The ‘Punishment’

Not it's time to ignore that massive prick and go about my daily life as usual. That kid must really not have his head on straight if he thinks I'd come over to fight him later on this evening~

Now, how is Merilin progressing?

I walked back to my parents room and almost dropped my jaw in shock after seeing how burnt most the walls were as target practice for her new Spell...

Hah... I shouldn't have expected as much from a little girl who's only about seven year old. Even if she outwardly acts mature, she's still a child after all.

It seems she was also able to gain insight to manipulating natural lightning using artificial storm clouds while I was away trying to experiment with my new Lightning Spell. It seems she has ridiculously bad control over the new Spell we created together.

"Merilin, that's enough! Do you want to burn the room down?" I reprimanded my sister in order to wake her up from her trance. She quickly reacted after hearing my voice before paling in fear.

"Big Brother.... Please help me keep this a secret from mom and dad!" She cried in tears while begged me to help out. Looks like she understood the severity of the situation she was in...!

I didn't answer her and instead used my Mana to slowly fix the walls using Earth Ether. The damage done wasn't able to be fixed with my abilities but I was still able to make it look less like she was intentionally destroying stuff.

Hah... This is pretty bad... It's not like anything of the Swordwick Household was ordinary. Even the walls of the household wasn't something that should have been easy to beak since they all have been reinforced before.

Is this the power of natural lightning? I couldn't help but feel that the overpowering strength of Blue Lightning was beyond my expectations.

Maybe the power of natural lightning was what made up for its lack of anti-magical properties. My Lightning Spell may not have the ability to replicate Anti-Magic but it's enough to fight!

Now that I think about it, I really am a cheat aren't I? Universal Specialists that have all five Attribute Transformations are rare to the point that there are only a hundred of them in the entirety of the human race. And as one of them, I know innately that the unpredictability of understanding how to use all forms of Elemental Manipulation is what makes Universal Specialists such a special existence.

I myself might not have the Magical Talent advantage others do, but I'm certain that the Arts and Spells I've created will help me survive anything!

This is a great advantage for me when it comes to combat, but there is a chance it might not be enough to take on those who are truly talented in their specific magic attributes. It's a good thing I've been experimenting with new Arts and Spells over the years or I'd feel unnerved by my own lack of strength.

There's a reason I always had a gun under my pillow in my previous life. As a so-called Hero who obtained great merits in the battlefields of Earth, that 'popularity' I gained is what made some high ranking officials want to get rid of me. The government never attacked my home outright but the constant stream of assassins lasted until the day I killed the Underworld's King of Assassins!

Hah... My previous life had always been one of constant battle even after I left the battlefield. It's only natural that I now subconsciously prepare to be attacked even in this new life of mine...

Am I being too paranoid?

Well it's not like paranoia is a bad thing, right? It's my greatest asset after all! I'm sure everything will work out peacefully if I keep this mindset.

Oh who am I kidding? It's my fault my sister has now become interested in the dangerous Spells I've taught her. If only I showed her creative Combat Arts instead of Spells since the former are normally more safe and efficient to use than Spells. Merilin is probably going to become a Mage in the future if she keeps up her attitude towards Spells...

Mother is probably going to go ballistic at me for teaching Merilin Spells without supervision. Although normal people of this world DO learn Spells at a young age, they usually aren't taught to kids without strict supervision since Magic can harm their users if they're not conjured right. For example: A Fireball Spell might only shoot magic in a straight line but casting the Spell without training could make it accidentally shoot the caster instead.

It sounds really comedic, but the reality is that even the simplest kinds of Fireball Spells could kill people who aren't prepared to resist it using Aura!

"Let's go inform mom about the wall together." I held my sister's hand and decided to accompany her in to apologise to mother for my negligence.

"It wasn't my fault. You said I could test it here." Merilin's eyes darkened as she tried to look for an excuse but closed her mouth after realising that she blamed me out of nervousness.

"You're scared Mom will scold you?" I ignored her mumbling and asked. She didn't say respond or openly admit her thoughts but still nodded deeply.

"I'm scared as well." After hearing my words she stared up to me in confusion, not understanding what I meant. I smiled helplessly at that look.

"I'm the one who taught you a new Spell and irresponsibly left you to figure it out by yourself. It's only natural that I'm the one who should be taking responsibility for the damage you had caused accidentally." I said patiently as we walked down the halls.

"But it wasn't your fault." She denied unexpectedly with a serious shift in tone. Hey, weren't you the one who said I'm to blame in the first place?

"It was." I retorted her strong denial.

"It wasn't." She said a little angrily.

"What are you two talking about?" My mother who was cooking in the kitchen of the household with the other maids asked while managing other servants.

"I taught Merilin a new Spell and she ended up burning a large part of your room. I'm sorry, Mother." I bowed my head apolitically before informing mother exactly what transpired.

My mother's lips twitched as she gave her instructions to the nearby servants before following me back to her room with fiery anger rising in her eyes.

Seeing that the only thing that was damaged were the walls, she sighed in relief before manifesting her Aura to mimic Earth and completely fixed the stone walls with her control over Earth.

Mother wasted a lot of Mana fixing simple things due to Earth Aura not being her specialty but she was able to fix the wall perfectly in the end due to her high Magical Talent that far exceeded any ordinary Mage. I fetched mother a glass of water as she sat down on her bed tiredly after spending a lot of time reinforcing the new wall.

"What magic could cause such damage?" She asked curiously after covering the damage on the wall. It seemed it was extremely shocking that Merilin was able to break the wall...

"I taught her a way to create natural lightning using Water Ether, then she experimented a few attacks without permission after gaining enough insight to it." Mother's eyes widened after she heard my explanation. Merilin had already preemptively prepared to follow up by showing mother the process of how she formed lightning.

In her hand was a spherical bubble that held a powerful force of Blue Lightning.

"Merilin, my darling~ Are you able to control it?" My mother asked with a complicated expression. She looked back and forth between me and Merilin with curious eyes. Not surprising considering how extremely rare rogue Lightning Specialists were on Sphera.

"...No." Merilin paused then answered.

If she tried to dispel the bubble, the lightning trapped within would escape and randomly shock those near it, so the only way to dispel it in a way that would cause her harm would be by throwing it away from her. Mother realised that and was about to help her dispel it, but how could I miss this great opportunity to show off?

"Don't worry, I got this!" A smile etched across my face as I manifested my new Spell Conjuring and dispelled Merilin's magic for her by crushing the lightning bubble with my bare hand.

Merilin also sighed in amazement as she herself could only discharge natural lightning like a cannon. My control over Lightning really inspired her to work harder to control her new Spell.

"You even learnt how to use Lightning Spells by yourself. As expected of my son!" My mother was surprised slightly at my new Lightning Spell since it was already clear I was the one who taught Merilin how to generate natural lightning through only Water Ether.

It would be shocking if I couldn't do at least this much. She smiled happily as she saw our Aura Manifestations.

"You should have been shocked that I taught myself how to control a rare Spell of Fake Lightning Attributed Mana..." I couldn't help but mumble depressingly. The opinion of other are nothing, all that matters is that my family knows I'm an awesome and definitely good-natured person...!

"Merilin's Spell is surprising, but yours? I don't think there's anything more shocking than a ten year old already mastering the ability to change the nature of his Aura without having to spend years training." My mother said blandly before ignoring me.

"Merilin, come here." My mother gestured to my sister to sit on her lap.

Merilin was overjoyed as she found that mother wasn't really mad at what she did. She laughed before jumping into mother's arms and calming her heart. It looks like mother was always the one who could keep her in check...

"As your punishment for destroying half my room, you are forbidden from ever using this new Spell without my permission." In response to her punishment, Merilin gratefully nodded her head. Hmmm... why am I starting to feel a strange sense of foreboding?

"Simon, as punishment for neglecting Merilin after teaching her a dangerous Spell: You have to fight that boy named Jack Ironwell tomorrow." My mother slyly smiled and declared. Not even giving me any room for refuse.

"Why do I have to fight that egotistical prick? The position of the Young Miss' personal butler should be mine anyway." I said in dissatisfaction.

"It's not about the position, it's about dignity. You will never be respected as her personal butler if you don't fight him." Mother shook her head.

"He's just a guy who wants my position through this duel. Even if I win, the only thing I'll gain is attention. I really don't want that to happen. I'd rather be thought of as a coward instead of a battle maniac like father." I said bluntly without mincing any of my words.

"That excuse would have worked if it was someone else." My mother's voice deepened as a sharp light appeared in her eyes. It seemed my duel with this prick wasn't as simple as I had hoped.

"Jack WAS the boy who was supposed to have earned the right to protect the House Master's daughter through his own ability. He is a C Rank Magical Talent with very high affinity with Earth and Spear Arts. As the personal butler of the House Master's precious daughter, having this much ability and talent is actually quite normal." My mother laughed humorously. It seems like she thinks I'm in a tight spot...

"So the new butler has to earn his position by beating the old butler? I don't know why 'dignity' is so important to everyone, but if you want me to beat him, consider it done." I said confidently with a burning spirit.

I didn't feel even a shred of guilt from taking his position because he'd already came to my door to pick a fight. The time for negotiations have ended!

"Big Brother, don't lose, okay?" My sister cheers me on. How cute~! I couldn't help but pat her on the head and smile. However, why is it I suddenly feel uneasy about this? My mind suddenly remembered the weird smile Jack made a few minutes ago...