In the small cottage's living room, with the drip-drop of water echoing from the bathroom—
Agusheed sat on the sofa, gazing up at the ceiling, and let out a long sigh.
Even though thirty minutes had passed—
The image of Serie's index finger resting between his brows still lingered vividly in his mind.
"You…"
The voice from his lap drew Agusheed's gaze downward—Flamme, small and perched there.
She tilted her head slightly, looking up at him with a hint of worry.
"It's been a while since it ended. Why do you still look so deflated?"
Agusheed absentmindedly smoothed her tousled red hair.
"Hmm…"
After a moment of thought, he said softly while staring at Flamme's face:
"A bit of frustration, I suppose."
Upon hearing that, Flamme's eyes widened in disbelief.
"Frustration?"
She raised her right hand, placing it lightly above his forehead, questioning gently:
"You're kidding, right…? That was the first time I've ever seen Master injured that badly…"
But Agusheed simply shook his head, eyes fixed on her petite face.
"I promised you I would win."
Looking at his serious expression, Flamme sighed.
"That was supposed to be a joke between us…"
She folded her hands in front of her, trying to explain.
"'A joke,' huh—Is that what you thought?"
His question made Flamme fall silent.
She knew he had taken that offhand conversation to heart.
Knowing it was a dead-end topic, she gently cupped his face to redirect the subject:
"So… what did you think of the power of the greatest archmage in history?"
Agusheed lowered her hands, leaned back against the sofa again, and looked at the ceiling.
Recalling the battle over and over in his mind, he finally replied:
"Still as irrationally strong as ever. I forced her to use her full power…"
He paused for a moment and then slowly closed his eyes—
"But even then, I doubt she was ever truly serious—"
"It was like sparring with the former Demon King all over again…"
Flamme, thoughtful, poked his chest and asked:
"So did you gain anything from that fight?"
"Gain…"
Agusheed repeated the word, then said slowly:
"If anything… it reminded me of how thrilling battle can be…"
Flamme shivered and hugged him tighter:
"Thrilling—can't relate. If it were me, I'd just be scared…"
Agusheed chuckled softly.
"Anyway, it was a truly fun battle… Cleared my head of all worries."
He lowered his head to look at his tiny wife holding him tight.
Flamme looked up too. After a brief gaze, she asked curiously:
"So, do you think Master was satisfied?"
Agusheed showed a slightly helpless expression.
"Who knows… but if I failed to entertain her, then I really must apologize—"
Click—
The sound of the bathroom door creaking open interrupted their conversation.
They turned to look as Serie, barefoot and robed, stepped out.
"Hehe… Apologize?"
Serie grinned dangerously as she approached.
"You've got some nerve… I almost died because of you."
She stopped in front of them, letting her fingertip trail along the shallow scar on her chest.
Even she couldn't quickly recover from the wound left by Spatial Severance.
"I hate to admit it, but you really might've won back there."
Serie tapped her chin and gave Agusheed an appraisal.
"Honestly, your tactics were clever…"
"Had it been the old me, I might have actually fallen for it."
"But unfortunately, your perception of me is stuck 150 years in the past."
Agusheed furrowed his brow, pondering her words.
"Is my understanding outdated?"
He looked up, staring into Serie's gleaming golden eyes.
"So… You found a counter to Spatial Severance during these 150 years?"
Serie smirked, then pointed at Flamme, still curled up on his lap.
"Isn't the answer right there in front of you?"
"Huh?"
Wait, why am I getting dragged into your mutual admiration game?
Following her teacher's gaze, Flamme pointed at herself in confusion:
"Me?"
She didn't understand—but Agusheed suddenly did.
"Flamme… So that's it…"
"You used Barrier of Isolation to counter Spatial Severance, didn't you?"
Serie didn't answer, but her silence confirmed it.
"Can you explain the principle?"
"Heh… Even though your slashes can't be blocked, they can be sealed within the Barrier of Isolation."
Agusheed rubbed his temples, showing fatigue.
"What an outrageous method… The mana needed to do that would be astronomical."
Serie raised an eyebrow and waved her hand dismissively.
"Eh, just a bit."
"Easy for you to say…"
Agusheed looked down at Flamme and sighed.
"Even the creator of Barrier of Isolation, Flamme, couldn't pull that off."
Faced with that irrefutable fact, Flamme puffed her cheeks.
She glanced at her teacher, then weakly thumped Agusheed's chest.
"Can you two not rope me into your nerd talk? It's really hurting my pride."
"Hehe—"
Serie reached out and gently cupped Flamme's chin.
Spending a relaxing day with her young disciple, ending with a refreshing duel—
This unexpected detour in Flamme's life wasn't so bad after all.
"It's been a long time since I had such an enjoyable day…"
Serie dropped her hand, then turned toward the door under the couple's watchful gaze.
"Master, where are you going?"
Sensing something, little Flamme looked up, ready to stop her.
But Serie just shook her head without turning around.
Halfway to the door, she suddenly halted—like something had just struck her.
Serie turned her head and looked at her disciple, still in child form, perched on Agusheed's lap.
"Flamme."
She called softly, then raised her right hand high and snapped her fingers.
"Eh?"
As Flamme stared in confusion, a glow burst from her body—
And the next moment, a shriek of pure mortification nearly tore off the roof:
"Master!!!"
Flamme's clothes, fitted for a child, had burst apart on her now-adult body sprawled over Agusheed.
Having resolved the issue, Serie smirked mischievously.
Then she turned and, without looking back, waved over her shoulder.
"I'm off."