Left Foot! Left Foot!
“Left foot! Left foot! Step in time! Left foot! Left foot!”
“Huff! Left foot! Huff! Left foot!”
“Fall behind and I'll kick your ass! Run! Run! Run!”
“Gahhh!”
Tat-tat-tat! We'd been running since dawn. They called it the daily morning jog for trainees. It felt way too fast for a jog, but whatever—it was a jog, apparently. Bald instructor Brack strode ahead with long, powerful steps, while Chris Bennett—Gwangnyeon-i—chased us from behind.
To avoid getting kicked by that maniac, we had no choice but to run like hell. She didn't discriminate between guys and girls—her kicks made your spine tingle with pain. Me? I'd lost count after it surpassed the fingers on both hands. My body was physically heavy, so I couldn't keep up speed.
That bitch said my ass had such good cushioning it was fun to kick.
“Huff… huff…”
“Hey! This is basically warm-up, and you're already wiped? What the hell?”
Thwack!
“Agh!”
Easy on the kicks, damn it! Stamina wasn't the issue. Thanks to my trait, I had more endurance than my visible stats suggested. The problem was speed. With these 155cm short legs, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't match a normal person's jogging pace.
Thwack!
“Please!…”
“Please? Please what? If it pisses you off, run faster! Face forward! You'll trip!”
Damn right. Somehow, someway, I'll get revenge. Just you wait, you fucking bitch.
My usually solid poker face was failing me. Rage and vengeance twisted my features.
Thwack!
“Ow! Why?! I wasn't slow that time!”
“Can't manage your face? Smooth out that scowl!”
“You fucking bitch!”
“Kuhahaha! That's my nickname!”
In my anger, a genuine curse slipped out unfiltered. And yet, she seemed to like getting cussed at. This woman was utterly incomprehensible.
“Three more laps ahead! How many laps?”
“Three laps!”
“Voice too quiet! Make it five! How many?”
“Fiiiive laaaaps!!!”
“Run!”
“Uwaaaah!”
Even Brack, that guy, turned uncharacteristically strict during training—nothing like his usual self. If I survived this training camp, I'd introduce myself as a military vet from now on. No arguments.
*
“Waa… waaater…”
“Cough, cough…”
“Feels like I'm dying…”
Running on an empty stomach made it brutal. I hadn't eaten dinner last night or breakfast this morning. Thirst and hunger sapped my strength completely.
Grrrowl…
“Break over! Now head to breakfast! You have one hour! Assemble back here exactly one hour from now! Dismissed!”
Even though mealtime had started, not a single trainee got up to head to the mess hall. Everyone was slumped on the ground, gasping for air. Everyone except one.
“I'll go eat first.”
“Whoa… Lee Kangin, you don't look tired at all. Amazing!”
“Haha, don't hype me up too much.”
“No… you're so cool. Hehe…”
Over there, Lee Kangin was surrounded by girls, filming a damn drama scene. No way they'd let a handsome guy like that sit idle.
“What a player…”
Now even girls were pretending their legs gave out, leaning on his shoulders. All the frail act, the delicate act, the innocent act—they pulled out every trick to flirt.
How did I feel? Jealous enough to cry… I liked girls too… All I had going for me was bigger tits than those girls.
“You're all I can rely on… Status Window.”
Name: Park Chanyoung
Job: -
Strength: 4 | Agility: 1 | Vitality: 2
Intelligence: 5 | Dexterity: 1 | Charm: -23
Trait: 『Natural Healing』
Karma: 430
Watching the handsome guys and pretty girls in their melodrama made my stomach hurt, so I pulled up the status window. I'd been the slowest runner, putting a good distance between me and the other trainees.
Eh? The karma balance looked off.
“430 karma?”
It should've been 80 left. My last memory: 30 karma after buying morning meds, plus 50 from the quest reward for selling dirt. After that…
“Ah! Did the notification disable stay on until just now?”
I quickly checked the quest tab's notification history.
[Quest] <Completed>
Content: Morning stroll! Breathe fresh dawn air and walk 50m.
Reward: 50 karma. Failure Penalty: -
[Quest] <Completed>
Content: Do any exercise enough to break a sweat.
Reward: 200 karma. Failure Penalty: -
[Quest] <Completed>
Content: Run 100m outdoors.
Reward: 150 karma. Failure Penalty: -
[Quest]
Content: Succeed at 3 knee push-ups with knees on the ground.
Reward: 150 karma. Failure Penalty: -
My rage from moments ago felt like a lie—my mood soared. This must be what they call financial therapy. A grin spread across my face automatically.
“Hey, see that pig way over there?”
“That pig? Wow… laughing to himself…”
“Ugh… so ugly.”
One of the girls spotted me enjoying myself and pointed while whispering. This body's sharp senses—sight, hearing, smell—picked up every word crystal clear…
Yeah, go ahead and trash me all you want. I'll do my thing.
Still, gotta remember those girls' faces…
I'd always been spiteful with a long memory, even before the swap. You can't hit the gym daily or calorie-count every meal without that edge.
“Hup! Hup!”
Ignoring the stares, I dropped to my knees and started knee push-ups. Best to clear quests fast during personal time. Once real training kicked in, I wouldn't have the stamina.
Content: Succeed at 3 knee push-ups with knees on the ground.
Reward: 150 karma. Failure Penalty: -
Now I had 580 karma. Enough for five height-growth potions. I shuffled to an empty spot.
Tempted to invest in stats with this much saved up, but…
“Buy five height-growth potions.”
Nope. Even with low base stats, my trait covered it. I didn't tire easily and recovered fast with minimal rest. Proof: my breathing steadied in just three minutes. I could keep up with training now.
Long-term, nothing beat height. The jog proved it— even basic running was hell with short legs. Other drills? No different.
Gulp gulp!
I downed the five bottles in my hand one after another, then snuck off to dispose of them. Lee Kangin had headed to eat; Blanc was lost in thought, head down from this morning's trauma. No one paid me mind.
Like at dawn, I buried the glass shards in the dirt, then headed for breakfast.
One month from now, I'll hit 169cm too… First goal achieved faster than expected. 170cm isn't short at all. No more height-related hassles.
From now on, new karma could go elsewhere—no more potion hoarding.
*
First day of training: they measured each trainee's stamina and skills by pushing us to the brink. Simple, memorable moves repeated until we thought we'd die—dozens, hundreds of times.
Surprisingly, it wasn't Chris doing most of the tormenting. Brack took the lead, grinding us down.
“Ass lower! Lower! Lower!! Never squatted before? Deeper! Hold it! Fifteen seconds!”
“Back straight! You'll snap your spine!”
“Legs not high enough? That's 45 degrees? Anyone bending knees adds twenty seconds!”
Screams of dying trainees echoed everywhere. In the original story, Brack was a Foreign Legion vet who'd retired as a gym trainer. Perfect fit for Shelter instructor—no one better.
“Urk! Bluuuugh!”
Post-meal, some puked from overexertion. Good news for us—training paused while they cleaned. Barely five minutes, but sweet relief.
“Huff… huff…”
“Hey… take it slow cleaning…”
“Yeah, already am…”
Trainees slyly dragged out the chore to stretch the break. Luckily, instructors ignored us. Brack and Chris conversed seriously at a distance, out of earshot—or so they thought.
“…this batch… curriculum…”
“…definitely… previous groups… base stamina…”
Snippets decided training direction. Chris looked earnest, pitching ideas actively. Hard to believe the novel's “She's an excellent instructor” line… After ten-plus ass-kicks, flaws blinded me to virtues.
“…last batch… deaths… cause… focus on…”
“…yeah… mortality rate… top priority…”
Fuck. Did she say mortality rate? Must've misheard. Original had no training deaths…
“Good thing I have no trait, or I'd be screwed…”
Just minutes of rest restored my stamina. Others trembled just walking. Even Lee Kangin knelt, hands on thighs, panting.
Content: Obey instructor orders without rebellion for 5 minutes.
Reward: 300 karma.
Failure Penalty: Quest persists until cleared.
Pre-swap Park Chanyoung couldn't obey five minutes without rebelling… Yeah, he'd be flat on his back by now, defying orders outright.
Easy quest for me. I'd followed for over two hours already, no urge to rebel. Getting labeled problem child meant worse hell.
“Thought I'd endure a day…”
“Grinding us like this on day one? Insane?!”
“Can't anymore… arms won't go above shoulders…”
Instructors' prolonged meeting loosened oversight. Trainees recovered enough brains during the short break.
Perfect conditions for complaints in irrational hell…
And sure enough, grumbles erupted—mostly from weaker female trainees. From “it's hard” to “I can't” to “I won't.” Mood soured fast.
Not intervening, huh…
I glanced at Lee Kangin—arms crossed, just watching. Like me.
Smart call.
Instructors' hearing transcended human limits. If I caught their talk from here, they'd hear trainees' gripes easy. They knew the vibe—hell, they engineered it. To crush inevitable rebellion when they could control it.
“Forced here against my will, and now this… why me…”
“Just say we're done. If over half refuse, what can they do?”
“No way they beat every single one of us?”
“Better if they do… flop after, and they won't push more…”
Try it once—you'd never say that. Everyone saw yesterday and this morning: merciless beatings, vile tactics.
But apparently not enough. They hadn't internalized it. Own agony drowned out others' pain and humiliation.
“Fine. I'll speak for us.”
“Sis! I… I'll back you up from behind!”
“Everyone agree? I'll confront the instructors, so follow my lead!”
No one shouted, but all nodded at her words. The ringleader: Ri Shaolin. Third live demo after Adachi Kenji and Blanc François.