The library in the Vail mansion was silent, except for the sound of the mounted clock ticking and the noises coming from Elianna's pencil as she scribbled words on her paper. She finished her answer on the third page before flipping it over, revealing a new page full of questions on the packet she was working on.

Elianna sighed, placed her elbow on the table, and propped her head onto her hand. Elianna's eyes flicked over to Justine, who was sitting nonchalantly across from her at the table, reading the book in her hand. Justine's eyes moved away from the book, meeting Elianna's gaze, and she smiled.

"Hurry up, Elianna." Justine looked at the clock. "You only have ten more minutes to complete your test."

Elianna grumbled, hating tests, "I'm almost done. I'm on the final page."

Justine nodded and went back to reading, "Don't rush. Read the questions thoroughly."

Elianna stretched her arms out, hating sitting still. She looked back at the reading and writing test before her and read the first question on the page. It was a question asking her to rewrite the sentence correctly. Going over the question in her head, she wrote out the answer before moving on to the next question.

The questions were simple, thanks to the studying her mom helped her out with. She eventually reached the final question, which was a reading question. She read over the paragraph and read the prompt, which asked her to place punctuation throughout the paragraph properly. Elianna sighed, just wanting to get the test over with. She began to re-read the paragraph, placing punctuations as she went. Once she was complete, she closed the packet and set the pencil down.

Elianna sat straight, looking at her teacher, "I've completed the test."

Justine's eyes flicked up. She saw Elianna sitting properly, as she had been taught. She looked at the test, which was neatly closed, with the pencil lying beside it.

Justine humorously smiled and closed her book, looking back at Elianna. "While I know you are my only student, you still need to write your name to get credit."

Elianna's brows furrowed in confusion before she looked at her test. Her eyes widened, and she felt like an idiot, seeing that the name section was blank. She quickly picked up her pencil, jotting down her name, before placing the pencil to the side again.

Elianna reviewed the first page of the test before looking at Justine again. "Now, I've completed the test."

Justine chuckled before reaching her hand out. Elianna slid the test over to her teacher, who took it and placed it before her. Justine took a booklet out of her bag that was situated in the chair beside her, which Elianna recognized as the answer key, containing the correct answers to the test. Justine placed the book down and opened it to the page with the bookmark.

Taking out a red pencil from her bag, Justine began to look over Elianna's test, "Let's see here."

Elianna sat there anxiously, watching Justine as she read over her answers. Her eyes flicked to the clock, watching the seconds tick by, before looking back at Justine. She began to twiddle her thumbs, watching as Justine turned the first page over without marking a single one of Elianna's answers on the first page.

Beginning to feel restless, Elianna's eyes darted between Justine and the clock, watching as she turned over the second page. Elianna wasn't nervous about knowing if she passed the test or not. She had the confidence to know she did well. She was eager for Justine to finish grading the test because this was the last assignment she had to complete for the day.

Justine paused, her eyes flicked up and she smiled, seeing Elianna fidgeting in her chair, "Patience is a virtue, young lady."

Elianna's eyes flicked back to Justine, and she stopped moving, sighed, and nodded. Elianna knew the saying well, as she had heard it in every other tutoring session from her teacher. "Yes, Teacher."

Justine looked back at the test and continued her grading, "I'll be finished soon, don't worry."

Elianna nodded and remained still, watching Justine as she finished grading the third page of the test. Now, time seemed to slow down as Elianna watched Justine look over the last page of the test. She swore Justine was now purposefully going slower, driving Elianna insane.

Straightening in her seat, Elianna's eyes were locked on her test as Justine reached the final question. Her eyes were darting between Justine's pencil and her face, waiting for her to finish. At long last, Justine sat up and flipped the packet over.

"Very good, Elianna," Justine said contently, writing out a hundred percent on the top of the test. "A perfect score." Justine placed the pencil down and looked up. Her smile widened, seeing Elianna sitting there stiffly, with her eyes darting between her and the door. Justine chuckled, "Okay. You are dismissed from your lessons for the day."

Elianna cheered as she abruptly stood up, almost knocking the chair over. She ran around the table, giving Justine a hug, "Thank you, Teacher!"

Justine smiled happily and returned the hug, "Have fun, and I will see you next time."

"Okay!" Elianna chirped as they broke the hug. She smiled and waved at Justine as she ran out of the library, "Bye, Teacher!"

Elianna dashed through the large hallways before entering the grand entryway.

"Done with your lessons?"

Elianna froze and looked toward the voice, seeing Augustus standing beside two young maids, one human with brown hair and one elf with blonde, who were dusting the tables beside the front door. The maids turned around, their eyes falling on Elianna, and bowed.

"Greetings, Lady Elianna," The maids said in tandem.

Elianna smiled at the maids, "Hello, you may stand." She looked at Augustus, "Yeah! I'm going to go get changed to practice now!"

Augustus smiled and nodded, "Very good, My Lady. I assume you will be in the gym, then?"

Elianna nodded, "Yeah!"

"Very good. Have a good practice session, My Lady."

"Thank you!" Elianna said happily as she ran up the right staircase.

Reaching the second floor, Elianna dashed to her right, moving swiftly through the halls before she reached her room. She entered her room, closed the door behind her, and pulled her training apparel, which consisted of a black shirt and blue shorts, out of her dresser drawer. She quickly got changed, discarding the dress and sandals she was wearing and replacing her clothes with training apparel and running shoes.

Once changed, Elianna left her room and made her way back downstairs, where she noticed Augustus and the maids no longer by the doors. Elianna dashed out of the grand entryway, making her way through the elegant mansion, and approached a set of brown wooden double doors.

Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

Slowing her pace, Elianna opened the double doors and walked inside, entering the extravagantly large gym. Light brown wooden flooring covered the gym's ground, which matched nicely with its cream-colored painted walls. Various gym equipment was staged alongside the walls, giving her no shortage of options for what to use.

However, Elianna wasn't focused on the gym equipment but was looking at the large rectangular sparring area in the center. Elianna approached the sparring area, passing the pedestal that was used to control the repair and barrier spells for the sparring area.

Moving to the center of the sparring area, Elianna did her quick stretches, ensuring her body was nice and loose, before taking her wooden sword out. She took a deep breath, placing her feet at eleven and five o'clock, just like her father taught her. Grasping the wooden hilt, she held her sword up, taking her attack stance.

Slowly, Elianna began to move her arms and feet in tandem, practicing the fundamental movement skills her father showed her. Just like he said, she was starting slow, getting her body used to the movement. It was different, Elianna realized, using a sword versus using only her fists. The sword acted as an extension of herself, extending her reach.

On the fourth repetition of the movement skills, Elianna began to move faster. The polished, hard wooden floor beneath her screeched as her shoes glided across it. Her movements were swift, moving faster and faster with each repetition. Her father told her slow is smooth, and smooth is fast. The more her body got used to the movement, the quicker and more fluidly she could move.

As Elianna completed one more iteration before she stopped and thrust her sword out in the basic attack she was taught. She immediately brought her sword back, holding it up horizontally in a block. She thrust her sword out again before blocking, repeating this about a dozen times before re-starting her movement drill.

This was what her father showed her a few days ago and what she had been practicing ever since. He told her to master the basics first, and then they would move on to more advanced work. Elianna was beginning to sweat despite the chilled air from the spell-cooled room. With her breathing increasing, Elianna thrust one more time before taking a deep breath, standing straight, and relaxing.

Elianna's head snapped to the gym entrance, hearing clapping. She smiled wide, seeing her mother leaning against the door frame. "Mom!"

Katarina smiled and walked toward her daughter, "Hello, Sweetie."

Elianna stored her sword in her spatial ring and ran toward her mother. Katarina laughed jovially as Elianna crashed into her, and they shared a warm, loving hug.

"Justine told me about the test. Great work."

They broke the hug, and Elianna smiled, "Thanks, Mom."

Katarina's eyes flicked to the sparring area, and she jerked her chin toward it, "Practicing your sword skills?"

Elianna followed her mother's gaze and nodded, "Yeah."

Katarina looked back at her daughter and curiously tilted her head slightly to the right, "Have you thought about what element you want?"

Elianna's smile faded, looked down and sighed, "No."

Choosing an element had weighed on Elianna's mind for the past few days, ever since she got her second star. She would stare at the knights at the garrison, watching as they trained, seeing what elements they used, hoping it would help her decide. However, it didn't, and she was at a loss for which to choose.

Katarina's lips curved slightly as she saw her daughter struggling with her decision. She looked back toward the sparring area and approached it, saying, "Here, follow me, Sweetie."

Elianna looked at her mother inquisitively before she followed her to the sparring area. Katarina walked to the center of the sparring area before fully facing her daughter and sat on the floor cross-legged. Elianna followed her mother's lead and sat on the floor, facing her.

Elianna jestfully smiled, "Are you finally going to tell me what your first element was?"

Katarina chuckled and shook her head, "No. Like your father and I said before, we will not influence your choice. But it doesn't mean I can't help you choose."

Elianna looked at her mother, confused, "How?"

Katarina smiled, "As I assume your father has told you, choosing an element is a big deal. But, there is always one which our bodies lean toward."

"Lean toward?"

Katarina nodded, "In a sense, yes. It all comes down to our fighting style. Elemental magic is different in the sense of how the elements are used. Everyone's fighting style is specific to each person. So, choosing your first element based on your fighting style would be wise."

Elianna looked at her mother, dumbfounded, "I don't understand."

Katarina chuckled and held up her hand, igniting it in fire magic, "Fire is aggressive and destructive. People with a more aggressive fighting style should choose this one." She dispersed the fire, forming water magic around her hand, "Water is tranquil and smooth, but also harsh and unrelenting. People with a more fluid and strong fighting style should choose this element." Dispersing the water, Katarina coated her hand in the wind, "Wind is swift and elegant. People with a more agile fighting style should choose this element." Dispersing the wind, Katarina placed her palm flat on the floor, "Then earth. Earth is steadfast and powerful. People with more of a defensive fighting style should choose this element."

Listening to her mother intently, Elianna looked at her curiously, "So, which fighting style do I have?"

Katarina smiled and shook her head, "You need to figure that out, Sweetie." She gestured to her daughter, "Take out your sword and continue your practice, remembering what I told you. It'll come to you."

Elianna's eyes fell, thinking. A moment later, she looked at her mother determinedly and nodded. She got to her feet, took a few steps away from her mother, and took her wooden sword out. She got back into her attack stance and stood there, focusing.

Taking a deep breath, Elianna began to move her feet and arms slowly, moving her sword around and practicing her fundamentals. As she moved, she focused on her technique and how her body carried itself across the sparring area. She stopped moving, delivering a quick thrust, before going into a defensive pose and continuing her foot and arm work.

She quickly realized her form was far from defensive, pushing earth out of her mind. She began to move quicker, delivering occasional strikes and blocking with her sword. She didn't think her movements were aggressive, leaving her with two options. Elianna's pace quickened, and she moved across the sparring area with ease.

Katarina watched her daughter intently but also with a bright and proud smile. She could see how her daughter moved, attacked, and defended. It was amazing to her how her daughter adapted to her husband's training so quickly, but even more amazing how she had already unlocked her second star. She still remembered the day she came home from work and her daughter told her the news. She barely believed her ears before she saw her daughter's core with her own eyes. Katarina was ecstatic, and that night, they celebrated and had the staff make Elianna her favorite cake.

Katarina's eyes fixed back on her daughter, realizing she had been lost in thought. Her smile widened as she saw Elianna moving quicker than before while attacking and defending with ease. Katarina focused on Elianna's leg work and arms as she thrust and carried her sword. She watched as Elianna performed one more quick sword thrust before she froze, breathing hard and eyes wide. Katarina smirked, knowing her daughter had come to a decision.

"Ready?"

Elianna lowered her sword, looked at her mother, smiled, and nodded, "Ready."

Katarina gestured in front of her, "Sit down, Sweetie." Elianna stored her sword in her spatial ring and sat down before her mother. "Now, close your eyes and focus on the elemental mana you want, then draw that elemental mana to your abdomen. Your own mana will naturally form around and solidify it into an elemental core."

Hearing and understanding her mother's instructions, Elianna closed her eyes and focused. She began to draw in the ambient mana around her and concentrated on the particular one she wanted. Her breathing was rhythmic as she began to direct the elemental mana she wanted to her abdomen.

Directing the elemental mana to her abdomen was easier than Elianna predicted. It was just like channeling mana from her core. She watched behind her eyes as the elemental mana began to pool in her abdomen. She controlled her breathing, focusing on the elemental mana, feeling it build, swirling, and taking a spherical shape.

Elianna didn't know how much time had passed, but she watched as the sphere of elemental mana began to shine brightly. Her abdomen began to feel hot, and she saw and felt a translucent barrier of her pure white mana forming around the sphere. The translucent barrier glowed brighter, looking like a pure white ball of mana, and Elianna winced as it burned hot.

Seeing Elianna wince, Katarina reached out and reassuringly took her daughter's hand. Katarina remembered what it was like when she formed her first elemental core and knew how painful it could be. So, she wanted to let her daughter know that everything would be okay and that she was there for her.

Elianna relaxed slightly, feeling her mother's comforting touch, and continued her focus. Soon, the bright light and burning sensation began to subside. Elianna smiled contently and opened her eyes, seeing a proud expression on her mother's face.

"Congrats, Sweetie," Katarina said. "You did it."

Elianna moved forward, taking her mother into a loving hug, which she returned. "Thanks, Mom."

Katarina chuckled, holding her daughter in a loving embrace, "Of course, Sweetie."

Katarina and Elianna hugged each other tightly. Katarina was proud of her daughter, and Elianna was happy, as inside Elianna's abdomen now sat a sapphire core.