Battle Race in the Fantasy World

Battle Race in the Fantasy World – 43

EP.43 I’m So Glad! This Is Such a Relief!

‘This is unsettling, very unsettling.’

Kyle thought as he crossed his arms.

The student named Nell, who had suddenly asked him to make them stronger,

seemed like they would keep bothering him unless he found a reason to push them away.

So, he deliberately demanded a price, hoping to make Nell back off.

‘I quoted a high amount, so they should hesitate.’

He had heard that Nell was of commoner status, not a noble.

In that case, it would be hard for Nell to readily come up with the amount he mentioned.

Honestly, he hoped Nell would just stick to Ian and learn swordsmanship from him.

Fortunately, Nell hesitated for a moment and then disappeared.

Yeah, just go. Be upset about the money and leave.

Stick to Ian and learn swordsmanship. he can’t handle training Nell too.

“Ughhh!!”

Even dealing with the Saintess alone felt like it was overloading his brain.

‘Hoo.’

He didn’t know how many times he sighed inwardly.

He felt like grabbing his face and screaming out loud.

But if he did that, the kind-hearted Saintess would get hurt.

‘No matter what, this really isn’t right.’

After the afternoon lecture, he took some time to visit the chapel.

Luckily, there were only a few students, so he could meet the Saintess right away.

To be precise, everyone fled as soon as Kyle appeared.

Anyway, it gave him a chance to teach the Saintess some proper exercises.

The problem was that her body couldn’t handle the exercises at all.

“Eek!”

The Saintess collapsed after barely holding a plank for 10 seconds.

She couldn’t even complete the set number of squats before sitting down.

Originally, he had planned to include burpees, but that seemed impossible now.

‘In the novels, the Saintess usually travels with the hero, enduring hardships, right? She walked just fine there.’

Some Saintesses even sent enemies flying with their fists.

In other novels, they showed all sorts of tough behaviors.

Even if he didn’t expect that level, he thought she would have at least basic physical abilities.

“How long did I last this time?! It felt like more than 20 seconds!!”

“…You lasted exactly 8 seconds.”

“8 seconds?! No way! I felt like I lasted over 20 seconds!”

This isn’t the Room of Spirit and Time, Saintess.

You really lasted exactly 8 seconds. Where did you get 20 seconds from?

He had no idea where to even begin.

Taking her to the gym like Tisha and using various equipment? Unthinkable.

She was completely unfit. She wouldn’t be able to handle even a 5kg barbell, let alone a 10kg one.

‘Calm down, calm down. I must not get annoyed. Especially not in front of the Saintess.’

Kyle wasn’t exaggerating.

Growing up in Jonathan, he was always the least athletic.

He was surrounded by literal monsters obsessed with exercise.

Then, on his way to the academy, he met Ian and Tisha.

Ian, being a swordsman, naturally had physical abilities.

Tisha, though a shaman, had basic physical fitness from wandering around.

Even Elga and Leto had at least basic physical abilities.

Both had grown up in a ducal family and had undergone basic training.

In other words, everyone he had met so far had basic physical abilities.

So encountering someone completely unfit for the first time was understandably frustrating.

“Can I rest a bit, Brother Kyle?”

The Saintess, already exhausted, looked up at him with teary eyes.

Kyle sighed inwardly once more and nodded.

Think positively. Yeah, who can do well from the start?

Everyone builds core strength and muscles through effort.

Encouraging himself, Kyle looked at the Saintess sitting on the floor.

“I feel so pathetic.”

Suddenly, self-deprecation?!

“Saintess?”

“I thought I was living a hard life. Abstaining, always abstaining. I thought I was living such a life, but in reality, I couldn’t even take care of my own body.”

“That’s absolutely not true, Saintess. There’s nothing harder than training your own body. As you know, fighting oneself is the hardest thing. Exercise is precisely about fighting oneself.”

“But I’m losing so easily.”

“Everyone does at first. That’s normal. The important thing is whether you overcome yourself and move forward or sit down in defeat. That’s what matters.”

Originally, Kyle had thought of saying this to Tisha.

But now, he found himself saying it to the Saintess.

“Keep moving forward. There’s no need to push yourself harder or lift heavier weights. Even if you take it lightly, the key is to train without skipping a day. By steadily progressing every day, you’ll eventually see a better version of yourself, gain more confidence, and finally move forward on your own.”

Whether it’s dieting, gaining weight, or building muscle, it’s all the same.

‘So please, don’t say you’re going to quit exercising. You need to work even harder. Especially someone like you, Saintess!’

“…”

The Saintess Hilde, remained silent for a while after Kyle’s words.

She just stared at him with her mysterious silver eyes.

It felt as if he was being drawn into her gaze.

“Saintess?”

“Brother Kyle, you are truly a fascinating person.”

“What do you mean?”

“In some ways, you seem very ordinary, but in other ways, you seem more special than anyone.”

The moment he heard those words, Kyle’s mind began to race.

When you hear such words, it’s always good to respond with something even more impressive.

What should he say here? What answer would make the Saintess happier?

“Every person is special in their own way. That’s why the god loves us all.”

Considering it was almost a spontaneous response, Kyle thought it was quite a good one.

It acknowledged his own uniqueness while subtly mentioning the god, leaving room for interpretation.

He figured it scored at least 86 out of 100.

As Kyle expected, the Saintess exclaimed in awe and clasped her hands together.

She then recited a line of prayer in her clear voice and suddenly stood up.

“Saintess? Why are you…?”

“After hearing such wonderful words, I can’t just sit still as a Saintess!”

“What?”

“I will try harder! As Brother Kyle said, even if I can only take one step forward, if I move forward steadily, I will eventually reach my goal!”

“That’s a good attitude. But why are you standing up… Saintess? Where are you going?!”

Before he could stop her, the Saintess suddenly disappeared somewhere.

For a moment, Kyle wondered, ‘Is she running away after saying all that?!’

‘No way. She’s still the Saintess, after all.’

“Let’s wait a bit. We’ll soon find out what’s going on,” Kyle muttered to himself.

He stood still and glanced around the area.

The space behind the chapel, reserved exclusively for the Saintess.

The walls were painted with white clouds and a soft, glowing sky.

Standing there felt almost like being in the heavens.

It seemed to be a place created for offering prayers to the god.

To be able to create such a warm and bright space…

Anyone who came here would naturally feel inclined to pray.

A place where a reverent heart would naturally arise. A subtle divine presence could be felt…

‘Wouldn’t lifting weights here be more effective? This kind of background isn’t bad either.’

Even in this moment, Kyle was imagining working out.

He even considered suggesting creating a gym with this kind of atmosphere when he returned to Jonathan.

After waiting for a few minutes…

“Brother Kyle.”

Hearing the Saintess’s voice from behind, Kyle turned his head.

“You’ve… arrived… Saintess.”

“Yes! Just as you said, I changed into the most comfortable clothes I could find. Did I do well?”

“Ah… yes. You did well, but, um… I’m worried if it’s appropriate for a Saintess to appear like this in front of a man who has no connection to the church…”

“Brother Kyle, you’re a good person, so it’s fine!”

‘Well, it might be fine for you, Saintess, but it’s quite problematic for me. Especially for my heart health. Wow, my heart rate feels like I’ve just sprinted 5km. If I die of a heart attack, will there be a war between the Empire and Jonathan?’

The reason for Kyle’s sudden reaction was just a moment ago, the Saintess had been wearing very loose-fitting clothes.

Now, she had changed into clothes that exposed a lot of skin.

Bare arms that would captivate any man’s heart, smooth legs, and even her white bare feet.

The risk level had skyrocketed to the point where he felt like he might ascend.

“Ah… is my outfit a bit strange?”

“No, not at all. Absolutely not.”

“That’s a relief! Actually, these are clothes I wear when the weather is too hot!”

To think that the church, which seemed to only endorse loose clothing, would also have such attire.

‘If you think I like this, it’s a mis… no, it’s a misunderstanding.’

Calm down, Kyle. This situation is like a trainer and a client.

‘No matter what a female client wears, what I need to focus on are her posture, movements, and whether her body is under strain.’

Thinking that a few times naturally brought his heartbeat back to normal.

Thank goodness! Truly, thank goodness! he thought to himself.

“Then I’ll try again! Now that I’ve changed clothes, I might do better!”

“I’m looking forward to it, Saintess.”

“Yes!”

With a spirited response, the Saintess got into position again.

Looking at her now, it seemed like changing clothes might have had an effect.

Her plank time increased from 8 seconds to 9 seconds.

‘…Wait a minute. Should I really consider this an improvement?’

He had his doubts, but Kyle didn’t let them show.

He didn’t want to dampen the Saintess’s spirits, who was happy about the one-second improvement.

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***

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“Let’s call it a day.”

At Kyle’s words, the Saintess collapsed with a whimper.

“You worked really hard today, Saintess.”

“I didn’t do much… Brother Kyle, you worked harder.”

“You might feel quite sore and achy when you sleep.”

“I feel sore and achy already…”

“That’s a good sign. Repeating this process is how you avoid reverting to your old self.”

Kyle said this as he prepared to leave.

“Brother Kyle.”

The Saintess suddenly stopped him.

“Yes, Saintess?”

“Do you have any plans for the weekend?”

“I don’t have any special plans, but why do you ask?”

“I’d like to invite you to the church!”

“To the church…?”

“Yes!”

At first, he was naturally inclined to refuse.

He wasn’t a devout believer, so what would he do at the church?

He thought it would be more beneficial to run through his routine one more time instead.

These thoughts floated around in his mind.

But soon, Kyle changed his mind.

“…If you invite me, I would be honored.”

The reason was that he wanted to assess the physical condition of the church priests.