He Became A Monstrous Genius After Obtaining A Time Dilation Artifact

"Who is this Kailen Darkhaven?"

"Seriously, is this guy even human? And he's just seventeen years old. Isn't he young enough to be my grandson?"

"How can someone accomplish all these terrifying feats at such a young age?"

"Ninety-eight percent purity level? Is the academy AI rigged or something? Has something like that ever happened before in the history of the academy? And most importantly, is that even possible?"

The academy social media handles were flooded with various reactions to Kailen's videos.

After triggering the special announcement and reward mechanism of the academy, having done the impossible, even senior-year students who had not paid any attention to the entrance exams visited the academy's social media handles to watch the videos of Kailen.

Kailen read through the social media posts with intrigue on his face.

Ignoring the posts about him, he continued scrolling through different posts.

Finally, he came across one that caught his interest.

"Second-year student Sword Saber Lian Yu manages to reach the 11th stage of the Sword Conclave Mountain—an unprecedented feat in the history of the academy."

Kailen clicked on the post.

It was a picture showing an individual with long brown hair, chocolate skin, and sapphire-like eyes, dressed in archaic robes, seated on a mountain peak. At his side, an unsheathed sword—glistening with otherworldly sharpness—remained unwaveringly pierced into the ground.

Even from the video, Kailen could tell the man had a sharp and intimidating aura about him.

"Interesting."

Kailen didn't dwell much on the post after this comment, moving to another one that talked about a movie premiere by the academy theater taking place a week from now.

There were several news snippets that even spoke about the prettiest first-year female students and other such topics.

He came across one of the pictures—a female ranked fifth on the list.

"Is this not the person who waved at me when I moved in?"

"Everlong Atrexia? Third on the first-year rankings? Oh, so that's her. I've been hearing about her lately. The fact that she even ruthlessly beat up a few people who challenged her for her rank today… interesting."

Just as Kailen was scrolling to another post, his gaze suddenly narrowed.

There was someone at his door.

"Do you think he's back?" Esimo asked, uncertain about the whole thing.

Everlong rolled her eyes at his tone.

"Weren't you the one who wanted to meet him and spar with him? Why are you backing out now?"

Esimo replied defensively, "I'm not backing out. Also, you wanted to meet him too. Don't pin this on me. Plus, you know I'm not that good with social interactions."

Everlong sighed and gave him a glance of feigned disdain. She shook her head, pitying him.

This guy was really helpless. He always gave the impression of a proud and mighty Titan, yet he was an extremely socially awkward person.

In commercial settings where there were many people, he didn't have much trouble fitting in and could communicate normally.

But it really took time for him to feel comfortable enough to speak to someone on a personal level.

There was even a time when Everlong set him up with a Titan girl. During the date, Esimo couldn't even speak to her. He ended up leaving the restaurant in the middle of the date out of sheer nervousness, unable to complete his sentences.

The girl hadn't spoken to Everlong since then, and the incident had ruined their long friendship.

From this, Everlong had learned the hard way that this guy was really a wreck in personal social situations.

"Fine, I'll do the talking in case he comes out."

Esimo sighed in relief.

He made a "bless you" sign by cupping his hands together towards Everlong.

"Heh." Everlong found his actions funny, chuckling lightly.

She rang the doorbell.

A notification was sent to Kailen's ID slot, informing him that someone was at the door.

However, he was already aware, as his perception had picked up their presence.

"The second rank and the third rank? What are they doing here? Are they here to issue a ranking challenge or something? It's really a hassle that these ranking battles cannot be avoided. I have better things to use my time for, after all."

Kailen sighed. He didn't want to waste time on needless matters.

However, he had no choice.

He could decide to avoid it for now, but they would just keep bugging him until he accepted the challenge.

He appeared before the door, then opened it with a calm and unreadable expression.

Everlong smiled despite his cold demeanor, flashing him a wave. "Hi, I'm Everlong, and this is Esimo. Can we come in?"

"I'm Kailen. Please, why are you here?"

Kailen replied calmly, his voice devoid of politeness, his expression blunt.

'I suppose he really is the antisocial type,' Everlong thought inwardly.

As for Esimo, even Kailen could tell something was off about him.

Kailen noticed the towering man—whose great height cast a shadow over him—was avoiding eye contact for some reason.

He was acting as if he had been forced to come here.

'What the hell is up with this weirdo?' Kailen mused inwardly.

Everlong answered,

"This gentleman here wanted to challenge you to a ranking battle." She nudged Esimo playfully—something that made it clear to Kailen that the towering, socially awkward Titan and the pretty elf were very close—then continued, "But he wanted to make it clear that he doesn't have any evil scheme behind the ranking battle and, if possible, he wants to become friends with you."

Kailen stared at Esimo for a while before replying, "Okay, now might be a good time for me. Just a ranking battle then."

Kailen's reply implied he didn't have time to make friends. He just wanted to participate in the ranking battle—nothing more.

Everlong sighed inwardly.

This guy was the very definition of antisocial.

Perhaps, after the battle, Kailen would enjoy having Esimo around.

From the videos she had watched of him during the entrance exams, he seemed like a battle maniac.

Esimo was a battle maniac too, after all, so maybe their fight would help them connect.

Esimo nodded in agreement.

With that, Kailen sped off with them towards the ranking arenas.