Leonar was standing in the middle of the training field, arms crossed.

  Suddenly, the energy around him began to swirl, and within seconds, a humanoid straw effigy emerged from the ground, assembling itself as if the fibers were weaving on their own.

  Leonar took a step back, frowning.

  "What is this for?" he asked, pointing at the doll with a trembling finger.

  Celestia let out a soft, almost mocking laugh.

  "Your new training partner. He’s here to teach you the most basic—and vital—lesson for any mage: positioning."

  Leonar raised an eyebrow.

  "Positioning? How hard can that be? I just have to keep my distance, right?"

  "Keep your distance?" Celestia repeated, her tone dripping with sarcasm. "Oh, sure—because enemies always give you plenty of room to breathe."

  In an instant, the straw doll lunged forward, throwing a punch straight at Leonar’s face.

  The impact snapped his head back, and he fell onto his back with a groan.

  "What the hell?!" Leonar shouted, clutching his nose. "You should have warned me that thing was going to attack!"

  Celestia floated around him, laughing softly.

  "For a mage, not knowing how to position yourself can be deadly. If you don’t have a defensive spell ready or someone covering your back, you’re just an easy target."

  Leonar staggered to his feet, rubbing his aching face.

  "So wouldn’t it be better to teach—" he began, only to be cut off as another straw fist crashed into his cheek, interrupting his complaint.

  He stumbled sideways, barely managing to keep his balance.

  Celestia burst into laughter, spinning around with a mischievous gleam in her eyes.

  "I see you still haven’t got the lesson. Your first training exercise is to develop your instinct."

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  Leonar blocked a blow with his forearms, feeling the abrasive scrape of straw against his skin.

  "Instinct?! Instinct for what?!" he growled as he backed away.

  "It means you’ll have to learn to react without thinking," Celestia explained, as if speaking to a small child. "If you want to be a mage who lives a long, long life, you’d better stop relying solely on what you see."

  The doll continued its relentless assault, its blows falling like an unyielding downpour.

  Leonar groaned in pain, sensing his arms begin to go numb. Although the doll was made of straw, each impact piled on, making him feel as if his bones were about to shatter.

  'This piece of straw is going to kill me,' Leonar thought desperately.

  Trying to escape, he attempted to retreat, but the doll cornered him, leaving no room to maneuver.

  In a desperate bid, he tried to somersault backward to get away, but midway through the flip, a straw fist struck his back, sending him crashing face-first into the ground.

  The doll didn’t stop.

  Leonar tried to shield himself, yet every time he raised his arms, another blow found its mark.

  Meanwhile, Celestia laughed uncontrollably.

  "What on earth were you trying to do?" she asked between chuckles, as Leonar curled up on the ground.

  "Stop!" Leonar shouted, gasping for breath.

  With a snap of her fingers, Celestia halted the doll just before another blow could land.

  Leonar lay on the ground, struggling to breathe.

  "Any questions?" Celestia asked with a smile.

  Leonar sat up with great effort, rubbing his sore arms.

  "This training makes no sense," he complained. "I’m just getting beaten up with nothing I can do about it."

  Celestia drifted in the air, clearly enjoying the spectacle.

  "Even though it may seem pointless now, when you’re in a real fight you’ll thank me. Besides, it’ll help you figure out whether a fellow mage is competent or not."

  Leonar let out a bitter laugh.

  "A companion? Do you really think I’m going to make friends?"

  "Isn’t it obvious? You’ve chosen the path of a mage."

  Leonar snorted as he struggled to rise.

  "Haven’t you seen how I’ve ventured in and out of dungeons on my own?"

  "Sure, but... did you finish them?" Celestia asked so casually that Leonar fell silent.

  His mind drifted back to the dungeons he had explored— the first one he completed purely by accident, thanks to Eleonora, and the second, where he practically did nothing worthwhile.

  Celestia didn’t know this; her question was merely an assumption—and she hit the mark.

  Celestia let out a sigh.

  "Looks like I got it right."

  "I did finish one!" Leonar protested, offended.

  "And why didn’t you finish the one I was in?" she asked, her tone laced with curiosity.

  Leonar looked away.

  "I told you I was tired."

  Celestia laughed softly.

  "That only proves my point. No matter how strong you are, you have physical limits. There are monsters that can completely incapacitate a mage, and in dungeons you’re rarely facing one-on-one battles. Having companions is essential."

  Leonar grumbled, massaging his sore arm.

  "Alright, alright—I get your point, but I’d rather go it alone."

  Celestia watched him silently for a moment, then, with a mischievous sparkle in her voice, asked:

  "Have you rested yet?"

  Before Leonar could reply, she snapped her fingers, and the doll charged once more.

  "Wait, wait a minute!" Leonar shouted, raising his arms to block another blow.

  Celestia burst into laughter, spinning joyfully in the air.

  "Enjoy your training."