Story of a Mercenary

Mark frowned slightly at Lord Losler's statement but did not make move to correct him. He had been hired under the terms that he would prepare Jien for the academy through any means necessary as long as they did not cause harm. This, however, did not mean that he agreed with the thought of forcing someone to take a path that they absolutely did not wish to. Back in his youth he had been forced into responsibilities by his own family to help them manage their territory against his will. This had led to some not small amount of resentment and ultimately led him to choose life as a mercenary over that of managing his family's estate. In turn after graduating from the academy he found himself with this offer and accepted. Now seeing that his student was rather adamant about the path that he wished to pursue but that his new student's parent did not want to at least hear him out, it left a sour taste in his mouth.

Rather than trying to contradict Lord Losler's statement Mark decided on a different approach. He wished to appease both the one who hired him and the one he would be mentoring in the coming years. He looked from Lord Losler to Jien before giving a light sigh. "While I have indeed been told to prepare you by any means necessary, I would prefer this process to be more of a cooperation than a struggle." Mark spoke calmly, focusing more on Jien's reaction than on Earl's. Jien, though not accepting the statement outright, paid close attention to what Mark was going to say next. This was his attempt to remain negotiable though he truly did not wish to participate in this type of training. He had just completed the unsealing rite, finally gaining access to the mana that he had spent his youth reading about. He had gotten his first spells and still needed to spend time to decipher them before diving into more magical studies. There was yet so much to learn, but his father wanted him to burn his remaining time before being sent off to the academy doing physical exercises and training to be some kind of muscle head.

Seeing that Jien was keeping a silent calm while observing him Mark continued his pitch. "I may not be a pure mage, but like everyone that has gone through the academy I have gone through courses in regard to not just the martial path but also the arcane path and its many subdivisions" he stated calmly. "As long as you work with me through the martial aspect, I will be willing to spend as much time on the arcane training as you would like within reason." This was Mark's attempt to get Jien's cooperation from the start. He understood that the young lord Losler did not want to deal with anything that did not match his desired path, but the military academy would not just have activities regarding the arcane path. Every recruit would be required to go through all mandatory courses before being able to choose their preferred task and there was no expulsion or leniency, only punishment for those who did not work to complete the full set of required courses and trainings.

Lord Losler remained stoic and calm as he observed this back and forth. He believed that Jien needed to be more serious about other topics than just magic. He may have finally gotten access to mana, but the world did not revolve around mages. Magic was powerful and could do miraculous things, but you needed the physical performance to be alive to use it. Having gone through the military academy himself in his youth he fully understood the limits of someone who only focused on the arcane arts, and he did not want to grieve the loss of his son because he had not been strict enough to have him trained in the martial path as well. Only those who could walk both paths firmly were truly as safe as they could be.

Jien seemed to think over the proposition for a few silent moments, continuing to sip his tea before setting the teacup on the table and looking firmly into Mark's eyes. With a sigh he responded, "I will be in your care then" before standing up and walking around the table to stretch out his arm. Mark smiled as he shook the young man's hand before turning, giving a light bow to Lord Losler and then stepping back into his previous position. Lord Losler looked to Jien and with a slight smile on his face stood up and patted Jien on the shoulder. "I am sure that you will find this arrangement as positive in the coming months. For now, Mark will get settled in the manor and then you will start your training tomorrow morning." With that Earl walked out of the room to attend to his duties. While they had not had their usual discussion regarding the state of their lands, their meal had finished, and Lord Losler had much to attend to.

This left Mark and Jien alone in the dining room, as the staff had all left shortly after the Earl had walked away. Jien looked at Mark one last time before walking out of the room as well without saying another word. He only had this day to focus on what he wanted for the entire time. Come tomorrow morning he was sure that though Mark had told him that they could focus on arcane topics while not working on the martial path, that he would likely not actually have nearly as much time as he wanted. He walked with quick strides toward his room to continue reading Grafler's Theorem and ruminating on the feelings from the two spells received during his unsealing rite.

Mark looked slightly concerned. He did not know his way around the manor and had not had time to find out where he was staying or where his items now were. He had arrived early that morning and had not had time to see the manor, instead having his first meeting with Lord Losler immediately after arriving and then following him to the dining room to meet Jien. Luckily for him Runa came to his rescue, walking into the dining room after Earl and Jien had left in their own directions. She walked up to Mark and gave him a bow before offering to lead him to his room in the guest house, stating that his items had already been delivered to his room. As they walked to the guest house Runa made sure to point out the various areas of the manner and explain the usual routine. She also took him to the training field used by the manor's guards, where he could work to train Jien in the martial path. There wasn't much to the space, just brown dirt and a small shed like building to store training weapons and other equipment.

Soon Mark was led to the guest house and shown his room so that he could settle in and prepare for the coming days.