Training Under the Name of Discipline
The beating that began under the name of training continued from the moment it started until just before dinner. The only training I could offer Leo was physical conditioning and sharpening his combat instincts for real battles rather than weapon handling. Still, that alone would be a tremendous help to him.
In the mornings, he sprinted full speed around the edge of the barrier ten laps, adding one more lap each day that passed. Now he was up to nineteen laps. Most ordinary people would have collapsed from exhaustion by the tenth lap, but thanks to the Holy Eye, he somehow managed to complete the routine without actually dying. Physical stamina was the most fundamental element in any fight. No matter how strong your power might be, it meant nothing if your body couldn't keep up.
There were countless ways to draw on holy power to boost muscle strength or use stamina more efficiently… but for some reason, Leo didn't know how to control his holy power. As a witch who wielded black magic, I couldn't teach him how to handle holy power. All I could do was push his basic physical conditioning and hope he would awaken it on his own. It wasn't as if I could just kidnap someone from the Holy Kingdom and make them teach him—that would be like casting pearls before swine.
After finishing morning physical training, the rest of the day was spent getting beaten until he nearly died. After about ten days of this, he had started to keep up fairly well. Even now, during a spar that had already lasted twenty minutes, his breathing remained steady. I was deliberately holding back while swinging my broom, yet he dodged my attacks while making full use of his Holy Eye. He tracked attacks that didn't need blocking until the very last moment and parried the unavoidable ones with his sword. He even counterattacked through the deliberate openings I showed him.
It had only been ten days, but the Spartan regimen was clearly paying off.
“Not bad. Then how about dodging this?”
Blocking the Triceratops's horn, which came thrusting forward while spraying dark red mana, with a sword would be the worst possible choice. Over the past several days, whether he tried to deflect or counter, the moment his blade made contact it had been sliced clean in two. He needed to learn that dodging was the correct response rather than recklessly blocking. If he hadn't realized it by now, we would have a problem.
A regular sword—not a holy sword or magic sword—couldn't protect its wielder from the cutting power of that mana. Even if he blocked, the iron blade would be split in half. And if he failed to dodge, it would pierce straight through his Holy Eye.
The thrust, which I had infused with slightly more power and speed than usual, reached right in front of Leo's eyes—
“Haaah…!”
With a spirited shout, he barely managed to dodge the thrust by a hair's breadth. A thin line of blood trickled from the small cut on his cheek. At this rate, with a bit more training, he wouldn't be getting one-sidedly beaten by just any opponent. Moreover, the way he immediately aimed for the opening created by my thrust and counterattacked—if his opponent let their guard down against Leo's skill level, they could very well eat a clean hit.
In my heart, I would have allowed him one solid blow, but I couldn't worry Joshua, who was watching anxiously from afar.
“Reach!!!”
If you fixate on an obvious large opening and fail to read your opponent's next move, you'll inevitably get counterattacked. And if the opponent deliberately exposed that weakness… stepping into it would be no different from walking straight to your death. This was a good opportunity for him to learn that lesson.
The dark red mana condensed in my other hand shot out to greet Leo as he charged into my chest.
“…!”
It seemed he had noticed the mana in my hand within that split second, but it was far too late to react. The hand extended along the sword path released its mana, sending Leo flying in an instant.
“If your opponent shows a big opening, you need to realize there's a reason for it. You were too hasty.”
Leo, who had embedded himself in the ground with a satisfying thud, didn't seem to have lost consciousness. He quickly got back up, but there was no avoiding the worry of Joshua, who came running over in a panic, afraid he might be hurt.
“Leo, are you okay? You're not injured anywhere, right?”
“I'm fine. I thought I might land a hit this time.”
If Joshua hadn't been there, I might have let him get in one good strike out of pity. But I couldn't show such an embarrassing sight in front of her.
“Not bad at all. It would have been better if your swordsmanship had a bit more variety, but I'm terrible at sword arts myself, so it's awkward for me to teach you.”
When you considered not just swordsmanship but also how to utilize the Holy Eye and holy power, he still had a very long way to go. The only things I could help with were real combat experience and physical conditioning. What Leo needed was a proper teacher. Someone more suitable for him than me.
Was it about time?
It had been a while since Joshua arrived, and we hadn't gone out once. This was the perfect moment to feel the need for an outing. We couldn't stay cooped up in this house forever. Besides, that place had several means to solve the problems I was currently thinking about in one fell swoop.
First, I needed to think about what gift would be good for the friend I would be meeting after such a long time.
“We're heading to Venice in one week.”
I casually dropped the announcement as dinner was coming to an end.
“Venice?”
“If it's Venice, then…”
Venice was a city located a little ways from the center of the Verdi Kingdom. It had prospered around the largest Adventurer Guild and served as the kingdom's second capital. Most adventurers in the Verdi Kingdom operated out of Venice, so the city was massive, its economy was booming, and businesses like lodging that catered to the floating population made it one of the most vibrant cities at the moment. In the Aria Chronicle series, quite a few characters visited Venice, and since there were even a few protagonists from there, it was one of those cities you simply couldn't forget.
“If we go to the city…”
I wasn't unaware of what Joshua was worried about. It was probably the Heresy Inquisitors. When the Laplace family, the lords of Venice, were rebuilding the city, I had given them some help. As a witch, I probably wouldn't be treated with suspicion. And even if someone tried to report me, I could simply hide behind the Laplace family.
“Don't worry, dear. A friend of Mom's lives there. The things you're worrying about won't happen.”
After I reassured Joshua, Leo suddenly looked terrified and asked,
“When you say friend… do you mean a witch?”
“Yes. She's a witch.”
“Then wouldn't it be better if I didn't go?”
Leo looked utterly frightened, as if he had some bad memories regarding witches. I could understand not liking witches, but seeing him openly grimace like that made me feel so deflated that I almost wanted to just let him do whatever he wanted. Joshua glanced at me nervously and tried to persuade him otherwise, but for this outing, there would be no exceptions for anyone.
I spoke each word clearly and deliberately so he couldn't possibly mishear.
“Ab-so-lute-ly not.”
“I have the Holy Eye, and I'm afraid that if we meet, they might kill me just because it feels unpleasant.”
It was true that Leo's Holy Eye gave witches an unpleasant feeling. It was like the creepy sensation of someone secretly watching you while you were showering alone. Seeing it might even make you feel a murderous impulse, and honestly, I wouldn't blame them. But if that was the reason, then all the more reason he had to go.
“That's actually one of the reasons we're going. That friend of mine doesn't have the Holy Eye like you, but she possesses a Magic Eye.”
Magic Eye. An eye capable of casting all kinds of curses just by looking at someone. It was a witch's artifact with status ailment mechanics—turning opponents to stone, inducing frenzy, or putting them to sleep. The exact details hadn't been revealed, but there was a theory floating around old ancient texts in the community that it might be the lost eye of an angel. There was definitely a similarity in the nature of that power.
“She might know how to use your Holy Eye to its full potential. You need to get stronger if you want to protect Joshua, right?”
When I subtly shifted the focus to Joshua, Leo nodded with a look of firm determination. I could never tell if he was easy or difficult to handle.
“What kind of person is Mom's friend?”
“Mom's friend, you see~”
Joshua's innocent question left me momentarily at a loss for words. Although I called her a friend, the last time we had met was over sixty years ago. Since we had fought tooth and nail from our very first meeting, she might be closer to a rival than a friend. But after clearing up our misunderstandings, we had become quite close. Above all, she was one of the few witches who appeared in Aria Chronicle, popular enough to be released as a playable character. At first I hadn't recognized her because her appearance had changed, but the moment I saw her Magic Eye, I knew instantly. Her voice, her power, and the pure love she displayed had touched my heart so much that I simply had to become friends with her.
“It's a secret~ You'll find out when you meet her yourself.”
There were too few friends to properly explain one of them with just a few words. I wanted Joshua to meet her in person and feel it for herself.
Friends. Friends, huh. To think I would make friends in this world when I never had any in my previous life. In a witch society rife with individualism, the fact that she had offered to be my friend was quite extraordinary.
“We'll depart in one week, so make sure to pack everything you need. And Joshua, write down the things you want to do once we get to Venice. I'm sure it'll be fun.”
I couldn't spend all my time thinking about my friend. There was a lot to prepare before heading to Venice. Leo's training had to continue without rest. I also needed to condense emergency potions and put them in the simple inventory. Finally, since Joshua didn't have any proper equipment, making her a staff would require every bit of time I had left.