(Before the chapter begins, allow me to address something that has been brought to my attention. When Onee and Nee are used, they are just referring to a sibling of the female sex. The same goes for Onii and Nii in reference to siblings of the male sex. Depending on the honorifics used, you should be able to determine either who is older, or who is of higher standing. Ie, san, and chan generally mean they are of a lower/equal standing or are younger. Sorry for taking up so much reading space, and enjoy!)
Astrid walked through the garden with Nora once more after her morning examinations and breakfast as her morning lessons were canceled. After a bit of walking, she saw a group of boys sparring with wooden swords and shields with someone watching over them, correcting their stance when necessary.
"Nora, please get a chair, I would like to observe their practice." Astrid said. Nora walked over to the chairs and after a couple of minutes, came back and put the chair in a good position to view the sparring.
It did not take long for the instructor to notice Astrid and he walked over to her. "Hello, I do not believe we have met. I am Kelvin." The instructor said. Astrid nodded dismissively.
"I am Astrid, do not mind me, I am just observing. It has gotten me curious, is all." Astrid said.
"I see, I am surprised that one of Lord Coldbright's daughters is interested enough to view this practice." Kelvin said.
"I believe you noticed just yesterday when I was watching from my window. Though I have to say, I did not expect you to have your training here two days in a row." Astrid said. Kelvin chuckled.
"So it was you. I had noticed someone watching, but I was unsure as to who. I would not have guessed it was a small child with a large vocabulary." Kelvin said with a gentle smile.
"Yes, well, it does not matter, please, continue instructing them, the boy with brown hair seems to just ignore his stance." Astrid said.
"Aw, fuck! Thomas! I told you to keep your stance!" Kelvin yelled.
"That man should avoid cursing in front of you." Nora said.
"Do not worry about it, I do not plan to repeat such words." Astrid said. 'Outside of my mind, that is.' She thought. Nora sighed.
"I know, but he should still avoid it." Nora said.
"We can let him know later, for now, he has a job to do." Astrid said as she analyzed the movements of the individuals.
"Yes, my lady." Nora said. They continued watching until lunchtime. After lunch, Astrid wandered around the estate looking for a library. Eventually, she found one, though it is not particularly large.
It looks more like a study with one bookshelf on both of the side walls. Towards the back of the room is a large window with a chair and end table next to it. Astrid skimmed the titles and found that they were primarily romance books with a few books on magic here and there, of course, those are only on the bottom shelves as she cannot view the higher shelves.
Disappointed, she left the room and hurried to her lesson. After her lesson, she had been carried to the dining room where a young girl around nine years of age was sitting next to Levin. Athel used his hand to point toward the girl.
"Astrid, this is Abigail, she is your sister." Athel said.
"A pleasure to meet you, Onee-sama." Astrid said with a curtsy.
"Nice to meet you too, Nee-san!" She said excitedly as she nearly climbed on the table.
'Well, it seems she lacks the bias that most of the other children have. I wonder why.' Astrid wondered.
"Mind your manners, Abigail." The mistress said.
"R-right, my apologies, madam." Abigail said as she calmed herself down and sat properly. Astrid was picked up by a maid and sat in her seat. Astrid gazed at Abigail with a discerning gaze.
She has long red hair and purple eyes. Her body is rather thin and her complexion is rather clear. 'She will certainly grow up to be a flower amongst weeds if she can retain her pure gaze.' Astrid thought.
"Astrid, what do you like to do?" Abigail asked as plates of food were placed in front of everyone.
"I enjoy various activities. The ones I enjoy most are reading, walking in the garden, and watching the sword practice." Astrid said.
"We should walk together in the garden sometime, I believe that would be fun!" Abigail said. Astrid nodded.
"Yes, I am sure it will." She said flatly as she began eating.
"You do not seem very excited." Abigail said as she pouted slightly.
"I do not get overly excited often, do not take it personally." Astrid said. 'In reality, I am actually trying to figure out how to most quickly begin practicing swordsmanship. The sooner I begin, the sooner I may do something more productive than walking around the garden.' Astrid thought.
"I see, so you are like dad!" She said with a smile. Athel coughed slightly upon hearing this, then took a sip of his water.
"A child does not know when to hold their tongue, dear." The mistress said with a slight chuckle.
"What do you mean?" Abigail asked.
"You accidentally insulted father, however, there is no need to worry, he will not take it personally, right, father?" Astrid asked.
"That is correct, but do be more careful with your words in the future, Abigail." Athel said.
"Right, sorry!" She said as she scratched her head a bit.
'She may become a bit bothersome in the future...' Astrid thought. The rest of the dinner had a light mood to it. After dinner, Astrid was brought to her room. As she was not tired, she looked for something to do.
'What was that thing humans would say they did to get strong?' Astrid thought as she walked around her room. 'Well, they would most often say training, but sometimes I would hear more specific things. I think it was something along the lines of one thousand sword swings in the morning and a thousand in the evening, and various other things they would mention. Is it effective for humans to train like that?' Astrid wondered.
Astrid walked around her room as she attempted to figure out what to do. After a while of walking, Astrid decided to sit down and after a few moments fell asleep.
Astrid slowly opened her eyes as a breeze slowly moved past and the sun gently warmed her skin. She looked around as she sat up and noticed she was in a forest. There are various flowers and patches of long grass. The trees are large and there are many of them.
As she looked around more, she realized she was in a clearing with a pond in the center, and the more she looked around the more she realized, she is not alone. She looked around in an attempt to figure out what else is there with her.
'What is going on? I swear I was just in my room.' She thought as she walked towards the pond. As she gazed into the pond, her reflection gazed back at her. Looking past her reflection, she noticed an old sword chained to the bottom of the pond.
'Strange, what would be the use of doing that?' She wondered.
"Ancient dragon." A feminine voice spoke with an echoey after voice. Astrid jumped back and began looking around attempting to identify the threat. "Do not be alarmed. After all, I am the reason you still exist." The voice spoke once more.
"Identify yourself. Where are you?" Astrid demanded information. The voice chuckled.
"I am the wind and I am the water, I am the earth and I am the fire. I am the one you asked to give mercy to the humans and forgive their transgressions. And I am everywhere." She said.
"So, you are a deity, then?" Astrid asked as she looked around cautiously.
"That is how many mortal races have referred to me, yes." She said.
"Alright, now tell me this. Where am I?" Astrid asked.
"You are in your seat, well, actually, a maid moved you into your bed, so I suppose you are currently sleeping soundly there." She spoke.
'So my soul was dragged here, I see.' Astrid thought. "Tell me, why was I reincarnated?" She asked.
"Three thousand years ago." The voice said.
"Three thousand years ago?" Astrid asked.
"The answer lies three thousand years ago. No spoilers, sorry." She said.
'What did I do three thousand years ago?' Astrid thought. "Well, why did you bring me here?" Astrid asked.
"I have brought you to grant you one single wish. Of course, nothing beyond a certain limit." She spoke.
"This timing is convenient. The readers will not be angry, right?" Astrid asked.
"Of course not, they want to see you get boosted, you are a dragon, after all." She spoke.
"I do see your line of reasoning, however, audiences are not easy to please. I mean, my biggest audience killed me, so I think I would know." Astrid said.
"Hmm. Okay, how about this, I solve part of your issue in regards to your mana capacity and allow you to take your training at a slower pace?" She asked.
"No, that is stupid. If you do that, might as well just boost my physical stats. It would be simpler and make my training easier." Astrid said.
"I suppose that is true. Well if you wish for that, then I will grant it." The voice spoke.
"Yes. The strength of an average man would be wonderful." Astrid said.
"How about the strength of a fourteen-year-old male?" The voice asked.
"Well, I suppose it is best not to look a gift horse in the mouth." Astrid said. (If you are unfamiliar with this saying, basically, to see the health and quality of a horse, you would look in their mouth, so it basically means if you get something for free, don't complain, just accept it since it's free.)
"Now you get it." She said with a slight giggle as Astrid's vision got brighter until she suddenly jolted awake. Her body was covered in a burning pain as her muscles began the process of ripping and repairing over and over.
'Motherfucker! You did not say it would hurt!' Astrid cursed in her mind as she gasped for air. After a few minutes of heavy breathing and searing pain, her pain subsided and she caught her breath.
She looked over to her window and saw that it was morning already. Curious as to whether or not the strength boost added any definition to her body, Astrid stripped and looked into the mirror.
'Well, it certainly added a bit of muscle definition, however, there still is not much.' She thought. She put her clothes back on and exited her room and went to eat breakfast.