* * *
It has been roughly half a year since I met Master.
The seasons have turned, and it’s almost summer!
The mountainside is covered in lush greenery, the Naked Mole Rats emerge from their nests, and the Polly Bugs squirm under the leaves, in such a season.
I am chasing after Master, running through the mountains.
Silently, like the wind… running at speeds unimaginable in my previous life.
Well, that’s because I’m applying the technique of 【Grasshopper】 to every step I take on the ground!
What happens if you use the force that allows you to leap meters vertically in a single bound for horizontal movement?
The answer is simple.
No need to think about it!
Incredible speed is achieved.
And since the impact is converted into magical power, there’s no sound.
I kick off the ground, kick off the trunks of trees, and sometimes continue moving as if leaping and flying, and I arrive at the cliff we’ve been to before.
Master, with the momentum of running through the mountains, runs up the cliff vertically.
This movement is exactly like using 【Silverfish】.
I follow behind.
Oops! Master has thrown a pebble at me from ahead!
This pebble, being part of the training, naturally doesn’t have lethal damage, but it’s incredibly hard to dodge.
Of course, it’s hard to dodge because Master throws it that way!
And if it hits me, a penalty game awaits.
The tea brewed by Master will taste even worse!
What’s the deal, Master?
Isn’t brewing tea supposed to be your hobby?
For the tea to taste worse as a penalty, doesn’t that mean you recognize that the tea you brew is bad?
Isn’t that a blasphemy against tea itself?
While I’m pondering this, we arrive at the top of the cliff.
We’ve been running non-stop for more than two hours, but finally, here, instead of resting while enjoying the view… that’s not how Master’s training goes.
Master stares straight at me and readies his fist. I respond in kind, and the sparring begins.
Yes, this is a sparring match.
It starts off slowly, and then gradually speeds up, faster and faster!
We parry each other’s attacks.
…Just because the punches are slow, doesn’t mean you can let your guard down.
Because those punches are infused with magical power!
Indeed, Master effortlessly wields 【Magic Strike】, a skill I happened to acquire by chance a few months ago.
The first time we sparred, I naively caught Master’s slowly moving fist and was embarrassingly blown away several meters—a memory that still makes me blush!
To counter 【Magic Strike】, one must use magic conversion to neutralize the magical power infused in the opponent’s fist…
This sparring session is more nerve-wracking than it looks.
The sparring continues endlessly until the sun is at its highest, which is when we finally take a break.
In the afternoon, Master and I go hunting, gather herbs, and return home as it gets dark.
Then, we work on crafting traps, mixing simple medicines, and other manual tasks, going to sleep at a reasonable hour.
And waking up before dawn…
That’s how I’ve been spending my days recently, enduring rigorous training.
Though I exhaust both my physical and magical energy, collapsing into bed every night, it’s strangely not painful.
I can feel myself getting stronger bit by bit… and most importantly, I have Master.
Master is strong. Incomprehensibly strong.
I knew this from the moment we met, but having learned how to control my body and magic from Master, and becoming somewhat capable of fighting…
And yet, when I try to gauge Master’s strength anew… it’s indescribable.
So strong that I can’t even comprehend how much of a gap exists between us.
Just exchanging punches, I can feel Master’s immense skill.
The way Master moves, flows, concentrates, and disperses magical power is all so efficient and beautiful.
I guess… our total magical power might be about the same now, but…
Despite that, the vast difference between Master and me lies in experience and technique.
I genuinely respect Master, who has accumulated such strength.
I’m grateful for the fortune of having met such a Master.
I want to be together forever.
I still have so much more to learn.
My beloved Master.
Please continue to guide me.
Eh? What about learning 【Mantis】?
Well, Extra-sama mentioned that it’s based on the same principles and fundamentals as 【Magic Sword】, a technique to sharpen sword strikes, which she saw in “Sword God’s Isekai Broadcast.”
Once I understood how it worked, it was easy to master.
And just like that, I was able to do it in no time.
That’s all!