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In a forest not far from the Fairy Tail guild, Noah brought Erza to the small river where he often practiced controlling his magic power. Standing on the bank, he took a deep breath.
"I haven't been here for days. This place still feels the best."
"I didn't expect you to have such a secret spot hidden away." Erza glanced around, seemingly quite pleased with the place as well.
"The scenery is beautiful, and it's quiet enough. It couldn't be better for training."
"Right?" Noah winked at Erza.
"This is where I usually train my magic control."
"It is nice." Erza withdrew her gaze and turned it toward Noah, her expression growing solemn.
"However, you brought me to a place where no one would normally come. Is it because what you want to ask of me isn't convenient for outsiders to know about?"
"It's not that it isn't convenient for outsiders to know." Noah shook his head, signaling Erza not to be so serious.
"It's just that this place makes it easier for you to do what I want to ask of you!"
"It makes it easier for me to do what you want to ask of me?"
"That's right!" Noah turned to face Erza and looked directly into her exceptionally stern eyes.
"I want to learn combat skills from you!"
"Learn combat skills from me?" Erza, who had been wearing a solemn expression, froze on the spot.
It was no wonder Erza reacted that way. Noah's so-called request had truly taken her by surprise.
"I know saying something like this so suddenly will surprise you." Noah gave a bitter laugh.
"But this really is what I want to ask of you."
Seeing Noah's bitter smile, Erza frowned. She more or less understood what Noah was thinking.
Clearly, the encounter with Phantom Lord three days ago had given Noah, who had been unable to fight in that battle, the desire to become stronger.
However, Noah possessed astonishing magic power that he could not yet control as he wished. Even if he wanted to become stronger, he could not do so by learning magic. Naturally, he could only set his sights on honing his own combat skills.
And in that regard, Erza did have some experience. It was not strange that Noah had come looking for her.
Of course, what truly puzzled Erza was precisely this seemingly unsurprising matter.
"Why did you come to me?" Erza asked directly.
"Maybe you saw me defeat three mages with one sword strike when we faced Phantom Lord that day, and thought it was impressive, so you came to me. But there are so many powerful mages in Fairy Tail. Wouldn't it be more suitable to seek them out?"
"It's true that Fairy Tail has many powerful mages." Noah shrugged.
"But you're wrong when you say they would be more suitable."
Erza was slightly taken aback, unable to understand why.
"You said it yourself—they're powerful mages. So honestly, if we're talking purely about personal skill, I don't think many of them are better than you!" Noah did not beat around the bush and stated his thoughts directly.
"Besides, although they gather at the guild every day, they're already professional mages. They can't stay at the guild all the time, and they need to go out for work now and then. But you won't be officially taking jobs for the time being, so you have plenty of time to train. As things stand, no one is more suitable than you to teach me!"
Hearing that, Erza felt that he had a point and could not help admiring Noah's ability to analyze things.
For an eleven-year-old child to be capable of this was no easy feat.
Moreover, Erza had not forgotten that in the battle against Phantom Lord three days ago, the boy before her—her peer, someone who had not even learned or encountered a single spell—had stepped forward without fear to block an attack for her. He had even caught Moglia off guard and returned the favor with a beautiful punch.
No ordinary eleven-year-old boy could accomplish that, no matter how one looked at it.
Therefore, Erza truly admired Noah from the bottom of her heart.
Unfortunately, Erza still did not agree right away.
"To be honest, I do know a little about combat, but I wasn't taught by any famous teacher, nor did I learn it anywhere else. I figured it all out by myself!" Erza kept her face taut as she stared at Noah.
"Naturally, I can't guarantee that these skills are especially good. I can't even guarantee they're effective or useful. Are you still fine with that?"
Upon hearing Erza's words, Noah did not show the slightest hesitation. Instead, he revealed a relaxed smile and said this.
"Hearing that makes me want to learn from you even more!"
Erza froze in place, entirely unsurprised.
"I didn't fight in the battle against Phantom Lord that day, but I saw your moves clearly. Swordsmanship that can instantly take down three mages from an official guild—who could say it's ineffective or useless?" Noah looked Erza straight in the eye and spoke frankly.
"And since you figured out that kind of swordsmanship by yourself, I can't find any reason not to learn from you!"
"This..." Erza immediately found herself unable to laugh or cry.
"What? Is there some difficulty?" Noah scratched his cheek.
"If there's really something making things difficult for you, then just ignore what I said."
"No, it's not that. I just never expected you to hold me in such high regard!" Erza's expression began to relax, and she returned his smile.
"If that's the case, don't regret it later!"
The two eleven-year-olds smiled at each other. With perfect unspoken understanding, they extended their hands and clasped them tightly together against the backdrop of the little river.
It was not until nightfall that Noah bid Erza farewell on the first floor of the guild and returned to his room, exhausted from head to toe.
Even Noah had not expected that after he had only just made his request, Erza would stop delaying the moment she agreed and immediately drag him into training.
That was not a problem in itself. Noah also wanted to master some fighting skills as soon as possible, and he was not someone accustomed to slacking off. Otherwise, he would not have trained his magic control without interruption day after day, year after year. Erza's enthusiasm was something Noah was happy to see.
However, Noah now felt that he had been too naive.
Erza had said it herself: she had figured out all her combat techniques on her own. No one had taught her, and she had not learned them elsewhere. Naturally, she had no idea how to teach someone else.
Thus, the only teaching method Erza could think of was to spar personally.
And thus, Noah had been drilled by Erza for an entire day. Of course he was exhausted.
"Looks like I need to improve my physical fitness more. Otherwise, I won't be able to get used to training at this pace..." Noah muttered to himself as he pushed open the door to his room.
But the instant he pushed it open, Noah's steps stopped there.
Because something that did not belong to him had appeared on the bed in his room.
A sword!
A Knight Sword with a slightly curved, arc-shaped guard and a long blade that gleamed like ice!
Beside the striking Knight Sword lay a note, held down beneath it. Only two words were written on it—Keep going!
Looking at the loose yet exceptionally steady handwriting, like an ancient pine tree, Noah did not need to think to know who had left it.
After all, wasn't that old man also the one who had suggested that he gain power through other means?
A scorching warmth welled up in Noah's heart. He stepped forward and carefully lifted the gorgeous Knight Sword lying before him, feeling the sharpness of its blade and its extraordinary aura as he murmured.
"Thank you... Grandpa..."
Before you continue