The martial arts skills of Jiro and Ryu were improving by leaps and bounds. Shima was giving it his all, but he simply couldn't keep pace with the two brothers.
"You guys are incredible lately-ssu!" Shima said. "It burns, man... I'm eating your dust and the gap's only getting wider-ssu!"
"I don't know, I think Ryu's the one really leveling up," Jiro replied. "Lately, he's been putting me in some seriously tight spots during sparring. At this rate, he's going to blow right past me."
Jiro looked genuinely proud of his younger brother's growth.
"That's the truth," Master Faza said, stepping in to praise the three of them. "Ryu's been hitting his stride, but don't sell yourself short, Jiro; your progress has been explosive. And Shima, take it easy on yourself. Your growth is impressive enough to turn heads."
Behind him, Captain Sugo of the territorial guard nodded in silent agreement.
"Master, do you really mean it?" Shima asked. "Jiro and Ryu are just so far ahead, I can't even tell if I'm moving forward!"
"Hahaha! Even through a parent's biased eyes, what Jiro and Ryu are doing is remarkable," Faza said. "Shima, you start school next year. For that alone, make sure you're hitting the books just as hard as the training grounds."
The Landmark family had already committed to footing the bill for Shima's education. The plan was for him to enroll in the same academy as Tauro next year.
"But... are you sure it's okay?" Shima muttered. "A commoner like me, actually going to school...?"
"It'll be fine," Faza said, brushing away the boy's insecurities. "The academy in Margrave Sugoera's city is full of students from commoner backgrounds. Tauro mentioned it in his letters, so let those worries go."
"Thank you so much!" Shima cried. "I'll study my brains out and work my hardest for the Landmark family!"
* * *
Now that Ryu was eight, his magic training had entered a new, intense phase. His mother, Lady Cecil, took charge of his education.
It turned out Mom was a powerhouse - a rare talent possessing "Magic User" ¹ skills in Wind, Lightning, and Water, alongside "Healer" ² skills. The only thing higher than her would be top-tier specialized classes like "Sage" ³. Even more impressive was that Cecil was a commoner who had mastered everything through sheer self-study. She had never stepped foot in a school; she simply honed her craft during her childhood and her days as an adventurer.
Naturally, he got curious about how she and Dad actually hit it off. When he asked, Mom was surprisingly open about their "origin story."
It started back when his grandfather, Camiza, was still a commoner adventurer before earning his knighthood. He had jumped in to save another adventurer from a monster attack - that man happened to be Cecil's father. They became fast friends and eventually introduced their kids to each other. That was their first meeting. Later, the families became inseparable, and the two of them even spent their youth adventuring together.
Apparently, things just clicked, and they went straight from teammates to marriage.
'I could probably write a whole novel just based on their romance,' he thought as he sat through Mom's long-winded, lovey-dovey stories.
As for his own progress, his Earth Magic was currently his standout trait. This was the direct result of clearing the forest - a process where he'd pushed himself to the brink of magical collapse over and over again. Thanks to that reckless "overclocking," his mana capacity had surged, making the massive task of taming the woods feel like a breeze. Because of that, the Kohin ⁴ fields were expanding rapidly. By next year, they'd be able to consistently ship "coffee" - the product made from their processed Kohin beans.
Anyway, back to the present: under Mom's tutelage, he was currently practicing "fine-tuned mana manipulation."
The practical exercise consisted of him being forced to carve stone statues of Mom. It was a total nightmare. He couldn't get the balance right - the noses would end up huge, the torsos too thick, or the legs like tree trunks. Of course, for the sake of her honor, he should clarify that the problem lay entirely with his lack of control and not with Mom's actual physique. He better make that clear, or she'll probably kill him.
Day after day, he'd sculpt a failure, smash it, and start over. Finally, he produced something he actually liked. He was about to do a mental victory lap when Mom chimed in.
"The chest is a bit on the small side, don't you think?" she asked.
She delivered the critique with a sweet smile, but he felt an instinctive, soul-crushing pressure radiating from her.
"I'll redo it immediately!"
He honestly thought he was being faithful to the original, but he had a feeling that if he actually said that out loud, he'd see a side of his mother he wasn't prepared for. He kept his mouth shut and buried that thought deep in his heart.
Trivia:
- Shima is a commoner whose education is being sponsored by the Landmark family.
- Cecil's proficiency spans four distinct magical areas: Wind, Lightning, Water, and Healing.
- The grandfather Camiza was a commoner adventurer before becoming a knight.
- Ryu's mana capacity is massive due to his 'reckless' methods of clearing the forest
Character Insight:
Cecil displays a mix of high-level competence and typical maternal vanity/scary aura. Ryu's survival instincts from his previous life are applied to navigating family dynamics.
Behind the Scenes:
The 'scary mom' trope regarding her appearance is a common light novel comedic device to humanize overpowered characters.
TL Notes:
1 ↩ Magic User (魔道士): General term for those capable of using offensive elemental magic.
2 ↩ Healer (治癒士): A specialized class focused on recovery magic.
3 ↩ Sage (賢者): A high-tier legendary magic class above standard magic users.
4 ↩ Kohin (コヒン): A fictional bean in this world used to create a coffee-like beverage.
Notes:
• Shima - Ten-year-old boy with brown hair and brown eyes. Grandson of the butler Sebastian. Hired as a servant and training to be a future butler.
• Jiro - Ryu's second older brother. He has the 'Priest-Warrior' skill, combining martial arts with healing magic.
• Ryu - Formerly Yokohama Ryusei, a yakuza. Reincarnated as the third son of the Landmark family. Has red hair and blue eyes. Possesses memories of his previous life and the ability to see names of objects.
• Faza - The Lord of the Landmark Domain. A slender but sturdily built man with red hair and brown eyes.
• Sugo - Captain of the territorial guards. Responsible for teaching martial arts. Large, grim-faced, and protective of Ryu.
• Tauro - Ryu's older brother. The eldest son of the Landmark family. He has the 'Knight' skill and is proficient in various melee weapons. Described as kind and supportive of his younger brother.
• Cecil - Wife of the Landmark Lord. A blonde woman with deep blue eyes.
• Camiza - Ryu's grandfather.