Notes: Keep in mind that dark future Rudeus has been teaching Sylphiette magic since she was three years old. Also from four to five years old Rudeus was teaching her how to properly use her magic against the bullies, how to dodge mud balls and help improve her accuracy when shooting long distance attack magic spells.
Furthermore, Sylphiette been learning basic reading, writing, math, and science since she was four to five years old too. Lastly she's master her basic education at the age of six years old.
Rudeus POV
Year K412—Afternoon, Buena Village~
A couple of days have passed, after I taught Somal and his friends a painful lesson about harming my sweet innocent Goddess of Love.
Whenever I'm around, with Sylphy. They run for their lives, like a bunch of bitchass cowards.
Still; the thought of Sylphy running into those bullies when I'm not around makes my heart ache. To them, I'm like a wolf in sheep's clothing.
That means they'll probably attack her when I'm not watching. They'll definitely do it, like a predator hunting down their helpless fawn.
I wish Sylphie could handle them herself, but…As usual, she's timid and panics easily when she's overwhelmed by a large number of bullies.
Although she made some good progress, her aim has improved and she dodged all of my water ball spells too.
Also told her what specific spell she should use against those bullies when they attack. For example, I asked her to use long-range spells like using melding magic to shoot mud balls, Water Ball, Wind Blast spell, and recommended that she use the spell Burning Place if they attempt to physically hit or dog pile her.
While I was training her outside of the house, it started to rain.
"It's raining!"
"Let's go inside."
"...Okay."
On rainy days I craft figurines. It's a mandatory schedule for me since I intend to sell a lot of figurines in the city of Roa. So I can earn the extra money to buy materials for my automaton.
I already finished crafting uncolored figurines of Roxy, Sylphy, Zenith, Lilia, Laws, Rose, Paul, and Paul's horse Caravaggio, my personally owned horse Matsukaze, Dillo my pet armadillo, a medieval ship, a castle, dragons, monsters and other animals too. But right now I need to finish making Sylvaril, Perugius, and his eleven summon spirits. Although I can't say how long that will take.
With the sound of rain echoing in the house, I focused solely on craving my figurine of Perugius.
I was lost in thought, when I heard a voice from beside me. At some point, Sylphy started peeking at what I was doing.
"Hey, Rudeus, can you teach me how to make figurines too?" Sylphy asked suddenly.
Mmm, I can definitely teach her how to make figurines too. She already learned silent spell-casting and the advanced rank combat spells. Although I'm a little worried that she might get bored or struggle with crafting figurines.
"Sure, I would be happy to teach you. Just remember that making these figurines is harder than it looks and you might struggle and fail a few times."
"Okay, I'm ready Rudy."
For the next few days, I started teaching Sylphy how to make figurines using Earth Magic. She easily conjured chumps of clay with no problems whatsoever.
Afterwards, Sylphy conjured a baseball-sized clump of earth above her hand and then she focused as hard as she could at it. Outstretching her arms and hands until the ball of earth slowly began to change form until a body, arms, and legs formed from it.
The clump of earth in no way looked like a realistic person. It was more like a clay stickman figure that a child had tried to shape by hand. But it was easy to see Sylphy was quite proud of her first attempt. As her face beamed like a flower.
"I did Rudy!" She shouted joyfully. "I made my first figurine."
"Great job Sylphy, I knew you could do it," I responded with a proud facial expression.
"I know! Now I just need to keep practicing until I can make them look like yours." Sylphy said with a bright smile on her face.
"Crafting the figurines precisely so they look like people is the hard part," I said. "But at this rate, you'll get there in no time."
With that in mind, I spent the next few days engrossed in teaching Sylphy how to handcraft figurines using earth magic. She started struggling at first creating a figurine of a person accurately.
So I recommended she should create a figurine of an animal instead. She was pretty good at making figurines of horses, rabbits, dogs, and cats. Eventually, we moved on to creating a figurine of a person, particularly someone she recognizes easily, her mother Mrs.Rose.
In a short period of time, she perfectly crafted a colorless figurine of Mrs.Rose. Then I assisted her in crafting a figurine of Mr.Laws, Master Roxy, Zenith, and Paul too.
A few days later…
We went to our usual meeting spot, the large tree on the hill again. I started training Sylphy once again. Mostly target practice with child and teen-sized stone statues and learning how to dodge from thrown mud balls.
"Yes! I did it, Rudy! I did it!"
Sylphiette's voice rang brightly across the sunlit grass fields on the hill with a large tree top within Buena Village. As she conjured the spell Icicle Break; she launched a barrage of ice bolts at the targets with perfect precision.
"Look, look! I hit the statues without even missing once!"
I grinned. "Ohhh! That's amazing, Sylphy! I think you're officially ready to handle those naughty bullies on your own now."
Sylphy's face flushed, while I was patting her head and praising her.
"🥰Ehehe~." She giggled with a lovely smile on her face and continued. "Thanks Rudy I couldn't have done without you."
"So Rudy, what special training will we do next?"
"Hmm…lemme think."
Come to think of it, when Sylphy was a child she believed anything I told her…I can't help but worry a bit. She's so trusting, following my instructions without any suspicion.
She's so serious and obedient…I kinda wanna see how far that goes. So how about I try pulling a little prank on her?
I leaned closer to Sylphy and responded. "Hey, Sylphy, I have a favor to ask you…"
She blinked, a little startled. "Eh? U-Um, Rudy… is this also necessary for practicing magic?"
"Of course!" I said, flashing a confident smile and my right thumb up. "It's a very important part of becoming a great mage, so don't be too shy!"
(This was obviously a lie.)
Sylphy nodded, putting her magic wand inside her white hoodie pocket, and responded. "I see…then I'll do my best!"
Afterwards, she took a deep breath, then struck a sparkly pose and shouted with all the courage in her heart. The kind you'd see in one of those magical-girl anime shows from my old world…I remember my older sister used to watch those shows on Saturday when she called dibs on the TV remote.
"Magical☆Sylphy! I–I am the Glittering Princess of Light!"
The way she said it—earnest, trembling, a little embarrassed and utterly sincere—hit me like a lightning bolt…for a second, I forgot to breathe. My face went red all on its own.
(Holy shit…she's so fucking cute🥰. Damnit if this was an anime or manga I would have a nosebleed right now.)
Sylphy lowered her hands, still blushing. "How was that Rudy...? Did I do it alright?"
"E…UH…YEA!" I answered and gave her a thumbs up👍.
Wooooow! That was close! I almost died from the sheer beauty of it all!"
She tilted her head. "Eh?"
And Sylphy still isn't doubting what I say…Well, I guess the responsible thing to do is. It is to tell her the truth, so she can gain some common sense in the future.
I sighed and scratched the back of my head. "Uhh, Sylphy…I made that stuff up. That pose wasn't really for magic training. I was just teasing you a little."
Her eyes widened. "You…were teasing me?"
"Yeah." I gave a weak smile. "Sorry about that. I didn't think you'd actually take it so seriously."
She went quiet for a moment, looking down with her cheeks blushing bright red. And the tips of her long pointy ears turned pink. "I…I see."
The silence stretched. I braced for her to be angry at me—but instead, she puffed up her cheeks, then glanced up with that small, gentle glare only she could manage.
"Sylphy?"
She stayed silent and sat down under the tree, turning her face away from me…I'm beginning to think this was a bad idea😅.
"Please don't be angry at me Sylphy…It was just a little prank—Uhh how about this, you can punish me! You can tell me to do anything embarrassing too." I said while panicking.
Suddenly, when I said that it caught her full attention. Then she peeked over her shoulder, eyes still narrowed but with a faint sparkle.
"Anything?"
"Anything," I confessed with a brave look on my face. Promising to do anything she says. So I can earn forgiveness from my Goddess of Love.
She thought for a moment, then smiled softly. "Then, as payback…you have to do it too."
"Huh?!"
"The pose," she said. "But say something different."
"Really!?" Well, that's not so bad.
"You said it was training, right?" she said, crossing her arms with a tiny huff. "So it's your turn now."
"Very well." I sighed, took a stance in front of her and raised my arm toward the sky, and did an anime magic boy pose. While summer breeze rustled the grass, carrying Sylphy's quiet giggle.
"I am the Shining Mage of Justice☆! Evil tremble before my magical might!"
Sylphy blinked once, twice…Then her face lit up instantly and she burst into laughter.
"Ahaha! Rudy, you really did it too!" She laughed.
"Yeah, yeah," I muttered, silently embarrassed while I was scratching the back of my head. "So; are we even, now?"
Then she gave me a radiant smile that always made my heart flutter with butterflies.
"Hehehe yeah, we're even." She answered, while giggling and then gave me a compassionate hug.
The two of us stood there hugging one another in the afternoon sunlight and eventually continued our magic training until sunset and we returned to our individual homes.
The day after I told Sylphy to meet me at our usual meeting place, as always. But then I suddenly heard a familiar voice in the distance.
"Get out of here, demon!"
"Yeah, this is our spot first!"
I heard their voices again. Looking over, I saw the usual troublemaking trio. Along with seven other children and teens in the group surrounding Sylphy.
"Hey, that demon lover isn't here today right?"
"Of course not you idiot, he would've shown his scary face by now."
"B-b-but what if he doesn't show up and attacks us with his crazy magic spells again!?"
"Easy, we just run away as our lives depend upon it. He'll be too focused on healing that demon once we're through with him."
"You heard that demon, you're powerless without him, so don't get cocky!"
"Prepare to be slayed by the protectors of Buena Village, you foul demon."
"Consider this payback for hogging all the attention and glory in the village."
"Yeah, we don't need demons like you showing off in front of the adults."
Their malicious words towards Sylphy were truly despicable.
After that Sylphy took a deep breath and sighed. Then she responded to all of them while glaring fiercely. "Lay a hand on me and you'll live to regret it." She provoked those guys without a shred of fear and bravely pointed her wand at them to gather her magic for an attack.
"Are you talking shit to us, you demon bastard?"
"Show no mercy guys, that demon's gonna scream like a bitch when we are done."
"I don't care if that demon has magic, he'll be overwhelmed by all of us!"
"Yeah, your magic powers are nothing against us. They're not crazy strong like that knight's kid."
"We're gonna get you!"
The bullies charged Sylphie, anger boiling in their voices.
I didn't take action right away…This is Sylphy's fight. I'll only step in if she can't handle it.
They branded their wooden stick and ran towards her while shouting boldly. But the moment they got closer, a force of flames that covered her body sent all of them flying in front of her. Which scorched their clothes in the process.
Next, Sylphy gathered magic in her wand and released a weaker version of the wind magic spell Sonic Blast where she fired a powerful, high-frequency gale force that ripped their clothes apart until they were stripped down naked and thrusted backward; flying a couple of feet away from her.
Having experienced my magic multiple times and learned their lesson, the bullies grabbed their scattered burned clothes off the grass and fled like cowards.
Sylphy stood there, staring in disbelief at the scene. She looked quite surprised at what she did.
Afterwards I walked up to her and hugged her in a loving embrace.
"You did it Sylphy."
Sylphy flinched for a moment. But when she realized it was me hugging her, she smiled happily with blushing red cheeks.
"You were incredible out there, Sylphy. I knew you could do it." I said, praising my Goddess of Love for facing her fear and defeating those bullies like a badass.
"Thank you, Rudy. It's all thanks to your training."
Seeing that, I knew she would be alright now going forward. I don't think she'll be afraid of the bullies anymore, but even if they harassed her when I'm not around her, I believe she's able to fend them off by herself.
I wasn't sure what had changed since yesterday. Maybe all that magic training and teaching how to strategize her magic spells in the heat of battle paid off I guess.
In any case, she had definitely taken a step forward from being a victim of bullying.
"But, you shouldn't cast magic spells on innocent people, okay? You might hurt someone badly."
"Yes, I understand, Rudy."
Yup, she's gonna be perfectly fine on her own…As I pondered that, I realized the bullies probably learned something from today as well.
They know Sylphy has the courage and willpower to fight back without panicking, and that this method could be directed at them if they threaten her again.
If they still tried to mess with her knowing that, it would be their own dumbass fault.
"Alright, shall we get back to our magic training today?"
"Yeah!"
Seeing Sylphie's beautiful smile across her face. Caused me to smile too.
Year K413—Buena Village, Rudeus and Sylphy's hilltop base~
I'm six years old now. Nothing incredible happened this year, if I'm being completely honest. Every morning, I worked on my sword training. In the afternoon, if I had extra time to spare, I'd help Mother and Auntie Lilia in the garden, or practice my magic under the tree on top of the hill with Sylphy as usual.
I also forgot to mention that when Sylphy was five years old she decided to assist me with the fireworks show during the harvest festival that happened every year on the last day of summer.
Recently, during the afternoon, Sylphy and I would help the villagers by providing water to their crops and wheat fields or using the spell Quagmire to remove heavy boulders and tree stumps. We were doing all sorts of tasks ever since Master Roxy left Buena Village.
Now why am I doing this you may ask? Because I need the extra money to purchase a ride on the stagecoach to the city of Roa and the return trip back home. There's a slight possibility I might be going back and forth when I'm selling my figurines.
Anyways, under the tree atop the hill, Sylphy came by, as she usually did. "Sorry," she said. "I hope I didn't keep you waiting."
"Not at all," I replied. "I just got here myself." That's how we'd start things off; just like in the previous timeline, sure it's a little boring sometimes😅, but at least I get to spend time with the younger version of Sylphy every day.
Also ever since Sylphy fought back and defeated Somal and the older children. They finally stopped bothering us.
Occasionally, we'd catch sight of them playing off in the distance, or we'd see them walking by one moment and then instantly run away in sheer terror when they saw us.
Thus, we'd claimed victory over the tree on top of the hill and it became our territory. Regardless, that's enough about those dirtbags and more about my precious Goddess of Love.
Most children in the village would be playing hide-and-seek, tag, or demons Vs humans. However, Sylphy and I were different; we prefer practicing our magic and handcrafting figurines using earth magic.
In the beginning, when Sylphy was three years she was only able to cast three or four entry-level spells before getting short of breath, but after she became four, five, and six years old. Her mana reserve has increased quite dramatically.
(Q/A: Rudeus/Oldeus started teaching Sylphiette magic when she was three years old. That means she'd have a slightly larger mana pool compared to her canon counterpart.)
Despite her early struggles, Sylphy never complained as she went through her magic training with Roxy and me. Probably because she was fascinated by magic at an early age and wanted to face her fears no matter what.
Still; Sylphy sure looks adorable with her wand. In one hand and her magic textbook in the other.
(Master Roxy gave Sylphy a magic textbook on her fifth birthday and during my fifth birthday, she gave Sylphy her very own wand.)
Suddenly I felt a few drops of rain.
"Hm?" I looked up and saw that, at some point, the sky was covered with dark storm clouds. A moment later, the rain started pelting down off and on. Usually, I watched the skies to make sure we'd be able to get home before it started raining, but today I'd been distracted by Sylphy's magic spells.
"Oh, wow. It's raining pretty badly huh," I said.
"Hey Rudy, couldn't you make the rain stop?" Sylphy said with a confused look on her face.
"Don't you remember what Master Roxy told us. She said magic that changes the weather must not be used on a whim. Besides, the villagers need that rainwater for their crops. We should only mess with the weather if it's causing problems like a drought or flooding."
After I explained my reasons why we can't mess with the weather. We ran to the Greyrat household. Since Sylphy's house is too far away.
"I'm home!" I called out.
"Uh, h-hello, Ms.Lilia," Sylphy added.
Lilia was standing just inside, waiting with a large cloth in hand. "Welcome back, young Master Rudeus, and Sylphiette," she said. "I've already drawn some warm water for you. Please wash up and dry off on the second floor so that you don't catch a cold. The lord and lady of the house will be home soon, so I'll go get ready to tend to them. Will you be all right on your own?"
"Yes, I'll be fine," I said. Lilia must have seen the downpour and expected I'd come home soaking wet. I didn't have to explain anything; she took one look at Sylphy's face, headed back into the closet, and came back with another large white towel and a matching colored washcloth for her.
The two of us took off our footwear, then dried off our heads and our bare feet before heading upstairs. Entering my bedroom, I saw a wooden washtub filled with warm water had been set out.
In this world, we didn't have showers, or bathtubs even, so this was how we cleaned up. According to Roxy, there were hot springs where people could bathe. She also mentioned that mostly nobles, royalty, and rich merchants were able to afford actual bathtubs. But as someone who wasn't fond of bathing in the first place, this method was fine by me.
"You go take a bath in there and dry off okay. I'll have Auntie Lilia bring you a set of dry clothes."
"What about you?" She asked.
"I'll use the bath in the study room over there," I replied.
"Oh. Okay."
I walked into the study room and used earth magic to create a circular marble makeshift bath and then used melding magic to fill it with warm water. After I bathed myself head-to-toe, I dried myself off with the towel and changed into my dry clothes. I used gravity magic to lift the marble bath and dump the water out the window; then I used earth magic to turn the bath back into dust and wind magic to blow it out the window.
Meanwhile, Lilia gave Sylphy a pair of my clothes to wear for the meantime and then we sat down and ate dinner together with my family.
When we finished eating, Paul and Zenith invited Sylphy to spend the night in our guest room since it was late, but she seemed kind of shy about staying the night without asking her parents' permission, so I offered to walk her home myself. I didn't want to worry her parents, after all.
While we were walking down the dirt trail at sunset, holding hands. Sylphy spoke in a timid response while her face and ears were blushing crimson red, so suddenly.
"Uh-mm, Rudy?"
"Yes Sylphy what is it?"
"I-I w-wouldn't have minded taking a bath with you, a moment ago." Sylphy said timidly, as her cheeks turned pink and she quickly averted her gaze away from me.
I was completely astounded when she said that. "Seriously Sylphy!? I thought you would feel nervous and embarrassed to be bathing with me naked."
"W-well maybe a l-little bit😅, but we've been friends since we were three years old and I know you're a good person. So it wouldn't bothered me that much." Sylphy replied honestly, with a somewhat worried facial expression.
"Ahh, I see," I added.
"Hey, maybe we could ask your parents and my parents if we can have a sleepover at my house and you could take a bath with me there if you want." Sylphy suggested.
"Yeah, that sounds nice, Sylphy. I'll definitely ask my mom and dad if that's okay with them."
After walking Sylphy home she gave me a goodbye kiss on the cheek as always. Then Laws and Rose invited me to stay the night as well. They seemed worried to have me walk home by myself when it's so dark out.
"Thank you, I appreciate the offer, but I really should head home. Mother and Father would worry if I didn't come back."
Laws tried convincing me that Paul wouldn't mind, which to be honest I thought so as well, but I insisted.
"I may be young, but I know the way back home and plus I am a Water Saint magician. I'm strong enough to protect myself and I can just use fire magic to see in the dark."
Laws seemed a little worried, but in the end my speech convinced him. By the time I got back home, Zenith, Paul and Lilia gave me a warm welcome and eventually I went straight to bed.