Chapter 221

< Sprint (2) >

***

Probably, there’s no athlete who trains like Jin Hyuk.

Not even an Olympic medalist track and field athlete.

That was Joo Shin-young’s thought as she watched the grueling training.

“How does he run like that?”

Standing behind Min Yong-rak, Joo Shin-young, who couldn’t close her gaping mouth, shook her head.

She had come loaded with all sorts of medical supplies, thinking she might support Jin Hyuk’s summer training, but it seemed like he didn’t need any medical support.

No, any kind of support seemed pointless.

That thought hasn’t changed even now, as the vacation is coming to an end.

Joo Shin-young wasn’t even given a chance to spray pain relief patches.

He was sprinting 400 meters, then 500 meters, with little rest in between. Joo Shin-young, a former UDT member, had gone through tough training herself, but she couldn’t even imagine training like Jin Hyuk.

“Maybe it’s because he’s young, but his recovery is amazing.”

Min Yong-rak, who had become immune to the shock after watching every day, slurped his cola and spoke nonchalantly.

“To train like that without a physical therapist, is there a secret?”

“Since he was young, he’s been doing strength training, endurance training, cardio, recovery training—all sorts of training on his own. After training, Jin Hyuk goes to the sauna, alternating between cold and hot baths, which also helps with muscle relaxation, and…”

Min Yong-rak flipped through his notebook for a moment.

He had a desk, but it seemed more convenient to place it on his lap.

“Ah, here it is. It says it helps with cardio endurance.”

“Hmm.”

If he’s been doing it since he was young, his body must move and recover on its own. There’s no weapon scarier than something ingrained. Joo Shin-young, wearing glasses, nodded her head.

“But who’s that guy? He doesn’t seem like he’s from around here.”

Min Yong-rak’s gaze followed where Joo Shin-young pointed.

There, a man with gold-rimmed glasses was sitting on a bench, doing leg lifts.

“That guy’s the health center director. His name’s Yoo Jae-woon, I think?”

Min Yong-rak, turning his eyes back to the monitor, spoke indifferently.

“The health center? It’s not far from here.”

“Last time, he came to check on Cheon-ma. They must’ve gotten close then. He comes every day to exercise by bike.”

“What’s wrong with his leg?”

Yoo Jae-woon’s right calf was wrapped in a removable half-cast.

“Ah-, he was exercising at the health center’s open space to build his body, and then, what was it—”

Min Yong-rak frowned, struggling to recall the word.

“Calf? Soleus?”

“Soleus muscle?”

“Yes, that’s it. He ruptured his soleus muscle.”

Joo Shin-young nodded.

“If he came all the way here, it must not be too serious.”

Even with a ruptured soleus muscle, you can still ride a bike.

If you press the pedal with the entire sole of your foot instead of just the toes, the load shifts to the thighs instead of the calves.

“This health center is pretty laid-back. It’s a village where even the elderly are active, but their main job seems to be giving flu shots in winter. They treat livestock more often than people. Still, it’s ridiculous to injure yourself while exercising—”

Munch, munch.

Min Yong-rak kept munching on snacks as he rambled.

“Try the Wafer, it’s good. Oh, that guy lives in Oksu-dong. Isn’t that where you live too, Lieutenant Joo?”

Just eat already. Stop talking with your mouth full. Joo Shin-young clenched her teeth and nodded, unintentionally frowning.

“That’s some dedication. Coming all the way here with that leg to build his body.”

“It’s much closer than the town.”

As if to say, “Don’t you know that?” Min Yong-rak shrugged.

Sigh. Joo Shin-young quietly exhaled.

That’s not what she meant.

‘Ugh, this jerk—.’

She wanted to punch him, but she had to hold back.

He’s someone the group chairman considers a close confidant, so it’s not like she can just slap him for being annoying.

The health center doctor is working so hard. Meanwhile, someone lives just a stone’s throw away, surrounded by exercise addicts, yet I’ve never seen them lift a single dumbbell.

That someone still has cookie crumbs falling on their belly without noticing.

That someone…

I heard their wedding was postponed indefinitely by the woman.

Because of their belly fat.

And yet, that someone still hasn’t booked a venue, so it doesn’t matter, as they jiggle their belly fat.

She turned her eyes to Yoo Jae-woon, who was exercising diligently.

He’s a much fresher figure than the tadpole who’s constantly inhaling cola and snacks without breathing, as if he’s about to turn into a frog soon. His shiny gold frames give off a somewhat urban and intellectual vibe.

‘His glasses are similar to mine.’

Plus, we’re from the same hometown.

I never understood why people from the provinces were so happy to meet fellow locals in Seoul, but now that I’ve met someone from the same Oksu-dong in this sparsely populated countryside, it feels oddly nice.

The health center director…

Since he’s a licensed doctor, we’d have a lot to talk about, and it’d be easier to get medical supplies if we became friends. It’d probably be more fun than hanging out with that tadpole who’s given up on exercise. Maybe I should get closer by giving him some exercise tips?

Joo Shin-young left the pot-bellied Min Yong-rak behind and approached Yoo Jae-woon.

“Hey, Doc. Straighten your back, your posture is important. If you round your back like that, you’ll hurt yourself.”

“Oh, really?”

She settled right next to Yoo Jae-woon and started coaching him.

Using her hands to correct his posture here and there.

“If it’s hard to straighten your back, try tightening your back. Open your chest wide and push your abs down. That’s it, that’s it. Lift your leg and exhale—, two! Good job. Hold the leg up for a bit. Squeeze your abs. Oh, good job. Much better than the tadpole.”

“Huh?”

“Huh? Focus, focus. Forget about the tadpole. Now—, while squeezing, empty your lungs—. Squeeze your lungs and muscles together, okay?”

“Yes, yes—.”

“When lowering, tap the ground with your toes and come right back up. Your calves are already hurting, so don’t stay too long. Lifting your feet completely is good too, but if you do it wrong, you’ll hurt your back, so let’s take it slow.”

“Yes, yes—.”

“Good, good job—. Phew—, empty it out—. One more—! That’s it, almost there. One more!”

One more, one more. More, more, more—.

He had other exercises in mind.

Unable to say a word, Yoo Jae-woon, who had been focused on core training, couldn’t straighten his back on the bike ride back to the health center.

Creak—.

The rusty pedal cried pitifully, as if expressing Yoo Jae-woon’s feelings.

“Kid! Come back tomorrow!”

Creak—.

His abs hurt more than his ruptured calf.

“If you don’t come, I’ll come get you!”

Creak—.

Even if he lied and said he’d go to church from tomorrow, it wouldn’t work.

Groan—.

He couldn’t even speak.

‘I have to run.’

Creak—.

With a desperate heart, he repeated the bike’s nickname.

Run, Thunder Storm.

Creak—.

***

The next day, the day after, and the day after that.

Jin Hyuk repaired Yoo Jae-woon’s bike, applied anti-rust oil to the rough parts, and removed the rust.

‘Is this model the ancestor of cheap bikes?’

It was a bike gifted by a resident near the health center, but even a street vendor would cry and throw candy at it, feeling sorry for it.

After removing the rust, he applied a thin coat of oil-based paint. Like an anti-oxidation barrier.

Once the black oil-based paint dried, he painted “Thunder Storm” in white on top.

‘It’s amazing the pedals still turn.’

Then he generously lubricated the moving parts.

He even had a reasonable suspicion that Yoo Jae-woon’s soleus muscle rupture wasn’t from exercise but from overexerting himself on a stiff bike.

If that’s true, he’s quite a carefree guy.

“Do health center doctors get paid a lot?”

“Not much, but enough to buy a bike.”

Yoo Jae-woon, understanding the intent of the question, answered quite smartly, then awkwardly added.

“It was a gift. I have to take care of it.”

What a kind person. Jin Hyuk silently nodded.

He felt the same way when treating Cheon-ma. This guy puts his heart into everything.

But for someone who claims to cherish his bike, he doesn’t seem to know how to maintain it.

Not wanting to scold such a kind-hearted person, Jin Hyuk held back his criticism.

“How’s your leg?”

“It’s all better. When you’re young, it heals fast.”

Really? Is it because he’s young?

Or maybe it’s because Yoo Jin touched him when he briefly passed out during personal training with Joo Shin-young yesterday?

After waking up, Yoo Jae-woon removed the half-cast and sprinted around the track.

With a look as if he was possessed.

He even let out occasional roars.

***

He lived without intentionally refilling the energy he had once emptied.

It didn’t make sense for someone aspiring to be human to carry around such a force.

Even without that energy, his strength didn’t decrease, nor did his concentration falter.

“Stand it straight, you fool!”

“Yes, yes!”

After supplementary classes, he rushed to Grandpa Cheon Gil-ryong’s house to help set up bamboo. More like he did it all himself.

Anyway, since he caused the trouble, it was only right to take responsibility.

“Huff, huff—. Oh, this is exhausting.”

“Ah, you’re strong, so why don’t you use some technique? Why are you huffing and puffing?”

Thinking of a response made him smirk.

‘It’s because I’m human now.’

Jin Hyuk internally retorted, fearing Grandpa Cheon Gil-ryong’s pipe, which he swung like a sword, and focused on pushing the bamboo.

Originally, his body had exceptional strength, and he never used his energy for physical tasks. He didn’t know how to use it, but anyway. It means daily life isn’t affected.

By applying force slowly to prevent breaking, the fallen bamboo stood straight toward the sky.

‘This is a workout.’

The elasticity of the rooted bamboo was astonishing—not overwhelmingly strong, nor weakly yielding. Gently pushing it stimulated his forearm muscles, and the triceps, used to hold the position, tightened like wringing laundry.

Maintaining a straight line from arm to waist evenly stimulated the deltoids and trapezius. The spinal erectors showed off their strength against the physical force descending along the scapula. Finally, when the force reached the lumbar muscles on either side of the waist, the gluteus maximus and quadriceps redirected the bamboo’s rebound to avoid strain.

Focusing on the hamstrings’ tension to prevent thigh cramps, he fully extended the soleus muscle, and finally, relaxing the plantar muscles, the bamboo’s resistance pushed back up through his body.

‘Always keep your abs tight.’

It was something he always emphasized to his juniors.

With his chest out and abs squeezed, the rectus and transverse abdominis screamed as they supported his upper body.

It was a perfect full-body workout.

After fully setting up one bamboo, Jin Hyuk, drenched in sweat, awkwardly smiled.

“Hehe—. It’s a shade-loving plant, so if you leave it alone, it’ll stand on its own after some rain—.”

“If it were just grass, it would’ve stood on its own, but these aren’t ordinary grass—.”

“Ah, yes…”

If it’s not ordinary grass, is it premium grass? It just looks like regular bamboo, but you’re making a big deal out of it. Still, he held his tongue because of his guilt. If the old man says so, it must be true.

Grunt, grunt—.

Even a wild boar would struggle with this bamboo, so it must not be ordinary grass.

Tsk, tsk—.

Cheon Gil-ryong clicked his tongue as he looked at the bamboo leaning as if its roots were about to be pulled out.

‘What a mess.’

Returning from Seoul, Cheon Gil-ryong immediately went to the bamboo forest and, after hearing the whole story from the tearful Chasa Changrim, burst into laughter. You guys met your match, he clapped.

‘The harmony of yin and yang can both harbor and expel evil spirits.’

Like the principle of shade and sunlight.

Some weak evil spirits couldn’t withstand it and were swept away, and even Chasa Changrim struggled to hold onto the spirits caught in the whirlwind, sighing.

When asked what the kid had done, even Changrim didn’t know. It was a phenomenon even he, who had traversed the mortal and spirit worlds for over a thousand years, had never seen before.

Even Cheon Gil-ryong could only vaguely guess.

‘He carries the universe within his flesh, so that’s the energy of yin and yang—. It’s not sorcery.’

He slowly walked, exhaling the smoke from his pipe.

He kept repeating this as he walked through the bamboo forest.

It was a ritual to bid farewell to the departed spirits.

‘I wish they could’ve left more gracefully…’

Ascending isn’t necessarily a bad thing for them. In a world full of evil spirits who can’t ascend even if they want to. But for those who clung to the mortal world, their end was both pitiful and comical.

Swept up in a whirlwind reaching the sky—whoosh—.

‘It’s inevitable. That’s their fate, and that’s where our connection ends.’

It’s not like we can punish that tall kid who knows nothing.

Of course, we must value the living more than the dead.

*

For several days.

Nearby residents who witnessed the dragon-like phenomenon occasionally asked about Cheon Gil-ryong’s well-being, but it was just out of concern for the old man. Since strange things like thunder and lightning in broad daylight often happened here, the residents didn’t pay much attention to the bamboo forest.

“When yin and yang meet, such things happen—. You all have children, so you know this truth, right?”

You can even say that sparks flew just from eye contact back in your prime. Jin Hyuk internally marveled at the unintended words he overheard.

The residents, confirming Cheon Gil-ryong’s safety, quietly left.

They had long been brainwashed by Cheon Gil-ryong’s explanation that the area, where the protruding cape and the sunken tidal flats met, was prone to strange occurrences.

“Hehe—. School’s starting soon—.”

“Finish what you started, you fool.”

“Yes, I was thinking the same thing.”

Hehe—.