-The next day-
"Jules," called Aragon, his maid.
"Yes, master," she courtly replied.
"Inform Michael that he will come to the training grounds before breakfast."
"As you wish," she replied and left.
`Let's see what you got, son.`
-At the training grounds-
I walked inside the training grounds and saw my father waiting for me there with a wooden sword in his hand, looking as serious as ever.
"Good morning, father," I said as any filial son would.
"Yes, good morning. Go get a sword and let's start sparring," the serious expression never left his face.
I walked to the stack and picked up a sword noticing that the ground had been unfrozen and cleaned from any water even though it was still raining outside.
"Good, now get in stance and we will spar using only the sword art and, of course, any faint or move that you want, just no magic," instructed father.
"Okay," I replied.
As they both get in stance, Michael starts with the first move, 'Illusion swing' and jumps directly at Aragon while he stands there and just blocks his barrage of attacks with one hand while Michael immediately switches between the second move. Michael sees his father still standing there without even breaking a sweat, so he takes a step back to recollect himself.
"Stay focused!" said Aragon as he began to attack.
Michael kept getting pushed back while Aragon increased his attacking speed forcing Michael to block his strikes staying only on defense. An overhead swing came from Aragon, and Michael successfully blocked it. Alas, the moment the swing was blocked, a devastating left kick to the liver was delivered by Aragon, crushing Michael onto the wall.
"Cough, Cough."
Michael was on the ground coughing blood from the sheer force behind the kick.
"Get up! Boy," said Aragon.
He got up while his legs were trembling and took stance. Aragon kept attacking, and Michael tried blocking his attacks not only with his sword but also with his body while still trying to avoid any damage at his vital points. Their duel lasted about half an hour before Michael couldn't go any longer.
Blood was dripping from the corner of Michael's mouth, his clothes got tattered, and his whole body was bruised from the one-sided beating he received.
"That's enough for now. I assessed your skill, and it seems like you had a breakthrough in your swordsmanship," said Aragon.
"Y-Yes, I had yesterday fighting some grey wolves," answered Michael with a shaky voice.
"Sit down, cross your legs, and start your mana breathing. It will do you good," advised Aragon.
Michael sat on the ground cross-legged and began his mana breathing while Aragon stood beside him, watching him.
`He did get stronger. I should also train him and sharpen his senses. The quick breakthrough probably dulled him a little.`
After ten minutes of breathing Michael felt a little better. The bruises on his skin were starting to fade, and the minor cuts all over his body started closing.
"Good. Now that you got healed a bit, we should continue our spar," said Aragon as he got ready once again.
`Fuck! The things I do to get stronger,` thought Michael as he got up again and took his stance.
This scene was repeated two more times until Michael could no longer continue due to exhaustion.
"Well done. From now and for the rest of the days until you leave for the academy, we will train together only on your sword skills," said Aragon as he took his sword back to the stack and left the training grounds without giving a chance on Michael to argue back. Not that he would since only from one training, he saw a lot of improvement, especially in his reaction speed.
He got up once again and left the training grounds that were covered with his blood. He shakily walked towards his room and finally his bathroom, where he took a bath leaving behind all the dried blood and sweat that had been accumulated in his previous 'training'.
-At the dining room-
"Are we starting breakfast without brother?" asked Elizabeth.
"Yes, he is probably resting right now from our morning training," replied Aragon while eating his eggs.
"Don't you think it is a bit too much for him to train that intensely with both you and mother? On top of that, he also trains on his own," said Elizabeth trying not to let her anger sip out.
"Everything requires a sacrifice. Getting stronger requires an even bigger sacrifice. You should learn something from him 'cause you will probably be left behind," replied Aragon, not even looking at his daughter.
"Mother, are you also agreeing with this? Don't you think it's a little too much for him two weeks before his academy admission to train that hard?" asked Elizabeth, her mother this time trying to find solace in her.
"I agree with your father, Liz. This is the most crucial time for him to train. He said that he wants to get first place on the academy rankings. Anyway, you don't have to worry. We know his limits and won't hurt him," Amelia gently told her daughter.
Elizabeth didn't continue arguing anymore with her parents since she knew that wouldn't change a thing. She just continued eating her food in silence.
Breakfast was over, and Elizabeth immediately left the room, leaving her parents alone.
"Aragon, should we tell the reason we pushed them so hard all those years?" asked Amelia, her husband, with a slightly more pleading tone.
"No, it's not the time yet. I want to see their resolve," he said to her, and Amelia glared at him,
"Don't look at me like that. I don't enjoy it either. There is no point in telling them until they get stronger," he replied again, trying to pacify his wife.
"Okay, we will do as you say. For now," she said and also left the room, leaving him alone.
"Sigh… the things I do for this family," he said with a half-joking and a half-serious tone to no other than himself.