Chapter 6
In a large open field surrounded by trees, four figures could be seen watching a fifth figure closely.
Two of them were currently engaged in a fierce spar.
One was a young white-haired boy with golden eyes and an unusually handsome face for his age. He held a sword in his hands and moved across the field with surprising speed and precision.
His opponent was an orange-haired youthful woman who fought entirely with her bare hands.
"Waaah! Big brother is so strong!" exclaimed one of the spectators.
The speaker was a five-year-old girl with scarlet hair.
Irene smiled proudly at her daughter.
"Hahaha, that he is, Erza."
She then turned her attention back towards the sparring match.
Beside her stood Heine, who watched the battle with her usual serious expression.
The three of them had been watching for several minutes now.
And none of them had any intention of interrupting.
(Elior POV)
I was currently sparring with Juliet.
This had become a regular part of my daily training.
I usually trained with either Juliet or Heine, and each of them provided a completely different challenge.
Juliet relied on speed and unpredictable movements, while Heine was more technical and disciplined.
Today's spar was fairly simple.
I was only allowed to use my sword.
Juliet, on the other hand, could use her magic.
The reason for this restriction was simple.
I wanted to improve my swordsmanship.
If I constantly relied on my Light Magic, then my swordsmanship would never develop properly.
So Irene had created a fairly strict training routine for me.
During some spars, I could use magic freely.
During others, I was restricted to my sword.
Sometimes I wasn't allowed to move more than a certain distance.
Other times, I had to fight while severely limiting my magical power.
It was frustrating.
But it worked.
Over the past few years, my swordsmanship had improved tremendously.
I had developed excellent fundamentals and could now instinctively adjust my movements during combat.
Of course, there was still a massive difference between being talented and being truly great.
I had a long way to go.
But considering my age, I was already quite proud of my progress.
Physically, I was also far stronger than an ordinary seven-year-old.
Years of training had strengthened my muscles, reflexes, endurance and coordination to an absurd degree.
By Irene's estimation, my physical ability was already comparable to that of a capable B-Rank wizard.
And that was without using magic.
Still, I couldn't become complacent.
There were monsters in this world who could crush me without even trying.
Irene herself was the most obvious example.
She was a former dragon and one of the most terrifyingly powerful beings alive.
If I wanted to protect her and Erza, I couldn't afford to stop improving.
Whoosh!
My thoughts were interrupted by a fist coming straight towards my face.
I tilted my head slightly.
The fist passed harmlessly beside my cheek.
"You shouldn't be distracted during a fight, young master."
Juliet smiled brightly as she withdrew her fist.
"Hmm."
I replied casually.
Then I closed my eyes.
Juliet tilted her head.
"Young master?"
I had been experimenting with something for the past few days.
Something that had nothing to do with any particular spell.
Ever since I had awakened my magic, I had been able to sense ethernano in the atmosphere.
As my magical ability grew, that perception became sharper.
I could feel the presence of magical energy around me.
I could sense when someone was gathering magic.
I could even detect subtle changes in the magical flow around an opponent.
At first, I thought it was simply an ordinary consequence of having exceptional magical perception.
But recently…
It had started becoming something more.
During my previous spar with Juliet, I had experienced a strange sensation.
For the briefest moment, I had felt something before she attacked.
Not the attack itself.
Something before it.
A tiny disturbance in the magical flow around her body.
A subtle shift in her posture.
A change in the surrounding ethernano.
It had lasted less than a second.
But I had reacted before consciously realizing what was happening.
And if I was right…
I could learn to reproduce it.
"Did something happen, young master?"
Juliet's voice pulled me out of my thoughts.
"If you want, we can stop here."
"No."
I opened my eyes.
"I'm fine."
I tightened my grip around my sword.
"Actually, I want you to use your full strength."
Juliet blinked.
"My full strength?"
"Yes."
I looked directly at her.
"I want to test something."
I paused.
"And don't stop until I tell you to."
Her cheerful expression changed slightly.
She understood that I wasn't joking.
"As you wish."
The moment she finished speaking, she disappeared.
Whoosh!
She shot towards me at incredible speed.
I raised my sword.
Her fist came from the left.
I blocked.
Another attack immediately followed from the right.
I ducked.
Juliet spun around and launched a kick.
I jumped backwards.
"You're faster than usual, young master!"
She grinned.
I didn't respond.
My concentration was completely focused on her.
Juliet suddenly thrust her hands forward.
"Mucus Magic!"
A mass of sticky mucus shot towards me.
I swung my sword.
Slash!
The magical substance was cleanly cut apart.
'I've gotten pretty good.'
My swordsmanship had reached a level where techniques like that were becoming easy to deal with.
But Juliet wasn't finished.
The moment I cut through her magic, she was already beside me.
A kick came towards my ribs.
I moved my arm down and blocked it.
BAM!
The force sent me sliding backwards several metres.
'Tch.'
My arm hurt.
Juliet was holding back somewhat during our normal spars, but this was different.
I steadied myself.
'But…'
I smiled slightly.
'I felt it.'
That sensation.
The same sensation from before.
It was faint.
Almost impossible to describe.
But it was there.
Juliet charged again.
I closed my eyes.
Instead of focusing on her physical movements, I focused on the magic around her.
The flow of ethernano.
The movement of her magical energy.
The subtle changes in her body.
Something shifted.
I sensed it.
I jumped backwards.
An instant later, Juliet's fist passed through the space where my face had been.
My eyes opened.
'Again.'
She attacked from above.
I moved before she reached me.
Her axe kick slammed into the ground.
BOOM!
The earth cracked beneath her foot.
I landed several metres away.
My heart was beating faster.
'I can feel it.'
It was becoming clearer.
Every time Juliet moved, there were tiny signs beforehand.
Her muscles shifted.
Her magical energy changed.
The surrounding ethernano reacted.
Individually, none of these things would have been enough.
But together…
They gave me a glimpse of what she was about to do.
Juliet charged again.
I watched.
Left.
Right.
Above.
I dodged each attack.
Then suddenly—
'There!'
I moved before she did.
I swung my sword towards an empty space.
Juliet appeared exactly where I had attacked.
SHING!
The blade stopped just before her body.
Juliet's eyes widened.
"Young master!"
I grinned.
'It worked.'
I wasn't seeing the future.
At least, I didn't think I was.
I was reading the battlefield.
My extraordinary magical perception was allowing me to detect tiny changes that most people would never notice.
And my brain was processing those changes incredibly quickly.
It was almost like my body knew what was coming before my conscious mind did.
But I still had to train it.
A lot.
Because right now, it only worked against opponents whose movements I could somewhat understand.
Against someone vastly stronger or faster than me, this ability might not be enough.
Still…
It was a beginning.
Juliet attacked again.
This time, I didn't simply dodge.
I moved towards her.
She threw a punch.
I stepped aside.
She followed with a kick.
I ducked.
She attempted another strike.
I blocked it.
Every movement became a game of prediction and reaction.
I could feel myself improving with every exchange.
My grin grew wider.
'This is amazing.'
For the first time, I wasn't simply reacting to Juliet.
I was anticipating her.
At the beginning of the spar, she had been able to push me around.
But several minutes later, the situation had completely changed.
Juliet's breathing became heavier.
I was still standing.
My movements were becoming sharper.
My sword felt lighter in my hands.
She attacked.
I stepped aside.
She attacked again.
I blocked.
Then I moved.
One step.
Two.
Three.
I swung my sword.
Juliet barely avoided the blade.
She tried to counterattack.
I had already predicted it.
I ducked underneath her strike and moved behind her.
She spun around.
I was already there.
My sword stopped at her neck.
Silence.
Juliet froze.
I opened my eyes fully.
A triumphant grin appeared on my face.
"I win."
For several seconds, Juliet simply stared at me.
Then she laughed.
"Hahaha! Young master actually beat me!"
I lowered my sword.
"Finally."
I looked towards Irene.
She was smiling.
Heine's expression was slightly more serious than usual.
"What do you think?" Irene asked her.
Heine continued watching me carefully.
"His perception has improved considerably."
Irene nodded.
"Yes."
She looked towards me with a proud smile.
"He's beginning to understand how to use his natural magical perception in combat."
I smiled.
'So that's what I'll call it.'
It wasn't Haki.
It wasn't some mysterious outside power.
It was simply my own ability.
A combat sense born from my extraordinary magical perception, my swordsmanship, and years of training.
And I had only just begun to develop it.
If I continued improving it…
One day, perhaps, I wouldn't need to rely on raw speed or overwhelming magic to win a fight.
I would simply know where my opponent was going to move.
And then my sword would already be there.