As I didn't respond, she continued. "I could sense a strong spiritual structure in your attack… you used a solid foundation and a strong amount of mana so that I could avoid dodging it if I tried to manipulate its spiritual flow."
"... Did you notice?"
"Of course, even I could have easily deflected it while manipulating his spiritual power… but I was curious to know if your spell wasn't a clumsy accumulation of mana on a weak spiritual structure."
As I suspected...
That was something I realized on my own several days ago. I can perfectly cast and invoke a spell with all my strength, but if your spiritual structure is weak, that makes it less effective when compared to a spell under a strong structure.
Thanks to my training with Ryujinzhu, I was able to understand him and improve the structure of my spells. This gave each of them more power.
A well-structured spell will ensure that the accumulated spiritual power does not disperse unnecessarily when it hits the target, but will instead concentrate it all in a specific point. This makes it much more lethal and powerful.
I also learned that in my simulation battles with the princesses: I noticed that their basic attacks seemed advanced in level and unusually powerful.
At first, I thought they were increasing their magic power and firing with force, but it was the opposite: they were using very little power to save stamina and mana, but they did not decrease their firing strength and impact power.
So how did they do it? I wondered until I witnessed the basics of their spells up close. And thanks to Ryujinzhu's training, I was able to understand and put into practice the same thing they did: using force intelligently.
Ryujinzhu didn't mention anything, but he was probably testing me to see if I would notice. That's why he offered me to go train with the princesses after I had spent a few weeks inside the waterfall.
Ryujinzhu wanted to know if I would notice and make progress on my own.
In the end it turned out that way... now I can use the same trick as them.
"That is something I would not have achieved if it were not for you and the other princesses."
"I see… so you already noticed that," he said with a small smile. "What Zaphyris said is true after all."
What does she have to do with this? Was this all Zaphyris' idea?
"Now then," he interrupted my thoughts and continued speaking. "That spell you used against me was formidable, if you had used it against an average person, you might have emerged victorious. As long as you have the advantage on the battlefield, it's a good choice. But that doesn't mean you should neglect your daily training." He finished as he turned to leave.
It seems that he only came to leave me knowledge and something more.
Before she left, I told her the first thing that crossed my mind at that moment. "I would be delighted to have you continue to be my teacher, Ryujinzhu-sama."
She seemed to have been taken by surprise by my words.
I thought she would say something, but that wasn't the case. She just glanced at me briefly and continued walking. Judging from her reaction, Ryujinzhu didn't seem to dislike it, she just smiled slightly as if to say, "Do whatever you want."
Now I was left alone again at that waterfall...
I guess I'll keep training until Zaphyris comes back.
After shaking the dust off my clothes, I returned to my training routine.
***
Today was the long-awaited day.
It's been three months since I was living in this place.
My stay has come to an end.
Zaphyris had arrived just yesterday to say goodbye to me properly today.
She has earned my utmost respect. She is truly a considerate woman and keeps her word.
I was currently in my room and had prepared myself as instructed by the maids. I was sitting on my bed and had nothing better to do than stare out the window. I was getting anxious.
I don't want to say goodbye... if I do... I'll start crying.
I am very sentimental about goodbyes...
I'm looking forward to it!
What will Zaphyris's words be?
I don't care about Wolf's since he's always quiet... but if he says something... I'll cry too.
Although there are still people I haven't said goodbye to: the princesses, all of whom I had fun times with; the children from the circus, who were all very kind to me. As well as Mr. Garzhaus and his daughter Gina; Hilda, the human scientist from the Divine Empire Kingdom; and I won't forget the maids of this place, who have been taking care of me and helping me in every little thing with a smile; and lastly, the three mischievous little Quaramis, who have played with me all this time and treated me as if I were an older brother to them.
My stay in this place was full of discoveries and developments that form the foundations for growing in this world.
It's still not enough, but it's better than being completely ignorant about things around me. Now with this I can take a better path.
I will continue to practice the teachings of each of these people and strive to honor their valuable time invested in helping me.
I can now use magic of different elements and the Beast Style sword.
I may not be the most powerful, but it's better than being a complete useless person with a nearly impossible goal.
Although there are things I still don't fully understand about this whole development... What could Goddess-sama's purpose have been in bringing me to this place? Does all of this have any meaning or is it just a coincidence?
If I think about it carefully, I can speculate on some strange things that are clearer now: meeting the Quaramis may have been a favorable factor for the future, but it may also have been an indirect product of Goddess-sama's intentions... that was a feeling I couldn't shake for a while now.
Perhaps he already knew that my development with them would trigger good ties in the future, that's why he forced me to come across the Quaramis...
Taking that as an option and the current situation I am in, then I have a notion of what she has done indirectly to help me in this timeline: the starting point is the Quaramis.
But of course, these are theories and taking everything for granted is not an option. I could be getting closer or further away from reality, so it is not always bad to question some things.
There could also be the possibility that there was a slight mistake and I should have appeared in a different place. Then I would dismiss everything as a product of chance and not Goddess-sama's original intentions...
My position hasn't changed yet: let development take its natural course. But certainly my presence can already alter many things in the timeline. There are things that will continue with the original story as an 'inevitable factor' so everything remains uncertain...
Continuing to think about it will not solve anything.
"Excuse me, Lucius-sama," said one of the two maids who entered my room.
Now that I think about it, they are the same as the first day. "Zaphyris-sama is waiting for you."
"Fine," I said after getting out of bed.
***
When the maids opened the doors, I entered the main training room where they said Zaphyris was waiting for me.
It's strange that she wants to see me in a place like this...
Do you want to test my power level? Perhaps you will give your last teaching before I leave the palace.
Inside the place was Zaphyris, wearing her usual dazzling clothes and standing in the center of the training field. Her expression was unreadable and as cold as ever, with a small smile very characteristic of her natural charm.
There was something that wasn't quite right though... that was the presence of several people who were sitting like spectator judges on the upper sides of the large training hall: the seven princesses, the circus children, Zaliph and his two younger brothers, even Hilda was among the seats in the small crowd. Each of them were staring at us in complete silence...
"What do you make of all this, Lucius?" Zaphyris broke the silence with a question.
"A very confusing goodbye… I guess"
"It is understandable... but it is the fairest thing for an occasion like this"
"Do you have plans to do something, Zaphyris-sama?"
I thought she would answer next, but that wasn't the case. She had dodged the question. "You've progressed very well over this time, Lucius, I'm proud that you've been able to meet my expectations. Even those of Wolf and Ryujinzhu."
"... I don't have enough words of thanks for you... you were very kind to me"
Why do I feel like everything is too strange?