Some Daily Life

I woke up, washed up, and finished breakfast.

I opened the front door, ready to head to the big tree from my childhood as promised.

"Rudeus!"

"Big brother!"

"Where are you going?! ×2"

At some point, Eris and Aisha had appeared behind me.

Aisha copied Eris, folding her arms across her chest, the two of them—one big, one small—staring at me like that.

The only difference was probably that Eris wasn't smiling, while Aisha was showing her little fangs in a silly grin.

"To see Sylphie."

I answered honestly.

Even if I lied, Eris would definitely follow me anyway, so it was better to be upfront.

"I'm going too! ×2"

They spoke at the same time again. After saying it, they looked at each other and smiled.

Eris and Aisha's relationship had gotten this good in just one night.

Girls really were mysterious.

I sighed and said, "Then let's go together."

"Okay!"

"Yay!"

When we arrived at the promised place, Sylphie had indeed gotten there before me.

When she saw me, she smiled and waved first, but when she saw Eris and Aisha behind me, her smile turned a little awkward.

I smiled and waved back at her too.

The tense, gunpowder-laced conversation I'd imagined didn't happen.

As if it were an examination, I watched the magic Sylphie cast.

Her control was much better than before... Her total mana seemed to have increased a lot too... because she could now cast large-scale spells several times in a row, something she hadn't been able to do before.

I nodded.

"Sylphie, has your total mana increased?"

"Yes... Before, after practicing every day, I'd feel like it had gone up just a tiny bit the next day... but starting last year, I stopped feeling that..."

"I see... Mm, you've completely passed. If anything, you did far better than I expected. I'll have to think about making you a staff."

"Huh? Why...?"

At that moment, Eris said to Sylphie, "That way you can call yourself a mage!"

"Eris is right. It's proof that you've graduated from apprenticeship..."

Before I could finish speaking, I noticed that Sylphie's expression seemed off.

She didn't look very happy. Wasn't this supposed to be something worth celebrating?

Oh... that promise from yesterday?

So I said, "Of course, graduating doesn't mean I'm not your teacher anymore. If there's anything you don't understand, you can still ask me."

Hearing me say that, Sylphie's ears lifted slightly, and she smiled.

"Mm! Rudy... have I improved a lot?"

"A lot. You've almost made me see you in a whole new light."

"Hehe..."

Just then, Eris cut off our conversation.

"Sylphie, tell me more about what Rudeus was like when he was little!"

And so, Eris and Sylphie started chatting together again, leaving me out in the cold.

I had no choice but to focus on teaching Aisha magic. At the moment, Aisha and I were sitting together—more precisely, Aisha was sitting on my lap.

"Big brother... like this?"

There was a flame in Aisha's palm.

"That's right. Imagine it more. Magic training is only useful... mm... probably before around the age of ten. Training a lot when you're little can increase your total mana."

Why was I able to come to that conclusion?

I turned my head and looked at Eris and Sylphie.

Sylphie had trained with me before she turned ten, and she had kept training after I left, so her total mana capacity had increased. I had already verified that earlier.

As for Eris... her magic training had only really begun when she was almost nine and a half. Half a year wasn't enough time for her to improve much.

Even though I had continued insisting that Eris practice more afterward, her mana still hadn't grown.

In short, it was possible that training one's total mana capacity could only increase it before the age of ten, or by using magic during early childhood.

"Big Brother, you're so popular~"

While I was thinking, Aisha whispered that softly by my ear.

I lowered my head and looked at Aisha. She was smiling at me with her eyes narrowed.

"Aisha... Father didn't teach you that, did he?"

"Nope~ I could tell at a glance that Big Brother is popular~"

"...Practice your magic properly."

"Yes~"

After answering at a leisurely pace, Aisha leaned straight into my arms.

"I really like you too, Brother!"

My little sister... was so cute it almost felt unfair.

"Mm... uh... I like you too, Aisha..."

"Eek! A confession! Brother confessed to me!"

Hm...? Isn't Aisha only four? She knows way more than I imagined.

Sylphie and Eris turned their heads at the same time, watched for a while, then turned back and started chatting about topics that belonged to girls.

"Where did you even learn all this..."

As I spoke, I clenched both hands into fists and gently ground them against Aisha's temples.

I didn't use any real strength, and it wouldn't hurt, but Aisha was probably very ticklish.

Because she was laughing nonstop right now, and her body kept squirming around, though she never once tried to escape from my arms.

"Brother, I was wrong! Hahaha..."

"All right! That's enough. Practice properly."

"I know already... Big Brother, how do I cast without chanting...?"

Aisha's question really stumped me.

I had only ever seen Sylphie and myself use chantless magic.

Eris hadn't learned it... Roxy hadn't learned it either... and those guard magicians in Roa seemed to need chants too...

"Anyway, try imagining it first. Imagine what the magic you want to cast should look like. The more precise, the better. Once you're sure, release your mana."

"Ooh!"

Aisha stretched one hand forward, closed her eyes, and her expression didn't look very nice, as if she really was trying hard to imagine it.

Several minutes passed before she opened her eyes.

"Brother... I can't imagine it..."

"Mm... no rush. You should practice chanting first. I'm not even sure whether chantless casting is something that can be learned. Even if you can't cast without chanting, you can still become a powerful magician. My teacher is a mage who needs chants, and even now, she's still the person I admire most."

"Okay!"

In any case, a leisurely day like this came to an end.