Genius

After that, I had another playmate in my childhood.

Sitting beneath the big tree on the hill, I flipped through the book my mother had given me for my birthday.

How should I put it? It really was an exquisite book...

But that was about the only impression I had, because I had no real interest in the plants it talked about.

Before long, Sylphie arrived.

We had never agreed to come play on the hill. It was just that whenever I sat here, she would appear, and I had already gotten used to it.

"So, what should we play today?"

I asked Sylphie with a smile.

"I... I don't know..."

Her answer was still the same as ever.

I thought for a while and decided it was about time to put an end to the little kids' make-believe games I had been playing with her lately.

She needed to learn how to become stronger. It was no good for her to keep relying on me like this.

If this kept up, she would grow into a useless adult.

"Then how about I teach you magic?"

When it came to swordsmanship, I really wasn't that impressive, but with magic, I figured I was qualified to be her teacher.

"Um... the stuff you use all the time? Like making the weather turn clear...?"

"Yes. But you'll have to work hard if you want to reach my level."

"O-okay! I... I'll work hard!"

"Good. Then we'll start special training today! Of course, you'll have special training in the afternoon too! You'll train your body with me."

"Y-you mean... those exercises Rudy always does in the yard at home...?"

"What? You don't want to?"

"I... uh... I'm not really brave enough to talk to Mr. Paul."

Even someone as dense as me could tell that she probably didn't want to do physical training.

Oh well. I was already used to seeing her act this timid.

"Then today we'll train magic all day!"

"O-oh!"

After teaching Sylphie for the entire afternoon, I realized she seemed to be a genius when it came to magic!

She grasped things incredibly quickly, learning as soon as I taught her... She even learned chantless magic.

That surprised me, because even Roxy hadn't been able to use it back then.

"Rudy! I did it!"

"Good job. Next, you need to learn how to slowly control your magic."

"Control...?"

"Right, control it. Magic isn't something you can just cast and then ignore. A magician like that is a very low-level magician. You need to learn how to feel the flow of mana and grasp the magic, like this."

I touched the ice magic Sylphie had just used and changed its shape, making the spell move freely before the mana dispersed.

"A-amazing..."

"You try it too. I don't think it'll be too hard for you."

"O-oh!"

Sylphie tried practicing beside me, while I opened the book again and read.

A childhood like this... didn't seem bad. At least, not to me.

An hour later, Sylphie succeeded.

I knew it. She was a genius.

"Rudy, I... I did it..."

As she said that, she sat down and leaned against me.

It looked like she was tired from using up too much mana. From what I could tell now, her mana was even about the same as Teacher Roxy's.

"Rudy... aren't you going to praise me...?"

"Yeah, you did great."

I took her words as a child craving attention.

In my previous life, I hadn't had a younger brother or sister, so I honestly wasn't quite sure how to treat Sylphie.

In the blueprint I had once imagined, if I had a younger brother, I would definitely teach him everything I knew, just like I was teaching Sylphie now.

But something felt off. The sense of accomplishment welling up inside me didn't feel like an older brother acknowledging his little brother. It was more like a teacher having successfully taught a student.

"Is that what Roxy felt back then..." I murmured to myself.

"Roxy... who's that?"

Sylphie, leaning against my shoulder, asked in a quiet voice.

"My teacher. She's the person I respect most right now, and she taught me a lot."

"She must be really amazing, then?"

"She is. She's amazing."

It hadn't even been a year since Roxy left, and I was already starting to miss her a little.

Suddenly, Sylphie beside me sprang to her feet with a burst of determination.

"Ru... Rudy...!"

"Wh-what is it?"

She startled me a bit.

"Keep... keep teaching me! I'm fine!"

"Good. Now that's more like a man!"

"Ugh..."