Chapter 3: The Sword and the Leaf

Rias is now nineteen years old, trapped in the body of a four-year-old, but his mind remains frozen at fifteen. In his past life, he was an otaku who spent all his time watching anime, playing video games, and reading comics in his room — because every time he went outside, trouble found him. Now, with his fascination for this new world, his old habits of shutting himself away in a single space have returned.

He spends all his time in the library, and it worries his fathers and their servants at times. Especially now that Eli — the one who used to drag him out of his comfort zone — is no longer there. She's gone to the training camp for young apprentice knight-mages.

In our medieval-like world, young boys begin their training in knighthood at the age of seven. It's the same here. Eli is three years older than Rias, so she's joined Anna at the training camp, along with several girls from the families of counts, viscounts, and barons of their domain. These girls' range in age from eight to thirteen. Anna, for her part, is nine.

Here, there are only screams, dust, and wooden swords clashing. The harshness of competition is visible in every duel. While some still hesitate, others already shine.

Anna is by no means bad compared to her peers. But she struggles to progress — even to keep up with the pace. It's true: she's the only wind-element wielder here. And the family's combat style is compatible with everything except the wind element.

She's only here because she's the eldest of her family. If not, she would prefer a way smoother.

However, amidst it all: young Elisabeth. Raw energy. She launches attack after attack — not a single moment of rest. She embodies the De Rush bloodline: violent, resilient, fearless. The "hurricane" style. They already look at her as a future champion, even though she's only been here a few weeks. Even Barbara, daughter of Count De Forests — twelve years old, earth element, known as the most gifted in their sisterhood — is afraid to face her. Eli is a blazing flame.

Young Anna tries not to think about it too much, but she still feels deeply insecure about what happened. For the first time, she finishes last — exhausted,

unable to even lift that heavy piece of wood.

Her wind magic swirls around, but finds no place. Too light, too fluid, for a world built on force.

Meanwhile, it's just another day where Rias can bury his head in his old magic geometry books. He opens the enormous volume the moment Father Idris leaves the library. But he completely forgot that his big sisters are coming home today.

Yes, they return every weekend —and as always, Eli never hesitates to drag him out of the library.

Eli bursts in — sweaty and joyful — with the calmer Anna behind her.

— "Little brother! Come on, you have to see this!"

Rias is speechless, caught off guard. She drags him into the garden almost by force.

Eli replays her victories — shouting, miming, jumping — like an uncontrollable tornado. Rias laughs. He claps. He loves this wild sister. Anna, however, remains quiet, watching Rias's expression.

Eventually, Eli falls asleep from exhaustion. Anna and Rias are left alone, and they begin to talk.

— "That book you were reading earlier isn't for your age… or your gender either."

— "Yes, but I'm curious," Rias replies shyly.

— "To think you can already read — and you're tackling that kind of extreme book at your age… Big sis is proud of you."

Rias responds with a very timid smile. Compliments aren't something he's used to.

Then his sister adds:

— "As a reward, I'll show you a magic trick," she says, standing up.

She begins to move slowly, gracefully, reciting incantations:

"Oh Mother Inamia,

You who dwell in the palace of the skies.

Such grace you've laid upon this earth…"

The leaves begin to follow her every move, offering a breathtaking display.

It's a poem she wrote herself.

Yes, Anna is very creative. She has a few spells she's created herself, which is incredibly promising — but sadly, they're only for artistic performances like this one. That overshadows all her talent.

In this world weighed down by social pressure, art is her only escape. She's convinced no one could ever truly understand her.

But Rias — a true information guru — knows exactly who he's dealing with. He's literally exhausting the library's collection. And he knows that spell isn't written anywhere in those books because … at their time, things like that aren't something you proudly put in a book.

And after all, they're just children. They shouldn't be thinking about things like that.

But Rias isn't like other children — and neither is Anna.

When Rias gazes into Anna's eyes, he sees nothing but her greatness.

Anna has a divine aura — an aura that floats somewhere between overwhelming power and unprecedented gentleness. And Rias doesn't just feel it — he sees it with his own eyes.

At last, he speaks:

— "Woah… you created that spell yourself, didn't you? With that level of skill, you should be the best fighter in your camp."

Anna doesn't know how to react — torn between the thought "How does he know I made that spell myself?" and his quick assumption about her abilities. She finishes her performance, then answers her younger brother with shame:

— "At the camp, I'm invisible."

She pauses, then continues with a sad tone:

— "They say behind my back that wind isn't meant for combat."

But Rias has seen too many manga volumes, too many anime where wind magic was a force to be reckoned with, to accept what he just heard.

— "Then they clearly don't understand the wind."

He steps closer to her, his gaze carrying the wisdom of another world, and says with deep seriousness in his eyes:

— "The wind is dodge. It's speed. Timing. Flexibility. It's not a wall — it's a needle. It's surprise and precision."

He sketches some gestures in the notebook that never leaves his side. Inside, there are already dozens of formulas Anna doesn't understand at all. She's just astonished.

Rias goes on:

— "You could create a style where instead of blocking, you redirect the opponent's attacks against them. You anticipate. You make it so that every strike you throw is decisive —designed to end the fight as quickly as possible."

He talks about Iaido, about center control, about focusing the entire soul into a single breath — and other Aikido katas.

Rias was bullied for most of his life. The people who beat him were often taller, stronger. So of course he once dreamed of standing up for himself, reading and researching martial arts endlessly. So yes, Iaido and Aikido are things he theoretically understands well. But sadly, he always lacked the courage to act.

But…

Not here. Not now.

Anna is mentally going through what he went through — emotionally and physically. But he knows… she can be stronger than he ever was. So she listens to him, like a student listening to her master, or perhaps like a sister hearing the echo of her own soul.

Rias's visions resonate deeply with her.Just hearing his reasoning, she already knows she can do it — and that it's a deadly weapon.

When he finishes and hands her the sketches, Anna is speechless. She simply hugs him.

It's the gesture of someone on the brink of despair. She's so young, yet this… this is her last chance to remain part of her family. Because after this, she'll be nothing but a background character in the shadow of House De Rush.

Indeed, by reputation alone — a De Rush who's worthless on the battlefield is no De Rush at all. And little Rias has understood this cruel truth — that this world is even more merciless than the last.