The lesson ended there.
Outside of that, Bell had little more to say. His "teaching," if it could be called that, was simply guidance—a nudge to help this genius find her path forward.
In Bell’s eyes, Ais didn’t lack room for growth. She simply had no one to show her the way. Once given a clear direction, she would chase it relentlessly. Her progress might not co rapidly, but that wasn’t because her talent was lacking—it was because she lacked the conditions for fast growth.
’Then... how far should I go?’
That question often sent Bell into quiet reflection.
His own awakening might have been an accident in this world, yet it felt less like coincidence and more like sothing deliberately awaited. The many "Bell Cranel" he’d seen during that awakening now seed less like versions from parallel worlds and more like... sothing else.
Still, it was only a guess. He had no proof.
’I’ll ask Hestia and the others when I get back.’
Setting those thoughts aside, Bell turned to Ais.
She was still holding the broken sword, trying to wrap wind around the blade—sothing she’d done countless tis before. But this ti, the result was a little different.
"Whoosh!"
A strong gust condensed at the tip of the broken blade. Instead of swirling loosely around it, the wind gathered into the clear outline of a sword.
"Whoa!"
Ais stared at her work in surprise.
But the blade of wind was still too unstable. The mont her focus wavered, it scattered back into air.
"Ah... it disappeared."
The excitent on her face froze, turning quickly to disappointnt.
Seeing this, Bell couldn’t help but think, for the first ti, that the "Sword Princess" really was just a girl too.
"You’ve only just started working in this direction. It’s normal that you can’t shape a stable blade yet."
"Sword Princess, hand the hilt. I’ll show you."
"Mm."
When Bell extended his hand, Ais imdiately passed the broken sword to him.
Bell took it and swung casually at the nearby wall. A sharp gust shot out from the blade.
"Shhh!"
A thin crack, about two centiters deep, appeared on the wall.
Ais’s golden eyes lit up. She fixed her gaze on the sword in Bell’s hand.
The wind around the blade was nearly invisible, yet she could feel it—an extraordinary density of wind energy gathered at the tip.
"Is this... wind condensed to its limit?"
The sight fascinated her, but Bell shook his head and handed the sword back.
"It’s not about condensing the wind to its absolute limit—it’s about controlling it, making it flow quickly and evenly."
"As I said before, wind and water are the gentlest things in nature... but also the most violent. Towering waves can sweep everything away, and raging storms can destroy all. What drives their change is motion."
"What you need to do is spin the wind faster—steadily and uniformly. Sword Princess, treat that as your next stage of training. It might help you."
Calm and focused, Ais listened intently. That was sothing she’d always been good at.
"I understand."
"As before, if there’s anything you don’t understand, go ask Vice Captain Riveria. She specializes in magic and has far more experience in controlling mana than most."
Ais knew well that Riveria was soone she could trust. She was confident she could learn valuable techniques on mana control from her.
"Then the rest of the ti is for your own training. I’ll send you back to your Familia—you can confirm your progress with Loki-sama as well."
"Thank you."
Ais bowed respectfully to Bell, her voice sincere.
"Hmm, I’ll accept your thanks. But rember—this is an equal exchange."
"I rember."
"Good."
Bell opened a spatial rift.
"Ais, your family’s probably been waiting for you for quite a while. It’s ti to go back."
Ais gave a small nod and started walking toward the rift.
Just as half her body stepped through, she suddenly stopped, stepped back out, and turned to face Bell.
Bell blinked, wondering what she wanted to say—only for Ais to step forward, close the distance between them, and wrap her arms around him.
"Thank you."
That quiet "thank you" made Bell freeze for a mont.
’So this is her way of showing gratitude... though hopefully this isn’t Lefiya’s influence at work.’
He shook his head lightly and dropped the thought.
"You’re welco."
Ais wasn’t being bashful—this was simply the way she’d learned to show thanks from Lefiya. Lefiya had told her that a hug was the best way to express gratitude. Ais hadn’t believed it at first, but now she was sure Lefiya was right.
Her gratitude was pure. After expressing it, Ais let go, stepped back into the rift, and just before vanishing, she spoke once more.
"Bell, call next ti you train."
Bell stood there, caught completely off guard.
"Eh... I really hope there isn’t a next ti."
Still, he couldn’t guarantee he wouldn’t end up calling her again.
Though he wished to keep future training sessions quiet and solitary, reality had a habit of going against his expectations.
After a brief sigh, Bell didn’t return to his Familia right away. Instead, he continued deeper into the Dungeon.
He hadn’t been idle over the past half month.
He’d noticed people moving supplies toward the 35th floor.
’Alright, I should investigate this too.’
The path to the "White Palace" was one he knew well. He had spent ti there before, and back then, he’d tangled with the "Spartoi" that lived within.
This ti, though, Bell didn’t move as openly as he had during that training. He concealed his presence completely as he approached the "White Palace."
Inside the cavernous expanse, countless passages stretched into the unknown—many of them designed as traps to lure in adventurers.
And because the "White Palace" was so vast, finding a group’s hiding place within it was anything but easy.
Fortunately, Bell had more than enough thods to search for traces and clues within those tunnels.
But first, he needed to take so ti to make a few preparations.
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