A Sudden Shift

With the complete embodiment of the spell interlaced with his thoughts, he kept his hand forward with his intentions clear: to part the fallen leaves.

Come…Wind Sphere, he thought.

His eyes were still closed as he invoked the magecraft through his mind with a hope unlike that of an ignorant child's; he didn't know whether it had worked or not yet, but against his palm, he felt a brisk wind.

So deeply believing in the flow of wind in all aspects, the unmistakable feeling of a stable breeze was something he couldn't perceive as real or not until he parted his eyelids.

Fwoosh.

Swaying in front of his palm, a sphere of spiraling air had coalesced; it swayed, building up to a size as large as his small body as strands of visible wind moved, giving off particles of residual mana.

"...I did it…" He quietly said before a joyful smile stretched across his lips with his amethyst eyes dazzling, "--I did it!"

It had taken months from the very first encounter with magic to achieve it, but he had accomplished it: magic invoked solely by intent.

Finally unleashing the ball of wind forward, it launched with a powerful boom, knocking him onto his rear as he watched it sail forward, hurling through the field before it crashed into a distant tree–

THUD.

Despite being just wind, it was certainly heavy by the collision it made, exploding into a short-lived storm that disappeared as quick as it came.

He sat there with his palms against the soothing grass, gripping it with an excited smile across his lips still, "...I did it!"

While it was an amazing development, it was hardly a surprise to his ever-supportive parents who already knew of his ability to swiftly learn, still–they showered him with love and praise further.

"Incantation-less magic is no joke, kid," Julius told him with a proud smile, "You're going to surpass your old man one day–and that day is scarily soon! Ha-ha!"

"Heh," he bashfully chuckled.

"Ahh…He certainly gets his brains from me, doesn't he?" Treyna smiled, giddily holding her own cheeks, "None of that comes from you."

"Hey! He gets some brains from me!" Julius retorted.

They all ended up laughing together; that night, they celebrated his improvement in magic with a nice feast; seasoned chicken with a nice aroma, bread, stew, and even some sweet pastries.

[One Year Later | 11 Years Old]

He was beginning to shape up to be a "sharp young lady killer" as his father had told him, not before following with "But not quite at my level yet"--though he was seeing it himself as he looked down at the bucket of water at his reflection.

Compared to how feeble and dull his appearance was in his previous life, he was certainly shaping up to be a looker, at least by his own totally-not-biased opinion: he had skin that remained unblemished, amethyst eyes that resembled jewels, and his dirty-blonde hair was naturally smooth and silky.

I won the genetic lottery this time around. I guess there is some balance in the universe; as all things should be, he thought.

["Even if Emilio found himself blessed with the ability to learn quickly, to such a degree that he would be called a difference, he would learn soon enough the difference between intelligence and wisdom, for the man who reincarnated had nothing but the life experience of a bedridden, lonesome soul."]

--

He had become a young savant of magic, able to use all elements, at least in their novice and intermediate forms, without invocation now.

However, this brought something of its own into his life–

"Today, you're going to be meeting somebody special," Julius told him with a bright smile.

"Huh?" He said, looking up from his grimoire.

Julius was clad in sweat from his sword training, "It's clear you've got a handle on magic for now. But, as for your training with the sword…I think you still need a push."

"...Huh…?"

Looking forward, he saw somebody arriving over the hill, approaching their house as Julius looked back with a smile at the enigmatic figure.

The stranger arrived with a dark cloak around their shoulders and a hood over their head, but he could gather at least some information, regretfully, by his lecherous mind: the hourglass figure they had.

A woman? He thought.

As she came over the hill, she was no doubt tall for a woman, and certainly stacked with muscle–definitely challenging, if not surpassing Julius in physique. As she removed her cloak, his heart skipped a beat.

She was tan, with long, flowing hair of a crimson shade. Despite her strong build, the feminine charms possessed by her weren't dulled in the slightest–she was gorgeous.

She was dressed in black-leather armor that left only her midriff exposed--perhaps not the most practical armor, but nothing he wasn't used to seeing in "JRPGs" and such.

"Meet your new tutor: Veldalla! She's an old friend–so I can vouch for her ability with a sword," Julius introduced the unknown woman.

"...But why? I wanted a magic instructor," he said, looking up at his father.

He had been asking for a tutor the past half year. As quick as he was to learn, there was only so much he could develop simply through self-learning.

This felt like the opposite of what he wanted, as his swordplay had always been quite poor.

Julius smiled, "Don't worry! This is part of that!"

"Huh…?"

"Your mother and I discussed it, and if you want to take your training in the art of magic to the next level, you're going to have to also become a half-decent swordsman!"