Down the street, Kyle jogged at a steady pace, his fists held close to his chest. Sweat streamed down his face as his eyes remained fixed on the ground ahead, carefully watching where he placed each step.

A pair of earbuds sat snugly in his ears, blasting fast-paced music that kept his motivation high and his rhythm steady.

Lately, he hadn’t been training as consistently as he wanted. The thought had been weighing on his mind for some time now. As a result, he decided to sleep early and wake up before work, carving out a little time to focus on himself before the day began.

[The host needs to train with Aquilla as well to improve Genesis efficiency.]

The system reminded him of something he already knew.

Yesterday, when he visited Tear and shattered that barrier, he came to an important realization.

With the Overlord skill, he could temporarily elevate his stats to the level of a Special Grade. Armed with that kind of power, dealing with high-ranking Ghouls on his own would no longer be an impossible task.

Combined with the tools he had received from the viewers, and with God’s Eye serving as the crowning advantage, Kyle could confidently say that he possessed some of the best resources imaginable for becoming stronger.

Now, it all came down to one thing.

How much effort he was willing to invest in his own growth.

Bzz

The music abruptly cut off.

Kyle slowed his pace and pulled out his phone.

Veronica.

Without much thought, he accepted the call.

"Morning."

{Morning...}

A slightly groggy voice came from the other side.

Kyle sighed.

"Please tell me you weren’t awake all night and are only going to sleep now."

{No, don’t worry. I got back late, but I still managed to get about five hours of proper sleep. So I’m feeling a little refreshed now.}

Kyle checked the time.

6:01 AM.

"You can sleep a little longer, can’t you? It’s not like you need to clock in on time every single day."

A smirk appeared on his face.

"Take advantage of your position once in a while."

{Mm... you’re right. I can take it easy today since my new trainee will be under someone else’s supervision.}

Her words immediately piqued his curiosity.

"Is it Amanda?"

That would be great. Being around her allowed Kyle to be as clueless as he wanted without feeling embarrassed.

After all, there were still countless things he didn’t know.

He was completely new to the Aether World. Many concepts and bits of common knowledge that seemed trivial to a natural awakener were entirely foreign to him. Things others barely spared a glance often left him fascinated or stunned.

That was why he found himself constantly asking questions.

And with Amanda, he could freely play the fool and inquire about even the most basic things without worrying about being judged.

Unfortunately, his hopes were quickly crushed.

{Actually, the Vice-Commander has taken over as your mentor for today. Hannah might join as well, so be prepared to receive a call from them soon.}

Kyle let out a groan as the image of the man he had seen at the base yesterday resurfaced in his mind.

From what he remembered, Vice-Commander Timothy was a stern, no-nonsense individual with an ordinary face and an imposing presence. He rarely spoke, but whenever he did, people listened.

With someone like him around, Kyle could be anything except a clueless fool.

{What happened? Not happy about it?}

"Of course I’m not. I’d much rather have you drag me around for these nine days than him or anyone else."

{Drag you around... huh... that sounds oddly tempting.}

Kyle immediately facepalmed.

"Don’t start imagining weird things. More importantly, tell me this. How much of my abilities should I reveal to him?"

Veronica’s tone turned serious.

{Kyle, that’s a question you need to think about very carefully. Timothy reports everything to the authorities, down to the smallest detail. Just assume that whatever you display today will eventually become public knowledge. So limit your powers and make sure you reveal only as much as you’re comfortable letting others know.}

Her advice left a deep impression on him, and Kyle responded with a thoughtful hum.

She was right.

He needed to sit down and carefully consider how much of himself he was willing to reveal.

There was no doubt that Aquilla would remain his primary ability. The power to summon a mythical bow was already known to others, and from the looks of it, many had already identified it as the centerpiece of his arsenal. There was no point trying to hide it.

Then there was the lantern gifted by Myuri.

Both the headmaster and Ava had already witnessed it. Attempting to conceal its existence now or use it discreetly would be pointless.

God’s Eye, however, was absolutely off limits.

Fortunately, that wasn’t much of a concern. No one could realistically guess the true nature of his ocular ability. At most, they would assume he possessed extraordinary perception or heightened awareness.

As for Overlord, that skill was reserved for emergencies.

An ace hidden up his sleeve.

There was no reason to expose it.

The same applied to Golden Limb. It was better for that innate trait of his body to remain unknown. The fewer people who knew about it, the better.

{Kyle.}

Veronica’s hesitant voice suddenly pulled him out of his thoughts.

"Hmm?"

{Last night... Ethan defeated a Ghoul on his own.}

Kyle’s brows rose.

"Wasn’t he a Second Grade warrior?"

Within their team, only Layena had reached First Grade and possessed the strength to confront a Ghoul head-on and emerge victorious.

Of course, Ghouls themselves varied greatly in strength. The one Layena had faced during their first encounter and the one Kyle fought yesterday existed on entirely different levels.

Perhaps Ethan had simply encountered a weaker one.

{Yes, he’s a Second Grade. But somehow, he managed to take down a powerful Ghoul along with three Majins. He suffered injuries, but not severe enough to hinder his movements.}

Kyle remained silent for a moment.

"And your concern is?" he asked, though he already had a good idea of where this conversation was headed.

{Kyle... it’s no secret that Ethan has had his sights set on you for a long time. His intentions are obvious, and in his eyes, you stand in the way of what he wants.}

Kyle was well aware of that.

Back when he had nothing to do with the Aether World, Ethan had already been making his moves.

Using his position as team leader, he frequently assigned Amanda to missions, keeping her occupied while ensuring he was always nearby. Little by little, he planted seeds of misunderstanding between her and Kyle.

Unfortunately, he had actually succeeded.

What Ethan truly wanted from Amanda remained somewhat unclear, though. After all, the man had been completely obsessed with Layena.

Now, however, Layena and Kyle had grown noticeably closer.

From Ethan’s perspective, that made Kyle a genuine threat.

So yes, Kyle understood exactly where Veronica’s concern was coming from.

Rubbing the back of his head, he asked, "What do I do if he attacks me first?"

{You can defend yourself and retaliate... but Kyle, without proper evidence, you can’t kill him.}

Kyle blinked in surprise.

"Why would you assume I’d kill him right away?"

The idea caught him completely off guard. Taking a human life was still something that challenged his moral boundaries. Even hearing it brought up so casually left him momentarily flustered.

Veronica’s voice remained calm.

{Ethan has suffered from domestic abuse and constant pressure from his family. There are times when he loses sight of his humanity. I’m only telling you this because, if things ever come to that point, don’t hesitate.}

After a brief pause, she added,

{I’ll always back you up.}

Kyle fell silent.

The warmth of her reassurance and the chilling implication of what he might one day have to face mixed together, leaving him without a response.

For a long while, neither of them spoke.

Then suddenly, his phone buzzed, signaling an incoming call. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

Kyle glanced at the screen.

An unknown number.

Not wanting to ignore it, he said, "I need to go. See you later."

{Mm. Take care.}

The call ended.

°°°°°°°

A/N:- Thanks for reading. If someone worried about Kyle hesitation to kill and all, don’t worry, you won’t see that for long.

Just a phase of character development.