In the afternoon in the weight room of the National Sports University Basketball Hall, the air was filled with the smell of rust, sweat and disinfectant.
This place is usually the domain of strength training students, but it is empty at the moment. Only the monotonous grinding sound of equipment can be heard from the corner.
Su Wan sat alone in front of an old wrist machine, with a thick sports tape wrapped around her left wrist.
He gritted his teeth, and the knuckles of his right hand turned white from exertion. He moved his left wrist to make an extremely small and slow flexion and extension movement.
Each slight tug of muscle fiber was like a rusty needle scraping against an old wound.
His forehead was covered with fine beads of sweat, and a few drops slid down the bridge of his nose. They landed on the cold chrome-plated grip with a splat, leaving a small dark wet mark.
In the upper left corner of the field of vision, on the translucent panel that only he could see, a row of red data flickered stubbornly, like an ominous warning light: [Wrist Durability: 31/100 (Injury Status)].
There is a smaller line of gray notes below the number: [Excessive use may increase the risk of permanent injury by 23%].
"Fifteen... Sixteen..." He counted silently, his voice pressed in his throat, with a hint of masochistic concentration.
