Embracing Magic - E.M Chapter 13 (Part 1)

From that day, Rodin began to torment his lower body.

During class, he lifted his buttocks and trained his lower body. When he felt he couldn’t endure it any longer, he endured by repeating ‘just five more minutes’ to himself.

When walking, he slightly lifted his heels to put a load on his calves. Even after walking for just a few minutes, his calves felt like they were going to burst, but he brainwashed himself into thinking ‘it doesn’t hurt.’

Even during meals, he slightly lifted his buttocks as he did during class.

His legs trembled so much that it was difficult to use his spoon, but he forced himself to endure it.

In the library, he repeatedly stood up and sat down.

He didn’t stop reading throughout. Even when his legs hurt so much that he felt like he couldn’t move, he didn’t sit down and loosened his legs by standing.

During the hot summer days, he sweated profusely even when he was still. When he exercised, he experienced dizziness several times.

To endure the heat and build muscle, Rodin increased his food intake. He ate two steaks at a time, almost as much as Lant.

“Is room 301 full of beggars?”

A kid passing by muttered softly. It was a voice clearly heard by those quietly eating.

“Hey! That bastard.”

“Hold it.”

Rodin restrained Hedler, who was about to get up, dropping his spoon. Hedler glared at the passing kid with a snarl.

Room 301 was under various forms of scrutiny.

It was the only room where all members passed the continent’s common language test and where no one failed the etiquette test.

In other words, room 301 was the only room where not a single person had failed any test so far.

Having a competitive spirit wasn’t bad. Rodin understood that much.

But the problem was that more kids harbored hostility than competitive spirit.

It was common for someone to bump into them while walking and pick a fight.

Sometimes they deliberately knocked over their food trays, and during morning runs, they tripped them.

Especially Cory and Rodin were the main targets.

They were picked on because they were small in stature.

“Geez. What is the instructor doing? Those guys should be caught and taught a lesson.”

“The instructor probably thinks it’s for the best.”

“Why?”

“The Special Forces training center doesn’t prioritize camaraderie and teamwork.”

For regular soldiers, where dozens to thousands move in sync, teamwork is important. When aiming for the same goal and moving in unison, the fear of the group emerges.

But in the Special Forces, they were trained to move in small teams. Missions were performed by teams of one to at most ten.

Special Forces are strong soldiers completing special missions.

Therefore, the instructors promoted competition over teamwork and improvement over camaraderie.

“What kind of soldiers are we getting trained to be?”

“This is how it is here. We just have to adapt.”

Hedler found the situation frustrating.

It would be easier to settle things with a few punches, but they kept picking on them subtly, making it hard to hold back his frustration.

“Hedler, you and Lant are still okay. We’re the main targets.”

Rodin was the more obvious target, but in reality, Cory was harassed more.

Rodin spent a lot of time in the library.

After dinner, he would stay in the library and rarely come out. Since it was hard to see his face, there wasn’t much time to harass him.

On the other hand, Cory had a lot of overlap with other kids.

He found it suffocating to stay inside the dormitory and wandered around a lot. Since he was often seen, there were more opportunities to harass him.

Three days later, he participated in horseback riding class again. His legs were still not well-trained, making it difficult.

During the three-hour riding class, he fell off more than ten times. His whole body ached, and he was always covered in dust.

Falling off the horse so often, he inadvertently got better at falling. Trying not to get hurt, he naturally learned to roll his body.

After a month, the results began to show.

The number of times he fell started to decrease.

Ten times became nine, soon it was eight. Ten days before the riding test, he stopped falling off the horse altogether.

“You ride like a Beksha.”

An older instructor remarked upon seeing Rodin ride.

Rodin knew what ‘Beksha’ meant. It was the name of a country he had read about in the library.

The Kingdom of Beksha was a country in the eastern continent that had perished hundreds of years ago. From its founding to its downfall, it constantly fought against centaurs.

‘It’s quite similar.’

Centaurs were half-man, half-horse monsters.

With the lower body of a horse, they had great mobility, and with the upper body of a human, they wielded weapons, making them dangerous.

Since they thought of hunting humans as a game, entire villages were often annihilated when they appeared.

To fight against the fast-moving centaurs, mobility was essential.

To this end, the Kingdom of Beksha trained children with warrior bloodlines to ride horses from an early age. Around five years old, Rodin’s current age, they were put on horses and taught to ride.

‘There are many advantages.’

Riding a horse using the strength of the lower body was not easy. Since the lower body had to exert force continuously while the horse moved, it consumed a lot of stamina.

However, the advantages were clear.

Without holding the reins, it was easier to use both hands. Also, riding close to the horse allowed one to control it smoothly as if it were part of their body.

A few days later, the horseback riding test took place.

It was a test of riding through straight lines, curves, and obstacles, all within a time limit.

Despite this, all 52 members of the 3rd cohort passed.

The instructor who supervised the riding test was more surprised.

“Phew, I made it.”

Rodin also passed the riding test. Among the 52 members, he might have ranked around 50th. It was really close.

His lower body strength hadn’t developed as much as he wanted. His legs were short, making it hard to apply force properly.

If the test had included sharp turns or sudden stops, he would have definitely failed.

Anyway, another hurdle was overcome.

It was the hardest day in the six months since the initiation ceremony.

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Hyung_Otaku2

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