The secret was in her breathing and posture. However, Tyir, who had never been trained in exercise techniques, wouldn't have known that.
Tyir simply ran in a natural, instinctive posture. Before he knew it, Kalia would be right behind him.
"Oh! Freeze! I freeze!"
"Huff!"
"Lady Aria, it's tag for you."
Within the 5 seconds of chasing Tyir, Lasra had turned back to 'unfreeze' Aria. Aria, giggling, grabbed Lasra's hand and they both ran. Behind them, Kalia's face was like that of a hunting predator.
Like a hawk spotting its prey, Kalia sprinted. She covered a hundred-plus meters in a sprinter's stance, and her speed didn't decrease.
To avoid being caught, the two had to let go of each other's hands and scatter. Still, Lasra couldn't bring herself to release the laughing Aria's hand.
"Lasra, Kalia is coming!"
"Oh, looks like we're going to be caught."
"Kalia, freeze!"
"Eek! I freeze too!"
"All three of you froze. I win."
With everyone except the seeker in a frozen state, they couldn't move, naturally making it the seeker's victory.
"You're really fast, Kalia. Fast like a horse!"
"Aria, you'll get faster too with a little practice."
"Hehehe."
Even for Kalia, running continuously at full speed was exhausting. Catching her breath, Kalia plopped down onto the grass.
Tyir and Lasra approached Kalia, while other servants brought water and towels.
"This variation of tag is much more fun than the regular one. How did you come up with it, Kalia?"
"Playing regular tag, the slower runners are always 'it.' That's no fun."
Kalia said this while ruffling her sister's hair. Aria was all smiles, her grin stretching ear to ear.
"That's very true. Oh, is it alright if I spread this game to the village? I know kids who would love it."
"Sure. But I think kids might already have similar games. They play together, regardless of age differences and varying speeds in running."
"Right, that makes sense. I'll check it out next time I have a break. I've never been this enthusiastic about playing tag before. Hehe."
"I want to try other games too. Playing four square was fun."
"I'll find lots of games you'll like!" Tyir responded energetically to Kalia's words.
"You'll get to learn horseback riding when you're a bit older, Kalia. It's part of your education, but you'll enjoy it," said Lasra.
"I'd like to learn horseback riding now, but they say it's still too dangerous for me."
Kalia was sincere. Horseback riding had tremendous fitness benefits, especially for strengthening the spine, abdomen, and improving lower body strength and balance.
"Haha. You're always so passionate, Kalia," Tyir encouraged her.
"Lady Kalia."
"Melan. What is it?"
"The Grand Duchess is calling for you."
"Got it. I'll get ready and go. Aria, let's head in. Lasra, Tyir, you guys go get cleaned up too."
"Yes, Lady Kalia."
Nashia called Kalia to share news about the paper presentation and the upcoming celebration party. It was something Kalia had anticipated. When told about the need to go to the Empire's capital for the paper's verification, Kalia nodded.
'Who would believe an eleven-year-old wrote such a thing?'
"Let's go to the capital after the party. Your father misses you and suggested staying at the villa there for a while. Is that alright?"
"Of course, that's fine."
"Good. Then, while we're there, you'll be treated as a guest of honor."
"What?"
'Why is the prince involved again?'
"The Emperor is surprised and impressed that you published a paper under your name. He has appointed Prince Arleigh as an envoy. It coincides with your visit to the capital."
It seemed Prince Arleigh had many reasons to visit her – recovering from illness and now the publication of her paper. Kalia found herself thinking about the burdens of a prince.
Kalia didn't want to meet Arleigh, mainly due to uncomfortable memories from a comic. And there were other key characters too.
In the comic Kalia recalled from her past life, there were several key characters besides Arleigh - a wizard, a count's son, some knight, among others, and a protagonist whose name she couldn't quite remember.
She wasn't sure how they would influence her in this life. So far, meeting Arleigh hadn't caused any issues, but things might change as they got older.
However, Kalia lived in a world dominated by feudal order, and she was part of the nobility. Involvement with the royal family was inevitable.
"I understand."
For now, the best thing Kalia could do was to become stronger herself. This was crucial. Primitive violence often served more purposes than just fighting.
While it was best to receive help from others or society, having someone by her side to help whenever needed was a matter of great luck.
Pure strength was a form of insurance for unforeseen circumstances. The presence or absence of this insurance translated into confidence and drive. Those equipped with both had an advantage in planning and execution, as well as superior resilience in recovering from failures.
Her thoughts came full circle back to the beginning – to focus on strengthening herself.
Having reached this conclusion, Kalia cleared her mind and returned to her daily routine. Time passed as she lived her everyday life, and the day to depart for the capital arrived.
"Lady Kalia, how was the party?"
"It was fascinating. There are so many ways to use magic."
The performance Kalia witnessed at the party was sophisticated, rivaling even 21st-century Earth performances.
The invited magicians precisely manipulated light and shadow magic. Initially, Kalia had expected them to merely perform shadow puppetry.
That was an underestimation of this world's cultural level. Astoundingly, what they presented was a 'Tron Dance,' using magic of light instead of LEDs!
After seeing such a performance, Kalia felt there was nothing she couldn't do with magic. She planned to delve deeper into magic once back home.
For now, her priority was the verification of her authorship of the paper. She wasn't worried at all.
The methodology was her own idea. Kalia had internalized scientific methodologies not only during her university days in her previous life but also while embracing new fitness theories post-graduation. She was confident in explaining her logic.