Because Luke said it so seriously—and because it even sounded like it made a little sense—Lux hesitantly picked up the wooden board and started fanning it again, over and over.
"Like this?"
She couldn't help asking.
"Don't ask me. Ask your own heart—when you swing the board, can you feel the wind leaving?"
Luke sat on the long bench, enjoying the steady waves of cool air and speaking with an ever more master-like air.
"I think… I can feel a little."
Lux fanned twice with focus. Vaguely, it was like she could see the wind slipping off the front edge of the board. Her eyes immediately lit up.
So this was the first step of Wind Command swordsmanship?
This was what Luke meant by finding the feeling of Wind Command?
With that thought, Lux fanned even harder. She could even hear the whoosh of wind as it peeled away from the board.
In the distance, plenty of students threw her strange looks—then quickly turned into envy.
Watching Luke sit there perfectly at ease, enjoying Lady Crownguard's personal fanning service, a lot of the boys felt a vicious blend of jealousy and envy.
That was Lady Crownguard—the Royal Academy's shining star, a flower on an untouchable peak.
For many people, she was someone you could only admire from afar, never reach.
And they'd noticed: ever since school started, Lady Crownguard was basically with His Highness all day.
Just thinking about it made them even more jealous.
After a while…
"Um… how long am I supposed to practice this?"
Lux was sweating a lot now, panting as she asked. Her arm was about to give out.
"A little longer. Perseverance is the key to success," Luke said with his eyes closed, savoring the rare relief from the heat.
To avoid drawing attention, he'd even intentionally sat a bit farther away.
But even so, as Lux stared at him from where she stood, suspicion crept into her eyes.
Something's off.
Not just off—extremely off.
Watching Luke sit there with his eyes closed, soaking it in, Lux finally realized what exactly felt wrong.
"Why did you stop?"
Not long after, Luke suddenly noticed the wind had disappeared. He opened his eyes—and saw Lux glaring at him through gritted teeth.
Those sparkling eyes were now filled with the kind of fury that looked like she wanted to swallow him whole on the spot!
"Lady Crownguard… you've worked hard."
After a long silence, Luke decided it was on him to break the awkward tension. He forced out a stiff laugh. "It's so hot out—why don't you sit down and rest a bit?"
Lux didn't answer.
She only silently drew the sword at her waist.
At that moment, Luke's mind contained only one word.
Run!
Very soon, the students saw it: Lady Crownguard, sword in hand, chasing the prince all around the training field.
That sprint cooked Luke alive.
In the end, it was only after he signed a "peace treaty"—agreeing to fan Lady Crownguard for free for half an hour—that the incident finally calmed down.
Truthfully, aside from a tiny bit of personal "adjustment" on his part, most of the steps Luke taught Lux weren't actually wrong.
Wind-Command swordsmanship put the most important part right in the name: Wind Command.
If you wanted to learn it, the first step was to learn how to sense the intent of wind.
The greater your talent, the stronger the feedback you could feel from that wind-intent—meaning you could wield Wind-Command swordsmanship more effectively, and the road ahead would be far longer.
But if you could only sense a little wind-intent, then even if you learned Wind-Command swordsmanship, you'd never reach the level of a top-tier swordsman.
And as for those who couldn't sense wind-intent at all—people with no talent whatsoever—then even if they forced themselves to learn Wind-Command techniques, it would only ever be good for basic self-defense.
Luke had no idea what Lux's talent was like.
But after he gave her a bit of experience and guidance, she started making a huge fuss about how she could "sense wind-intent."
To Luke, that just sounded like pure playacting.
His own wind-intent had been handed to him by the system. He hadn't even needed to "sense" anything—he'd just had it.
Even so, he still understood that even for someone with high talent, sensing wind-intent wasn't something that happened just because you said so.
And for a natural-born little airhead like her, whether she could even grasp what "wind-intent" meant in the first place was already questionable.
But Luke wasn't exactly cut out to be a teacher. Since Lux insisted she'd sensed it, he simply told her to hold on to that feeling and keep sensing it.
By the time all that was done, it was already the end of the school day.
When the bell rang, Luke felt like his soul was released—free and soaring, just like that cheerful sound.
It was exactly like back when he'd gone to school in his old life, counting down the days on his fingers:
Yesterday was Monday, today is Tuesday, tomorrow is Wednesday. Two more days and it's the weekend—yes!
With that kind of high-powered self-hypnosis, school didn't seem quite so boring after all.
Sitting in the carriage on the way home, Luke lifted the curtain on his right side and looked out.
Under the setting sun, all kinds of people walked by. Roadside stalls lined the street; an older woman carried a bag full of vegetables as she left, and the vendor smiled and waved her off.
Children kicked around a makeshift leather ball, laughing and playing.
An itinerant bard sat on a small chair by the street, gently plucking a stringed instrument. A small crowd surrounded him, offering applause.
Everything felt vibrant—brimming with the simple breath of everyday life.
Luke had always felt that this kind of calm, peaceful living… wasn't bad at all.
When he got home, maybe because yesterday had been the most exhausting day, today actually didn't feel as tiring.
He sank into the sofa. Yurna poured him a cup of hot tea, then quietly withdrew.
"Check-in," Luke murmured inwardly.
[Congratulations, Host: You have obtained top Fletcher-grade tea leaves—Smoky Earl Grey Tea—and seeds.]
[Congratulations, Host: You have obtained a random Lv.6 secondary profession card.]
As the system's two prompts popped up, Luke's interest rose.
He first checked the system's description for Smoky Earl Grey Tea. It replenished vitality, helped refine one's foundation, and nourished the heart and lungs. Most importantly, it tasted superb.
It could be grown in any soil, and it grew quickly.
"Not bad," Luke praised. Even though the tea he drank now was already expensive, it clearly wasn't in the same league as Smoky Earl Grey Tea.
Then he looked at the second reward.
Another Lv.6 secondary profession card.
"Use the secondary profession card."
[Use successful]
Luke focused again.
The next second, the system prompt appeared once more.
[Congratulations, Host: You have obtained Lv.6 secondary profession skill: Artisan]
Luke: "?"
By the time he'd put a question mark to it, a massive flood of artisan-related knowledge had already poured into his head. It took him a long time to digest it all before it finally stopped.
Luke was starting to suspect the system didn't know who he was.
He was a prince of a kingdom. Fine, the cooking skill earlier was one thing—but now it was giving him artisan skills too.
Was it ever going to stop?
"Wait…"
Luke suddenly realized something.
"First it gave me a ladle, and now it's giving me a hammer…"
Was this system hinting at something?
//Check out my P@tre0n for 20 extra chapters on all my fanfics //[email protected]/Razeil0810.