Earl's POV

"Hey, you. Give me a good time, won't you?" The girl says.

The expression on her face... I am liking her more and more.

"Let's enjoy this together then, Princess."

She lowers her centre of gravity for a more battle-ready posture. Her creamy white thigh is more visible in this position, how lovely.

My heart is beating fast. This will be a valuable experience. Most of my battle experiences are from mom and random monsters after all.

My goal is to have a close win. It would be a hard task to achieve if my mind is muddled.

I close my eyes and take a deep breath to calm my nerves as I wait for mom to give the signal.

"Both of you are ready?" Mom asks.

We both nod.

"Go!"

I activate my first spell right away. Shadow Sense!

In a dimly lit environment like this, it's perfect. It's a spell that allows me to be more in tune with the darkness.

There's also no visible change when this spell is activated.historical

"You," Alea spoke in her battle-ready stance with a clearly dissatisfied face. It seems like she expected me to make the first move.

The next moment, she appears by my side with her fists clenched.

"You should've prepared more. The first tag is mine!"

A green whirlwind gathers around her little fist. It is a clear sign of Spirit Magic.

Spirit Magic is incredibly versatile in that it allows the user to be both long-ranged and short-ranged.

The hardest part about it is to get the spirits to like you.

Wind Spirit Magic eh? I'll return the favour.

Wind Wall.

Her fist is blocked by my Wind Wall.

This reaction is only possible because of my Shadow Sense which allows me a total grasp of the battlefield.

"Chantless!?" Alea leaks out a surprised voice.

Everyone always seems to be surprised by that. The teachings of mother triumphs again, I suppose.

"Why are you so surprised, Princess? You can do the same with your Spirit Magic." I told her innocently.

"Humph!" She somersaults back.

Back to being antisocial again, I see. Her overall strength seems to be a level lower than mine so I'll adjust my power to that level.

Water Ball!

Several Water Balls are thrown at her to which she dodged all easily.

I already expected this from the speed she showed previously but this is all according to my plan of giving me a close victory.

It would be hard to get close to her if I was too strong compared to her after all.

By making my perceived strength close to hers, she would see me as an approachable goal. A rival, you could say.

And if I play this right, I could have her challenge me repeatedly. I'll use that chance to bond with her. I can already tell that she is going to become a gorgeous beauty like her mother. The thoughts of having the 2 royalties for myself...

"Spirit Arrow!"

Whoops!

Her arrow barely grazes my cheek and breaks me out of my thoughts. Where did she get that bow from?

The young elf girl stands with a glowing green bow in her hand.

"As I said, the first tag is mine. 2 more to go," Alea said smugly. Her bright green eyes gaze into mine.

My eyes narrow down to her bow. I see. It's made of spirits. She looks more cute than intimidating, fufu.

"Whirlwind!"

"Spirit Arrow!"

I start yelling out random spell names to make it look like we're even.

Minutes later.

"Huff huff." My breaths have become heavy. "It seems like the victory is mine, Princess. This counts as the third tag."

I smile dazzlingly at the girl I've trapped inside a Water Cage.

The score was 3-2. I managed to "narrowly" trap her at the last moment before she could get her third tag on me.

She is struggling her hardest. Her white dress is clinging tightly to her tight body and I am trying my best to not look.

Fun times with mom, Aria, and Lily have made me too perverted.

"A magnificent battle!" Saryll claps while she approaches. She's the one that's magnificent. A faint smile is worn on her perfect face.

Her husband walks behind her. He doesn't look too pleased by what's happening. I can't blame him when I'm holding his daughter in my ball like this, though.

I release my spell and let Alea drop to the floor. There was not a single wound on her body, obviously. How could I harm someone I have my eyes on?

"Master!"

Lily and Aria come running. They are always so cute together, fufu.

"It's all because of your good luck charm." I tease Aria.

"Mou." She pouts and looks the other way. "Master, silly."

"What good luck charm?" Lily asks curiously.

Ah, my back was turned to them so she couldn't see anything.

"Secret!" Aria answers her and drags her away.

Here comes the next part of my plans.

Shadow Influence!

I lightly take grasps of Saryll's thoughts.

"You are incredibly strong and talented for your age, Earl," Saryll spoke softly.

"It's because I've only been mentored by my mother, Your Majesty."

Keyword, only.

"Only the Archmage?" Saryll thought briefly. "I suppose that only makes sense."

She then turns her attention to mom.

"What do you think, Archmage?"

"She has potential. I can tell why you want me to mentor her. She's too reliant on her Spirit Magic, isn't she?"

"Right. She would become more well-rounded if she could use non-Spirit Magic. Hmm. What about Earl? He could learn some Spirit Magic to become more well-rounded too."

"That's part of the reason why we're here. I am unable to teach him Spirit Magic because I've never learned it. We'll be looking for a teacher for him later."

As expected of my mother, she says the most perfect lines. I suppress my smile at this bait she had just thrown out.

"No need to look. If you're fine with it, I would love to take an immense talent like this under my wings."

Jackpot.