When I open the door, I find Arisa smiling from ear to ear—it's impossible to get mad at someone like her. She's always in a good mood and always wears a smile.

"From that look on your face, I can tell you forgot." I try to smile and deny it right away, but she keeps talking. "It's fine, I expected it."

"I didn't forget." I deny it anyway, a guilty smile creeping onto my face, and I quickly try to change the subject. "Come in, the weather's a bit chilly." I step aside and she enters.

I pull out some cushions from my dimensional bracelet, offer her one, and she accepts without hesitation. We sit facing each other, and she immediately begins her interrogation.

All her questions revolve around Marga. How did I meet her? Why is she so close to me? And other similar questions. I didn't have an answer for most of them—I didn't really understand myself why she had become so close to me so suddenly.

Long minutes passed until she was fully satisfied with my answers and dropped the subject as if it had never come up. "So what were you doing here? Training a new skill?" I explain briefly that I'm trying to obtain a skill related to reflexes and mental speed through my lightning affinity.

"You're already quite strong and still want to get even stronger— that's what I like about you." Her sincere smile makes me look up at the ceiling; it's hard to endure this kind of moment without getting embarrassed. "Let me help with your training." She stands up from her cushion, ready to follow any instruction.

We spend a moment thinking about what kind of training I should do to improve my reflexes and reaction time. We come to an easy conclusion: she'll create several wind needles near me and start throwing them at different parts of my body as soon as she builds them.

If I get used to the speed and can construct a shield or react in time, she'll start making the needles closer and closer, pushing me little by little.

It takes her less than a second to construct six needles, and she launches them immediately. Since she starts at a reasonable distance, I have no trouble detecting them with my domain and reacting with my accelerated mind.

My body instinctively dodges some of them, and others are blocked by a small mana shield with Imra. Her firing speed can't compare to that of a Sapphire or Ruby rank, but being this close puts me in a similar situation.

The speed and timing of a higher-rank spell have effectively been compressed in this way. The only difference is the power—but in this case, I'm not practicing defense.

"Arisa, don't hold back." I lock eyes with her. "Create your needles closer and throw them right away. I can react in time or heal small wounds if needed." My words don't fully convince her, but she hesitantly follows my instructions.

She starts creating more and more needles. Her speed increases, and their positions constantly shift. Since they're such small constructs, she can control several at once without much effort.

"Keep going, Arisa. I can already feel the improvement." We've reached a distance where, at first, I couldn't react quickly enough. I could detect them within my domain, but my brain couldn't keep up with the speed of the attack. Now, I'm already blocking some with small constructions. Arisa stopped hesitating when she saw how my Imra was nearly absorbing all the damage, and the small wounds were healing instantly.

The problem is my clothes—holes are appearing all over. "Give me a moment, please." Without saying anything else, I take off my shirt. Judging by Arisa's reaction, I realize my mistake—her face is completely red. "Sorry, I should've warned you. I've already ruined this shirt anyway, better to continue without it."

"Don't worry, Maki." A few seconds later, she doesn't seem to care anymore, and we continue training as before.

Just when I feel like I'm one step away from unlocking the skill, Arisa gives me bad news. "Maki, I'm running low on mana and it's already really late. If I don't go back soon, they'll come looking for me and I'll be in trouble." She's right—she doesn't have as much mana as I do, and she's still at a boy's house late at night. Better to avoid unnecessary problems.

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"It's okay, you've already helped me a lot." I pull out another training shirt from my dimensional bracelet and quickly get dressed. "If you have time a few days after tomorrow's party… would you help me again?" Looks like I've found the key to improving my skill: a partner who can push my brain to the limit.

"Yes, I'd love to help you." Her usual joy surfaces again. "I'm staying for a few more days after the party. I'll be happy to help." We walk to the door and leave the training room.

We head toward my residence, and I walk her outside where her coachman is waiting. When he sees us, he rushes to prepare everything.

"I'll see you tomorrow at the party." We stared at each other for a moment.

"I imagine you'll invite me to dance—you're supposed to be a gentleman and come find me first." Faced with such a suggestion, I could only chuckle while she held back her own laughter.

"I promise I'll dance with you. Just letting you know, I'm not good at dancing." In my previous life, I did have some dancing experience. It's similar, yet different in many ways. Thankfully, my mother has taught me the basics.

"Finally, I've found something you're not good at. See you tomorrow." She gives me a hug and runs off toward her carriage.

I wait until the carriage disappears from view. Right after, I head in to shower and get ready for bed. I need to be well rested for tomorrow. The party starts at lunchtime with small breaks, and goes on until dinner and the main celebration.

When I wake up, I do some light sword training—keeping my greatest skill sharp is part of my daily routine. I return home, take a shower to wash off the sweat, and put on my outfit for the occasion.

My suit is a reddish color that matches my hair, paired with a white shirt and a matching red tie. It was tailored specifically for me by a trusted family tailor.

Looking at myself in the mirror, I can still see how my face is changing. The boyish look has slowly faded, and I've gained some sharp features like my father's, without losing the charm inherited from my mother.

A household staff member takes me in the family's carriage. On the way, we pass by many other carriages and a rather large number of pedestrians. I bid him farewell and let him know I'll be returning on my own tonight—I don't want him to waste time waiting for me.

Since I've arrived about half an hour early, I take the chance to walk around the yard where I used to train the first time I came here. Almost all the house staff know me, and no one stops me to ask where I'm going.

A bit away from everyone, I start watching from the upper level how people keep arriving and are guided to their respective tables by the staff.

I feel a presence slowly walking toward me from behind. It's strange, because I know someone is there, but at the same time, I don't feel anyone. It's a sensation I've never had before. I react quickly and turn to see who it is.

A man with neatly cut orange hair stands behind me. He's quite tall—at first glance, I'd say over 190 cm—and his body looks toned even through his suit. He waves at me and approaches slowly.

"Hello, young man. Why are you all alone and so far from everyone?" His Imra is impenetrable—I can't sense anything from him. Just from his clothes and the fact that he's here, I can tell he's someone important, and I don't want to sound rude.

"Hello, sir. I really like this view. I'm just admiring it while I wait for the ceremony to start." I respond with a formal noble greeting, not revealing anything important.

"I see. Are you a friend of the Solar family? You must be, to be alone on this side of the estate." His smile hasn't faded at all, as if we were old acquaintances.

"Our families are quite close." I want to return the questions, but I don't. I can feel he's someone important—my instincts scream it—I don't want to offend him in any way.

"Interesting." He says nothing for a few seconds, then walks to the railing I'm leaning on and joins me, watching the arriving guests. "That's an interesting ability you have." His words leave me in shock. I want to turn and ask something, but I resist the urge.

"Never in my life have I met someone so young with a skill like that." I can feel him watching me through my domain, as if studying me. "I don't sense any space Law within you, yet you have this sensory ability that any explorer would envy." How does he know so much about me just by looking? I want to speak—or flee—but I can't.

"Don't worry, I'm not a bad person." At that moment, I feel freed from a pressure I hadn't even realized was there. My movements return to somewhat normal. "I want to test something." In that instant, his presence vanishes, leaving a void in my domain. I turn immediately—and he's still there.

He disappears again, and I feel that same void to my left. I try to look—and he disappears again. He keeps doing it, and with each disappearance it becomes harder to pinpoint his position. I have to focus on tiny fluctuations in my domain until it becomes almost impossible to detect him.

"Thank you. I believe this encounter has been fruitful for both of us. We'll meet formally soon." As he finishes speaking, he vanishes, and I begin scanning everywhere. I no longer feel anything strange in my domain, and I can't see him anywhere.

"What was that? Who is he?" Only questions come to mind—so many questions without answers. According to his words, I'll meet him again.

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