Battle Race in the Fantasy World

Battle Race in the Fantasy World – 101

EP.101 The Game of Wits Begins

“Alright, again. Feel like you’re firmly planting your feet on the ground. Don’t arch your back too much.”

What’s the saddest thing when the person who’s been watching your workout suddenly leaves?

Is it having to put away the weights yourself? Not having the pressure from a workout partner?

All of those are true. Whether you’re organizing or working out alone, something feels lacking.

And if there’s one more thing to add, it’s not having someone to spot you during bench presses.

“Don’t overdo it, but don’t give up easily either, Nell. You can do it.”

He was always ready to grab the bar in case of an emergency.

Since she was on her last set, she must have been quite tired.

The weight she was lifting was significant, and even a moment of carelessness could lead to serious injury.

Even in Jonathan, where people hated having their workouts interfered with more than anything, they always trained in pairs when doing bench presses.

They knew the importance of taking care of their bodies while training them.

“Hoo….”

Nell took a deep breath, grabbed the bar, and slowly lifted it.

Compared to the beginning, her arms were trembling slightly, which was quite worrisome.

But soon, Nell steadied her body and mind, maintaining an almost perfect form as before.

She managed to complete her target reps and place the bar back on the rack.

“Ugh! I-I did it!!”

“Good job. It seems you haven’t skipped a single day in the past month. You’ve been exercising as I taught you.”

“How could I skip? I have something I must achieve.”

He half-expected her to say, “How could I skip? I paid so much money!” but Nell was more invested in her dream than in money.

With that mindset, she would undoubtedly become a great knight soon.

Excelling and achieving merit were different matters, but it was hopeful nonetheless.

“And! I heard the news. You were amazing in the west! You defeated the Alliance’s Three Heroes!!”

“Yes. They were formidable opponents. The other two were trash, but that Mathieu guy was definitely knightly. I’d like to face him again sometime.”

“That’s amazing, no, incredible! I will become as strong as you, Kyle!”

I almost blurted out, “Don’t be ridiculous.”

While Nell’s growth was impressive and her mindset and efforts were commendable, she was still far from following in my footsteps. Very far.

It wasn’t arrogance or overconfidence; it was an objective assessment.

Even though I was pushing Nell hard, this was just the course for early teens in Jonathan.

If I trained her the true Jonathan way, I could guarantee she’d get seriously injured.

“Take a short break, then we’ll move on to the next exercise.”

“Yes, understood!”

She should be exhausted, and it wouldn’t be strange if she showed signs of fatigue.

But instead, Nell was even more enthusiastic, which made me very happy.

When a trainee follows well and shows determination, it’s enjoyable for the trainer too.

‘Tisha is keeping up well. Even Ian and Leto are doing better than expected. The real problem is the Saintess…. Sigh, I’m at a loss here.’

Thinking about Tisha and the Saintess naturally brought back memories of what happened yesterday.

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“Kyle? What brings you here?”

“Brother Kyle?”

“You’re here? Then let’s go quickly.”

The three women were surprised by Kyle’s appearance, while the other one urged him to leave immediately.

Yurika’s grip on his arm was strong, conveying her genuine desire to leave the place quickly.

“Wait, wait a moment, Your Highness. We should at least greet them.”

“I’ve already been waiting for almost three hours. You know that, right?”

“You’ve waited over three hours; surely you can wait three more minutes?”

Despite making them wait, Kyle’s demeanor was quite confident.

If the person he was dealing with had been anyone else, they might have retorted, “What nonsense is this!”

But fortunately, the person Kyle was dealing with was Yurika.

“Hmm. Is that so? Then I’ll wait three more minutes.”

Elga and Tisha made expressions as if to say, “Did that really work?” Meanwhile, Kyle looked at the empty ice cream dish.

“…You shouldn’t eat too much, Saintess. Didn’t we make a promise? Once every two days.”

“E-Every two days! Right?! I’m keeping it well! Of course, Brother Kyle!”

Unfortunately, Kyle had already heard the rumors that the Saintess had been to the café yesterday. A true trainer has a knack for catching their trainee’s slip-ups.

Still, since she doesn’t cheat during workout time and works hard, let’s give her a pass this time. If it happens again, I’ll just have to remind her gently that she shouldn’t do that.

“I didn’t expect to see you here, Elga.”

“Ahem! I just wanted to have tea time at the café today. So…”

“That’s nice.”

“What?”

“Honestly, it was a bit much having tea time separately inside the academy when there’s a perfectly good café here. It’s great to see you making an effort to support the local businesses.”

Elga’s face turned slightly red at Kyle’s unexpected praise. In reality, he meant, ‘Let’s stop this tea time business and just go to the café. Think of the time spent preparing tea, heating water, and steeping leaves.’

‘I’d really appreciate it if you suggest going to the café from now on, Elga. Taking over 30 minutes to prepare a cup of tea is honestly too much.’

And was the tea she prepared that extraordinary?

To Kyle’s taste, it was no different from the café’s tea. It was just a time-consuming activity that took away from his exercise time, which he honestly wanted to avoid.

“Ah, right. I heard you got your grades, Tisha. Congratulations on being first.”

Tisha, living up to her reputation for being very intelligent, seemed destined to become a great sorceress.

“It’s nothing. And we don’t know yet. There are still final exams, and when you add the liberal arts scores, who knows.”

Having aced all those difficult subjects, now she was being modest. Was it just his imagination, or did it seem like she was saying it for Elga to hear?

“Alright, three minutes are up. I really can’t wait any longer. Let’s go spar, now.”

“Ugh.”

The sparring was nothing more than a brief clash where neither could go all out. It was precisely one attack each, and then it was over.

Even if they wanted to do more, there was no space nearby where they could go all out without causing a mess.

Kyle was disappointed, and Yurika was likely just as disappointed.

Though not from Jonathan, she lived more in the Jonathan way than anyone else.

Despite this, why did she keep insisting on these tantalizingly brief sparring sessions?

“Yes, yes. Let’s go. Let’s go, Your Highness.”

Today, he would humor her briefly and then send her back to the palace.

Maybe block one attack and then give her a solid punch to the solar plexus in true Jonathan style.

“Wait a moment!”

As they were about to leave the café, Elga suddenly stopped Kyle and Yurika.

“Um, Your Highness? About the sparring? Could I… could I watch?!”

“Watch?”

“Yes. So….”

“No. Absolutely not. Go back.”

Warriors hate being interrupted or turned into a spectacle. Yurika was no different in this regard.

Even though Elga was the daughter of a grand duke, there was nothing she could do against the princess’s refusal.

Elga sat back down, but then Tisha spoke up.

“Um! I mean… Your Highness and Kyle are both incredible, right?! Watching such amazing people spar would be so enlightening. I want to broaden my limited perspective!”

“…?”

Kyle couldn’t help but sigh at Tisha’s words.

Anyone listening might think Elga and Tisha were aspiring knights like Nell.

One was focused on sorcery, the other on her duties as a grand duchess—what perspective did they need to broaden?

They were trying to flatter their way into getting what they wanted, but surely Yurika wouldn’t fall for that….

“Really? In that case, I suppose it can’t be helped. Shall we let them watch?”

“….”

Did she really fall for that? Our princess sure is easy to sway in some strange areas.

Shaking his head, Kyle watched Yurika stride confidently.

Maybe she thought this was a rare opportunity to let them see something significant.

“Brother Kyle.”

He turned his head at the Saintess’s small call.

She wore her usual gentle expression, but there was a peculiar determination in her eyes.

“I’ll protect you.”

“Pardon?”

“If Her Highness makes things difficult for you, I’ll protect you. I promise.”

It wasn’t just anyone but the Saintess offering to stand up for him.

While this should have been a joyous moment, Kyle sensed something off.

Elga, who never took the initiative, and Tisha, who usually avoided sparring, were now involved.

Even the Saintess, who always exuded warmth, seemed different today.

Come to think of it, Yurika might not have been swayed by the compliments but could be pretending to be generous.

This scene felt very familiar. Extremely familiar.

And suddenly, he recalled the comment he often made in such situations.

“Yep. This is your karma ^^ Endure it as best as you can.”

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***

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“Kyle? Kyle?”

“…Ah, sorry, Nell. Let’s start right away.”

Lost in thought about yesterday, he had taken an extra two minutes of rest.

Unbelievable. Two minutes could have been spent doing planks or squats or something!

“I’m really sorry. I took two minutes of your time.”

“It’s alright! You seemed deep in thought, so I didn’t mention it sooner! Let’s start quickly! I’m ready!”

Nell shouted energetically, showing her firm resolve once again.

At times like this, she seemed much better than most men.

“I’ll work hard and become like you, Kyle!”

…The last line somehow left a heavy feeling in his heart.

No way, right? Nell, you’re not changing your mind too, are you?

You should keep that admiration as it is. I’m already in a mess as it is.

With a slightly uneasy heart, Kyle glanced at Nell and let out a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, in Nell’s eyes, he still appeared as someone she greatly admired.

To put it more simply, it was like a novice bodybuilder looking up to a seasoned one.

“I’ll become a great knight like you and definitely succeed….”

“Nell. I’m not a knight.”

“Oh, yes! Understood!!”