Good Changes, Bad Changes
Girlfriend. Girlfriend. Girlfriend, huh. He kept murmuring the word.
Obviously, that was exactly why he had come to this Academy.
The world itself was a romance fantasy — he couldn't just keep working out forever.
Like everyone else, he wanted to date a girlfriend at the Academy!
Wasn't that what the Academy was made for?!
A place for the Empire's talents? A place to train future workers? No!
In a romance fantasy, an Academy had only one purpose! A stage for every kind of romance!
Of course, he hadn't treated Tisha well from the start with that goal in mind. At first, Kyle had simply wanted to ride the protagonist's wave, whatever it was. He'd meant to follow the standard isekai transmigration route he'd always seen.
But the biggest problem. I don't know the original plot at all.
He'd only learned for the first time that a force called Jon Nasen even existed in the novel. He didn't even know why such an absurd place existed. And with that being the case, of course he didn't know the story after the free chapters either. All he knew was what he'd pieced together from a quick skim of the comments.
In that situation, hitching a ride on the original plot? What would be the point? He didn't even know what that plot was. In the end, the standard isekai route was useless to Kyle. And that meant his kindness toward Tisha had lost its reason.
Yet he was still treating her well — which meant he must have feelings for her, right?
I don't think I was the type to go crazy for a harem...
Scratching his cheek, worries about what to do next sprouted one after another. Tisha was a truly good woman. Smart, pretty, and receiving the protagonist's plot armor. Originally she was supposed to end up with Ian, but the odds of that now were basically zero. Even Ian himself these days was more obsessed with "earning Kyle's recognition" than with Tisha.
Dating her as a girlfriend wouldn't be a problem at all. Honestly, Kyle wanted that too. Elga was too much pressure, and the Saintess felt less like a romantic interest and more like someone he wanted to protect a little? The one who best fit the condition of "an Academy girlfriend" was Tisha.
The problem was that, of all times, the Imperial Princess was pushing way too openly right now.
Tisha says she's fine with it, but... you never know. How the Princess might change.
If he had to compare, the Imperial Princess was similar to the people of Jon Nasen. Just as the people back home were obsessed with training, she was obsessed with herself. And if he imagined the reaction when their training was blocked, then next imagined someone who wanted to own him — or be owned by him — watching him laugh and chat with another woman while ignoring her...
"Brother Kyle?"
Startled by the voice from ahead, he hurriedly looked up. The Saintess stood at the open door, looking at him as if to ask why he wasn't coming in. Only then did Kyle realize he'd walked all the way to the chapel and gotten lost in thought.
"Is something the matter? You came right up to the door and still won't come in."
"Ah, yes. Well... something's been weighing on my mind. That is..."
As he spoke, Kyle realized the person standing before him was none other than the Saintess. A woman popular with readers even as a supporting character who only appeared from time to time — precisely because at moments like this she would give just the right advice and help readers work through their frustration.
"Saintess."
Kyle immediately poured out his worries to her, secretly hoping she might offer some good advice. Of course, he didn't make himself the subject, and he adjusted the story appropriately.
"...Hmm, so a close brother of yours has found himself in a difficult spot."
"That's right. Well, it's not that he's completely lost — more that he lacks certainty, so he's a bit troubled. How should I put it. He's leaning about sixty percent one way, but the rest..."
"If it's more than sixty percent, doesn't he already know the answer?"
"Pardon?"
At Kyle's puzzled reply, the Saintess smiled gently.
"The human heart is a truly strange thing, Brother Kyle. No matter how negatively you think, if even a tiny bit of positive feeling remains inside, in the end it will tip toward that positive. And conversely, no matter how positive you feel, if there's even a tiny bit of negativity, it will tip that way too."
"..."
"The human heart is the kind of thing that can topple over even something that small — so if it's already more than sixty percent, I'd say the answer is set. Please tell that brother of yours: just go where the heart leads."
Go where the heart leads. Such easy words, words anyone could say. And yet he found himself listening blankly — was it the unique atmosphere the Saintess carried?
"Worries shouldn't drag on, the heart must be firmly decided, and action is best taken quickly."
With a slightly deeper smile, the Saintess tied it off as if to say that should be enough. Kyle exhaled in admiration and replied that he would certainly pass the message along. At the same time he thought: so that someone waiting for him wouldn't wait too long. Even if not right away, approaching little by little, slowly — wouldn't that be okay?
"I'm glad it was helpful. Then... shall we get started?"
"Yes, let's get started."
At Kyle's words, the Saintess let out a sharp "Ha!" of effort. Saying she was truly confident now, she prepared for push-ups with surprising proficiency.
"Just you watch! Today I'm going to break ten no matter what!"
"If you can do many, that's good. But doing more at all costs isn't always better, Saintess. Knowing yourself and looking after your body so you don't get hurt is the most important thing."
"But you said ten was too few!"
"Of course. So I hope you'll succeed at more than ten today."
It had already been nearly three months since he'd strongly encouraged the Saintess to exercise. In that time, she had truly worked hard. Anyone could see she was putting in the effort. The problem was that the results relative to that effort were far too low. She needed to build basic fitness properly before they could move on. With upper-body strength worse than a child's, she wouldn't even be able to lift the bar, never mind plates. She still struggled with bodyweight squats — how was she supposed to train her legs? Not even if she died and came back. Even people who hated exercise would be better off than the Saintess. And the Saintess even had passion and effort — yet the fruit just wouldn't come. So of course watching her was agony for Kyle.
"Starting!"
With a vigorous voice, the Saintess's push-ups began.
"One, two, three..."
Fortunately her form at least stayed textbook, just as Kyle had taught her. If her form had been a mess too, there really would have been no hope — small mercies.
"Eight... nine... ten..."
She reached ten without much difficulty. What came next was the important part. How far had the Saintess grown? How many could she do? He could still vividly remember the sight of her calling on the gods after a single push-up. And hadn't Kyle been right there beside her calling on the gods too? Please, grant this kind and beautiful Saintess the strength to exercise!
"Elev...en. Twel...ve..."
"You're doing well, Saintess. Come on. Just a little more. If it's hard, just one more!"
The "just one more!" that rivaled a devil's whisper had appeared. Some people said that phrase drained all their strength, but the Saintess seemed different. Gritting her teeth, face flushed red, breathing hard, she forced strength into her arms again and successfully pushed her upper body up once more.
"Thir...teen...!"
"Can you do one more? If you can, keep going, and if not..."
He gave her the choice. Honestly, thirteen was already a lot. Even if she collapsed face-first or got up on her knees from here, he'd applaud. But the Saintess began lowering her upper body again.
"I... I can do it. I really worked hard... so I could show you, Brother Kyle...!"
Her body rose with difficulty, slowly, but surely. Past fourteen, toward fifteen. And at last she made it.
"Fif...teen...!!"
With those words, the Saintess rolled onto her side. Then she let out a "Gack!" of a scream and sprawled out flat.
"Fi...fifteen. Right? I... I did them properly? Brother Kyle?"
"Yes. Perfect form. A full fifteen. That's amazing. You worked hard, Saintess."
For a Jon Nasen, fifteen wouldn't even earn a reaction — you'd need a hundred and fifty. But the one gasping for breath right now was the Saintess. Until recently she'd grunted and struggled over a single push-up — an absolute exercise disaster. That such a woman had completed fifteen, and in proper form no less, was an enormous result.
"Here, lie flat. Keep your body relaxed."
He carefully massaged her two arms, which were trembling and twitching with spasms. He didn't strictly need to give her a massage, but gratitude was natural for someone who'd worked hard. Favorite character or not — this was gratitude for a hardworking member who'd followed so well.
"If you keep at it like this, twenty will come soon, and later you'll manage thirty too."
"C-can we leave that for a bit later?"
She'd barely managed fifteen and he was already talking about double that. Frightened, the Saintess forced a smile as she said so, and Kyle nodded. Today, five minutes — no, more than ten minutes of rest would be fine.
"That's a relief."
"What's a relief?"
"We're expanding the gym. And inside it, I'm planning to make a beginner space just for you, Saintess."
But the Saintess was even weaker than those beginners, so he'd been rather worried. If there was no progress, he'd have to keep watching over her here in this place with nothing at all. She couldn't do bodyweight exercises forever. Equipment had to be used in moderation too.
"Well... if I go, I feel like I'd only make you busier, Brother Kyle..."
"Hmm... true, that could happen."
Not quite on the level of the Imperial Princess, but the Saintess's presence was also considerable. If someone like her came to the gym to work out, unwelcome guests would keep flocking in. People who dared enter the sacred gym for purposes other than exercise would increase.
But the Saintess needs to start doing proper training soon too.
After a brief consideration, Kyle found the most suitable answer.
"Saintess. Then how about this?"
"What is it?"
"We turn this place into a gym just for you... that is, into an exercise space."
"Isn't that already how it's being used?"
At the Saintess's question, Kyle shook his head as if absolutely not. How could you call it a gym without a single piece of equipment?! That was sacrilege!!
"Hmm... then I'll have to speak with the Holy Order. I happen to have business at the Holy Order tomorrow... Ah! Brother Kyle! What if you come along then and we speak to His Holiness together?!"
"Me as well?"
Tomorrow was Sunday. He'd planned to crush cardio hard from the morning and stay at the gym all day. Did he really need to go along just to deliver an opinion about building a private gym? That question was slowly rising in Kyle's mind when—
"Yes! You have to see it too, Brother Kyle! How sturdy the priests of the Holy Order have become these days!"
"Oh."
That, in its own way, was a rather tempting proposal.