Battle Race in the Fantasy World

Battle Race in the Fantasy World – 69

EP.69 The Inevitable Has Come… But Isn’t It Too Soon?

Kyle’s daily routine hadn’t changed much even after the academy raid.

Lectures, meals, workouts—everything remained as consistent as it was initially.

He even maintained a moderate level of mischief.

For instance, today it was ice cream, and tomorrow it would be a sauce with mayonnaise, something like that.

If there were any significant changes, they could be boiled down to two main things.

First, the way people looked at Kyle, or rather, their gazes.

“Um… can I join you for a workout?”

“Go ahead. Why are you asking me? Just do it.”

He spent so much time in the indoor training hall that every student who came in asked him.

They wanted to know if they could work out there too.

Even upperclassmen who had been there longer were asking him.

As a result, he felt like a gym guardian or an NPC.

‘Why are they all looking for my approval?’

Having more people in the gym was a bit inconvenient.

But inconvenience aside, it was good to see more people wanting to work on their fitness.

Maybe everyone was too busy at the start of the semester and only now found time to work out.

He thought about suggesting the gym be expanded and more equipment added.

Given the academy owed him a huge debt, they might agree to it.

Kyle continued to fulfill his duties with fervor, which meant lifting weights like crazy.

“Huff! Huff!”

Immersed in his routine, Kyle ignored the stares around him.

Female students watched him with admiration.

Male students, inspired by his strong, masculine presence, began to think, “I want to be like that!”

The previous looks that treated him like a monster had mostly disappeared.

Of course, a few still looked at him that way, but their numbers were dwindling.

Subduing all the intruders at the academy was the main reason for this change.

Additionally, the fact that he had connections with both the Grand Duke’s family and the royal family seemed to have changed their perspectives.

The second noticeable change was that he suddenly had a lot more tasks to handle.

Especially the PT (Physical Training) part, which he had never considered before coming to the academy.

“This time, I’m definitely going to make it.”

Ian declared boldly.

“Yeah, right.”

Kyle smirked as if mocking him.

“Grrrrrr!!”

“…Time’s up.”

Once again, the winner was, predictably, Kyle.

“Just a little more! Just a little more!!”

“Move.”

With a casual wave of his arm, Ian was sent flying again.

Though he wasn’t as disgracefully covered in dust as before, his situation was still pitiful.

“What the heck….”

Ian, sprawled on the ground, spoke in a voice filled with disbelief.

He knew Kyle’s strength was no joke and that Kyle was stronger than him.

Leaving aside the fact that Kyle was the second son of Baron Jonathan, Ian could roughly gauge his strength as a swordsman.

In a full-power fight, Ian knew he was no match for Kyle.

But this wasn’t a full-power fight.

Not even close. Kyle was standing there with just one arm raised.

The condition was almost insulting, lower this arm, and I’ll take you seriously.

At first, Ian thought it was pure provocation.

But after days of clinging to Kyle’s arm, he finally realized.

It wasn’t an insult or provocation; it was simply stating a ‘fact.’

He was so weak that there was nothing to gain from sparring with him.

“Still, it’s getting a bit tougher. Just a little bit.”

Whether that was another provocation or genuine encouragement, Ian couldn’t tell anymore.

Sighing as he sat on the ground, Ian slowly got up.

He had thought his strength was sufficient, but it seemed he was mistaken.

The world was full of people much stronger than him.

If Kyle, who had just reached adulthood, was this strong, what about the top ten strongest in the empire?

“Next. Leto. Are you ready?”

“I’m always ready, but….”

Leto, tense, looked at Kyle and thought of just one word.

‘Demon!’

Kyle claimed he was barely hitting, just tapping.

But to Leto, it felt like being struck with a club.

And somehow, Kyle always hit spots that wouldn’t show any marks.

So even though Elga saw Leto every day, she had no idea what he was going through.

“Huff!”

Just as Leto, bracing himself with all his might, tried to resist the common weakness of pain.

– Squeeze. –

“Yelp!”

Today, Leto was defeated not by a punch, but by a simple massage.

Of course, it wasn’t just any massage. Ian had his shoulder bone fractured by one of those massages.

“….”

Recalling that incident, Ian flinched as he watched Leto.

He subtly rubbed his shoulder, clearly remembering the pain.

“You have a serious lack of willpower, Leto.”

“Ugh… This has nothing to do with willpower! People naturally react to pain….”

“Then, if Elga is in danger, are you going to run away because it might hurt?”

For Leto, Elga was both a trigger and a calming button.

How such a guy managed to open his heart to her was still a mystery.

But one thing was clear, he was a loyal secretary to his future boss.

“Neither of you has changed. It’s frustrating.”

For men, a little ego-bruising was the best motivation.

With that one remark, Kyle could feel the flames of determination reignite in both Ian and Leto.

It was unrealistic to expect any significant change in less than a week, but still.

As Kyle walked away, he muttered to himself.

‘They’re holding up better than I expected. Both Leto and especially Ian.’

Ian was a guy who would be upset if he wasn’t considered the most prideful.

Being the protagonist, he also had a unique arrogance.

In such a situation, asking him to just bend an arm, not even win….

It was almost like calling Jonathan weak. Well, maybe that’s too much.

Anyway, it was a statement designed to turn his insides out.

But Ian endured it and kept trying to lower Kyle’s arm.

Clinging on like a cicada, struggling and making a spectacle of himself.

‘I hope this kills his aggro-master tendencies. Please.’

Quite some time had passed since the semester officially started.

Kyle hadn’t paid much attention, but Ian had caused a lot of trouble.

Especially with his cursed mouth, he had made many enemies.

“I don’t know what to do with him!”

Just a few days ago, Tisha had been pounding her chest in frustration.

She wanted to ignore him completely, but Ian kept hovering around her.

Thanks to this, people were wondering, ‘What’s going on between those two?’

With Ian causing continuous trouble, Tisha’s own reputation was at risk.

“Kyle Jonathan.”

Suddenly, men in black, whom he hadn’t seen in a while, appeared in front of him.

“…Oh. Long time no see. Haven’t seen you around for a while.”

“It’s better for both of us not to see each other. Could you come with us for a moment?”

Unlike the first time, they seemed to be very polite.

It seemed they were giving him at least minimal respect for protecting the academy.

Or maybe they were afraid they might end up paralyzed if they didn’t.

“Again, all of a sudden? And by the way, I really haven’t done anything this time.”

“We know.”

“We’re not here because of you, Kyle. It’s related to you, though.”

That sounded like the same thing, but what did they mean?

Kyle, puzzled, quietly followed them.

He felt confident because he had nothing to hide, and being confident, he thought everything would be fine.

“We have brought him.”

From being ‘brought’ to being ‘escorted,’ it was an upgrade.

This is quite touching, Kyle thought to himself as he muttered inwardly.

From beyond the door, the headmaster’s voice called for them to come in.

Wondering what was going on, Kyle stepped into the headmaster’s office.

“…Oh.”

With a sigh, he blinked his eyes.

Familiar faces and completely unfamiliar ones coexisted.

“Minister?”

“Welcome, Kyle.”

It was the Minister of Education. No doubt about it. He must be quite busy, yet he came in person instead of using a magic communication device.

Next to him were two other people dressed similarly.

“Let me introduce you. This is the head of the Special Affairs Department, and this is the Minister of Internal Affairs.”

“So… both of them are ministers?”

The Minister of Education nodded at Kyle’s question.

What is this? Why are ministers suddenly raining down from the sky?

Even the Minister of Internal Affairs, who is supposedly busier than the Minister of Education, and the head of the highly secretive Special Affairs Department, second only to the Imperial Household, had come.

This was a situation Kyle had never imagined, and he couldn’t hide his surprise.

“First, have a seat.”

The Minister of Education offered a seat, and Kyle sat down.

Glancing around, he sensed a very serious atmosphere.

‘What’s going on, really?’

Thinking it would be better to ask directly, Kyle was about to speak when—

“Kyle Jonathan.”

The one who spoke first was the Minister of Internal Affairs, who had a strong gentlemanly image with his glasses.

“I have a question. Has there been any correspondence from your family?”

“Correspondence…? No, nothing has come.”

“Is that so? Hmm. I see.”

After saying that, the Minister of Internal Affairs fell silent again.

Kyle was about to ask, ‘Is something wrong?’ when—

“Just yesterday, your brother and sister entered the central region of the empire.”

“…What?”

“They will probably arrive at the academy soon. That’s why I’m asking. Do you know anything about this?”

Unlike the Minister of Internal Affairs, the Minister of Special Affairs, who had a very sharp demeanor, asked the question.

Kyle thought, ‘Is it that?’ but also, ‘Does that make sense?’

‘I sent a letter to my family only five days ago. Even if they left immediately, could they really get from Baron Jonathan’s estate to the academy this quickly? Does that make sense?’

It had taken him well over ten days to get to the academy.

Sure, he had Tisha and Ian with him, but they hadn’t dawdled at all.

In fact, he had been told they had arrived quite quickly.

So, he had assumed that even if someone came from the barony, it would take at least a week at the fastest….

“Wait, wait a minute. Are you saying my brother and sister are already nearby?”

“That’s what we’re saying. Being nobles, they wouldn’t have faced any roadblocks, so they made it to the central region. They moved so quickly that even our Special Affairs Department couldn’t keep track.”

“….”

“When we sent people to check, they said they were taking their time.”

While others would take well over ten days even if they hurried, this sibling duo claimed they were taking it slow and still managed to cover the distance in five days.