Real Sword

That night when Leus went to sleep, Blaze wasn't home, So he assumed that Blaze wouldn't be awake at their usual training time.

Yet, When he got up at dawn and went to the garden, he found Blaze already waiting for him

"Dad, You didn't sleep?"

Blaze replied nonchalantly

"No, I was waiting for you"

"It's okay you can sleep I can train alone today"

Blaze shook his head

"No, When you reach my level sleeping won't be that important.

I personally like to sleep, But I can stay without sleeping for a long time if I push myself to.

However, I don't like doing that, It's tiring, Also, Why would I? Sleeping is beautiful, I also never had any reason to spend sleepless nights"

Then Blaze added in an enthusiastic tone

"Also, I'm excited today"

Leus tilted his head

'Don't need to sleep? How so?'

"But dad, The last time you didn't sleep you were looking tired?"

"Huh? Are you talking about when I made your room?

Don't remind me of that day ...

I wasn't tired because I didn't sleep, but because your mother decided to create the room for you overnight!

There were no shops open after midnight, So I had to get the wood myself, Cut trees, and then build both the desk and the bed

From where do you think that stuff came? I spent the entire night running around the city"

Blaze sighed

"Ahh don't spoil my good  mood with such memories, See what I got for you"

Leus smiled wryly

' ... Mom'

"Thank you so much for everything"

'On the bright side, If he ever decides to retire from the military he can work as a carpenter'

While Leus was thinking that, Blaze extended his hand forward and showed Leus the sword

The sword was sheathed in a black sheath.

Leus could only see the handle of the sword, So he extended his hand and unsheathed his new sword

The sword had a straight handle with a cupped guard, Its blade was single-edged and razor-sharp

The blade itself was slightly broad and short, and it was straight throughout ⅔ of the sword, and then it curved.

Its weight was about 1.2kg and its length was about 75cm

Leus held it and slowly waved it around

The handle was about 13cm long and had spiraled brass wire, Making the grip much stronger.

The sheath was the same size as the blade and it was made of steel

After Leus was done inspecting his new sword Blaze said

"This is a short sword, It's a one-handed weapon and it's slightly heavy.

It is very effective for slicing, and because of its sharp tip, it's ideal for thrusts and stabs As well.

Overall, It's amazing for close-quarters combat which is perfect for you"

Then Blaze gave Leus a belt

"What's that?"

"It's your sword belt, It's magical too, You can make it longer or shorter with mana, Keep your sheath on your left hip so you can quickly take out your sword with your right hand in any situation

The sword might be a bit heavy for you, But you'll get used to it.

From now on, you'll train with me using a real sword"

Leus wore the belt and sheathed his sword, Walked a couple of steps behind then unsheathed it

'This is pretty cool'

Blaze spoke in a serious tone

"Normally, I'd say things like:

Never keep your sword far away from you, and only remove your belt while sleeping or showering, And even then, keep the sword near you.

But since you're mainly a Magician, I'll just tell you that your sword is a strong and dependable weapon, So treat it with respect.

If it gets scratched or damaged it'll heal over time.

Also, Do not underestimate your sword, It's quite strong, So don't try it on things you don't want to cut, For example, don't cut yourself to see how sharp it is"

'He's smart but he's still a child, Better safe than sorry'

Leus strongly nodded and said

"I understand, I'll keep it always near me"

Blaze smiled and nodded as well, Then he took out his own real sword

"Now although the main reason for starting sword training was to help you defend yourself, Your mastery over elements gives you great potential in attacking as well.

I want you to keep attacking me in every possible way, Use magic too, I'll focus on parrying and blocking, and I'll counter-attack only rarely"

"Let's do it!"

Leus got ready and dashed forward

He summoned 8 daggers and 2 fireballs around him, Then willed everything to attack Blaze.

At the same time, he used Boost on himself and added Wind Mana to the sword

'Eleven different attacks at the same time, Something must hit'

At this point, Leus wasn't even a bit concerned about the damage he might deal, He was just hoping to land a single hit

The result was ... An utter failure

Leus couldn't comprehend what he was seeing, he only knew that Blaze's sword just moved too fast and blocked all his magic attacks

The daggers shattered and the fireballs got slashed and dissipated

The only thing remaining was Leus' sword attack

Leus reached Blaze and quickly attacked, Feeling like he was cutting the air with his sword, Leus slashed in Blaze's direction

This time Leus was able to clearly see Blaze's sword movement.

For the first time, It was not just a blur.

He saw Blaze's sword moving and parrying his slash, Then diverting its trajectory and making Leus aim at the floor.

And when Leus' sword was directed down, Blaze's sword aimed in Leus' direction

Leus took a step back

Blaze looked into his eyes and said

"Your attacks are too slow"

" ... "

'More like you're too fast'

Leus didn't voice out his thoughts ... But he realized something important

'All my magic attacks are fast according to my standards.

I didn't design them to attack enemies this fast, Actually, I didn't know that such speeds existed'

'My standards for (Fast) are ... pitifully slow'

Leus was disappointed, But only for a moment,

'I now have something to focus on'

After Leus concluded that, he replied enthusiastically

"Right, It's all slow."

A smirk appeared on his face

"Let's make everything fast!"

Blaze smiled and took a stance again, And Leus dashed forward.

And like that, Training continued

Leus would attack using Wind or Fire, Then Blaze would ask him to block/parry using Water or Earth, And sometimes Ice instead of Earth

"It might not be useful now but it'll be in the future" is what Blaze said

Blaze also made Leus use Light occasionally to take harder stances for longer times without getting tired, But most of the time he told him to not use it.

Every time Leus suggested using Light to train for longer times, Blaze rejected for the same reason

"If you don't get tired, Your muscles won't become stronger and you won't evolve"

As the training continued, Leus' Aim was to increase the speed of all his magical attacks so that it is reasonably fast (According to his new standards)

And at the same time learn to fight with the sword

'I actually like the sword'

As time passed, Leus realized that genuinely enjoyed using the sword,

Also, Whenever Amethyst would see him wearing his sword belt with his sword sheathed in it she'd say that he was

"Very cool!"

Which made him like it even more

As for Blaze, He never expected that he'd gain anything out of this training for himself, But surprisingly, There were some benefits for him too

'Attacking a Water Sword gives a very subtle and interesting feeling, It's hard to put into words but I'm gaining more control over my sword while it's inside the liquid substance covering Water Swords

At the same time, defending against so many Magic attacks at once is very refreshing.'

Sadly, because the difference between the two was huge Blaze didn't really gain anything valuable.

But at least the training was interesting.

Viorica, Merlin, and Amethyst would often spectate their training in awe, But they had to keep their distance.

A lot of firey substances flew around at all times.

Merlin expressed his interest in joining, But Blaze asked him to focus on his studies for now and told him that after he was done with Leus he'd train with him too, So he reluctantly agreed.

With every passing day, Leus was able to continue training for a longer time than the previous.

His body was becoming stronger, Thus, His Life Force reserve was steadily increasing, and the speed of his attacks was noticeably improving.

His mastery over the sword was also getting better, and his control over the amount of Mana he had to put into his sword to get the effects he desired was almost perfected.

Leus and Blaze trained for days, And very quickly, days turned into weeks.

After many of these weeks had passed, Blaze finally decided that it was time to learn something new.