Daire looked out in astonishment as he actually saw the pond grow in real-time, growing about 25ft in all directions before halting. Looking through the surface, it seemed like the floor of the pond had sunk as well.

"Is that..."

Daire squinted. Something was wriggling.

"...a fish?"

Indeed. In fact, there was a school.

Daire tried thinking about how this could all be possible, but he was distracted.

"My pool!"

Panicking, Daire raised an earthen wall, segregating a small corner of the pond. Falling, he stared out at the pond, where more fish began to emerge.

Did an underground river break through? Or did those fish smell my blood?

The fish didn't look dangerous from their size, but looks could be deceiving.

Hopefully the pond doesn't grow larger.

His home was a stone's throw away. All this was more convenient as he could wash and do chores more easily, but the water may flood his area in the future.

Daire knew the clearing was abnormal. Why had he been deposited here of all places? The rabbits suddenly showed up when he needed food, starving predators challenged him when he felt weak, and now fish appeared just as he was craving sushi.

That shifter should have dropped me in the nearest town. Why here?

Daire saw Light barrel into the water. Splashing. Trying to catch fish in his mouth. He failed miserably.

This information comforted Daire.

Since it was already lunchtime, he resolved to catch his own meal.

Retrieving a spear, Daire walked towards another oddly dazed bunny. He planted himself firmly, wary of blood splashing on his fresh clothes, and thrust his spear cleanly. It died instantly.

Exhaling, Daire closed himself off to the feeling of its death. It didn't suffer this time. Daire hadn't hesitated, and it was a clean kill made in the name of sustenance.

He did the same to a second nearby.

Controlling his breathing. Daire skinned them both. Draining them, searching for extra ingredients, bringing more firewood, and the rest of the cooking preparations only took him about a quarter-hour. Daire decided to prepare extra for Violet, erring on the side of caution.

He also removed those pesky diarrhetic mushrooms.

Daire finished cooking his own meal when Light walked over, staring at his kebab.

"This isn't for you."

Light glared at him, stared back at the food, sniffing and licking his lips. There was drool.

Daire couldn't just give him human food... even if it was all from nature. Spoiling your dog would create bad habits! Coming up with a compromise, Daire spoke again.

"I assume you want the meat. If you bring me your own kills and wait a while, I will cook them for you."

Daire pointed to a particular rabbit hopping near the pond.

Light stared with a blank face at the smoking meat. Suddenly, Light walked over to the rabbit, snapped its neck in its jaws, and walked back.

*sigh*

"Okay, give it here."

A wave of Daire's hand and Light flopped the meat at Daire's feet. Daire was preparing it when he heard another flop to his left.

Another dead rabbit was deposited by Night.

"Fine. You too."

I need to carve more skewers...

The extra cooking wasn't excessive or overtly difficult. Just tedious.

He calls it cooking, but all he really does is shove them on sticks and twist them over the fire.

Daire needed to continue shooing the wolves away. Preventing them from nipping at the food while also protecting his mouth from their tounges. He wanted to shout at them, but the first time he tried, one of them nearly snuck their way in. So, he had to clamp his jaw shut. Cooking in silence with slobber all over his mouth and face.

Night was acting on instinct, but Light was only doing this because Daire hated it.

Done cooking, he shoved the meat off the sticks for them to chow down. Daire watched them sniff their food and quickly dig in, slightly faster than usual. Night acted almost boisterous.

Cleaning his face with a towel, Daire cooked Violet's kebabs set them down, shooing the greedy wolves. He hadn't seen Violet today but assumed she wouldn't skip the meal.

Reheating his own food, slightly charring it, Daire indulged in his meal when Violet still hadn't emerged.

Licking his fingers, tasting garlic, he cleaned the skewers in the pond. Refilling his water bottle while he was at it.

Daire's vision flashed. Violet's skewer was gone.

=

Violet's nose guided her to food. She wasn't ready to come out or be seen yet but could compromise for food.

She waited in tall grass for Daire to finish. Just like yesterday, she performed a zigzag bolt as she made it to her meal, grabbed it, and dashed back into hiding. She swiftly flew back home, assured she hadn't been seen.

Violet abused her meal.

It was just as good as last time, if not better! Daire removed the hard crunch and made it sweet instead of spicy. Berry juice had been squeezed over the meat. It served to quench her throat instead of parching it.

Burping, Violet set aside her utensil; she would return it later. Her dress wasn't quite finished yet.

=

Daire performed post-meal stretches. Arm rotations, toe touches, shoulder stretches, etc.

It was a routine of his for years. But it was now hindered by his wound. He tried to work around it best he could. Determined to continue training but constantly aware of its condition.

After, Daire moved on to sword practice. Thinking about magic.

Could I use magic with my sword?

He was already good at the basic forms, strikes, and movements. By practicing, he could keep in shape and make sure his skills stayed sharp. However, Daire couldn't progress any further as he didn't have any teachers or opponents. Swinging against air was all and good, but it wouldn't make him much stronger than he was.

Part of it was also that he stopped after getting too winded. Never pushing his limits.

Incorporating magic into my style when I am still only an adept might be hasty. It could cripple my potential. What type of magic would assist me effectively anyway?

Learning aerial combat was too advanced off the get-go. A sure footing was the foundation in any sword art. Daire would have to reorganize his stances for aerial combat. It would cease to be Iaido and progress too far outside his comfort zone.

Likewise, using Fire mana to create a flaming sword was out of the question.

First, there was little Fire mana ever around. The campfire was only smoldering now, and there were no other sources of external Fire.

Secondly, Daire's sword is made of wood.

Alright...

It might be possible to coat his sword in fire mana by reinforcing it with different types of Gray or Metallic Earth mana, but he couldn't use those yet. He could try creating an air shield around his sword using Air magic, preventing the Fire magic from engulfing the sword. But that would mess with oxygen and feeding the fire.

At that point, it would just be more effective to use Air to speed up my swings or sharpen my cuts.

This was what he was considering as the most likely candidate for his practice.

However, he opted for a tried and true method.

Weight training.

=

Eyes closed and calm breathing, Daire stood on soggy grass in a wide stance.

In the mana realm, or the colorscape, as Daire took to calling it, flirty greens were tickling his nose.

There was much more wind mana than yesterday.

Looking past the numerable shades of green to the browns and grays of Earth beneath his feet, Daire grabbed. Carrying the warm colors up through his feet, climbing up his legs, past his hips, chest, shoulders, and arms, to the sword in his hand. It caressed the curve of the wooden blade. Coating the entire blade.

Daire felt the sword grow heavier. Thicker. He had to adjust his grip several times to let the mana flow encompass the entire frame. While also feeling the density of the sword bulk up. It glowed in his mind's eye, blanketed by mana.

A relaxed draw stance. Standing straight, feet aside, ready to draw.

Breathing out, Daire moved.

Right hand to pommel. Left rotating. He drew.

His draw was fast, but the follow-through was burdened and hard to control.

Repeating swings several times, he started to get the hang of the weight. This training would be good for him. It was simple, easy and he didn't need to spend concentration on maintaining a spell. The mana was attached and would stay until it was broken off by force or will.

Daire continued in this manner. Gradually attaching more weight, he tested himself. At his limit, he could swing the sword four times before his arms refused to move. Relieving the mana of its duty, the weight fell off.

Daire returned to his stance a final time.

A crisp, clean-cut cleaved the air.

*Whoosh*

A satisfying sound.

Small claps applauded him.

=

Violet finally finished making her new dress.

She did have two other leaf dresses lying around somewhere, but she was afraid those would burn up like the last one, prompting her to create this.

Violet gave a little twirl in the mirror. More than satisfied.

Stuck inside all day, it was now evening, and the sun would go down in an hour or two.

The first thing she noticed was the terrifying pond grew in size. The second thing she noticed was far more alluring.

Daire was standing on the grass between, swinging a sword as thick as his calf and striking the air with contained ferocity. Violet was going to call out but stopped herself.

She watched as the rocks crumbled off his sword, revealing its original thin frame. Daire exhaled calmly, a small sheen of sweat glistening in the orange glow of the sun. His white shirt absorbed the colors of the sunset and glowed a soft golden hue. As he drew his sword, it cut fast, creating a miniature gust, his hair whipped almost as violently. One strand of hair fell into place, framing his face, glaring a golden brown.

Violet couldn't help but clap.

=

Taken aback. Not startled by Violet's sudden presence, but surprised by her appearance.

Before, Violet looked like a natural forest pixie with a dress made of grass that was rather primitive but still complimented her figure and personality. Now...

Royal blue braids framed her head like a crown. Deep and prismatic purples formed interlocking pairs, flowing down in a waterfall. The true blacks faded into the background, acting as a canvas for the other colors to shine like the night sky.

Violets eyes shone with her namesake, a galaxy behind her eyes.

Clean, pristine, her skin smooth and vibrant. There was no make-up in this world to compare...

Her dress was a sundress. In layman's terms.

Only... it was made out of paper.

The sundress was white. Except it wasn't.

Similar to her wings, it almost imperceptible lines that blinked like lights of a motherboard. On top of these gliding lights of purples and blues, her dress glowed. There was a visible shimmer around her dress similar to planet shine. If this wasn't enough, the white dress absorbed the glow of the evening sun, shining a soft golden hue.

"Wow."

Was this what an angel looked like?

Paper wings imitated the unique dress, framing her petite form.

Daire hung his mouth open.

He thought he put effort into his outfit and hair, but Violet completely and utterly outdid him. If Violet were a human or even a similar size to Daire... He didn't know what he would do.

Mesmerized. Unthinking.

Eventually, Violet saved him.

"I will take that as a compliment, so please close your mouth... you're staring."

Daire's mouth shut with a clack.

"How. I mean. How long? No. When did you? Were you always..."

Daire failed to form words.

He managed to say at the end.

"You look beautiful."

"Thank you."

Violet blushed slightly but gave a pleased smile.

"You look stylish yourself."

Daire finally looked away from her, examining himself. He was proud of his look, although a little sweaty. But when he compared himself to Violet, he laughed out loud.

"Hah! Thank you, I appreciate that. Are you hungry? It's about dinner time, so I can make some more kebabs."

Violet's stomach growled.