Watching the ball of wind she'd flung from her own palm shoot forward, a spark of delight lit up Ais's eyes.
But then, the wind ball simply scattered on the breeze, dissipating before it could even reach the Minotaur, vanishing without a trace.
Seeing this, Ais's cheeks puffed out involuntarily. Her clear, large eyes fixed intently on Alice, as if demanding to know why things had turned out this way.
Alice couldn't help but chuckle softly at the sight. "That was actually pretty good, you know? It's only your first try. Just being able to successfully release an attack is already great, and besides, Ais, you're not a mage."
"Using the wind to enhance your basic attributes would be much better than directly attacking with it. There's really no need to use the wind for pure offense."
Hearing Alice's words, Ais came to a realization. Her own talent for magic was just as poor as Alice's was for close-quarters combat. Wanting to rival Alice in magic was probably aiming too high.
Even though she'd only spent a short time with Alice, Ais had a very clear understanding of Alice's prodigious talent for magic. Abandoning what she was good at to chase after what she wasn't… it was completely unnecessary.
But still…
"So, what should I do?" Ais felt lost now.
If her innate talent for magic didn't support converting her wind into attacks, then what was she supposed to do? What was the point of Alice's teaching?
If, as Alice said, it was about strengthening her foundation, but her magic was only at this level of effect now, then was there any real need to train it?
Seeing the faint confusion in Ais's eyes, Alice smiled gently. Her pure gaze seemed to see straight through what Ais was thinking.
"Are you thinking that since magic can already do this, there's no point in training it further?" Alice asked, her face still holding a smile.
Ais remained silent.
Seeing this, Alice tightened her grip on the longsword in her hand.
"To be honest, while I have an interest in swordsmanship, I don't plan on becoming a master swordsman or anything like that. I just want to understand the basics."
"I haven't really settled on a specific style for my own fighting method yet, but using what I'm relatively better at is probably the way to go."
"But if I only rely on my dolls and magic, I can't fully utilize all the knowledge I possess. That would be a bit of a shame, don't you think?"
"Shanghai and Hourai have their own consciousness. They can even learn to cook, and they've become better at it than I am."
"If they can master culinary arts, then other skills should be no problem for them, right? Like swordsmanship, martial arts, spell techniques, and so on."
As she spoke of this, a trace of yearning flickered in Alice's eyes. She felt a longing for that place which existed only in her memories.
Ais couldn't understand most of what Alice was saying.
Snapping back to the present, Alice gave Ais a warm smile.
"I'm getting off track. When it comes to swordsmanship, I'm completely ignorant. But since you, Ais, said that swordsmanship is about advancing and then attacking, I'll take your word for it."
"My speed is slow, and my strength is small, but the magical power within me is vast. My greatest skill is my control over magic."
"If I combine my magical control with what you call the fundamentals of swordsmanship, what do you think I could achieve? Care to take a guess?"
Alice looked at Ais with a slightly playful expression.
Truth be told, Alice was in a very good mood today. The exchange and imparting of knowledge always brought her joy, especially when she realized the knowledge she held surpassed that of others by a significant margin.
That feeling, somewhat like being a teacher, made Alice happy. And the fact that the 'student' was her friend made it all the more pleasant.
Friend. What a wonderful word.
Back in Gensokyo, even though she was solitary, she still had that black-and-white magical girl as a friend. So how could she possibly be weaker than her now?
Alice gripped the longsword tightly, magical power circulating within her.
Of course, Ais probably couldn't sense that specific detail. But Ais's intuition as a swordswoman suddenly tingled, telling her that something about Alice had changed.
Her stance was still worse than a beginner's. Yet now, it carried a faint sense of danger.
Ais couldn't help but widen her eyes, staring intently at Alice, trying to pinpoint the change she felt.
"Magic is truly miraculous. It can transform into various elements."
"At the same time, pure magical energy can also be used to enhance one's own body."
Alice's eyelids lowered slightly. She tightened her grip on the mass-produced longsword, fell into an attacking stance, and looked toward the distant Minotaur that Ais had targeted earlier.
"My speed is slow, but by simulating wind magic and releasing it from the soles of my feet, I can achieve acceleration."
"Magic Release. Magic Burst."
Alice murmured softly.
Simultaneously, a faint golden glow of magic materialized at her feet and behind her back. The magical power acted like points of thrust, appearing precisely there.
Under the influence of Alice's magic, the disturbance in the air flow astonished Ais.
Alice didn't make any grand movement. She simply gave a small leap. The magic gathered behind her burst forth like a gale, propelling her forward with tremendous speed.
It was similar to her own short-distance flight.
No—the propulsion from Alice's magic was even faster than her wind.
Alice's action was minimal, but the force of the magical burst was immense.
The Minotaur in the distance sensed the danger as Alice shot toward it and let out an instinctive roar. Spotting Alice, the monster lifted a large rock nearby, ready to hurl it at her.
Seeing the Minotaur prepare its attack, Alice showed not a trace of panic.
"My strength is small, just enough to hold a weapon. And this blade isn't particularly sharp either. But cutting through your defense will still be simple."
"Magic Imbue. Wind Attribute Shift."
A pale golden magic energy overflowed along the sword's blade, then the glow vanished.
This time, however, Ais saw it clearly: a faint green layer coated the edge of the sword in Alice's hand. The power of the wind was vibrating intensely along the sharp edge.
"Magic Release. Eject."
A jet of air erupted from the back of Alice's blade as magic burst forth once more, a flash of light gone in an instant.
The Minotaur was cleanly bisected by Alice's mass-produced longsword.
It dissolved into black smoke and vanished.
All that remained was a small Magic Stone.
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