Chapter 128: The Knight Is Trying to Become Stronger (1)

“…Wow.”

A certain girl with beautiful blonde hair that looked like golden threads and mesmerizing blue eyes let out a small exclamation.

Thump-! Thump! Thhuuuump-!

“How did he do all that while carrying that kind of thing on top of him…?”

[I know, right…?]

Actually, the girl wasn’t alone, there was another one who was also staring at a certain man blankly.

No, to be more exact, the other girl was a ghost. Currently, the two of them stopped by at their neighbor’s house to greet their neighbor who had been away for over two weeks after hearing him returning home.

It had been a long time since they met, so the girl straightened her tangled hair, and even put on some makeup before she went. That was how excited she was to meet and talk with him.

…If possible, she thought it would be even better if she could have dinner together with him.

However, the first thing that neighbor did after meeting her for the first time in two weeks was to ask her a favor.

And after hearing what kind of favor he asked, the girl’s reaction was…

‘Huh?’

It seemed like a silly reaction, but anyone would react in the same way if they heard what it was that the man asked for.

Thump-!

“There’s that sound again.”

The girl, Irene Windler, asked herself the same question again, ‘I know I made THAT, but, can a normal human really lift that thing…?’.

What he asked her to create was a plate¹ made of water. However, unlike a normal plate, its size was almost as big as an ox. Actually, one couldn’t even call it a plate in the first place. It would be more accurate to describe it as a giant chunk of water.

Since it was made of water, one might think that it was light, but its creator, Irene Windler, knew that it wasn’t the case at all.

I compressed the water so many times… Yet, he can still lift it so easily…

After all, she made that thing by compressing the lake’s water about twenty times. It meant its mass was much larger than it looked. She actually used up half of her magic power to create that thing.

Considering that her magic power was twice as great as other mages’, the implication was already big enough.

But, that wasn’t all. The lump of water was made of magical mystics, and it boasted a weight of approximately 800 kg per lump. Since there were two lumps, the combined weight easily reached 1,600 kg in total.

“Haa…. Can you increase the weight a little more?”

“W-Will you be fine?”

“I will.”

“…”

The fact that Irene hadn’t reached her limit even after creating those water lumps was surprising enough. But what was even more surprising was that the current weight of those lumps was nowhere near the man’s limit.

He’s already inhuman the last time I saw him, but now he’s even more inhuman than before!

Just what happened to him in the past two weeks?!

Irene asked inwardly, curious.

“Ah, sorry for always making you do these annoying things. I shoulda treated you to a meal or given you a gift whenever I asked you for this kind of favor…”

Probably because he thought that she was angry at him for forcing her to do such an annoying thing, the man apologized, but Irene quickly shook her head.

Indeed, she wasn’t angry at him at all.

“N-No, it’s fine! …But, I won’t refuse a dinner.”

“Then I’ll treat you to a nice one later.”

“Hehehe.”

Thump-!

As she happily increased the weight of the water chunks, the soil caved in.

Now, the weight had reached 1,000 kg per chunk.

Not only that, the pole supporting the lumps boasted a whopping weight of 300 kg since it had to withstand the weight of the water.

In other words, the weight of the barbell the man lifted was 2,300 kg in total—

“Add 700 kg more, please.”

“…”

Now, it had become 3,000 kg in total.

Irene gaped like an idiot again, meanwhile the man…

Crack-!

Lifted the huge barbell again.

While it might seem like he was putting a lot of effort in doing that, but…

“—.”

He started doing squats silently.

While carrying 3 tons of weight.

He even did 10 sets of 30 reps each.

“…”

[I suddenly became convinced that pyramids were made by people.]

“…Me too.”

When the girl and the ghost saw this scene, they became sure that the pyramids were indeed made by people of ancient times. However, there was one thing…

I think he can build a pyramid by himself…

Feeling a belief close to certainty in those words, Irene stared blankly at the strongman she had fallen for—no, rather…

Isn’t he more powerful than Hercules?

Drool-!

Irene Windler’s mouth watered as she intuitively observed the dynamic, living, breathing muscles of a man who was no different from the real Hercules.

Is she that hungry already?

Meanwhile, Lee Han noticed the mage chick’s drools and thought that he shouldn’t train for too long.

Maybe I should just call the magic slave guy next time.

And so, he decided to not bother the young kid just to help him out with his training in the future. The young’un deserved to do something else instead of helping an old man like him train, like hanging out with her friends for example. He also decided to treat her to some good food for dinner later since he looked so hungry. After that, he resumed his barbell squats again.

He felt genuinely sorry for her, but he still didn’t want to miss out this rare chance for a good training.

Let’s go!

Crack-!

Lee Han lifted the water barbell with a strong shout in his mind. That served as a signal for him to activate [Vajra Body]. As soon as the trigger words were spoken, the Vajra Body was activated in 0.5 seconds.

However, since the technique was still immature, there were times when it would take more than 1 second to activate and everytime that happened…

Crack-!

He could hear the painful scream of his body.

“…Ngh.”

Fortunately, his body was strong enough to withstand ‘this much weight’, so he could still bear with it.

If anything, the problem that he had to deal with was…

…Ugh, my head.

The excessive usage of using Vajra Body itself.

Twitch-!

His head was throbbing.

Originally, to use the Vajra Body even once required considerable mental strength. The way the technique worked was to spread one’s entire body’s energy to strengthen the body like armor. When put that way, it sounded like a simple technique, but when put to practice, it was anything but.

In fact, Vajra Body was the most difficult technique amongst all of Lee Han’s techniques. So, training while using it was…

…Like riding a bike on a tightrope while carrying a bad-tempered zebra on my back.

It was a prime example of focusing on too many things. If he were to make even the slightest mistake in this situation, he could fall or get hurt—on top of the dizziness he already felt. But the problem here was that it was difficult for him to lift the 3 tons barbell without deploying Vajra Body. Without it, the risk of injury would be significantly greater.

Besides…

This is how I should train myself.

Lee Han felt that there was a limit to the training routine he used to do, so he decided to try out a more daring and crazy method.

Especially…

If I want to have a body like that guy.

Back during the last mission, he was able to see someone with a body that was even more ridiculous than his own. Maximus’, with his heaven-sent perfect body. His strength and reaction speed were leagues above Lee Han’s.

After all, that guy could achieve speed that was comparable to Bending Body Launch just by kicking the ground.

…Crazy guy.

However, that guy’s body gave him countless inspirations. After fighting him, said inspiration became even clearer, and he found a new direction to develop his body.

Increasing his muscle density—something he always did.

What was important about it was something more internal.

The integration of his skills.

He had to be able to use Bending Body Launch as if he was running.

To be able to maintain his Vajra Body even in his daily life.

Also, he had to sharpen his senses to the point where he could use Hitting the Cow Across the Mountain like it was his own limbs.

In other words…

It’s time for a complete transformation.

He needed to cause an ‘artificial transformation’ to his body.

Most of the techniques he possessed were ‘active skills’. What he wanted to do was to make it so that he could use them as ‘passive skills’. To do that, he’d need to modify his body by keep using those active skills, and this was the answer he had found so that could happen.

It was something impossible for him to achieve before, but after he leveled up to Lv. 8 or whatever, his body’s capacity had expanded, so he knew that he could do it. In other words, this whole thing wasn’t a reckless challenge, but a genuine goal that he set for himself after experiencing a breakthrough.

I’ll go for 10,000 squats.

For the time being, he wanted to be strong enough to lift 10 tons of weight with ease.

As long as he could do that…

No one would call me weak anymore.

He wouldn’t fall behind anyone in terms of physical specs.

Baaaang-!

After finishing his 10 sets, he carefully put the barbell down. The ground shook greatly as he did that, proof that the barbell was indeed, extremely heavy. However, even though he felt sorry for the weak ground…

“Huuu… Next, barbell lunges.”

Today’s workout was not over yet.

The weight…

500 kg more should do…

He wanted to see how much he could do with his Vajra Body activated. Just as he decided that he’d take on that new challenge…

“Sir Knight!”

“…Maid?”

Thump-!

A woman approached him, making him quickly put the barbell down. He didn’t want her to accidentally bump into him while holding that thing, as one of them could get hurt.

Actually, maybe she’ll be fine…

Considering her extraordinary resilience, Lee Han thought that she would be okay in that scenario, but he just shook his head. If it was any other person, it would be one thing, but her in particular, he didn’t want to hurt her.

As he let his mind wander like that, Leila Winter—who was radiating a lively energy while showing a smile that made the surroundings feel fresh—politely held out a newspaper with both hands.

“Hehe, since you said you needed a newspaper, Sir Knight, so I bought this for you!”

“You…bought it?”

“Yes! I bought it right after it was published by the Royal Newspaper!”

“But why…? They could just deliver it later…”

Considering that the distance between the Royal Newspaper’s building and his house was about 10 km, the fact that she bought it and brought it all the way here…

Judging by the warmth of the ink on the newspaper, the thing was probably published less than 5 minutes ago…

Can I even run 10 km in 5 minutes?

Without breaking a sweat like her??

While Lee Han doubted himself, he was convinced that this woman could definitely do it.

Maybe I should set her as my goal instead of that Black Lion guy or whatever…

“Why are you looking at me like that, Sir?”

“Nothing… I was just thinking nonsense…”

“You’re probably tired, that’s why! Here, have some lemonade and lemon tart! It’ll help relieve your fatigue!”

“…Okay.”

Lee Han silently drank the cool lemonade, telling himself that he probably thought all that because he was tired.

In any case, it wouldn’t be strange for him to say that at this point, her peculiarity was part of his daily life.

“Hmm?”

Damn, these things are tasty.

This was an obvious thing, but there were many things going on in the capital city.

Well, it was understandable.

[The collapse of the largest fertilizer production site in the Southern Continent!? What will be the fate of the kingdom in the future…?!]

[The royal family on the eve of the storm, how will this situation be resolved?!]

[It was actually hell?! The shocking truth, the identity of the fertilizer production site is a hell for prisoners…?]

After all, the largest fertilizer production site in the Southern Continent had just collapsed overnight. From that alone, it could be foreseen that food production would fall off drastically. It wouldn’t be strange if riots broke out due to the unrest caused by those news. This was why countless newspapers in the capital published dozens of newspapers a day.

No matter in which world, reporters would race to find scoops whenever such speculations arose, even if they’d end up risking their lives for it.

To them, the collapse of the capital, or even the Southern Continent as a whole, was nothing more than a breeding ground for scoops.

However…

[Princess Isis declared, ‘A substitute for fertilizer has already been prepared. We will distribute fertilizer to farmers free of charge for the trial operation…’ Are her words false propaganda, or real hope?]

News of something that could counter the desperate situation in an instant was enough to turn public opinion upside down. The reporters who had been acting as doomsayers, telling others as if the kingdom could just collapse at any moment, were met with hard, cold stones.

The royal family—no, she, had made her move.

When the chaos that had been going on became even more intense and drew an even bigger attention, she released a new kind of fertilizer.

One that was much more effective and cheaper than the existing ones.

“Long live Princess Isis!”

“No! You should call her, Her Highness the Crown Princess.”

“Oh, right. She is the successor!”

“Hahaha, the future of Pendragon is bright!”

“Those reporter bastards! Those guys dared to write articles that insulted Her Highness the Crown Princess!!”

“Bring out your stones! Off with those traitors heads!!”

The farmers—no, the people, couldn’t stop praising her. After hearing that the fertilizer they had been using was produced by monsters, the farmers already felt disgusted and uneasy by it. If they didn’t know about it, it would be one thing, but they did. There was no way they could still use it so nonchalantly after that. That was why even though there was still some fertilizer left, they were extremely reluctant to use it. That was also why they felt so thankful for the princess of the kingdom for distributing the new fertilizer in the form of a potion that was easy to use.

Not only was the performance comparable to the original, but Isis’ quick response was deemed as admirable by them, especially since she personally went on a pilgrimage to take care of the farmers.

Indeed, it was a noble and great move.

It was only natural that they were excited.

…Although.

“Yeah, but at the end of the day, it was the royal family who hid the fertilizer’s identity, no?”

“There’s no way she doesn’t have a hand in this.”

“That new fertilizer came out too quickly.”

“Could it be that the royal family planned everything?”

Some sharp people expressed their suspicions, saying that such a quick response was suspicious, if anything. They emphasized that it was the royal family who had allowed the Tunnel’s existence, and naturally, they expressed their criticisms towards them. But…

“Look at these damn traitors!!!”

“Have you ever starved before!? You’ve never have, that’s why you’re saying such things! So what if its made by monsters?! At the end of the day, fertilizer is just fertilizer! It’s just something to make crops grow faster!”

“You know that the royal family also ate the crops that grew on the ground, right? Even the royal farm also used that monster fertilizer. What’s the problem with that?”

While lies and instigations were important in a public opinion war, the results were even more so.

More specifically, results that resonated with the public the most.

Considering that just a hundred years ago, hundreds of people starved to death, something that couldn’t be seen these days, whatever it was that the fertilizer was made from, to the people, it didn’t matter.

“B-But still!”

However, there were still some who insisted on their claims until the end.

They thought that they could push through with it, so that the royal family would yield and apologize, but…

“So, are you telling me that you want the previous king who had left for Avalon to take responsibility?”

“!!!?”

“If that’s the case, then be prepared. Even if others forgive you for insulting him, I won’t.”

“U-Uh t-that…”

Indeed.

The Tunnel was something that was built during the God of War’s era. Insulting it was the equivalent of insulting him.

Now…

What exactly would happen if the public found out that you had insulted the great king who was revered as a god in a human’s body?

“Kill him! Kill him!!!”

“Set him on fire!”

It was the equivalent of throwing yourself into a raging flame.

The crime of insulting the God of War was something that people wouldn’t pity the aggressor for, even when they were burned at the stake.

Just like that, the situation was quickly resolved, and Princess Isis’ position as the successor was further solidified.

Indeed…

“What a scary woman… At this point, she’s just toying with everything, isn’t she?”

She was a terrifying woman.

Imagining the face of the woman, sitting at her desk, orchestrating the entire situation from there, Lee Han’s could feel that even his sweat almost dried.

…It gave him the creeps, to say the least.