Male Lead, Don’t Push, Pull!

 Translation by Lurelia | Editing by Valpal | Read only at rainofsnow.com ~

Their conversation was quite interesting. It made me wonder who they were talking about. But first, I had to find Kyle. 

I finally managed to make my way inside with Daniel. At the same time, I was stunned by the sight of the stage.

“989, 990.”

Kyle stood in the middle of the stage, swinging his wooden sword at a training dummy.

The figure that all these people were watching was none other than Kyle!

“…994, 995, 996.”

With each swing of his sword, sweat dripped from Kyle’s body like rain.

As the sweat dripped onto the dry dirt, only the ground near where Kyle stood was a different color.

“997, 998, 999, …1000!” Kyle screamed at the top of his lungs as he swung the wooden sword for the thousandth time.

Kyle’s wooden sword slammed into the ground. Kyle breathed heavily as he braced himself on the wooden sword.

His face was completely red with heat, and steam wafted off of his skin like a steamed bun just out of a steamer.

Then a man approached Kyle.

The man who had been sitting in a chair in the corner of the rehearsal hall was a big man. However, it seemed that it was not because of muscles, but rather because of fat.

He didn’t look like a professor, but a student.

“Kyle Ygritte.”

Kyle glanced up.

He looked very tired, but his eyes were so clear and bright. His gaze was even somewhat rebellious.

Taking a deep breath, Kyle spoke in a cracked voice.

“Yes.”

“Your posture was off at the end, and I told you to go all the way through, but you ignored me, so you’re going to get your comeuppance. Do it again, a thousand more times.”

“…Yes.”

Kyle’s eyes flashed with intensity despite his obedient response. Kyle’s neck moved rapidly up and down.

His face was expressionless as usual, but as his best friend, I could tell.

Kyle was holding back a lot of anger right now!

“Don’t avoid it because you can’t see, just do it right.”

Saying that, the man quickly turned around. His fat body thumped the floor of the training room with every movement.

Once the man was gone, Kyle began swinging his wooden sword again.

“One, two….”

The numbers went to a thousand and then back to one. Kyle repeated the monotonous action in silence, as if swinging the sword was all he had to do.

Those who were expecting a commotion scattered, losing interest at the lack of excitement. The bell rang, signaling the end of the evening.

In the deserted training ground, I cautiously approached Kyle.

“Kyle.”

Kyle didn’t answer, his gaze fixed on the wooden sword.

Was he too focused to hear me?

I called out to him again, reaching my hand in front of his face.

“Kyle… Heuk!”

The next moment, Kyle’s sword was pointed at me. I stumbled backwards in surprise and nearly fell.

Kyle’s eyes, sunken in a trance, snapped open. Soon, panic washed over his face.

“Vivi?”

“Uh, mhn.”

“I’m sorry, I didn’t realize it was you. Are you okay? Are you hurt?”

Kyle caught me and looked me over, clearly worried that I had been hurt.

But I was fine. The glint of a wooden sword in front of me startled me, but it didn’t touch me.

I was more concerned with Kyle, whose hair was drenched in sweat. Up close, Kyle was completely exhausted. To be honest, it appeared that he was having a hard time even standing with the sword now.

His arms were shaking like an earthquake. At the same time, the sword in his hand shook slightly.

The sight made me angry. What the hell was that guy doing?

Who exactly is making Kyle train so hard?

After class, the training grounds were deserted as everyone left for dinner. Only Kyle was training so hard in a deserted training ground!

I reached over and brushed a stray strand of hair off his forehead.

As I coolly brushed the dark hair back from his forehead, I could see his reddened face.

“Look.”

He’s completely overheated.

How the hell did he roll that kid!

~ Translation by Lurelia | Editing by Valpal | Read only at rainofsnow.com ~

Kyle needed a break right now. I swallowed my frustration and grabbed Kyle’s burning hand.

“Let’s go, Kyle. Let’s go to dinner.”

“I can’t.”

But he shook his head at my words. His answer came without a second’s thought, and I narrowed my eyes.

“Why?”

“Because I need to fill in a thousand strikes.”

“But it’s dinner time.”

“Still, I can’t go if I don’t do it.”

“Why? Everyone else has gone. Why is Kyle the only one who stays and trains?” 

I finally asked what had been bothering me all along. My honest opinion was that even though he said it was training, it wasn’t really training.

It seemed more like a process of punishment or bullying.

At my complaint, Kyle wiped the sweat from his brow and said casually, “That’s what most people do in the Swordsmanship Department.”

“Not most. Everyone else was just watching, and there’s no one here now. Are you being punished, Kyle?”

“No.”

“Then why is he so insistent? He’s not even a professor. I thought he was a senior. Is he bullying Kyle?”

“No, he’s not. He’s only giving me some training.”

Kyle continued to make frustrating excuses. 

I finally gave in and blurted out, “I think every muscle in Kyle’s arm is going to tear before that happens!”

No matter how much of a swordsmanship genius Kyle was and how much of a future Sword Master he was, he was still a child.

He must have physical limits. If he pushed himself this hard, he would surely be in pain the next day.

How long had this bullying been going on under the guise of training?

I had often seen Kyle tired since he joined the swordsmanship department. But now that formal swordsmanship classes had begun, I assumed he was having a hard time adjusting.

I had been nervous, too, trying to adjust to a new environment.

But this, this….

This is child abuse, do you understand?!

I clenched my fists tightly. I felt bad for Kyle for not being honest, but at the same time, I felt bad for not noticing anything.

Then Kyle spoke in a calm voice.

“I’m fine, Vivi.”

“But…!”

“And I don’t want to back out of here, or they’ll think I ran off with my tail between my legs.”

Kyle’s grip on the wooden sword he was holding tightened.

At the same time, I realized that Kyle wasn’t just being played for a fool. He was aware that his opponent was giving him unfair training instructions.

But he didn’t want to give in so easily, so he held on.

I could see the determination in Kyle’s eyes. A will that even I couldn’t stop.

…There’s nothing I can do about it.

“Then I’ll wait until you’re done.”

Kyle didn’t take no for an answer.

I stepped back, and he began to swing his sword again.

The harsh sound of the wooden sword striking the practice dummy echoed through the training grounds like an afterimage.

***

The process of waiting for Kyle had become a process of waiting with Daniel.

Unbeknownst to me, Kyle hadn’t spotted Daniel at first. The training grounds were crowded with swordsmanship students, and his vision was blurred by overtraining.

Kyle spotted Daniel with me later, and his expression was… unhappy.

Still, he didn’t bother to come over and kick Daniel out, figuring it was more important to finish the ugly man’s task at hand.

Or maybe he was remembering that I’d made a nuanced comment about being friendly with Daniel the other day.

If it’s the latter, it’s a huge step forward.

“Daniel, I’m sorry. You must be hungry.”

“I’m not.”

Daniel, who had somehow ended up waiting for Kyle with me, shook his head.

Still feeling guilty that I couldn’t make him eat, I rummaged through my pockets. Luckily, I found a lemon candy.

“Do you want some of this? It’s delicious.”

“How’s Vivian?”

“I’m fine.”

I squeezed the candy into Daniel’s hand.

Apparently, he was hungry, because he didn’t say no. Daniel pulled the wrapper off, revealing a bright yellow candy.

“It’s the same color as Vivian’s hair,” Daniel whispered in small admiration.

“Hehe, yeah.”

“It’s pretty.”

“This is delicious. It’s my favorite candy. I don’t know about you, but it’s the best.”

Daniel popped the candy into his mouth. I could hear the candy rolling around in his mouth and clinking against his teeth.

I smiled wryly at the sight of him eating so well and turned my head back to Kyle.