The following days up until the academy tournament were some of the toughest of Rune's life. Maria's training was grueling. Maybe not in the physical sense, but mentally. However, it may as well have been both, as Rune's mental state made him feel physically exhausted, even if he wasn't. On top of that, he had double training with Carin, once for his usual sparring sessions and again during team drills with the rest of his party.
In the end, he managed to master the [Mind Activation] technique during the final session of the final day, just barely making the deadline. He was walking around with his girls now as they enjoyed all the city had to offer.
The tournament lasted an entire week, with the first day consisting of a grand festival encompassing the entire Kingdom of Veronica. It was a joyous time for not just the academy, but the entire city, and all the merchants and established businesses were looking to make a profit.
Longer chapter this time. I would normally split it into two, seeing as it has exceeded 2k words, but it feels more natural to me as a single chapter. This is more of a minor arc, but I can't really say how long it is going to be. There is much that needs to be set up for future events, so it is hard to tell. There will be two parallel storylines going on here, so we will see.
Oh, one last thing. Try not to waste any points on summoning pens. It is hard for me to do multiple chapters at a time; I don't want you guys to waste points. If you really want extras, then try and get the novel to 50 Powerstones or 10 Golden Tickets. That would help me continue to grow and would be more than enough to give you guys a bonus.