Chapitre 11: Chapter 11 - Mother
"So, why can't I go help with hunting too?" I sighed, as I swept the floor.
"First off, you're still too young, Larrk. You're only seven. And second...I know you're just trying to find an excuse to get out of cleaning. Nice try, but too bad," Smirked Lycia teasingly.
"Guess I can't fool you that easily, huh, mom?" I responded with a wry smile.
A couple of years had passed, and at this point, I was well-settled into this new life. I'd continued to study Spell-casting using the Magic instructional books, in fact, I'd sorta worn down some of the pages.
Argent had also continued to train me whenever he had free time, and Rhyle also chipped in once he realized that I was serious about it, and not just working at it as a passing fancy.
I'm glad I asked that God to get rid of my ADHD, concentrating on stuff is so much easier now. And I still have my photographic memory, so I've been learning at a pretty quick rate.
Today's the 6th of Martius, the first month of the year, in the year 2008 of this world. I'd turned seven a couple of months ago, and by now, I'm finally able to slowly but surely start dropping the kid act entirely.
Sadly, now that I'm older, I'm expected to help out a lot more with chores and stuff than before, which I really don't like. I wonder how many years it'll be before roombas are invented in this world?
Too bad I don't have much knowledge regarding mechanical engineering or whatever. Oh, well, maybe that's for the best, I don't want to attract too much attention by suddenly inventing a bunch of devices and stuff.
"No need to look so depressed, just think of this as training...the sweeping will help exercise your forearms," Remarked Lycia, as she ruffled my hair.
"I don't think it's that simple, but thanks for the advice," I responded dryly.
"Hm, how about this, then? After we're done cleaning the house, I'll help you train," She offered, as she dusted a shelf.
Oh? She's never trained me before, and while she apparently used to help out with hunting and stuff for the village, she hasn't done much after I was born, effectively retired.
"How strong are you compared to dad and big brother?" I inquired curiously.
"Well, I don't do a whole lot of fighting these days, it's actually been quite a while, and while your father is better at Magic, I'm the better hand to hand combat fighter. Even though I'm out of practice, I'm not completely washed up just yet. Who do you think trained you brother?" She smirked in response.
Oh? That sounds promising. Rhyle is definitely a more challenging opponent, but his movements are more instinctively sharpened, while Argent's fighting style seems a lot more polished, even though he's slower, weaker, less agile and takes longer to react that Rhyle does. I guess that's just the difference that age and experience makes, huh?
"Okay, deal," I agreed to her proposal, before continuing to sweep the floor with renewed vigor.
"You really do want to get strong, don't you?" She smiled, as she took out the mop.
"Mhm...I want to be like all of you. No, scratch that, I want to be even stronger," I grinned, as I gathered up the swept dust and dumped it in the trash.
"Is that so? I like your ambition, kiddo," She replied, before adding, "In that case, we had best hurry up and finish up cleaning so that we can get to training."
"Yeah, sounds good!"
I continued cleaning as fast as I could, but made sure that I didn't cut any corners...I've tried that in the past, and she's noticed every time, there's no getting anything past her.
Fortunately, this isn't a very big house. The kitchen doubles as a dining room, and was by the front entrance, we didn't have a living room or anything like that.
Then there was a corridor leading from the kitchen, in which there were three bedrooms, along with a bathroom. And at the end of the corridor was the back door, which led out to the forest by the village.
The walls and roof were concrete, with the roof being kinda low and flat...I'd say the ceiling was about seven feet from the floor or so. The floor was hardwood, and kinda scuffed up.
This entire house was smaller than the living room in the mansion I lived in in my previous life...but I can say with confidence that I feel a whole lot more comfortable and at home here than I ever did in that place.
Sure, there are some aspects of my previous life that I miss sometimes, but overall, I can say without any hesitation that I'm a lot happier in this second life than I ever was in my previous life.
Anyway, about an hour later, we had finished cleaning up the house. I felt a sense of anticipation and impatience as Lycia put the cleaning tools away in a small closet, eagerly wanting to get to training.
"Someone's all worked up, I see. Come on, let's get going," She grinned, ruffling my hair as she headed for the back door.
I followed after her excitedly, as we left the house and headed into the woods. Before long, we reached the clearing where I usually train with Argent and Rhyle.
"This is where we always train," I informed her, as she stepped onto the area.
"Is that so? Hm...in that case, let's go to a spot with plenty of trees. Fighting in cramped places with obstacles is more difficult than fighting out in the open, it's important that you get used to fighting in any situation," She advised me, as we headed deeper into the forest.
"Hm, okay, that makes sense," I nodded in response, as she led the way.
"Ah, right here should do," She decided, as we got to a spot heavy with trees and foliage.
There were a couple of trees with thick vines hanging from the branches...ooh, I want to swing on those, that could be fun.
"What kind of training are we going to do?" I asked her.
"In my experience, the most effective way is good old-fashioned sparring. Attack me, I'll start by initially gauging your ability level and then respond accordingly," She suggested after mulling it over, before heading to a spot between a couple of trees and closing her eyes, "Whenever you're ready, begin. Attack with everything you've got."
Okay, I have no idea what she's capable of, but based on what I've seen in anime, if I attack head on, I'll fail for sure.
The tree to her left has some vines on it...alright, I'll use that. I took in a deep breath and slowly exhaled as I reached down and picked up a small rock, before sprinting towards her at my top speed.
As I got within a few meters of her, I flung the rock straight at her chest, before leaping off to the right and grabbing a vine, using my momentum to swing around the tree on it as I bent my right leg and drew it back.
She swiftly caught the rock without batting an eye and dropped it to the ground, right as I swung around the tree and behind her, before I whipped my right leg forward, aiming a rapid kick at her back.
Right before I could connect, her left hand suddenly moved behind her back and grabbed my ankle, halting my kick. She then swung me up and across, as I lost my grip around the vine.
I was being held upside down in front of her, a triumphant smirk on her face as she opened her eyes and met my gaze.
"How'd you do all that without even looking?" I sighed wryly.
"Sight isn't the only sense we can rely on during battle...hearing, smell and touch are important too. Don't neglect those senses. There are a lot of leaves on the ground here, I could hear your footsteps, as well as the sound of the rock slicing through the air...and there's also a breeze blowing, I could feel the subtle changes in the flow of the wind caused by your momentum during your movements. As for smell...well, that one's not as sharp as the rest of my senses," She remarked with a laugh.
I appreciate the advice and all, I just wish I wasn't upside down.
"Okay, got it...so, uh, could you put me down now?" I responded sheepishly.
"Oh, right...sorry," She grinned sheepishly, as she let me down.
"Alright, shall I try again?" I asked her, as I brushed myself off.
"In a moment...listen carefully, there's something approaching us. Two creatures. Based on the sound...they're walking on fours, and aren't very big," She informed me with a frown, as I noticed her ears perking up.
"Huh? I don't hear anything," I responded, as I strained my ears.
Too bad I don't have my Skills yet, Super Hearing would be really useful right about now.
"You're trying to force it, that won't work...you have to relax and stay calm," She advised me, before adding, "Wait up on that tree. I'll deal with this quickly and we'll get back to training."
"Uh, sure, okay," I replied, as I climbed up the tree and peered down.
Oh, I see one of them...bright orange fur, several meters away amongst the bushes, slowly and steadily approaching Lycia.
Is that a fox? Looks like one...but it could be a Firefox, a species of Monster. Regular foxes aren't very aggressive and typically stay away from humans, but Firefoxes are a lot more feral and aggressive.
I then spotted the other one...they're each approaching her from her left and right, respectively. Gotta lament that I don't have my Skills yet again...this could've been a good opportunity to test out Monster/Magical Beast Thought Communication.
As they closed in on her, the one to her right suddenly leapt out from the bushes with a vicious snarl, flames forming in its jaws as it pounced towards her.
Without moving a muscle, she swiftly raised her leg up high and swung it down at a blinding speed, striking the top of its head and slamming it onto the ground, crushing its head in with a loud crunch, blood bursting out from its eyes, nostrils and mouth as she killed it...holy shit, with a single kick!?
I then grabbed a nearby vine and gave it a strong tug, tearing it off...huh, given its flexibility and weight, this makes for a pretty good makeshift whip.
As the second Firefox leapt out from the bushes, I swiftly swung the vine down with a flick of my wrist, the vine hitting the side of the creature's neck and wrapping around it firmly, before I leapt off the branch I was perched on while holding the other end of the vine.
As the length of the vine slid across the branch, the Firefox got abruptly pulled up by the neck, letting out a strangled yelp as it got lifted up off the ground.
"Oh, wow...that was amazing, it's choking to death," Remarked Lycia, wide-eyed.
"I didn't think it would work...I was hoping it would at least hit the Firefox and distract it, but it worked exactly like I wanted it to," I grinned in response, before my eyes widened in alarm as the Firefox clawed at the vines and managed to rip through, freeing itself.
As it plummeted down, Lycia swiftly swung around and slammed a rapid spin kick onto its midsection with immense force, blood bursting out of its mouth as she sent it flying back and slammed onto a tree with a loud thud, slumping down onto the ground.
"Don't let your guard down until you're sure that you've finished off the enemy. Getting killed after winning the fight defeats the whole point, after all," She stated with a smile.
"Yeah, sorry...I messed that up, huh?" I responded sheepishly.
"Not at all. You may have read about them and seen pictures, but this was the first time you've actually gone up against a real Monster, isn't it? Use it as a learning experience, and do better next time. Got it?"
"Yeah, got it!"
"Great! Now, then...let's get back to it, shall we?" She suggested with a grin.
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Cadeaux
-- Cadeau
reçu État de l’alimentation hebdomadaire
-- Classement
Power Stone 
-- Power
stone