NOVEL NEXT Chapter 31
“Lady, you should unpack your luggage first.”
“Oh, right! I’ll be back!”
The lady, who had been in the garden for a while, headed inside the mansion to unpack.
Did she come without unpacking at all?
Well, she was wearing her magic school uniform.
“Phew…”
Thinking she had finally caught her breath, she sat down in the garden.
*Cough*
Beside me sat White Pup, dozing off, probably because it just woke up.
Honestly, I was a bit scared.
What if the lady’s eyes suddenly glowed like before and she chased me away?
I haven’t seen it much lately, but those occasionally eerie glowing eyes are strange and creepy the more I think about them.
Maybe it’s because of those eyes that she treats me like a dog.
What does she see, and what is she thinking?
Thinking about how she ran to me as soon as she arrived at the mansion, she’s definitely a girl.
Before going to magic school, she was a bit moody, probably because of puberty, but she seems to have improved a bit.
Or maybe she’s so happy that her old self is coming out?
Seeing how excited she was earlier, she must have been looking forward to coming to the mansion.
Anyway.
“It’s been a while since I wore this.”
“Yes, since the lady has arrived.”
Since the lady is here, I put on the dog collar for the first time in a while.
Come to think of it, I haven’t been wearing it at all for some time.
But it doesn’t feel much different.
Compared to the shackle-like collar I wore when I first came to the mansion, this is nothing.
Now that I think about it, why was that thing even there?
It’s probably a restraint used to bind knights captured in war, meant to stop powerful aura users.
It’s so strong that even if I put it on now, I probably couldn’t break free.
How did Alden break free from those shackles and escape the Coliseum?
That was already five years ago? Time flies.
“Woof!”
As I waited with the collar on, the lady came out again.
Her outfit… it’s more like activewear than the usual dress.
“What are you planning to do, Lady?”
“Let’s train! I learned some magic.”
“Ah.”
She must want to show off the new magic she learned at magic school.
“Yes, let’s go.”
I was also curious about the magic she learned, so we headed straight to the training ground.
“It’s just as I left it!”
The training ground we arrived at was empty.
Unlike the recent relaxed atmosphere, today is the day the lady is here, so everyone is probably patrolling the mansion area rigorously.
Everyone must still vividly remember the mansion burning two years ago, so they won’t let their guard down when the lady is around.
“Um, tell me if you’re going to get hurt?”
“Yes, don’t worry.”
After arriving at the training ground, we warmed up lightly.
It’s more like sparring than training.
Since Terra taught the lady to train in a sparring style before she went to magic school, we’ve been training like this.
“The first one is a magic that makes the ground disappear! Don’t fall, okay?”
“…Don’t worry.”
Well, she seems to have learned a lot of magic, but I don’t think I’ll get hurt.
How long has it been since the lady went to magic school?
She probably only knows the basics.
So.
After finishing the preparations, I stood in front of the lady.
“Here I go! Focus here!”
As she said that, a magic circle lit up in her hand.
Unlike the usual red magic circle, this one was a dull earth color.
It’s a different magic circle than usual.
Since she said it would make the ground disappear, it must be that one.
Let’s see what it’s like, so I waited for the magic to activate while using Track.
And then.
The light from the magic circle flowed down to the ground.
*Thud!*
The ground I was standing on disappeared in an instant.
“Uh.”
…Was that it?
I felt a sense of floating as my balance was disrupted.
Of course, since I was using Track, I landed on the ground without any issues…
“Are you okay, doggy?”
“Yes, I’m fine.”
I’m fine, but I was a bit surprised.
Because the ground was dug deeper than I thought.
About waist-deep.
The range is quite wide too.
Thinking about the ground suddenly disappearing in the middle of a battle is dizzying.
It seems useful enough that I’d want to learn it myself.
“Now, next…”
We also tried out other basic magics the lady had learned.
“This is a double barrier.”
“Double?”
“Yes! Hit it! It won’t break!”
*Crash!*
“Uh…”
“…It broke.”
Of course, among them, there were magics that weren’t very powerful.
“Light!”
*Whoosh!*
But there were also quite a few magics that seemed useful in real combat.
…Did Terra only teach her to shoot fireballs and not these practical ones?
I guess you really need to go to school to learn properly.
The lady seems excited to show off all the new magics she learned.
“How is it? I learned a lot, right?”
“Yes… but do they usually teach this much?”
Moreover.
How long has it been since the lady went to magic school, and she’s already learned this much?
Considering that even basic magic isn’t easy, the amount of studying must have been enormous.
I wondered if other students also learned this much, so I asked.
“Huh? They teach a lot if you’re good at it?”
Apparently not, as the lady answered.
Well, she’s the genius the Void Family has been promoting, so she must stand out at magic school too.
“Now then…”
We’ve seen all the new magics, so now it’s time to see how much the existing ones have improved.
*Whoosh*
A red magic circle appeared in the lady’s hand, and soon a fireball the size of her upper body appeared.
It seems bigger than the last time I saw it.
It seems Terra wasn’t just teaching her to shoot fireballs, as this feels on a different level compared to the other magics she showed.
“Can, can I shoot this? It’s been a while, is it okay?”
“Yes, don’t worry.”
It’s a bit bigger, and the power feels different, but I confidently told her to shoot it.
*Phew…*
Since the fight with the Masked Person in the sewer, I’ve been focusing a bit more on Guard and Rush in my training.
Seeing the fireball, I drew the sword I had brought.
Normally, I would borrow a sword from the mansion in such situations, but now I need to get used to this sword.
It’s actually more convenient for using Rush.
“Then here I go! It’s different from before, is that okay?”
“Yes. Don’t worry.”
And so.
“Here I go!”
*Whoosh*
The lady, who had been worried until the end, shot the fireball.
Seeing the fireball flying towards me, I gathered my aura.
Without using Track or Fleet.
I lightly used Guard to protect myself, then charged Rush into my sword.
And then.
*Whoosh!*
As my vision filled with the fireball.
I swung the sword charged with Rush at the fireball.
And then.
*Boom!!*
The fireball exploded in the opposite direction.
A clean magic reflection.
“Wow!”
Hearing the lady’s exclamation from the other side, I sheathed my sword.
Moreover, I wasn’t hurt at all.
Back then, every time I deflected one, the borrowed sword would be in tatters.
It really pays to use a good sword.
“Doggy, you did great!”
After that, the lady clapped and came over to pat my head.
“Let’s go back now!”
We left the completely wrecked training ground.
…The servants will clean up the mess.
Seeing the stiff expressions of some servants who had been excited since the lady arrived, they must be in charge of the cleanup.
Anyway, like that.
With the training over, we returned to the garden where the dog house is.
The lady seems to plan to keep playing with me today, as she followed me all the way to the dog house.
“Huh? It’s moving around?”
“Yes, it’s starting to get active.”
Just then, we spotted White Pup wandering around the garden, getting all the attention from the maids.
“Hmm, it’s not a complete baby anymore?”
“It hasn’t been long since it opened its eyes.”
Intrigued by White Pup, the lady quickly approached it.
“Hee… it’s really cute.”
Saying that, she carefully picked up White Pup.
“Where did you find it?”
“I found it in the mountains.”
“Huh? The Kaine Mountain Range? Hmm…”
The lady tilted her head, as if wondering why I went there.
“Are its parents dead?”
She casually asked while examining White Pup.
“Yes, they were dead when I found it.”
I answered with a bit of tension.
…Why am I feeling tense?
The lady is just a typical immature teenage girl.
“Hmm…”
It’s all because of those red eyes.
Usually, they look like ordinary gem-like eyes, but sometimes they glow eerily.
“So you brought it as a new family member?”
Yes, like now.
‘Oh no.’
It’s not the usual sparkle from the sunlight, but an eerie glow.
Looking at White Pup with those eyes.
“Who gave you permission?”
She said something chilling.
With those glowing eyes and an uncharacteristic tone, everyone around froze.
Me, White Pup, and even the servants and maids following behind.
Outwardly, she’s a cute teenage girl.
But when she gets like this, the lady has an overwhelming presence that dominates the room.
“Lady.”
However, Lowell, who seemed unfazed by the situation, spoke up.
“Haha! Just kidding!”
The lady laughed brightly and put down the trembling White Pup.
“Umm, it must be cold?”
She took off her coat and put it on White Pup, but no one dared to speak.
It’s really chilling.
It feels even creepier than before.
…Is it because she learned magic?
No, that’s too simplistic.
Anyway, however it happened…
*Cough* *Cough*
Seeing White Pup completely terrified of the lady, the hierarchy seems to be clearly established.
It’s pitiful how scared the spirit beast is.
I should bring it some treats later.