Zach stared at Sio in confusion.


    "No weapon?" He asked for confirmation, hoping Sio would say no.


    "Yes. No weapon. I think that''s the path best suited for you. Striking and grappling. Of course, you can always choose to ignore my advice or continue hiding behind your maids." Sio crossed his arms and shrugged nonchntly.


    There was nothing wrong with a summoner relying on their summoned familiars. If anything, that was the standard practice of most summoners. But there was nothing about summoning that prevented a summoner from fighting themselves.


    Sure, they might asionally need to control their familiars or use their skills. But they could just do that while fighting.


    Zach didn''t need to order his familiars around. They were intelligent enough to act on their own. His skill also didn''t restrict his movement unless he wanted it to, which, Zach regretted sharing with Sio. As soon as he did, Sio


    encouraged


    him to keep a shield that restricted his movements active all the time.


    It was great training or something. Zach didn''t listen too closely when Sio exined that part.


    "Why?" Zach didn''t want to acknowledge that the best weapon for him was no weapon. He wanted to cut things. Stab things. Dismember things. Mutte things. He pouted.


    "...To be frank, it''s because you have no talent when ites to weapons."


    "!" Zach gasped in surprise.


    "That''s not true!" He shouted in defiance.


    Sio shrugged, his arms still crossed like he was saying there wasn''t anything he could do about it. It was just the way it was, simr to how the sky was green and gravity pulled apples to the ground.


    "Kid, you don''t have to be so aggrieved by it. Your body is still good. Very good, in fact. It will be even better once you unlock that energy of yours. But that''s not the only reason why I think your body is your strongest weapon." Sio tapped on the barrier around Zach.


    "These things are stronger the closer they are to your body, and you can''t use them like des or any way that would directly harm anyone who attacks them by shaping them like des or spikes of any kind. However," Sio pointed at the redness on his knuckle from tapping the barrier. "They reflect physical force.


    "Your barriers are strongest when they are as close to your skin as possible. Wrap your body and fist in a solid barrier and you won''t feel a thing. Your opponent, however, will feel like they just got hit by a brick. If you use them well, your barriers will also prevent things like being strangled, joint-twisted, or toppled." Sio exined the advantages of engaging in hand-to-handbat for Zach in more detail than Zach would have liked.


    There were just too many upsides to fight without a weapon.


    After all, unless he used a blunt weapon, he couldn''t wrap it in a barrier. A sword with a barrier was a club, so he might as well use a club. But a club didn''t need a barrier in the first ce. And a club wasn''t as versatile as a pair of hands.


    "...Damn it." Zach cursed. He didn''t want to, but he had to admit that it was starting to sound like his only option.


    "Perfect! I''ll add it to the training regimen." Sio took Zach''s cursing as his surrender and smiled.


    Zach slumped his shoulders. He didn''t need an addition to his already harsh training regimen. Fortunately, it was just a set of movements for him to get used to throwing punches and the like. He just had to do with a barrier restricting his movements. The more restrictive, the better.


    But ''just a set of movements'' was still more. There was a lot to train.


    After a few weeks of Sio''s grueling training, which felt like months, however, it was finally time for Zach, Nessa, and Violina to start their journey back to the Academy. Zach was already looking forward to cking off and ignoring the training regimen.


    Sio patted Zach on the shoulder before he boarded the carriage.


    "Kid."


    "Yes?" Zach tried to continue walking and escape Sio''s grasp, but it was like he was trapped under a mountain.


    "I have high hopes for you."


    "Thanks?"


    "I''m sure your father will understand if I whisk you away if you have not lived up to my expectations the next time we meet."


    "Meaning?"


    "I''ll know if you ck off."


    "..." Zach gulped. It seemed his ns to take it easy the remainder of the break had just been dashed to the ground.n/?/vel/b//in dot c//om


    Sio smiled, his eyes like slits as he looked at Zach while making Zach look at him. Zach gave a minimal nod to show that he understood. Sio let him go.


    Zach hurriedly entered the carriage and closed the door behind him before Sio could change his mind about letting him go or riding the carriage. He wouldn''t be surprised if the old man decided he needed another round of exercise himself and made Zach run all the way to the Academy.


    Fortunately, there was no way Sio would do that. The only way he would run in rtion to the Academy would be away from it.


    The three students and all their familiars except Nessa''s Serpentine Millipede crammed into and onto one big carriage that soon started moving, thanks to the powerful horses drawing it. Sio waved them off before disappearing.


    It took more than a day for Zach to finally breathe out in relief after they left the Systine estate and Sio behind. Nessa and Violina also rxed.


    Sio hadn''t pushed them as hard, especially Violina since she was his treasured descendant. But not having been pushed as hard as Zach only meant that they fell asleep the moment they closed their eyes instead of passing out like Zach did every time his training finished.


    They had been too tired to feel anything but fatigue.


    But now that they were rxing, the three of them could feel the effects of the training and the precious food, herbal concoctions, and potions that the cysteine family provided them.


    They were stronger than before. It was almost worth it.


    Almost.