I love time travel the most!

I smiled and said goodbye to the father and daughter, knowing I would probably never see them again.

The little flame that Kefei lit had not yet gone out.

Liu Zi immediately retorted sharply, "I never expected that Lord Kobayashi would have such thoughts about children. As a servant, I will not call the guards, but I would appreciate it if you could restrain your quirks a little, as it would lower my reputation."

"Liu Zi, this is just childish talk. And you know, right? I like older women with big breasts and big butts."

Xiaolin reluctantly corrected the misunderstanding.

However, what bothered him was the resentful gaze beside him, even more so than that of Liu Zi. The gaze was so piercing that it made him feel uncomfortable.

Turning around, I saw that it was the boy who had stopped the train with me earlier.

Was Lei really called?

At this moment, there was a bright red handprint on his cheek, and combined with the remaining moisture on his cheek, it was immediately clear why he harbored such resentment.

They were both heroes who stopped the train, so the difference in their treatment must have made them feel resentful.

Kobayashi walked over and gently patted his shoulder to comfort him. The other man looked at Kobayashi with a frustrated expression, his lips moved a few times, but he ultimately said nothing.

After that, the two inexplicably started traveling together.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

"What did you say?!"

Akabane Raishin exclaimed in surprise.

The sudden shout startled passersby, who quickly covered their mouths and gave each other apologetic looks.

His personality wasn't originally like this.

Just now, they introduced themselves, and when he learned that Kobayashi was a puppeteer and Ryuu was an automaton, he was shocked.

"So, you're human, yet you and Yaya, an automaton, intercepted a train weighing a hundred tons?"

"No, no, no, most of the credit goes to her; I only played a supporting and guiding role."

"That's pretty terrifying, isn't it?"

It's like a Pokémon battle, but instead of tough Pokémon, the opponent is a human with a very fragile body, yet the human can still fight the Pokémon to a standstill.

If you're so good, why don't you go play Kengan? You're on the wrong track, you know that?!

Akabane Raishin thought it was strange enough that he would be fighting alongside automatons, but he never expected there to be such a bizarre combination as automatons watching the show while the puppeteers fought.

"So, you're going to the Royal Academy of Mechanical Arts, aren't you?"

"Yes!"

Xiaolin smiled with satisfaction.

After Akabane Raishin introduced himself, he remembered who the other person was and naturally decided to go with him to the Royal Academy of Machines, which is known as one of the world's most famous and best skill academies.

He would be more than happy to learn something there and improve Liu Zi's skills.

but……

"I'm sorry, but you cannot enter the college without an application form."

Kobayashi was stopped outside by the guards.

"That's how it is. I'm sorry, I can't help you either." Akabane Raishin gave a helpless look.

Xiaolin wasn't angry. She waved her hand and said, "Don't worry, don't worry, you go in first, I'll come find you soon."

Akabane Raishin nodded and entered the academy with Yaya.

Nighttime, in the men's dormitory.

"Ray Zhen."

"what happened?"

"Is that person really allowed to come in?"

"He'll definitely get in."

He had a strong premonition, which was confirmed the next day.

"Ah, Akabane-kun!"

Xiaolin smiled and raised her right hand to greet him, while holding the same entrance exam ranking sheet as yesterday in her left hand.

See, he'll definitely get in.

Chapter 131 The righteous assault

As Kobayashi emerged from the exam room, he happened to see Akabane Raishin strolling in the courtyard. He called out to him and walked straight toward him.

Perhaps the voice was a bit loud, or perhaps both of them were new students, or perhaps they were each followed by a girl with a different style but who was quite cute.

In short, they are very eye-catching.

Akabane Raishin didn't care about being watched, but he still felt uncomfortable being stared at like an animal by a group of people, so he immediately went to a more secluded corner.

Unlike the smiling Kobayashi, his expression was rather strange.

"Although I already guessed it, I still have to ask, you didn't use any improper methods to get in, did you?"

"Yes! I forged a college application!"

"Don't forge it!"

Akabane Raishin couldn't help but mutter a complaint, staring at the audacious guy in front of him with dead fish eyes.

Just think about it for a moment.

The Royal Academy of Machinics of Walpurgis is one of the world's top academies, and applying for admission is extremely difficult. It requires proof and verification of one's background, and even with connections to pull strings, it took nearly half a year to receive a reply.

The person who didn't even have an application form yesterday walked in openly today, and even had a ranking sheet in their left hand, indicating that they had already completed the exams.

He wouldn't believe it if you said there was no problem.

In reality, Kobayashi simply had Ryuu use the [Imaginary Number Switch] to "borrow" the admission invitation from the principal's office, and then used the same superb forgery techniques as the goddess to forge a copy.

I was a little nervous when I submitted it, thinking it might be discovered, but I easily passed the assessment and was admitted smoothly.

I can't help but lament the academy's poor security from top to bottom, and I'm truly worried about the safety of the students and teachers here.

Did they think it was one of the most powerful academies, so they let their guard down?

Or was it intentional?

If that's the case, then that professor named Kimberly has a serious problem.

A woman shrouded in mystery.

Akabane Raishin also complained, "I was really looking forward to studying here, but after this happened, I've started to doubt whether this is really the Royal Academy of Mechanical Arts with its excellent security and privacy."

"Don't say that, Akabane-kun."

Kobayashi patted him on the shoulder and complained in return, "You know, there are many places that are called secret sanctuaries that no one knows about, but in the end they are like public toilets that anyone can come and go as they please. Can you imagine what that feeling is like?"

"How could such a place exist!"

Akabane Raishin rolled his eyes at him.

Then his eyes would occasionally glance at the ranking list on Kobayashi's left. Although he hadn't said anything explicitly while chatting, he looked like he cared a lot.

Is it to compare or just out of curiosity?

"What, do you want to know my ranking, second to last Akabane-kun?"

"Tsk."

Akabane Raishin grimaced in annoyance.

Sure enough, the teacher told the other person that he hadn't done well on the written test, and seeing how smug the guy in front of him was, he figured he must be different from him and ranked very high.

Kobayashi didn't keep anyone in suspense and immediately unfolded the list, revealing the rankings.

"Look, 1234th place! Pretty smooth, right?"

"...What's there to be so proud of? Even though I'm second to last at 1235, your 1234 is third to last!"

"Uh, Akabane-kun..."

"W-What's wrong? Why are you looking at me with such regret?"

Perhaps it was Kobayashi's smugness that had attracted so much hatred, because Akabane Rai really couldn't quite wrap his head around it.

In his anxiety, he failed to realize his mistake.

Night after night, she reminded him, "Rai Zhen, you're second to last, but your opponent is fourth to last. That's because there's someone between you, and Rai Zhen's ranking has dropped from 1235 to 1236."

"……Aha?"

Akabane Raishin opened his mouth slightly, moving it up and down, but said nothing.

He could only look at the automaton who was smugly correcting his mistakes with frustration, suspecting that she was not an ally but a spy sent by the other side to undermine him.

"Thank you for reminding me, Yaya."

"You're welcome, Raishin! It's what Yaya should do!"

"I wasn't praising you!"

The boy's rebuke and sharp gaze made the excited girl in the kimono shrink her shoulders, and the two's antics reminded Kobayashi of his companions from other worlds.

No wonder we didn't feel awkward after only meeting a few times; it must be because we have similar personalities.

However, the initial rankings are not important; they are all gathered here for that one thing.

——Night party.

Held every four years, it selects the best puppeteers of their generation. The 100 participants then battle it out in a zero-sum game until only one remains.

Similar to a battle royale game, let's see who gets to win tonight.

Originally, Xiaolin wasn't interested. He just wanted to go to the academy's library to learn advanced knowledge. Fighting and killing weren't suitable for him. He just wanted to be a quiet, handsome man, or a simple old man.

Kobayashi said, "I want to go to the top floor of the library to learn advanced knowledge."

But Kimberly, the teacher, said, "No, because your ranking isn't high enough."