Bab 9: Education
Sam inspected Leo's card. He took some moments, but after that he could tell him what was written.
"As expected, your race is of dwarven origin. Blood type is O. That is good. In case of massive bloodloss, many are capable of donating blood." He whispered, faint enough for only Leo to hear.
Nervous, he asked what interested him the most on that magic card:
"What about my element type and age?"
He was tense. In the case of no element affinity, can he be a proper adventurer in the future?
Will his chances be more limited?
"Do I have even a affinity? Come on, don't torture me like this!"
Feeling superior because of the might he had, Sam let Leo fidget a bit.
But soon he could not bear to contain the news, and said:
"Worry not. As expected, the elements you can control are fire and earth. Quite amazing, to be able to wield two kinds of Magic. To use it in the future, you need a teacher to-"
"And the age?" Leo asked urging.
"14, older than we thought." He whispered.
"That means you will awaken very soon, and will enter adulthood."
'So I am already 14. Then soon I can use magic, forces of nature. How awesome.' Leo thought.
"You can turn around, Mary. We looked over it, and it seems to be correct." Sam said.
Mary turned around, smiling charmingly.
"Congratulations of becoming an adventurer. Be careful in the future and do your best. Nervous?"
"You bet. But I'm aware of the danger and start slowly. At least till I awaken."
Leo assured her.
She smiled even sweeter.
"Good. It's not common that a young sprout is aware. Many have too much energy, often hurting themselves."
"Is there a free room here for my little friend? He has no home to call his own, nor family to stay at.
And our shed is no solution in the long term.
"Sure. So, Caesar. You can stay here on the first floor, second room to the left."
She pointed towards the stair right to the entrance.
"Up there, just make sure to keep the room in order and don't practice magic there.
We have a training field behind the guild for that.
You can live here 2 weeks total. Time absent for missions not included."
She handed him a key, with the room number 4 on a plate.
"Honestly, keep your valuables close to your body, as the locks are nothing special."
Concerned for his newly acquired equipment , he asked her:
"Are there many thieves around? I thought other leave their stuff in a backroom, only getting it when needed."
"We have rarely a case of theft here, but on the upper floor we have no eyes. The room down here is only a short term solution. Adventurers only use it when they know they go out soon again, also paying a fee."
Leo understood. He thanked Mary again for her guidance, walking towards the massive board, picked with requests of various kinds.
The Guild began to get lively. More and more people rushed in, either queuing up at a counter, picking up Quests or sitting down at the tables, discussion or laughing.
From the scarred man with tattoos all over his body, to the beautiful women in a robe with staff, many kinds of Adventurers came in and left again.
The girl with dark green hair and tight armor left already. She left with her appearance a lasting impression on Leo.
"The beginner quests are on the left. Let's look for one suited, maybe something in the village."
As said, they made their way towards the left side. Standing besides slightly older adventurers, Sam began to read roughly through the requests.
Same did Leo, albeit not understanding what was written on it.
"Say, are more people not able to read like me?"
'Because if so, how do the other adventurers take requests?' He wondered.
"There are certainly many, but most only child or orphans. The previous King wrote down a law. Each parent has to teach their children basic math, literature and common sense. This makes it easier to do taxes, take quest and everything in general.
So the people who can't do that are getting fewer."
"Isn't a smart nation not harder to control? Is the king not afraid of a uprising when he does something doubtful?"
"How come? When the people are smart, the king cannot risk to make such decisions lightly, and thinks twice.
That is good for us, and him at the end, too. After all it's easier for him to get People who can work in positions of greater importance."
He said, still looking at the board, occasional taking a paper, inspecting it, and putting it back.
"And to calculate 2 plus 2 and reading some words is nothing what we would call now extremely smart nowadays."
Leo was impressed. The world here was keen to get the people literate, even writing it down to a law.
'I have to learn to read fast, or else how can I work?'
"But I can't read, and have not always your help. How can I take quests then?"
"Just tell the staff what kind of request you want. It's the middle counter, with the picture of a paper and feather."
Leo turned back to take a closer look at the counter.
'Now I see. There are carvings and pictures. Let's see..., the left one has a ear and money as a sign, middle as explained and the right a picture of an ID card. Handy.'
He flipped back, in time to see how Sam took a paper, noticeable satisfied.
"Let's sit down, I explain this."
He said, guiding him to one of the few empty tables, sitting down and waiting for Leo.
He then began:
"This is a good quest for you. The client wants a trainings buddy for his son, who is 15. Preferable the same age. Previous fighting experience not needed. Most likely you will train some combat with weapons. As you never swung your pick, this is also a good training for you. I don't know the client though"
"Where do I have to go, and what's the duration?"
"Somewhere around by the other gateway. There were some new houses build recently.
I guess you have to be the sparring partner for some time, a definite length is not mentioned."
He overlooked the request again. "Yep, that is the most important stuff. Want it?"
"Yeah, better start with something like that. I need that training for sure."
"But still be careful. Even if it's just training, there can be accidents. Broken bones, cut fingers and similar."
He didn't wait for Leos answer, stands up and said:
"Then submit it by the counter." He handed Leo the paper, and was about to leave.
"Where are you going" Leo asked. To be left alone suddenly, after relying on Sam for some time, felt empty.
'I really have fear to be alone.' He thought.
"You have a place to stay, gear, an ID and a job. If you need us, you can come to our house.
But for your sake, try to stay on your own feet. Their won't be anyone protecting you out there.
I get that you are young and lost. But honestly, the earlier, the better. Till you know where you came from, you are on your own."
He left, leaving these heavy words for Leo.
Now alone, in a village where he knows few and a dangerous world, he felt truly alone.
'No, I have at least Sam, and Thomas. Although I don't want to depend too much on them. They already helped me so much. First I have to repay them.'
He vowed, feeling somewhat better. The feeling of independence is awesome, and relieving.
He lifted his body up, grabbing the paper and walking over to the counter. A man with a nice appearance was working.
"Hello, I would like to take this request." Leo said, somewhat nervous.
"Your ID please, the wooden one is enough." The man added.
Leo handed the ID over, and received it back shortly after.
"The client is a Mr. Sieg, his daughter is in need of some training. His house is from the east gate the second street, third house on the right. Hard to miss, as a gargoyle statue is guarding the front.
Here, a sign that the guild approved of you accepting the request."
Leo was handed a circular object, a tree with many branches carved on it and shining in a bronze color tone.
He inspected the little insignia, sucked in by the detailed craftsmanship.
"First time, huh?" The man concluded. He began to explain:
"The tree is the Insignia project the Guild, its many branches representing our influence in many towns, villages and cities. Always to produce new leafs, and supporting the earth and its fundaments."
"A significant meaning. Impressive." He awed.
He pocketed the Insignia, leaving the Guild and its colorful environment.
He found himself back on the road, all the way to the second street from the east gate.
'Here it should be...' he figured.
And soon he searched and found the stone gargoyle, guarding the gate of a house, big enough to fit Sam's house in four times.
From the front he could make out a training field with wooden dummies placed around.
He opened the gate, followed a footpath and arrived before a massive wooden door.
He used the handle on it and knocked three times.
A healthy *tock* rang out. Leo heard footsteps, and a maid opened the door.
She appeared seasoned, some wrinkles adding a elderly charm. The hair turned from Brown to silver, and were held in place with needles as a bun. Her clothes were a clean, long light grey dress. The top half was open, but a white chemise buttoned up to her collarbone. The eyes, brown in color, looked down on Leo, but with a gentle smile on her lips.
"Welcome, dear guest. I'm Silvia, maid in the house of Mr. Siegfried, also called Mr. Sieg.
May I know the reason for you visit?"
She asked in a polite, but also demanding tone.
Not backing up, but even stepping forward a bit, he said:
"I am adventurer Caesar. I came from the guild after accepting a request to train with the daughter of Mr. Sieg."
To confirm, he searched in his pocket for the item from the guild. After showing it to Silvia, her bit of hostility dissipated.
"So it's like this. Quite young to be independent, but oh well. You seem to fit the criteria. Did you had your awakening already?" She asked curious.
"Not yet, but I expect it soon. I just recover from an illness, so it has some affect on my body, excuse me. The aftereffect is the loss of some memories, so bear with me if I ask strange questions."
'At least this is the scenario I came up with. Like this I can get some information without being too suspicious.'
"Oh my, what a terrible faith. I hope for a soon recovery." She replied politely.
"Come in, I will introduce you to Mr. Siegfried and his daughter, Miss Sophie.
They should be in the study, learning."
She bid him in, and after stepping inside, the dark wood as the walls produced a calming atmosphere. A decent carpet laid on the floor, and fitting furniture was placed around. Following behind Silvia, he came across the kitchen.
The smell of roasted meat filled his nostrils, and the sizzling of fat watering his mouth.
He shacked his head hard, reminding that he was on a job.
Silvia pretended to be oblivious to his behavior. She led him to a door, knocking on it.
"Mr. Sieg, Miss Sophie, a kind young man accepted the request you had me put up in the guild."
She said through the door.
"Someone accepted so fast? Great! Come in, come in. Let me see this young lad," wanted a manly but friendly voice.
Silvia opened the door and let Leo in.
"So, and you are?"
Status Power Mingguan
-- Peringkat
Power 
-- Power
stone