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    After taking a two-hour nap with mother, I left her sleeping. She was very tired for some reason. Perhaps the baby was draining her energy? In any case, I decided to leave her asleep on her own.


    For a moment, I got a bit worried. But after checking a second time, I found out that there was nothing wrong with her health or something, so she waspletely fine. Heroes were pretty overpowered, after all. My mother''s physique was around Tier 7… so nothing can make her suddenly feel sick.


    Most likely, just like father, she''s probably immune to most diseases. With that in mind, I decided to walk outside of the house to meet with father.


    "Ah, Sylph. I was about to go look for you, dear. Where''s your mother?" he asked.


    "Erm… she''s sleeping. She felt tired, and is napping for a bit. Let''s not wake her up for now… okay?" I asked.


    "Oh, sure… neen a while since I saw her take a nap. That woman really pushes herself hard sometimes…" father could not help but say with a sigh.


    "Did you have anything to eat?" I asked.


    "Well, we just had breakfast, so let''s wait for a bit. If your mother doesn''t wake up, I can prepare something really quick. Just so you know, I''m not a bad cook! I used to cook a lot, in fact. My meat stew has been praised even by elves," boasted my father while puffing out his chest.


    "Hehe. Okay, I''m looking forward to that," I said with a giggle.


    "Anyways, are you going to do your daily sword training, or do you want to take a break? I wouldn''t me you if you do. After all, you''ve been doing this every day… don''t you feel tired, Sylph?" father asked soon after.


    "No, daddy. I''m very grateful for your teachings… and I''m very happy to spend time with you like this. I always looking forward to it," I told him.


    "Oh, Sylphy… you''re going to make this old man''s heart melt," father said as he petted my head before holding me with his arms and carrying me outside as if I were a baby again.


    "Haha! Stop, I''m not a baby anymore!" I told him.


    "You will always be papa''s baby, no matter how big you grow!" replied my father.


    Eventually, he carried me to our usual spot.


    "Sylphy, I want you to practice your new sword against me," he suggested.


    "Eh? But it''s dangerous…" I replied.


    "No, don''t worry. My physique is almost immune to most low to mid-tier curses. I can handle it! So, don''t fear cutting me away! Treat me like your sandbag!" he assured me.


    "Father, that''s weird! I would never treat you like that…" I murmured.


    "Being a softie won''t help you when you''re against someone that wants to kill you, you know?" he said, suddenly moving at an incredible speed as he appeared in front of me.


    His de moved with incredible swiftness and masterfulness as if it were a part of the wind. His de even left afterimages behind…


    I always was amazed when I saw my father wield his de. It was just… mesmerizing, the level of mastery he had achieved.


    CLASH!


    I had to quickly parry using the de he asked me to use, unsheathing it quickly. I knew my father was going slow on me as always. When he went in with the intention to kill, he''s even able to slice enemies in half and burn them before they can even move.


    "Good! Let''s see. What did I teach you yesterday?" he asked with a smile.


    "Parrying!" I replied.


    "Good, parry these then!" nodded my father, as he began to brutely hit me with his heavy andrge de. The swings were very basic but carried an incredible strength behind them. Each attack cost me a lot to parry, especially because my de was lighter than his.


    CLASH! CLASH! CLASH!


    "Ugh…"


    I suddenly tripped and ended up losing my bnce. The parry was ineffective, and my father''s de quickly reached me!


    …


    Ting.


    He gently touched my head with the dull part of the de.


    "You lost! One for me," he said.


    "You''re too strong, father. Lower down the difficulty a bit!" I could not help but say in response.


    "Oh? I never thought I would hear my daughter say such words before… but you''re parrying badly," he told me.


    "Eh? How so? I''m doing it as you taught me, using your own strength against you through good bnce and a stance…" I said.


    "Yeah, but that''s not it! Using your strength alone won''t do because you''re still growing up, Sylph. Come on. Use your de, infuse mana into it and go ham," father rified.


    "E-Eh? But I won''t learn anything from doing that! Shouldn''t I first learn the basic techniques and master them?" I asked for rification.


    "Well, that would be what someone without magic talent like me did for his entire childhood. On the other hand, my older brother was good at magic and inherited my mother''s talents, so he was taught a different way to fight using everything he had. My daughter, in battle, always remember that anything goes. Learning how to use all your potential together is the way to go," father said.


    Someone that had gone through countless battles while being a Hero had very valuable lessons. I suppose I was going a bit too hard on myself by trying to rely on the most basic of techniques without even using my magic…


    But as he said, the best way to learn techniques was by using all my potential. If I have magic and I can use it to enhance my parry technique, why not use it then? Especially because my mana never runs out.


    "Okay, father. I get it! Come!" I said, my determination renewed.


    "Good! That''s my little warrior princess! Very well, here I go!" eximed my father as he rushed towards me once more. With three times the strength he used before, he began swinging his de against me.


    I infused my mana into the de as the ck and purple jewel glowed with an eerie ck light!


    FLASH!n/o/vel/b//in dot c//om


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