Return of the Frozen Player

“Stamina trainin’,” the Thunder God said, looking down at the mountains blanketed with darkness. After they had a hearty supper of pickled deodeoks, he had chosen stamina training for their next session.

“Understood. I will go prepare.” As Baek Geon-Woo bowed and went into his room, Seo Jun-Ho blinked.

“Stamina training?”

“What of it? A healthy body houses a healthy mind. Stamina is the marrow of the land.”

“But…” Seo Jun-Ho had a dumbfounded expression on his face. He mustered the courage to speak. “If I’m honest, I can only train here for about a month.”

“So?”

“...Excuse me?”

“So, what do you want me to do.” The Thunder God grinned. “What am I s’posed to do if ya only have a month?”

“Um… I don’t have much time, so I was hoping that you’d teach me about something a little more profound than stamina training…”

“Ha!” The Thunder God burst out in laughter, shoulders shaking. He laughed for a long time and wiped away a tear. “Profound teachings are nice. But how am I s’posed to teach someone how to run when he can’t walk? Even Geon-Woo can barely handle the training.”

“...”

Couldn’t walk? Seo Jun-Ho couldn’t move on from that statement. His eyebrows furrowed. “...I’ve never thought that I was unable to walk,” he said.

“The world is vast.” the Thunder God said in a serious voice, looking over the dark mountains. “Yes, I s’pose ya can think that y’er the strongest when y’er at that level. But to me, ya look like a frog in a well.”

“...” Seo Jun-Ho kept his mouth shut. It would be too harsh to say he could do it if Mr. Geon-Woo could.

However, this didn’t slip by the Thunder God. It was as if he had eyes on the back of his head. His lips stretched as he chuckled.

“Do ya really think that way?” he asked.

“...What are you referring to?” Seo Jun-Ho asked.

“I’m askin’ if ya really think you’re better than Geon-Woo.”

Seo Jun-Ho chided himself for letting his impetuous thoughts show. “I’m sorry. I am not looking down on him…”

“I know as much. Then how ‘bout this?” He made a proposal. “If ya beat Geon-Woo in stamina training, I will teach ya about those other things.”

“...Are you serious?”

“How absurd. Do I look like I have two mouths?” In other words, the Thunder God was saying that there wasn’t any hidden meaning behind what he just said.

Seo Jun-Ho took a second to sort his thoughts and nodded slowly. “I accept. I’m also curious about the stamina Mr. Geon-Woo takes so much pride in.”

“Hehehe.” The Thunder God said nothing and laughed.

When Baek Geon-Woo returned, he was wearing a large rucksack like that of a soldier’s.

“...Mr. Geon-Woo, what is that?” Jun-Ho asked.

“It is a bag. You will need one as well.” He held out another rucksack, and Jun-Ho carefully picked it up.

‘Huh?’

It weighed approximately 100 kilograms. He frowned.

‘Are they…’

Were the master and student in on this together?

As he looked at them suspiciously, the Thunder-God grinned. “Geon-Woo. How much did ya put in his rucksack?”

“...It’s his first time doing stamina training, so I made it light.”

“What’s that to do with ya? Make it the same as y’ers.”

“Excuse me?” Baek Geon-Woo stared at his master with widened eyes.

The Thunder God ignored him and slapped his forehead before turning to Seo Jun-Ho. “Oh! Does Mr. Jun-Ho want to receive special treatment ‘cause it’s his first time? If that’s what he wants, go ahead.”

The old man seemed properly annoyed that Seo Jun-Ho had underestimated his student. Seo Jun-Ho let out a light sigh and shook his head.

“...It’s fine.” Based on their conversation, it seemed that Baek Geon-Woo had been considerate when packing Jun-Ho’s rucksack. But if they weren’t on even ground, he couldn’t achieve a fair victory.

Seo Jun-Ho handed back his rucksack. “Please pack it the same as yours.”

“...It’ll be hard since it is your first time,” Baek Geon-Woo said.

“That’s alright.” After coming this far, it was a matter of pride.

Seo Jun-Ho hoisted the newly packed rucksack on his shoulders.

‘It’s about 150 kilograms.’

It was definitely heavy, but he couldn’t feel it at all because he was maintaining a thirty percent Overclocking output.

‘Mr. Geon-Woo… Seems used to it.’

His rucksack weighed the same as Seo Jun-Ho’s. However, his face remained placid, even though he couldn’t use Overclocking.

“A’ight, let’s take a look.” The Thunder God rubbed his hands and looked around the mountains covered in darkness. Seo Jun-Ho wasn’t sure what he was looking for, but the Thunder God spent a long time looking around before he nodded. “Since I sent it wet last time…I should send it thatta way.”

The Thunder God summoned a thunderbolt and started to walk slowly. After taking a few steps, he hurled it like a javelin.

Wooooosh!

It shot out like a spear and pierced through the darkness, disappearing into the horizon in no time.

‘What in the world are we doing?’

Just as the question popped into his head, Baek Geon-Woo started running down the mountain.

“...”

“Hey, what’re ya starin’ at?”

“Huh?”

The Thunder God laughed at his stupid answer. “Bring me the remnants of the thunderbolt.”

“...The remnants of the thunderbolt? What is that?”

“Whether it hit a tree, the ground, or a rock, there should be remnants of it, don’tcha think? Bring it to me.”

“That’s impossible…” The thunderbolt had flown far away to a place he couldn’t see. All he knew was the direction that it had flown in.

‘The average man can see about 4.7 kilometers into the distance at ground level.’

However, this wasn’t ground level. It was the highest summit of the Wailing Mountains, with an altitude of ten thousand meters that surpassed even Mount Everest.[1]

‘At this height, I should be able to see at least…’

Three hundred and sixty kilometers into the distance. And considering that the thunderbolt had disappeared past it, it could be 500 or 700 kilometers away.

“Just how long will it take for us to bring it back?” he asked.

“Well, I s’pose it’ll take a few days.” The Thunder God shrugged. He pointed at Seo Jun-Ho. “No teleportin’ and no ridin’ anythin’. Ya will only use yer body to bring it back.”

“...”

So, this was the Thunder God’s stamina training.

Seo Jun-Ho could sense that Baek Geon-Woo’s magic had grown quite a distance away from him down below. He bit his lip hard and spoke, “Alright. But if I win, you have to keep your promise!”

“Kekeke.” The Thunder God laughed for a long time as he watched Seo Jun-Ho bound away. As his student and guest disappeared, a stillness settled over his residence for the first time in a long time. “...Things’ll be quiet for the time being.”

The old man settled on a boulder and closed his eyes.

***

Seo Jun-Ho had raised his Overclocking output to fifty percent.

[Night has fallen. Hunter’s Night (A) has been activated.]

[All stats increased by 10%.]

[Your senses have been sharpened.]

It was dangerous for most Players to take even a single step into the Wailing Mountains at night. However, Seo Jun-Ho could see the world around him clearly.

‘My eyesight has definitely gotten better after the body transformation.’ And it had improved even more on top of that with Hunter’s Night. He was even using magic to enhance his sight, so he didn’t really have any trouble seeing.

‘I think Mr. Geon-Woo has a separate sight-enhancing skill as well…’

If they could both see well, Seo Jun-Ho didn’t think he would lose in a contest of speed.

Seo Jun-Ho turned to the direction where the thunderbolt had disappeared and ran in a straight line. It didn’t matter if there were rocks or trees in between. If there was something in his way, he simply cut it down with his sword.

‘Gotcha.’

Seo Jun-Ho had caught up to Baek Geon-Woo in just five minutes.

When he passed him, he could feel Baek Geon-Woo’s heated stare piercing his back.

‘Like you, I have to win this no matter what.’

He increased his speed by another level and shot down the Wailing Mountains like an arrow.

***

pαпᵈα-nᴏνɐ|·сóМ “Huff, huff.”

It was his fifth day in the Wailing Mountains, and Seo Jun-Ho was still running. He was currently somewhere in the central region of the Frontier Empire.

He had yet to find any remnants of the thunderbolt. To add insult to injury, his shoulders were starting to grow heavy as well. He had been diligent in emptying his rucksack of water and rations, but the weight of it was starting to loom over his head.

‘Still… I held out for a long time.’

Four whole days. He had managed to maintain Overclocking for over ninety-six hours. But though his magic energy had been spilling out like a large river, he was starting to reach the bottom. He felt bitter regret—an emotion he didn’t experience often.

‘I’m sore.’

His low magic level wasn’t the only problem. His entire body was screaming, faced with the limit it hadn’t met in a long time. His legs hurt after moving without rest, and his back, arms, and neck were also hurting. His body earnestly kept on begging him to lie down, to take a rest, and it started to eat at his mind.

“Huff, huff…”

However, Jun-Ho didn’t slow down, even though he felt like his heart would explode if he took even one more step.

‘How long has it been?’

This wasn’t some battle with a monster, where he could fall into serious danger if he let his guard down. This wasn’t a fight with a fiend with his life on the line. But other than his fight with Janabi, when was the last time it had been so tiring?

He couldn’t remember.

‘...The Thunder God was right.’

He had to be the one to fight against his limit and break through it.

A frog in a well. He didn’t think there would be any way that term would apply to him, but that phrase loomed over him today.

‘Stamina and muscles are the same.’

If you wanted to train your muscles, you had to lift heavier weights. You had to raise it higher and higher, fail, try again, and succeed before you could strengthen your muscles.

The same was true of stamina. Even as your breath grew ragged and you felt like your brain would melt, you had to keep going and going until you could finally improve. Stamina was just that kind of a beast.

“Huff, huff…” Seo Jun-Ho’s speed slowed considerably. His Overclocking output was also quickly draining like a battery.

‘Where in the world… Are the remnants of the thunderbolt…’

His willpower started to scatter away.

Seo Jun-Ho realized the scariest part of this stamina training.

‘This damned training… It has no end to it.’

Did I actually pass by the remnants like an idiot? How much longer do I have to go? Was this really the right way? What if Mr. Geon-Woo had already found them and had gone back?

The questions kept taunting his mind.

“Ugh.” He let out a hoarse cry from his dry throat. He couldn’t even swallow now. As he gripped his neck, Seo Jun-Ho’s legs grew slower. His vision had gone white a long time ago. Seo Jun-Ho had simply come all this way through willpower and the mindset that he couldn’t stop running.

“...” His knees buckled and hit the ground first before his body fell forward.

There was no pleasure in the world that he would trade for this refreshing comfort. The heavenly feeling soothed his mind and soul.

‘Oh, it feels so good…’

He didn’t know how long it had been since he reached his limit in training.

The reward for it wasn’t small, either.

[You have gained 1 strength stat.]

[You have gained 3 stamina stats.]

[You have gained 1 speed stat.]

[You have gained 1 magic stat.]

The higher your stats were, the harder it was to raise your stats with this kind of training. However, Seo Jun-Ho had done it, and he was overjoyed. Even though he felt like passing out from the fatigue, Seo Jun-Ho’s lips perked up.

“Tsk, tsk, tsk. You’re weak for a youngster.”

When he gently opened his eyes, an old man looking like a tourist held out a bottle of water.

“T-thank…Mister…”

“Save it. Drink first.”

Seo Jun-Ho drained the bottle in an instant, and he began to come back to his senses. The old man looked at Seo Jun-Ho as he pointed.

“Did you also come to see that?”

“...Huh?”

“The thunderbolt that came down a few days ago. I wanted to see it once before I die…” Seo Jun-Ho couldn’t hear what the old man said at the end.

He picked up his shaking body, and his face brightened.

‘...I found it.’

A giant tree was scorched by the thunderbolt. He had finally found the remnants.

1. Mount Everest’s altitude is 8849 meters. ☜