[Lucy's POV]
"These damn relatives... Always fighting for family resources. After a long time, I found a good guy to spend time with, but they ruined it all." Lucy thought, while flying home on her white swan.
Bad witch: "Hey baby, stop overthinking. That guy Kent is very young, and look at yourself... you are 26." The bad side of Lucy popped up on her left side and spoke in a discouraging tone. (Imaginative, like something we experience during our thoughts.) Good-bad argument.)
White Angel: "Don't listen to her. Young Master Kent is very interested in you. He even invited you to dinner, to spend more time." Lucy's good side popped from her right side and she spoke encouragingly.
Bad Witch :"Hahaha… you are not little girl Lucy, he just asked formally. Kent is a rich man, and it is common for him to invite others for food. That doesn't mean Kent is interested in you." The bad side laughed mockingly.
White Angel: "You are speaking nonsense." The good side bickered the left side one. "Lucy, he even held your hand dearly. He stared at you with great interest, and you can also see that he likes you." The good side spoke while fluttering its wings near her ear. (Imaginative)
Bad Witch: "You are stupid if you think that's affection. Any man would do the same thing if a beautiful lady offered her hand. Do you forget how rich he is? Definitely, Kent must have tens of girlfriends rolling on his bed. You are just a passing cloud to him." The bad side replied with a loud smirk while hanging on her left side ear.
White Angel: "Nooo… Don't believe her. Kent has a pure Dao heart. He is a good man with a pure heart. He is not that kind of person. He even accepted your invitation to the heavenly beast gathering." The good side replied with dreamy eyes.
Bad Witch: "He just did that for his pet. Also, anything can happen during a two-day journey. Don't fall for him and offer your body, Lucy. I know you are 26 years old, and your body craves loving men. But don't give your first time to Kent, out of infatuation." The bad side of Lucy began laughing more loudly, buzzing her brain with wild scenes.
"Stop…" Lucy cried out, shaking her head. "I can think of the Kent matter later. But first, I need to handle my relatives." Lucy affirmed angrily and rushed inside the Gray family's mansion.
_
Inside the hanging pearl palace...
Kent sat in the central hall, staring at his old, tattered glass orb. The school sent a reminder message to him about the 'opponent scheduling event' tomorrow and that all the competitors in the tournament must attend. Otherwise, they will disqualify the absentee from the tournament.
Instead of placing the Fire Kirin in the beast parking space on the ground floor, Kent allowed it to stay inside the home with him.
He tossed the glass orb inside the bracelet and picked up the sky pearl.
As the tournament is just five days away, Kent decided to get serious with his arrow practice. He opened the archer combat video's sent by his aunt and began studying them closely.
The Kirin placed its head on his thigh and slept calmly without making any sound. Time passed slowly, and Kent's gaze fixed on the glowing sky orb for hours. Its already pitch dark outside, and Kent forgot about checking time.
"I can't go on like this. Let's practice while following these videos." Kent muttered as he slowly got up from the sofa without disturbing Fire Kirin.
He went to the combat room specially built for training and took out the Victor bow from the Pegasus bracelet. He placed the sky orb to one side and began practicing the bow like it was shown in the video.
_
With a deep breath, Kent held the Victor bow and lifted into a combat stance like it showed in the video. His fingers curled around the smooth grip as he mimicked the actions of the archers on the screen.
He could feel the weight of the bow in his hands, and it was a lot less stressful than his first time. The tension of the string as he drew it back and the anticipation building within him as he prepared to release.
Kent didn't need physical arrows to shoot. Instead, he tapped into his inner energy, his aura coalescing into a shimmering arrow of light as he drew back the string of his bow. The Victor bow glowed in a golden color, resonating with his aura.
It was a sensation unlike anything he had experienced before... a connection formed between his aura and the arrow formed along the bow string. Based on how much aura he infused, the glow of the arrow varied.
With a focused gaze, Kent sighted his target—a small, makeshift bullseye pinned to the far wall of his room. He took a moment to steady his breathing, his concentration unwavering as he aimed with precision.
And then, with a swift release, Kent let fly his arrow, the ethereal shaft of light streaking across the room with astonishing speed and accuracy. It struck true, passing itself from the center of the target with a satisfying thud.
"What the…?" Kent's mouth opened wide in surprise. "When did I have such a good aim? Except for throwing rocks randomly during my walk, I never practiced my aim. Is it because of the bow?!" Kent muttered while staring at the arrow mark.
A triumphant grin spread across Kent's face as he watched the small red dot where his arrow hit its mark, a sense of exhilaration coursing through him.
"It seems the arrow will disappear after the aura fades." Kent thought as he is aiming for the second time.
Instead of practicing the 'spell arrows' mentioned in the Arcane Tome, Kent decided to spend more time handling the bow and mastering the arrow drawing techniques.
The night passed slowly, and Kent immersed himself in the bow training. He perfected his stance, breathing, and concentration technique and spent a lot of time manoeuvring the position during combat.
At the end of combat video's, an old man gave a long lecture on the combat style an archer should develop to become a great arch-magus. From holding the bow to controlling aura, focusing on the target, releasing technique, enduring the bow weight, etc.
Kent got several insights from the old man. But even after training for one full hour on how to change the arrow direction during flight, Kent could not grasp the technique behind it.
He kept the bow aside and sat down for a nap. But his body slipped into a deep sleep.
_
///A/N - We are close to power stones target 80/100. Fill it for the bonus chapter guys.///