…"

And then, without any warning, she slipped her arm through mine. Before I could react, we were linked arm-in-arm.

W-what? Out of nowhere?

I tried to pull back on reflex, and she only wound her arm tighter. At that close range I could feel the soft pressure of her body and a faint warmth against my arm.

"There."

She said it almost into my ear. The shy girl who'd blushed while calling me handsome was gone; she closed the distance without hesitation. While I was still stuck thinking, What is this situation?, she brushed my ear again.

"Ready?"

— click.

She didn't let go of my arm even after the photo. If anything, she leaned a little more into me while checking the screen. The sensation against my arm only got clearer.

"Oh my god… I'm so sorry."

She apologized out of nowhere while looking at the shot she'd just taken. She didn't look sorry at all. She turned the screen toward me with a playful glint in her eyes instead.

"I was trying to get a pretty one… but the camera just can't capture the real Doyoon, can it?"

I was momentarily speechless. Wanting nothing more than to get rid of the uncomfortable pressure on my arm first, I forced my arm free and laughed awkwardly.

"Ah… haha… i-is that so?"

I knew I was forcing the laugh, and so did she. She didn't care in the slightest. The moment I stepped back, she closed the gap again as if it were the most natural thing in the world.

"Doyoon, do you… do Instagram?"

"…What?"

In that instant, something felt off.

She says she's my fan… and she doesn't know I don't do Instagram?

Not knowing I stayed off Instagram — fine, that could happen. But we'd crossed paths any number of times already, and only now she was asking for a photo. The sudden clinginess and skinship. Taken one by one, each thing was something you could shrug off as well, maybe. Stacked together, they left me with a prickle of unease and a rising wariness.

"I don't do Instagram. Sorry."

When I answered firmly, she blinked a couple of times, then nodded a beat late.

"…Ah. I see."

I still didn't know what this woman was after, but I needed to draw a line. I dipped my head briefly, keeping it as polite as I could.

"Sorry, but… I need to get back to my workout."

She forced the corners of her mouth up.

"Ah… right. Of course you do. Haha…"

The words said one thing; the trailing edge of her voice carried a thin thread of disappointment and irritation.

"Yeah. Well… have a good day."

I left only a short goodbye and turned away before she could keep the conversation going. I stepped back onto the treadmill and hit the power button. As the belt began to roll, I dropped my head, steadied my breathing, and brought the speed back up.

"Hoo… let's just finish this and get out of here. Korean Series game tonight."

I started running again — and I could still feel eyes on my back. It was only a flicker, so it might have been my imagination, but she seemed to be fiddling with her phone and glancing this way every so often.

I did my best to ignore the stare and locked back onto the objective.