EP.148 When Are You Going to Do It?
“I’m bored.”
“Children, be quiet. Shh!”
“I’m bored.”
“Hey now. Didn’t I tell you to be quiet?”
“I’M BORED!!!”
“That’s right! We’re bored, young master!!”
The children shouted in unison, as if in chorus, with one voice.
Watching this scene, Kyle thought to himself. Kids are the same everywhere in the world.
The children kept grumbling that they were bored and wanted to do something.
They thought they’d be excitedly hunting monsters, but that didn’t even last two days.
It seems they’re disappointed that the thrilling monster hunt they were expecting ended too quickly.
The legion had already annihilated quite a number of monsters, and on top of that, the children had ground up the remaining monsters as soon as they arrived, so there was bound to be none left.
There was one ogre that had grown to field boss level, but…
‘Father literally erased that one.’
Even now, just thinking about it sends chills down my spine.
It seemed like he had just lightly swung his fist. It didn’t even look like he used half his strength.
To think he blew away not just the field boss ogre, but even the mountains behind it.
Suddenly, this thought occurs to me. What kind of battle did the Empire fight?
At first, I thought, ‘Wow. Jonathan who stood against the Empire. How amazing!’
But thinking about it again, it seems more like ‘Wow! The Empire that fought against Jonathan! That’s truly amazing!’
“Isn’t there anything else, young master?!”
“Give us more monsters!”
“We want to hunt more!!”
“Ah, you’ve already caught them all, what do you want me to do!”
“But you caught some too, young master! That’s not fair!”
“That’s right. It’s not fair! You caught them by yourself! What about us!!”
“Enough. If you keep this up, you’ll trouble the young master.”
Old man Neil steps in appropriately to soothe the children.
He tells them that the monsters aren’t something Kyle can do anything about.
He explains that since they’ve caught them all, no more will appear.
“Aww…”
“The monsters were too weak. It shouldn’t end so quickly.”
If the shredded monsters and the soldiers who fought fierce battles with those monsters heard this…
They might be shocked at these unbelievable Jonathan kids.
It’s astounding and infuriating that they’re saying ‘It’s weak!’ after grinding them up themselves.
“Come on, everyone. Let’s exercise. We’ll start with lower body.”
“Ah, yes!”
“Lower body! It’s lower body time!!”
The fortunate thing is that these children aren’t immature rascals.
They don’t cause trouble, do bad things, or engage in such behavior at all.
Their home education is thorough. Since it’s a place to hone oneself, mindset is important.
And above all, how could they handle the consequences if they got caught doing something bad?
‘If I ever get spanked, I’d really have to fight for my life.’
Once, his older brother was spanked by their mother.
She had told him never to fight recklessly, but he couldn’t resist and got into another duel.
Naturally, the price for that was truly regrettable.
“That time, I got spanked by mother.”
“How was it, you ask? I thought I was going to die. I couldn’t even think about doing lower body exercises for about a week.”
That’s what Leo had said, recalling that day.
He’s incredibly strong, befitting the son of Jonathan Baron, though not quite as much as the Baron himself.
To think he couldn’t do lower body exercises just from getting spanked a bit. It’s hard to even imagine.
“It’s exactly the same as Brother Kyle.”
Turning his head, he sees Commander Priscilla standing next to him.
‘Why does this woman keep wandering around? Father keeps eyeing her.’
I wonder if she knows how much trouble I’m going through trying to stop my father.
She probably doesn’t. Of course she doesn’t. If she knew, she’d be hiding somewhere quietly.
“I mean the children. They’re exactly like you, Brother Kyle.”
“You mean the exercising?”
“That too, and the thorough self-management. Are all Jonathan people like this?”
“The kids and I are nothing. If you saw real Jonathan people, Commander, it would be one of two things. Either you’d be twice as impressed as you are now. Or you’d be utterly disgusted.”
“Well, I think I’d be the former, but…”
You never know. The other top 10 of the Empire were the latter.
At first, that person was probably the former too. But when they actually encountered it, they probably shook their head.
“Now that the western affairs are wrapping up. When are you returning?”
“The Saintess will hold a prayer meeting for the fallen soldiers this evening. So at the earliest, we’ll return tomorrow morning. If more schedules come up in between, it might be delayed.”
“The Saintess is working so hard. You too, Commander.”
“It’s the duty of a Saintess. Though it’s not something she chose.”
The duty of a Saintess. Come to think of it, there’s something I’m suddenly curious about.
How exactly is a Saintess chosen?
Is it really that God designates them, surrounding them with brilliant light and giving them a revelation?
Can anyone become a Saintess regardless of their humble origins?
I should ask the Saintess someday if I get the chance.
“Brother Kyle.”
“Yes, Commander.”
“The Saintess is a truly good person. Kind, warm, and yet with a firm resolve.”
“I know. The Saintess is an amazing person.”
That’s why there was such a huge number of ‘Saintess followers’ even though she was a supporting character.
Kyle himself was one of those followers, after all.
“But sometimes, she struggles with her duties, feels lonely, and above all, wishes she could live the life that girls her age would have.”
Commander Priscilla looks at Kyle with a subtle gaze.
“I’m so glad that you’re by the Saintess’s side, Brother Kyle.”
“…If you’re trying to pressure me, please stop.”
“I’m sorry. That wasn’t my intention. But, I hope you understand.”
At those words, Kyle had to let out an internal sigh.
I know. Damn it. I know, alright? It’s a problem because I know too well.
Romance with the Saintess. To be honest, it’s one of the things I’ve secretly wished for.
After all, it’s an incredible experience to have your favorite character speaking and showing emotions right in front of you.
The problem is that somehow, the number of people suddenly declaring their participation has increased.
I don’t have strong feelings for Elga or the Princess yet, but looking at those two, they’re not the type to give up.
Above all, they’re both so determined that I don’t think they’ll back down even if pushed away.
Tisha… honestly, we keep running into each other, talking, and facing each other.
As a result, I’ve unknowingly grown attached to her, making it too difficult to push her away.
When I was reading the novel, I didn’t think much of it, but now I’ve come to like Tisha a lot.
‘What on earth am I supposed to do about this…?’
There’s still a grace period. Everyone except the Princess has just come of age.
There’s no need to worry too much since feelings can change at any time.
The problem would be if that doesn’t change even as time passes.
“Young Master?”
Was I lost in thought for a moment?
I hadn’t even noticed Old Man Neil coming right next to me.
“Yes, Old Man. What is it?”
“The Imperial Legion Commander has asked for the Baron and Young Master to be brought over. He says he wants to express his gratitude to both of you.”
“Father’s going? I thought he’d just say it’s fine and go exercise or something.”
“By the way, did you perhaps tell the Legion Commander to manage the soldiers’ diet?”
Kyle thought for a moment before answering ‘Yes’ to Old Man Neil’s question.
When we first arrived here, I was surprised by the condition of the soldiers.
They were skilled soldiers, but their bodies had some areas that could be improved.
So after we finished clearing out the monsters, I immediately went to see the Legion Commander.
“He said he wanted to get more advice on that matter. Then the Baron showed interest and said he would go himself.”
Proper diet, excellent exercise methods, and consistent effort.
Wasn’t preaching those three things also one of the Jonathan curses?
‘Well, I’m doing this because I can’t escape that curse either.’
Come to think of it, I wonder if Ian, Leto, and Nell are exercising well.
I’m not too worried about Tisha and Elga since they’ve become competitive with each other.
Ah. I need to go back and check on the Church too. I need to make sure they’re using the equipment properly.
I think I should go to the Church following the Saintess instead of the Academy this time.
“Are you going, Young Master?”
“I have to. If Father is going, how can I not go?”
I’m too worried to send Father alone.
People will feel a bit more at ease if I’m there with him.
*
“Haaah! Haaaah!!”
“Uryaaaah!!”
…What’s this situation? Why are they suddenly like this?
As we approached the Legion Commander’s command tent, battle cries could be heard continuously from nearby.
Wondering what was going on, Kyle looked around and had to let out a sigh of “Huh.”
The battle was over, and they should have been resting and preparing to return.
The Imperial knights were rolling around, covered in dirt and dust.
This wasn’t a simple training to maintain tension.
They were engaged in duels equivalent to actual combat, just without real swords.
‘What the hell? Weren’t they just waiting to prepare for the return, having finished all their tasks?’
It’s like suddenly working frantically at 5:50 PM when you’re supposed to clock out at 6.
There’s no need for this, so why on earth are they doing it?
Kyle caught a passing officer and asked why they were acting like that.
He soon heard a rather ridiculous reason.
“…So, it’s because of our kids?”
“Yes. When the news spread that children barely in their early to mid-teens had faced monsters, it seems to have stimulated them in various ways. Some are feeling ashamed of themselves, and some squad leaders decided they couldn’t let this stand and started pushing for special training like mad from today.”
“Good grief…”
He wanted to say this to the knights who had such thoughts:
Give it up. It’s like a sparrow trying to follow a stork and splitting its crotch.
Those kids you saw are already a completely different breed from birth.
“Uwaaaaah!!”
“Get it together, you bastards!!”
“Put some strength into it! What have you been doing to collapse already!! Get up!!”
Did the Legion Commander say something? That they’re worse than the kids?
If their direct superior said that, I could understand why they’re being berated like this.
I think it would be better to ask the Legion Commander about this directly.
“Young Master. Why are those knights over there acting like that?”
“It seems they’re doing special training after being stimulated by our kids.”
“Special training?”
Old Man Neil lets out a “Huh?” as if he can’t believe it.
Is he also dumbfounded that they’re doing this when everything is over?
“Is that supposed to be special training? It’s not like they’re toddlers playing in the dirt. Tsk tsk.”