Three days before Katherine's coronation...
As Amelia, Meiya, and Luqing sat on one side of the dining table, the three kids sat on the other.
Meanwhile, Katherine sat right in the middle, where Fredrick once used to sit.
As everyone started eating, Katherine didn't bother enforcing proper etiquette as it no longer served any purpose.
It also allowed for a much more casual atmosphere, as Katherine kept asking Meiya questions about stories from the other continent.
Everyone was getting intrigued by it until everyone was full with the plates emptied.
Just as everyone was about to get up, Amelia suddenly noticed something different about the two girls.
"Congrats, Sophia and Mary, you guys made it to mage level two!" Amelia complimented after realizing it was the mana level differences.
"Congrats Lady Sophia, Lady Mary!"
Luqing immediately clapped, with Meiya following suit despite not really understanding what level two really meant.
"Thank you. Thank you."
As the two bowed slightly in gratitude, Katherine blushed a little because she had not noticed her own daughter's changes.
"Sophia, Mary, what do you two want for your reward?" Katherine asked to hide her embarrassment.
"I——"
"We don't need any rewards." Sophia interrupted before Mary could say anything.
"Are you sure? Sophia, don't pressure your sister from making her wish." Katherine warned after noticing her trying to give Mary an eye signal.
"Now I think about it, I don't really need anything in particular right now. Thank you for asking, Mom."
Katherine let out a sigh as Sophia's influence triumphed once again, her mind still confused as to why she didn't want her to give them gifts.
After the meal, everyone headed back to their room except for Sophia and Mary, who both headed to the door of Katherine's room.
Knocking on the door, the two waited patiently until it was finally opened.
"Hm? Why are you two standing out here?"
"We actually do have a little wish for our level 2 mage."
As soon as Sophia stated out loud, Katherine didn't seem to mind the sudden change.
After walking the two into her bedroom, the two girls sat down on Katherine's bed before she questioned them.
"What kind of gift do you two want?"
"Mom, do you remember you said you were going to punish us for... the book?"
After a short memory refresher, Katherine finally realized what Sophia was talking about.
"Oh, that... I had forgotten about it already. You guys don't have to worry about that anymore."
The two of them let out a sigh of relief as they seemed satisfied with the answer, but Katherine wasn't done yet.
"Is that all? You guys came in to wish for that?"
Seeing Sophia nod first before Mary nodded in agreement, she could tell they were telling the truth.
It was almost as if they really worked extra hard to make her happy, rather than her idea of them working hard because of the curse.
After feeling what a safe distance was, he finally threw his windblades at her, indicating the battle had begun.
"You really never learn, do you?"
Sidestepping all of Alex's attacks, Sarah began to get closer and closer until a rock barrier appeared outside Alex's body.
The turtle strategy was instantly blown up as Sarah cast a fireball that was way beyond what his barrier could hold against.
With a sharp pain in his chest, Alex coughs out several drops of blood before it all disappears.
"Can I ask how can I beat you?"
Alex finally lowered his position and decided to ask this time, not wanting to repeat the same mistake again.
"You can't."
"Then what would the purpose of this training be?"
"You haven't noticed your mana change?"
"My mana change?"
As Alex fell into a meditation state, he was surprised to see that the barrier blocking him from reaching level 2 mage was being broken down.
"Now, are you going to fight again, or are you giving up early today——"
Before Sarah could finish talking, Alex had already thrown rounds of spells right in her face.
With layers upon layers of spells being blasted at her, she was finally forced to use a defensive spell for the first time.
The water barrier she cast easily blocked all of his spells, but he had accomplished his goal as he burnt all of his mana possible.
After being hit with a fireball and healing back up, Alex could feel the barrier blocking his mana from expanding, breaking down even more.
He was now only a few attempts away, motivating him even more to fight even harder.
The pain was starting to become a minor problem, as all the injuries would always disappear every time they fought.
Even if Sarah's spell flat-out kills him, his body reappears so that he can regain control.
After what felt like fighting for a day and night, Alex was finally a level 2 mage as he spat out a mouthful of blood from his lungs.
"Congrats, you did it."
"I know I did it. Now, can you heal me back up?" Alex complained, feeling the sharp pain piercing his lung.
After letting Alex suffer for a few more seconds, Sarah finally healed all of his wounds.
"Thank you..."
As Alex expressed his gratitude, the environment around them returned to the familiar house, with a table and an empty teacup before him.
"Let's have a little chat now," Sarah stated as she poured a cup of tea into his teacup.
"What do you want to talk about?"
After a short silence, Alex couldn't handle it any longer, so he started drinking the hot tea instead.
"How about you ask the questions, and I'll answer them?"
For a second, Alex almost spit his tea out before forcefully swallowing the hot tea down his throat.
"Sure, I don't mind it... Can you give me a second to think of the question?"