Fantasy Family Simulator (FFS)

The cool sensation of the ice cream made Rhett feel invigorated and refreshed. As he savored it, he recalled that according to his previous simulations, the capture of the remaining members of the evil alchemy organization had already been completed, and the interrogation results should be available by now. In another month, Lord Ambiru, the deputy commander of the canyon defense line, would be coming to conduct his ennoblement ceremony.

Thinking about this brought a wave of contentment to Rhett, and a smile crept onto his face. He then remembered that Relay's wedding was set for the 6th of this month. Since they had just returned to the territory today, there were only five days left to prepare for the event, so they needed to get to work quickly.

After finishing the harvest and planting of the frost sunflower seeds, Rhett took Relay back to the main castle.

Svetta was in the first-floor hallway, watering the potted plants by the windows. He was holding a red watering can and humming a cheerful tune. The lord's return had put him in a good mood.

"The sweltering summer is finally coming to an end, and I won't need to take a bath every night because of all the sweat," Svetta mused. "The cool autumn is right around the corner. Soon, I'll be able to pick wild okra and berries. But this year, I won't let Sharl handle it. Last year, I trusted him too much, and he didn't even notice when one of the okra blossoms was smeared with dog dung!"

"Hey, Svetta, I'm glad to find you here. I need your help with something important," Rhett said as he walked into the main castle, looking around until he spotted Svetta in his black coat.

Svetta snapped out of his thoughts, quickly put the watering can down against the wall, and hurried over to Rhett with a respectful expression. "Yes, my lord, please give your orders."

"It's a joyous occasion," Rhett said with a broad smile as he patted Relay on the shoulder. "While we were in Darm Town, Relay's marriage to Lady Kreena was finalized. The wedding is set for the 6th of this month. So, with only five days left, I want the manor and the castle to be decorated and prepared for the wedding."

"That's wonderful news! Congratulations, Master Relay! I wish you a happy marriage!" Svetta offered his sincere congratulations.

"Thank you, Mr. Svetta!" Relay replied with gratitude.

Svetta smiled and nodded before asking, "Do you have any specific ideas for the wedding decorations, my lord? We'll arrange everything according to your wishes."

"No need to ask me," Rhett said, shaking his head as he looked at his second son. "Relay should decide. It's his wedding, after all."

Relay didn't hesitate. He thoughtfully stroked his chin, then said, "I'd like the hallway on the first floor to be covered with flower petals. On the wedding day, I want the chandeliers to emit a blue glow. As for the rest of the decorations, I have no special requirements. The same general setup used for my brother's wedding will do."

"I see..." Rhett considered the idea for a moment. "Flowers are easy enough; we have plenty in the manor. To make the chandeliers emit a blue glow, we could use sapphire lampshades..."

Before Rhett could finish, Relay chimed in, "I'll take care of carving the sapphire lampshades myself. It'll make the occasion more meaningful."

"That's a great idea! You have access to the gems in the warehouse," Rhett agreed. After seeing Relay's impressive carving skills in the magic plant cultivation field, he felt confident that no one else was needed for the job.

The three of them made their way to the first-floor hall.

"I want the castle thoroughly cleaned every day over the next few days. If there are any damaged or worn-out chairs or tables, have Coudin make new ones immediately. I don't want any mishaps on the wedding day," Rhett instructed, glancing around at every corner.

"Understood, my lord. I will ensure that everything is meticulously taken care of and that Master Relay's wedding goes off without a hitch."

"Relay, where has Whitefur been lately? I haven't seen him since I returned," Rhett asked.

"He likes to play in the thorny forest. Ever since I took him there three months ago, he's been completely enamored with the place!" Relay replied with a hint of helplessness as he mentioned Whitefur.

"Ah, that makes sense. The Windstripe Tiger is a wild and energetic magical beast. Before it breaks through to the next level, hunting ordinary wild animals will only help its growth. Let it be!" As Rhett spoke, he thought of his Firefeather Eagle, which he had been feeding fire essence for some time. Even while away from the territory, he had his son continue the feeding. According to his calculations, it was due to hatch in about six months.

After roughly planning the wedding decorations, Rhett and Relay shared a cup of tea in the castle.

During this time, Relay requested to assess his training progress and begin the next phase of his magical training, which Rhett was happy to oblige.

The father and son headed to the training grounds.

"Relay, let's see how much you've improved over the past few months. Show me your spellcasting skills!" Rhett said as he conjured two stones.

Relay's eyes gleamed with anticipation. Reflecting on the results of his rigorous training over the past few months, he felt quite confident!

"I'm ready, Father!"

As soon as the words left his mouth, Rhett withdrew his fingers from between the two stones and pushed them together by half a centimeter.

"The usual rule applies: your water arrow must pass between the two stones without leaving a single mark. If you can do it multiple times without any mistakes, I'll approve your advancement to the next phase of magical training!"

"Deal!" Relay said eagerly. He focused his mental energy and quickly formed a water arrow, aiming it at a slightly downward angle in front of him.

With a "whoosh," the water arrow shot through the center of the stones.

Rhett's eyes lit up. From the trajectory alone, he could tell that it was a flawless shot—no chance of failure!

When he approached to inspect the stones, sure enough, there wasn't a single scratch on them.

Giving Relay a thumbs-up, Rhett encouraged him, "Well done! Now, do it three more times. If you succeed every time, you'll have met the standard!"

Relay nodded seriously and focused on the two stones. He repeated the process, launching three more water arrows in quick succession.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

All three arrows flew cleanly through the stones, and Rhett smiled. Just from watching the trajectory, he could tell they were perfect.

Relay passed the test!

Relay excitedly rushed over to inspect the stones himself and, seeing no marks, he exclaimed, "Father, I did it! I met your requirements!"

"Haha, well done! Keep up the momentum!" Rhett praised. "Since you've passed, we can move on to the second phase of training!"

"Please go ahead, Father," Relay said, adopting a posture of attentive listening.

Rhett began to explain, "Before we start, it's important to understand that with the water arrow spell, the casting point is fixed, but the target's position often changes. Hitting a stationary target is just the most basic requirement. In actual combat, most enemies will be moving, so the next phase of training will focus on improving your accuracy against moving targets."

"You could call it moving target practice," Rhett said, casually tossing a stone in his hand. "From now on, when you practice this, make sure someone helps you by tossing the stones."

"I understand, Father," Relay said, raising an eyebrow with confidence. "But for me, hitting a moving target isn't a big deal. Before you came back, I practiced on my own... and I hit the target every time."

"Oh? Really?" Rhett's face took on a mischievous smile. "Last time, I told you that a true master always maintains the heart of an apprentice. It seems you haven't fully grasped that concept yet..."

Hearing this, Relay's expression turned serious. He realized that this might be more challenging than he had initially thought.

In response to Relay's puzzled look, Rhett manipulated the stone with his mental energy, creating a small hole in the center. The hole was only slightly larger than the diameter of a water arrow.

Seeing this, Relay's pupils contracted. He connected the dots from his father's words about moving target practice, and a sense of unease grew in his heart.

"Could it be... that I have to shoot through that moving hole?!"

"Come on, my son. I'm going to toss this stone high into the air, and you'll need to adjust your position, spellcasting angle, and predict the stone's trajectory as it flips and moves. Your goal is to shoot the water arrow through the hole!"

"Now, can you still hit the target every time?"

Relay was dumbfounded. He gulped, wanting to say, "This is too hard! Forget hitting it every time—I might not even hit it once!"

But finally, he took a deep breath, recalling his father's words: "Nothing is impossible if you set your mind to it." Resolute, he said, "Let's do it, Father. I want to try!"

"Good. Believe in yourself—taking that first step means you're already halfway to success!" Rhett encouraged him before tossing the stone over ten meters into the air.

Relay's expression became intense as he tracked the stone's trajectory with his head, eyes locking onto the hole. But just finding the hole wasn't enough—he needed to find the perfect path and predict the stone's spin and movement, then get into position and fire the water arrow through the ever-changing opening.

Every step was a challenge! Stringing them together into a flawless execution was even more difficult!

Relay felt his head spin. After taking a few steps, just as he thought he had a shot, the stone had already hit the ground.

The practical difficulty was far beyond anything Relay had anticipated.

"Ugh..." Relay let out a long sigh, staring at the stone on the ground with a sense of defeat.

Compared to this moving target practice, the fixed target training seemed like child's play.

"Don't forget, you can use wind elements to increase your movement speed," Rhett reminded him.

"Of course!" Relay's eyes lit up with realization. He adjusted his stance and gritted his teeth, saying, "Let's try again, Father!"

By this time, Rhett had conjured over a dozen stones with holes in them. He picked one up and tossed it into the air.

This time, with wind elements swirling around him, Relay's movements were quicker. But still, the stone landed on the ground unscathed.

In the constantly shifting trajectories, finding the perfect path and reacting in time to it had blocked his way.

"Again!"

Failure.

"Again!"

Failure.

…

The entire afternoon, Relay spent in a cycle of failure and recovery, completely worn down by the small stones.

Rhett had piled up nearly two meters of practice stones by then.

As he watched Relay sitting on the ground, meditating to recover his mental strength, Rhett felt a sense of pride. Failure wasn't something to fear; what was truly terrifying was shrinking back from challenges.

"I've prepared enough practice stones here for about three days. I'll keep adding more as needed," Rhett said.

"Thank you, Father!" Relay opened his eyes, showing signs of exhaustion.

Though meditation could restore his mental strength, maintaining such intense concentration for an entire afternoon had drained his energy.

"Are you tired?" Rhett asked.

Relay remained silent for a few seconds, then replied, "I am, but I'll keep going!"

"Good. Failure is the mother of success. Every time you fail, you're gaining experience for that final success. Your job is to keep your determination intact and push through to the end!"

"I will!" Relay's face showed resolve. Then, after a pause, he asked, "Father, can I ask you a question?"

"Oh? What is it?" Rhett asked with interest as he sat down beside him.

"When you were training in magic, aside from the improvements you made in battle, how did others help you practice?"

Rhett thought for a moment, organizing his words before replying, "I'm an earth-element mage, so it wasn't too difficult. I'd have a knight hold a stick or a wooden board, mark a point on it, and have them move it around randomly. My job was to hit that point with a spell. It was a crude method.

"Or in the fall, I'd kick a tree and use an earth spike to pierce as many falling leaves as possible. In winter, I'd aim at snowflakes. In spring and summer, I'd target insects...

"In short, there are countless methods. What hinders a person's growth isn't usually external conditions, but their determination and perseverance." Rhett gazed at the clouds, lost in thought.

"That makes sense," Relay nodded, feeling that his fatigue had lightened somewhat.

Talking about the battlefield had stirred something in Relay's mind. Curiously, he asked, "Father, what happened to the comrades who helped you train back then?"

Hearing this, Rhett fell silent for a moment before replying, "Actually, for the first few years, I did have comrades helping me. But as they fell in battle one by one, I'd make new friends, get close to them, and have them help me train... only for them to die as well. Eventually, I didn't want to repeat that process anymore, so I found other ways."

"I'm sorry... I shouldn't have brought up painful memories," Relay apologized. After a moment of reflection, he changed the subject. "Father, is there a third phase of magical training? If so, what does it involve?"