"An angel..." I whispered.
The girl tilted her head slightly. Her golden hair fell a little lower with the movement, and one of the strands brushed against my nose as her clear blue eyes blinked in surprise.
"An angel?"
The curiosity in her voice made me realize the stupid thing I had just said.
My eyes opened wide.
"Ah—"
I tried to get off the ground in a panic, but my arms were still trembling from the push-ups. My elbow buckled on the first attempt, and I nearly fell flat on my face again. At the last moment, I planted one knee against the ground, regained my balance, and quickly stood up as though nothing had happened.
My legs didn’t appreciate the sudden movement and caused me to stumble slightly, but I was fairly certain I managed to remain standing.
Probably.
"Um..." I cleared my throat. "Did you need something?"
The girl straightened and looked at my face.
She was even more beautiful up close. A few strands of hair were stuck to her forehead with sweat, and her cheeks were slightly flushed from running. Her shoulders moved gently as she breathed at a steady pace.
Unlike me, she didn’t look as though she was about to die despite having run for more than forty minutes. That detail added a small amount of jealousy to my admiration.
"You were lying on the ground," she said. "I thought you were hurt."
"On the ground?"
I thought about how I must have looked a moment ago. My arms had been spread to either side, my mouth was slightly open, and I had been staring blankly at the sky like a dead fish.
I rubbed the back of my neck and gave her an awkward smile.
"You must have imagined it."
The girl’s gaze briefly moved toward the spot where I had been lying. The expression on her face made it clear that she didn’t believe a single word.
Trying to save what remained of my dignity, I pushed out my chest and attempted to look more confident.
"I was just resting after a difficult workout."
"A difficult workout?"
"Yes."
I folded my arms across my chest, hoping the movement would hide my trembling muscles.
"It was pretty intense."
The girl remained silent for a few seconds before asking with an innocent expression:
"One pull-up?"
"..."
The morning breeze brushed against my face as I listened to the birds in the park and the steady rhythm of running shoes striking the stone path in the distance.
Inside my mind, however, only the two words she had spoken continued to echo.
One pull-up...
Damn it, she had been watching me!
I could no longer tell whether the sweat gathering on my forehead came from the workout or my embarrassment. Heat spread from my neck to my ears, and I was certain my entire face had turned red.
"W-Were you watching me?"
My voice came out slightly louder than intended. I frowned, trying to hide my embarrassment behind anger.
"Secretly watching people while they’re exercising isn’t very polite."
The calm expression on her face didn’t change.
"You were the one staring at me strangely while I was running."
"..."
This time, I couldn’t think of a single word in response. She was right, and she was right in the most irritating way possible.
I remembered how long I had stared after her while sitting on the bench. Even when our eyes met, I hadn’t looked away.
If I had been in her position, I might have considered calling security.
"I was just—"
The words caught in my throat.
What was I supposed to say? That I hadn’t been watching her like a pervert and simply couldn’t look away because she was so beautiful?
That definitely wouldn’t improve the situation.
Don’t worry, I’m actually a man?
No, that would make things much worse.
The girl tucked a strand of hair behind her ear before smiling and shaking her head.
"It’s fine. You don’t need to get so worked up."
Her smile wasn’t mocking, and she genuinely didn’t seem bothered.
"Did you just start working out?"
"No."
The answer left my mouth before I had time to think. Her gaze moved toward the pull-up bar and then to my arms, which were still trembling slightly.
"Um... I mean, yes."
"I thought so."
She said it in such a calm and innocent voice that the words hurt even more.
It was as though she wasn’t even trying to insult me. What she had seen was so obvious that she was merely stating a simple fact.
After remembering the strength of my old body, I looked down at the thin arms that had nearly died beneath a metal bar that morning. My pride felt as though an invisible hand had grabbed it and snapped it in half.
The girl must have noticed the expression on my face because her smile became slightly apologetic.
"But it wasn’t bad for your first day," she added. "You managed to do one pull-up. Most beginners can’t even do that."
"Really?"
"Yes. You also did twenty push-ups."
My chest swelled again.
"So you saw those too."
"I’m not sure the last few counted as push-ups, but..."
My chest immediately deflated, and the girl quickly continued.
"You still didn’t give up. If you train regularly for a few weeks, you’ll become much better."
Her words were supposed to comfort me, and I supposed they did. However, at some point, I stopped paying attention to what she was saying.
The morning sunlight shone through her blonde hair, and her blue eyes moved with life as she spoke. Her voice was calm without being cold, and her smile carried a strange warmth that made people feel comfortable.
She was exactly my type.
Disturbingly so.
System.
[I’m listening.]
If you’re going to give me the kind of quest that requires getting closer to this girl, now would be the perfect time.
Without taking my eyes off her, I continued speaking inside my mind.
Drink coffee together, get her number, hold her hand... I’ll do whatever you want. I won’t even complain if the reward is small.
A second later, bluish text appeared at the edge of my vision.
[No such quest exists under the current conditions.]
The corners of my lips turned downward.
Why?
[Quests are only generated when deemed necessary for the Chosen One’s development.]
I frowned.
Damn it! What was necessary about turning me into a femboy or forcing me to kiss a girl!?
[All previous quests were necessary for your development.]
What part of me developed!?
[A detailed explanation is unavailable.]
Of course it isn’t.
As I tried to force the system window out of my mind, I felt a cool touch against my cheek, silencing all my thoughts at once.
The girl had moved closer and gently rested the back of her hand against my right cheek.
"Are you sure you’re all right?"
"Huh?"
My heart struck my chest once before beginning to race like a horse. The girl examined my face with concern.
"Your face is very red. Are you feeling dizzy?"
"I-I’m fine."
My voice cracked. I cleared my throat and tried repeating myself in a deeper voice.
"I’m fine, I’m fine. Don’t worry."
Unfortunately, no matter how hard I tried, this body’s voice refused to sound threatening or masculine.
Although the girl withdrew her hand, the cool feeling she had left on my cheek remained for several more seconds.
"I may not look like it, but I’m actually pretty tough."
The girl examined me from head to toe. Her gaze passed over my narrow shoulders, paused briefly on my weak arms, and continued down to my legs, which were still recovering.
Then she looked at my face again.
"I can see that..."
My left eye twitched.
Was she doing this on purpose?
Looking at her innocent expression, I couldn’t decide. Either she was genuinely one of the purest people alive, or she was an expert at tearing people apart without using a single cruel word.
Her sports watch let out a brief sound. After checking the screen, she looked toward the running path.
"My break is over. I should continue my run."
"Ah... Of course."
"Don’t push yourself too hard today. If you exhaust your body on the first day, you won’t be able to move tomorrow."
Thanks to White Snake, I would be able to move, but since I couldn’t say that aloud, I simply nodded.
After walking several steps away, the girl turned toward me and raised one hand slightly.
"See you."
"See you..."
She turned around and began running, her blonde hair once again swaying behind her.
I raised my hand to call out to her.
"Um—"
Once again, the words refused to come out.
I could have asked her name, requested her phone number, or at least asked whether she knew a good café near the park.
Instead, my hand remained suspended in the air while I watched the angel I had just met move farther away. Within seconds, she reached the curve between the trees and disappeared from sight.
My hand slowly lowered.
"I didn’t even ask her name."
My shoulders slumped as all the energy I had gained a moment ago seemed to leave my body.
I dragged my feet toward the nearby bench and dropped onto it. Resting my elbows on my knees, I lowered my head into my hands.
"She was exactly my type..."
She was beautiful, kind, and athletic.
She was also a little too ruthless, but she did it with an innocent expression. For some reason, that only made her more attractive.
I let out a deep sigh.
"I wish I had invited her to get something to drink."
She probably would have accepted. After all, she thought I was a girl.
Even though I had stared at her strangely, she had approached me, checked whether I was all right, and touched my face. If I had suggested getting something to drink together, she probably wouldn’t have assumed I had bad intentions.
We could become friends first. Then, when I found the right moment, I would explain that I was actually a man.
She would be surprised and perhaps a little embarrassed. Then she would say that gender didn’t matter to her and—
"Wait."
I raised my head and pushed aside the ridiculous romantic scene beginning to form inside my mind.
I had seen her three times today. She had already been running when I arrived at the park, completed laps around the same route for more than forty minutes, and taken a break near the fitness area.
She didn’t seem like someone visiting this place for the first time.
"She might exercise here every day."
My back slowly straightened.
If she regularly ran in this park, there was a chance I would see her again. If I came at the same time every morning, that chance would become quite high.
It wouldn’t count as following her because I was already coming here to exercise. Her presence would simply be a pleasant coincidence.
An extremely pleasant coincidence that happened every day...
"I still have a chance."
The corner of my lips rose as I began thinking about what I would say during our next meeting.
First, I would ask her name, followed by how many years she had been exercising. Maybe she could show me a few movements.
While she was demonstrating, our hands might accidentally touch, and then—
I quickly shook my head.
"Calm down."
I didn’t even know her name yet. Even so, my mood, which had fallen to the bottom only moments ago, had completely recovered.
As I stood up from the bench, I noticed that most of the pain in my legs had faded. White Snake had rapidly restored my muscles during the short break.
I stretched my arms to either side and rolled my shoulders. There was still a slight burning sensation, but it wasn’t bad enough to stop me.
I looked toward the pull-up bar.
The metal bar that had humiliated me earlier shone silently beneath the sunlight.
The next time that girl saw me, I wouldn’t be lying on the ground and gasping for air again. I also wouldn’t let her tease me for doing only one pull-up.
I would do at least two.
Maybe three.
My goals needed to be realistic, after all.
My smile widened as I walked toward the bar with energetic steps. After rubbing my palms together, I looked up.
"All right, let’s do one more pull-up!"
I crouched slightly.
"I’m not going home until I increase my Strength by one point!"
I jumped and grabbed the bar, stretching my arms as my body swung beneath it.
This time, I had the thought of an angel watching me from a distance.
I didn’t need any stronger motivation to complete a second pull-up.