"You can use lightning magic? This is my first time seeing someone with this magic affinity." Leo said.
"Indeed, I have a Lightning Magic Affinity. And when paired with my swordsmanship, I can do something like this—"
Alice suddenly disappeared from her spot and Leo felt a weird sensation breeze past him, and before he could even turn around, Leo felt a cold sensation around his neck.
Not daring to move his neck, Leo looked down with just his eyes to see a golden blade touching his neck.
"Although it may sound silly, don't underestimate a Magic Swordsman." Alice's voice resounded from behind him.
After removing her blade, she continued, "Although some affinity may flow better with the sword than others, you can still be a Magic Swordsman regardless of your magic affinity."
"I see…"
"The real training begins now, Leo Magnus." Alice pointed her sword that was crackling with sparks at him.
Leo swallowed nervously, but he still had an excited smile on his face.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtThus, over the next several days, Alice continued to train Leo to the best of her abilities.
During these few days, Leo learned a few things about Alice.
First off, although she's very serious and strict about his training, she never once made him feel overwhelmed, unlike Eve and Khrome's training. She would always be slightly ahead of him, but she never felt so strong that Leo felt like it was impossible to defeat her.
This made Leo feel more at ease and allowed him to enjoy the training more. Of course, this isn't to say Eve's training method was wrong. Since they didn't have much time, Eve had to cram as much experience inside Leo as possible within that limited time, and pushing him to his limit statiscally showed better results for someone like Leo.
There was another reason why Alice didn't push Leo to his limits. The purpose of their training wasn't just to make Leo stronger. She wanted to refine Leo's movements and to teach him a new fighting method, and constantly pressuring him would be counterproductive, as some things cannot be rushed. Naturally, this will make Leo stronger in general, but it was a different type of strength. In other words, instead of improving Leo's raw strength, Alice wanted to improve Leo's technique and experience as a swordsman, which is exactly what Leo needed for the Knight Tournament, as he would not be allowed to use magic there.
Time passed in the blink of an eye, and it was already the last day of Leo's training with Alice.
"Today is my last day here. Although I would like to continue training you, I must return to my city, and my leave days are running low." Alice said.
"Your leave days…? You're taking leave to come here?" Leo was speechless to hear this.
When people work, they would get a day or two of leave every month that they can use to go on vacation or just rest at home and still get paid as if they were working a normal day.
Most people save up these leave days for vacation or emergencies. However, since this wasn't part of her job, Alice had to take over a month of leave to train Leo, as it required two weeks alone just to get to Stellar City.
"If you feel bad for me, you come to our city and join the Royal Family. That way, I can train you every day without using up my leave." Alice said with a joking smile.
"Maybe in the future when I can leave the academy without worrying about getting killed." Leo said with a stiff smile.
"Are you talking about the Fruit of Magic Awakening?" Alice asked.
"That's right. I became the world's number one enemy after that incident. However, I don't regret it since I can use magic now."
Alice shook her head, "Don't mind these people. They only want the Fruit of Magic Awakening for themselves and are angry because they couldn't acquire it. And it's not as though the entire world hates you."
"Thank you for your kind words, Alice. When I have the time, I will definitely visit the Golden City." Leo's smile became less stiff.
At the end of the day and their final training session, Alice handed her golden sword to Leo.
"I want you to have this."
"Huh? But isn't this your sword? Are you sure you want to give it to me? It seems very valuable." Leo asked with raised eyebrows.
"It's just an ornamental sword with my name engraved into it. If you really decide to visit our Golden City one day, keep this sword by your side. It'll help you find me."
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏm"This is an ornamental sword…? I thought it was an artifact!" Leo exclaimed after learning this information.
"An artifact?" Alice chuckled, "Even with the protection magic in this place, it would be too dangerous to use my artifact for training, as I might accidentally cut you in half."
Leo swallowed nervously, "Thank you for being considerate."
"Anyways, the past week was fun. It's been a while since I had a talented student like you. It's truly a shame that you weren't born in the Golden City."
"And you're the first teacher who hasn't beaten me to a plump." Leo chuckled.
After talking for a little longer, Alice left the training room and went to speak with Eve before leaving the academy.
"So what do you think of my new student? He's pretty gifted, right?" Eve said with a smile on her face, almost as though she was bragging about it.
"..." Alice didn't immediately respond and seemed to be pondering about something.
After a moment of silence, she spoke in a low voice, "A little too gifted if you ask me."
"Huh?" Eve raised an eyebrow.
"Although I have never seen him using his full strength before, I can tell that he wasn't going all out during our training. He's still hiding some of his strength. I don't know why he's doing it, but I hope to see what he's truly capable of one day."
A mysterious smile appeared on Eve's face, and she said, "Don't worry, you'll definitely be able to see it one day, and you won't have to wait very long."