'He jumped with the barbell…?!'
Kuma couldn't believe her eyes.
How could she?
Doing a jump squat with that kind of weight was unheard of…!
'And with a whole ton…! That high…!!!'
It wasn't just a small hop.
By eye, it looked like he cleared at least five meters.
"Huh? He's coming this way!!"
"Dodge, dodge!!"
The student council members assisting Kuma shouted.
Kim Taeyang, who'd launched into the air, was somehow descending toward Kuma.
"Vice-President!! Hurry and dodg—"
"?"
Kuma, frozen in shock, realized it too late.
She couldn't take a single step.
BOOOOOOOM!!!!
"Ugh!"
The impact sent Kuma sprawling backward.
Kim Taeyang's landing carved a massive crater into the floor.
'This is…!'
Snapping back to reality, Kuma looked up at the towering male before her.
Only one thought crossed her mind.
'An asteroid…!!'
This man was an asteroid.
A massive boulder hurtling from some unknown corner of the universe.
A being powerful enough to shake the earth single-handedly…!
That mysterious object spoke coldly.
"Hey, Steroid Sow. Wanna keep going?"
"…"
Gulp-
Kuma could only swallow hard.
Backing down here would be a massive blow to her pride as a powerlifter…
'But trying to match that could kill me!'
As a professional, she knew this was an insanely dangerous stunt.
Her best squat record was 910kg.
Doing a jump squat with a full ton was ludicrous.
The problem was the crowd, clueless about lifting.
"Kuma. Kuma…"
"Kuma. Kuma. Kuma…!"
"?"
The student council members started chanting her name.
Those who lost in the first and second rooms,
Those assisting Kuma,
Even random students who showed up out of boredom…!
Their eyes burned with unwavering faith.
"Vice-President, you can do it, right?"
"Yeah! If that delinquent can do it, there's no way you can't!"
"As expected of Vice-President!!"
'I can't, you crazy bastards!!!!'
The words nearly burst from her lips, but Kuma swallowed them.
"Kuma! Kuma!! Kuma!!!"
"Kuma!!! Kuma!!! Kuma!!!!"
"Kuma!!!!! Kuma!!!!"
"The Vice-President is the legend of the Arc!!!!"
"The strongest woman… no, the strongest human is our Vice-President!!!"
"Kuma!! Kuma!!! KUMAAAA!!!!!"
"WAAAAAAHHHH-!!!!!!"
The student council's boundless trust.
In that moment,
A face flashed through Kuma's mind.
'The President…'
Student Council President Seol Hajeong.
She'd recently told Kuma:
- Kuma, I hope you do well. I really want that guy.
'I have to repay the President!!!'
Kuma shot to her feet.
She marched toward the rack with grim determination.
"Ooooh! She's starting!!"
"Hey, hey…! Don't make a fuss over nothing…!"
Kuma's voice trembled slightly.
But no one noticed.
The overheated crowd was too caught up in their unwavering faith in her.
Except for Kim Taeyang.
"Kek kek kek. Hey, you're gonna break yourself pushing too hard."
"Huh?! What do you take me for?!! I'm Kuma Rodriguez, who competes for first in the World Hero Powerlifting Championships!!!!"
Kuma shouted louder to mask her nerves.
The student council followed suit.
"The Vice-President is on a whole different level from a delinquent like you! She can do a jump squat with even more weight!!"
The students, faces grim, added plates to the barbell.
'Stop it, you crazy bastards!!!!'
The total weight reached 1,010kg.
Kuma pressed her shoulders against the barbell.
The grip felt more unstable than ever.
Then, a buzzing voice echoed in her ear.
- Kuma. I'll lend you my strength.
'Constellation…!'
Kuma's constellation was formless.
And so taciturn, she never knew if it was nearby or wandering off.
Thankfully, it was watching over her.
- I'll grant you a new stigma.
Shiver-
A chilling presence surrounded her, as if countless ghosts encircled her.
'This is…!'
She instinctively felt the stigma.
"Blessing of the Ancestor Spirits."
A stigma that summoned the spirits of actual hero ancestors to lend their strength.
Voices began flooding her ears.
- This is my descendant…?
- Tsk! How dare a woman cut her hair so short!
'You bastards!'
The ancestor spirits grumbled about Kuma.
But the complainers were few.
- As expected, my genes are top-notch. Even turned my granddaughter into a muscle pig.
- I'm too old to have much strength… but I can't just watch my descendant be humiliated!
- Don't worry, just jump squat!!! This old man will handle the bar's weight!!!!
The sensation in her hands changed.
She wasn't sure how much weight the ancestors were carrying, but Kuma felt a surge of confidence.
'I can do this!!'
CLANK!
Kuma unracked the barbell.
It was far heavier than her usual lifting weight, but not impossible.
'Here we go…! Squat!!!'
She smoothly bent her knees and hips.
"GRAAAAHHHH!!!!"
She focused every nerve and muscle.
She could feel her muscles twitching.
Her vision reddened, as if a blood vessel had burst.
Yet,
Her entire body felt perfectly unified.
"JUMP!!!!!"
BOOOOOOOM!!!!
Kuma launched off the ground.
'I did it!'
She soared into the air.
Time seemed to slow.
The student council cheering wildly.
The shocked sows.
Kim Taeyang grinning smugly.
As Kuma took in their faces…
'My vision… it's fading…'
She blacked out.
***
Bodybuilder Kuma.
That nickname was a slur.
A taunt that tormented her since childhood.
She was a natural muscle prodigy, her physique standing out without even trying.
Being mocked at school was a given.
Especially by the boys, who were relentless.
She'd beat them up when angry, but the scars on her heart couldn't be healed with petty revenge.
That pattern continued through middle school.
'I want to be pretty and cool too… Not mocked, but admired… Like…'
Like Seol Hajeong, the newly elected student council president.
The popular girl everyone adored.
Kuma secretly idolized her, but Seol Hajeong probably didn't even know Kuma existed.
They'd never been in the same class.
Over time, Kuma grew jaded.
Dealing with her bullies led her to hang out with delinquent fighters.
She didn't extort money or bully kids.
She was just called to places where fights happened.
Beating students from other schools led to more challengers seeking her out.
Fighting was her only outlet.
'I just wanted to fight, not hang with these types…'
Before she knew it, she was entangled with organized crime.
Trying to help a fighter friend, she fell into a trap.
Back then, Kuma couldn't escape their threats.
But she had to break free.
- I'm done with gang activities.
- Oh yeah? Then pay up.
- …?
From that moment, Kuma had no choice.
The gang members, turning into beasts, handled her roughly.
- Let go, you bastards!!
- Thought you could come and go as you please? We'll show you how scary the world is!!
That day, Kuma felt the terror of her world collapsing for the first time.
Just before she was assaulted, her savior appeared: Seol Hajeong.
- Stop.
- Huh? A friend? Perfect, you can join—
- Summon.
- AAAAAHHH-!!
Seol Hajeong, already a proven hero in middle school.
She summoned undead and wiped out the gang in an instant.
- You okay?
- Y-You… How did you know I was here…?
- Helping a struggling classmate is the student council president's job.
Seol Hajeong extended her hand.
Kuma hesitated to take it.
- Why would someone like me matter…
- I know you're a diligent student. You only strayed because you were bullied.
What Seol Hajeong did next was shocking.
She bowed deeply in apology.
- I'm so sorry. I should've stepped in when you were being bullied. I lacked courage.
- W-Why are you apologizing? We're not even in the same class…
- Kuma Rodriguez.
- How do you know my name?
- Of course I know. I've always been watching you because you have an amazing body.
- …!
'Your body is amazing.'
Seol Hajeong was the first to say that.
And it came from the girl Kuma admired.
'She's noble by nature…'
The emotion Kuma felt was indescribably intense.
- Oh? Your leg's hurt? I'll carry you.
- W-Wait…!
Without hesitation, Seol Hajeong scooped Kuma up like a princess.
In that moment, a fierce desire ignited in Kuma.
'I want to help this woman…!'
The woman who embraced her.
If she could help her, Kuma would do anything.
Like a child, Kuma clung to Seol Hajeong, gazing at her endlessly.
Her angelic face was one Kuma could stare at forever.
As if rewarding her heart,
Seol Hajeong smiled dazzlingly and said—
"Hey, Steroid Sow. You okay?"
"?"
Seol Hajeong's face began to distort.
It morphed into the terrifying face of a man.
"K-Kim Taeyang?! You…! You're holding me?!! Put me down now!!!!"
"Huh?"
Kim Taeyang dropped her instantly.
Kuma hit the floor, landing on her butt.
"Hey! You almost died if it weren't for me!!"
"What…?"
Kuma, getting up, scanned her surroundings.
The students, hands over mouths, hid their shock.
Their gazes toward her were filled with concern.
'I passed out…?'
Her memory returned.
Kuma had fainted mid-air during her jump squat.
"Don't freeze up, it's annoying!! You held onto the barbell while falling and nearly caused a disaster!!! If I hadn't caught you, that sturdy body of yours would've ended up unable to get pregnant, game over!!!!"
"…"
From the situation, it seemed true.
Kim Taeyang.
This man saved her.
Head bowed, Kuma muttered.
"How… did you get so strong…?"
"Kek kek kek. Only now you're curious? Unlike you, I'm natural, that's why."
"…Just not taking drugs can't make you that strong. Common sense says doping makes you stronger."
"Hey."
Kim Taeyang's heavy voice pressed against her eardrums.
"If you wanna know the secret to muscle growth, come to my dorm~ Kek kek kek."
Wink wink!
He flicked his tongue between a V-sign.
'A trap…?'
Kim Taeyang was notorious for stealing constellations.
Currently declared the student council's main enemy.
She couldn't help but suspect him—
'But I'm curious…! The secret to a one-ton jump squat…!!!'
Kuma's passion for fitness burned fiercer than anyone else's at the Arc.