This event is after Serena's first dungeon dive.
[Serena's POV]
Expectations are all I have been given all my life. Born as the heir of the most prestigious family, everyone's expectation for me was to the max.
After our dungeon dive with Charlie and idiot Olivia, I felt frustrated. I had never felt so helpless in a situation like that.
One wrong move, and we would've all died. We were lucky that Charlie was a monster in mana and magic.
Watching him fight the serpent made me realize that I was weak. As someone who had always been the best, my pride alone wouldn't allow me to be that much weaker than someone to my peers. Even against Charlie, whom I love.
After finishing our dungeon, we all returned to sell what we got. I couldn't help but think of the events happening in the dungeon.
I was depressed and emotionally unstable, even if I tried my best not to show it. Charlie and Olivia could feel it. Out of consideration, they left me to my own accord.
That was when I decided something. After mopping around, I had thought about what I wanted, and I decided to take action.
Both Olivia and Charlie went home. But I, on the other hand, went somewhere else. I then made my way to Mary's office.
"Mary, I have something I would like to discuss."
The door had opened, and Mary, who was in the room, was studying a book. Looking at Mary, she was displeased that I had distracted her from her time studying.
"Young miss, is there anything you need?"
Mary was a particular person. Her unemotional attitude was eerie—even our family members thought the same.
"I'm going back to the main estate to train."
"Is there a reason why you want to go back?"
"I want to become stronger."
After the fight with the serpent, I had never desired to become stronger. I had been sheltered all my life, unable to see the hidden dangers around me.
The thought of me being killed without being able to struggle bothered me. That is why I need to do this, no matter what.
"I see. Then I will tell the headmaster of your absence."
"Thank you."
With that, I left Mary's office. After telling Mary I won't be at school, I hurried to my room and grabbed a teleportation artifact back to my house.
Arriving at my estate, all the servants moved out of their way to greet me. My mother, Christine, the current matriarch of the Celeste family, had heard the news of my arrival.
"Serena, what are you doing here?"
"I want to get stronger. I want to use a mana dispenser to improve my strength."
"Very well. Do as you please."
My mother doesn't care what I do. She will allow me to do whatever I want if I do my role correctly and not shame our family.
"Skylar, you will be training my daughter."
Skylar was mom's most trusted servant. With her shadow magic, she could gather information, assassinate anyone, and do the job quickly—a perfect person to be her right-hand woman.
"Yes, Milady."
"Follow me."
Skylar, my trainer, would train me for a month. Going to Celeste's training facility, one could say that this place was the best in the world.
The mana here was six times better than in an average place. Meaning I could become six times faster in absorbing mana. While my speed wasn't as fast as Charlie's, it was better than most.
"I will be instructing you on your every move. The first thing we will do is a simple spar."
"Use everything you have at your disposal. I will instruct you afterward."
Fighting Skylar, it wouldn't even be called a fight. Even if I did my best by using everything, they were ineffective.
The fight lasted until Skylar herself thought it was over. Five minutes later, I had exhausted my mana and fell to the ground gasping for air.
"Absorb the mana, and we will begin."
Days passed, and I felt like I was improving by bounds. Skylar would point out my mistakes, and I would correct them.
After fighting her until I exhausted my mana, I always tried my best to regain them. The fights kept happening until a week had passed.
"Young Miss, we will now begin controlling your emotions."
Did she say controlling my emotions? I don't have any emotional problems. I frowned, thinking of what Skylar wanted.
"You get irritated too easily. You let that control how you fight."
"It would be detrimental if you let it get to you."
I was unable to say anything. Skylar was my trainer, and seeing how capable she was. I will do what she thought was fitting.
The training we had was rough. Every time I hesitated to do something, Skylar would step on my toes.
Doing this training was painful and annoying, but a week later, I started to get the hang of it. I would get less nervous and feel like I could control my emotions more easily.
There was still a week before the survival training exam, and I wanted to be the best. Skylar said that was enough training and left me to my own accord.
The only thing now was to absorb mana and try my best to become a third-rank mage. It would typically take a year to reach this height.
But if I use this room, I will reach it much quicker than my peers. I can't afford to waste any time, and with that, my last remaining week was here to absorb mana.
Charlie, I know I will never be able to catch up to you, but I won't hesitate to do my best. I will continue to be stronger and move on forward.
This month's training changed me considerably. My unstable emotions were now controllable. I felt something had cleansed my mind, making me a new person.
Charlie, I can't wait to meet you. I miss you.
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