Don't Fight Anymore!

Just as Rudy and Allen stared at each other, the tension in the air growing palpable.

Suddenly, a sob echoed through the air. A small hand reached out from the side and firmly gripped Allen's sword hilt. Sylphy, her face streaked with tears, looked at Allen. She tried hard not to avert her gaze as she usually did, and stammered, yet spoke with utmost seriousness.

"All-Allen, we're fr-friends, we can't fight, no…"

As Allen stared blankly, Sylphy burst into tears.

Seeing this, he fumbled to sheath his sword, but having only ever intimidated children in both his past and present lives, he had no experience comforting them and found himself scratching his head in frustration.

Rudy, meanwhile, snapped out of his daze and gave the bewildered Allen a slightly speechless look.

Allen is also a spirited child, isn't he? To draw his sword on a companion just to see who's stronger… but it's a reverse-blade sword, so it seems he's still rational. Does that mean he genuinely wants to use a spar with me to show Sylphy the power of Magic?

But it's really scary, Allen! Kids shouldn't carry sharp objects!

So, do I really have to spar with him? Now's not the time to think about that. I should comfort Sylphy first.

Thinking this, Rudy sighed, displaying the expression of an adult struggling with a child. He walked up to the dumbfounded Allen and took his hand.

To Allen's horrified expression, he pushed Sylphy into Allen's arms.

He even thoughtfully wrapped Allen's arms around Sylphy's back.

Allen watched, wide-eyed, as Rudy completed this series of actions, his pupils dilated in shock, stunned on multiple levels.

Then he heard Rudy lean in and whisper in his ear.

"Quick, comfort her! You can do it!"

Afterward, Rudy, acting like an adult, stood up, put his hands behind his back, and retreated a few steps. He sat on the grass, propped his chin on his hand, and began to watch the show.

He looked like an old father watching his children play house.

Allen, meanwhile, looked at Sylphy, who was sniffling in his embrace, then at Rudy, who was cheering him on from the side. His eyelids twitched so much they almost creased.

It was truly hard to keep it together.

"Don't cry, we're just sparring! It's not a real fight."

Sylphy covered her face, peeking through her fingers at Allen's stiff expression, and hummed in acknowledgment.

Wh-why did I suddenly cry? Allen doesn't like it when people cry. I must never cry again.

She had only known the two of them for less than a full day, and given that they met earlier than in the novel's storyline, she was also younger. She was inherently timid, a far cry from the gentle and meticulous motherly figure—the juvenile form of the "White Mama"—she would become after spending some time with Rudy in the novel. She still needed time to adapt and get used to their relationship.

Still, he's not making a face this time.

Allen blinked, then let out a long sigh of relief, seeing that Sylphy had calmed down.

"You just stand under the tree and watch, okay? Rudy and I will have a spar, and then you'll happen to see the power of Magic. After you see it, you'll naturally understand the charm of Magic."

Sylphy instinctively began to avoid Allen's gaze again, looking at her shoes, and hummed in a voice as soft as a mosquito's buzz.

Then Allen pulled the still reluctant Rudy back about a few dozen meters down the slope.

"Alright, this distance should be about right."

Allen held up his gleaming sword, indicating the distance, while Rudy shrank his neck back, looking at the blade.

"Do we really have to spar?"

Allen propped his chin on his hand, considering for a moment.

In the original novel, Rudy only started increasing the power of various low-level Magic two years after Lokkishi left. At this point, before any distance is created, his head would probably be instantly cut off by me. So today, it's more important to show Sylphy the power of Magic. As for the spar, we can take our time. It's better to first guide Rudy to increase the power of his Magic, and also to develop mixed Magic suitable for combat.

"Then let's just go easy today. You'll mainly cast Magic, and I'll defend. How about that?"

Rudy's eyes lit up.

"Sounds good!"

Then he heard the latter half of Allen's sentence.

"But in two months, I will seriously challenge you. So you have two months to study and improve your Magic. We'll spar again then."

Rudy's face stiffened.

"Can't we skip the spar?"

Allen's expression became serious.

"No. Have you considered your future?"

Rudy paused, surprised.

My future? Probably marrying a beautiful, self-deprecating girl and living a stable life… If only I could see Lokkishi often… But maybe not, I don't know when I'll see her again.

"Lokkishi told me when we parted that her goal is to become a Water God-level Magician. What about you?"

Rudy looked up, startled.

"Water God-level…"

"Do you long to reunite with Lokkishi?"

Rudy didn't speak, his gaze just grew serious, staring directly at Allen.

The latter smiled.

"It seems you have your answer."

Allen held up two fingers.

"Her lifespan is two hundred years, and she's only in her thirties now. If in about ten years, you mature and enter the prime of your life, the first quarter of your lifespan, she will still only be in the first quarter of hers, just like you. So, when that time comes, how do you intend to face her again? As a married village Magician? Or a successful adventurer? Or perhaps an outstanding student from Magic University? Have you considered this? These possibilities could lead to completely different futures. Have you mentally prepared yourself?"

Rudy didn't reply. He simply raised one arm and placed his other hand on his elbow, a composed expression on his face.

"I accept your challenge two months from now. So, now it should be time to show Sylphy the power of Magic, shouldn't it?"

Allen looked at Rudy's expression, a subtle curve forming at the corner of his lips.

"What a great expression."

Allen raised his hand to rest on his sword, sinking his stance, his feet firmly planted on the grass, his expression turning indifferent.

"Let's begin now. You attack, I defend."

Rudy took a deep breath.

"Alright. Then, I'm starting now."

Magic—Water Cannon, Size: 10! Speed: 10! Allen-sama, I'm truly angry. Please accept this blow filled with my wrath!

No sooner had the thought finished than Rudy's no-chant Magic instantly activated. Glistening, crystal-clear water surged out of thin air, condensing like a whirlpool before his hand. In just the blink of an eye, the water, like an angry, restrained wave, surged violently before his palm.

The next instant.

The water stirred up layers of dust around him, transforming into a water column that almost completely obscured his body, rocketing forward from in front of him! The immense impact sent Rudy's hair flying, and he couldn't help but stumble back a step, a sudden shock in his heart.

Oh no, I used too much force! Allen!

He quickly looked up, but his pupils suddenly constricted.

The image of that moment was etched into his mind, recurring even years later:

A meter-wide column of water surged forward like an angry thunderbolt, completely obscuring Allen's figure in his sight. In that instant, the sunlight seemed to pause, and a sudden arc of light flashed across Rudy's pupils.

Just as a look of panic began to appear on Rudy's face, the water column split open.

Before Allen, it split vertically, lightly, as if it were a balloon filled entirely with air.

Smooth, without a single ripple.

Immediately after, the seemingly 'weightless' water column suddenly poured out beside Allen! Carving two deep furrows into the ground!

The grassy turf was completely ripped up by the water column, revealing the ugly muddy tracks beneath.

A gust of wind blew by.

The grass beneath Allen's feet was completely undisturbed, playfully wrapping around his calves. He still had his hand on his sword, in the same posture as before, without the slightest change in his stance.

The lingering ripples from the water column sprinkled around Allen, causing the sunlight to diffuse into a hazy aura that enveloped him.

Allen smiled.

"Good, again."

Rudy simply stared at him in a daze, his face looking distant.

At this moment, he felt that the smile in Allen's eyes was even clearer than the sunlight reflected by the water.