[Rin’s POV]
Light exercise, he says....
...Light exercise, my ass.
Where in the world is this considered light?
I swear, these people don’t understand the definition of the word.
I was so sure we were heading to the gym. That’s what Ryen said earlier—back when I tried to distract him from Leona’s tomato crimes. He even looked all serious, like he had a plan.
But no.
Of course not.
Plans don’t mean anything to protagonists.
Right as we stepped out of the cafeteria, he suddenly spun around with this bright, sunny smile on his face and said,"Going to the gym right after eating isn’t good for digestion. How about we go for a light jog around the academy grounds instead? That’ll help the food settle!"
And like an idiot, I nodded.
Because hey, how bad could a light jog be?
"Ugh...!"
Very bad. That’s how.
What Ryen considered a light jog, I would categorize somewhere between military punishment and pre-death hallucination.
Seriously, if I hadn’t kept myself together, I’d have seen my lunch make a grand reappearance—probably with a little wave and a goodbye note to my stomach.
How the hell were they running at that speed?
It felt like I was being dragged into an Olympic sprint I didn’t sign up for. These lunatics were probably cruising at 30 km/h like it was a casual stroll through the park.
And me?
I died.
Twice.
I collapsed somewhere along the track, my legs giving up on life, and only after completing another lap did they finally notice my corpse baking in the sun.
They all jogged back to me, looking like they’d barely broken a sweat.
"I heard you were weak," Leona said with a raised brow, "but you’re really frail."
"Oh no! I’m so sorry, Rin, I didn’t realize!" That was Ryen, all wide-eyed concern and guilt.
"We weren’t even going that fast," Nora added, scratching her head like I was the one being dramatic.
I stared at them, chest heaving, lungs burning, sweat pouring down my face like I was melting.
Two of them looked at me with awkward pity.
One looked genuinely worried.
And I? I wanted the earth to swallow me whole.
I thought about defending myself—maybe saying this was a huge improvement from how I used to be—but that would just make me sound even more pathetic.
So I shut up.
And quietly regretted every life decision that led me to this point.
After taking a few deep breaths, I quietly stood up, brushing the dirt from my palms. Then I shot Ryen a glare sharp enough to slice through steel.
He flinched like I’d just fired a warning shot.
Without saying a word, I started jogging again, my steps heavy but steady. The rest followed behind me in silence, as if they already knew I was dangerously close to snapping.
To be fair, it wasn’t Ryen’s fault I couldn’t keep up earlier.
But it was definitely his fault for suggesting this absurd idea of a "light jog around the academy grounds."
Damn it, Ryen.
Is this how he repays me? After I forced down those stupid tomatoes I didn’t even like in the first place?
In that moment, I made a decision.
The [Oath of the Saint] ring—the rare dungeon reward currently burning a hole in my pocket—was originally meant for Ryen. He was supposed to get it at the right time, just like in the original storyline.
But you know what?
Screw the original storyline.
I’m giving it to Professor Lena instead. She actually worries about my well being, unlike a certain someone sprinting like a cheetah five minutes ago while calling it a "light jog."
I frowned and glanced around, expecting to see Ryen miles ahead. But to my surprise, he, Leona, and Nora were jogging casually beside me, keeping my pace.
They weren’t sprinting anymore.
Confused, I glanced back—and there he was, Ryen, waving at me with that dumb, bright smile.
It wasn’t mocking. It was... patient.
Like I was some sick kid they were humoring by slowing down to match my pace.
And that?
That was somehow more embarrassing than being left behind.
I looked away quickly, cheeks heating up.
Great.
Now I was the charity case.
Could this day get any worse?
Just when I thought things couldn’t possibly get more humiliating, the universe decided to prove me wrong.
"Hey, let’s do another lap!" Ryen called out, his voice way too chipper for someone who’d just dragged me through hell.
Leona nodded with a small smirk. "Sure. But let’s keep it light—for Rin."
Oh, good. Now they were adjusting the difficulty for me. Fantastic. Next thing I know, they’ll be offering me water with a sippy straw and patting me on the head like I’m five.
I wanted to disappear. Just evaporate into the air like morning mist and pretend this whole thing never happened.
"Rin," Nora said, jogging up next to me, her tone surprisingly soft, "are you okay? You really don’t have to push yourself."
Of course she wasn’t really worried about me. She was showing her good side in front of Ryen to raise her goodwill of him.
I could see that slight smrik on her face as Ryen nodded towards with hint of approval.
Damn, she’s crafty fox for sure.
She will try to take advantage of any situation that would bring closer to Ryen.
I waved her off like it was no big deal, even though I was 98% sure my soul had already left my body and was hovering nearby, watching with pity.
"I’m fine," I croaked. "This is... normal. I do this all the time."
No one believed me. Not even me.
They were all nice about it—too nice. Which, honestly, just made it worse.
Sympathy. The final nail in the coffin of my dignity.
Then, as if summoned by my shame, Professor Lena appeared at the edge of the track. She stood there, arms crossed, with that usual unreadable expression on her face.
"Jogging after lunch?" she said, raising an eyebrow. "Bold."
Ryen beamed at her. "It helps with digestion!"
Professor Lena turned her gaze toward me, her eyes flicking over my disheveled state and bright-red face.
"You look like you’re about to digest yourself."
...I had no comeback for that.
She walked toward us and handed me a bottle of cold water—blessed, heavenly water—and gave me a slight nod. "Pace yourself. Don’t let them kill you."
I nodded like my life depended on it. Because honestly, it did.
And in that moment, I knew I was doing the right thing.
The [Oath of the Saint] ring?
Yeah. It’s going to her.
Let Ryen jog his way through the storyline without artifacts for a while.
Professor Lena gets the loot—and my eternal gratitude.
Maybe one day, when I’ve recovered my pride, I’ll tell her why.
But for now?
I just sat there in the shade, sipping water like it was nectar from the gods, while the others jogged off for another lap.
Ryen turned back and shouted, "We’ll wait for you at the fountain!"
I gave him a thumbs-up. The universal sign for go away before I cry.
Yep. I’d hit rock bottom.
But at least the water was cold.