Chapter 32 - Old Wounds

After Arthur's stunning declaration, he made sure to have his guards introduce themselves and inform him of their cultivation levels before they left so he could better use them in the future. Jeren was unsurprisingly the highest cultivation level at the fifth circle, while the rest were evenly split between third and fourth circles.

Now alone, Arthur decided to go over his notes on capturing spirits while he waited for Senna to bring him breakfast.

"You really gonna give them spells?" Kyren curiously asked as he floated around the room.

Arthur looked up from his research journal and glanced around the drawing room to ensure they were alone. "It benefits me if they become more powerful."

"It also makes them a threat to you." Kyren warned.

"Not if I employ a system that benefits them and relies on my safety to function properly. As of right now, they're hungry for spells, and once they're full, I'll find another way to tie them to me or simply replace the ones who have a weak sense of loyalty.

The merit system should filter out the bad eggs anyway, and once I complete my necromancy spell, I won't need guards to protect me."

Kyren clicked his tongue. "Speaking of bad eggs, baldy's gonna be a problem."

Arthur couldn't help but laugh at Kyren's simple yet effective nicknaming skills. "It's too early to tell whether Bannon will cause problems. It's beneficial to have someone around who's not afraid to speak their mind, but If he becomes a cancer amongst them, then I'll just cut him out."

After Arthur spoke his thoughts on the matter, he returned to notes until Senna arrived with breakfast and a guest.

"I saw your men carrying out a body earlier. I hope all is well?" Fenric asked after exchanging greetings.

"Just some minor troubles, nothing to be concerned about. It's good that you stopped by since I have a shameless request to make. Once my arm heals, I was hoping you might teach me some basics about fighting as a battlemage.

My battle against that abyssal was too close and made me realize how much I lacked concerning my combat ability. I'm not asking to learn your spells. Even I'm not that shameless, but I hope you could take some time to teach me a thing or two while on the campaign."

"What the shit, kid?" Kyren gasped, looking appalled. "Am I invisible or something? If you want to learn how to fight, why are you asking pointy-mustache instead of me?"

As always, Kyren's ability to pick out the most distinguishing feature of a person was as strong as his lack of self-awareness. Arthur intended to make use of Kyren in the future, but he felt having an instructor he could physically interact with was better for a beginner than an ethereal one.

"That may be a problem." Fenric paused and appeared to think to himself for a moment. "I imagine you don't want eyes on you while we train?"

Kyren floated over to Fenric and peeked inside his head as Arthur was forced to watch the strange scene. "He's only a sixth circle. I'm stronger than this guy, so you should obediently learn from me instead."

Arthur ignored Kyren and nodded to Fenric. "That's correct."

"It's not a problem while we remain within the empire's borders, but once we enter Bern, it would be dangerous to leave the camp. If we ran into a large unit of enemy scouts, then I'm not confident in our chances of escape."

"Ah!" Arthur realized he had made a lapse in judgment. It still hadn't hit him yet that he was about to experience the brutal horrors of medieval warfare with the added destruction of fantasy magic.

His mind had been so focused the past few days that he inadvertently downplayed the realities of war and treated it like a simple stop on his way to Helagaust. Of course, his belief in the superior Ollerin troops played a part, and his father's words made it seem like a cakewalk, which also softened the seriousness of the situation.

"Even if it's just while we're in the empire, any help would be appreciated." Arthur said, feeling somewhat embarrassed.

Fenric nodded, agreeing to his request. "I came because you mentioned wanting to join the war council meeting this morning. Do you still intend to join us?"

"I completely forgot about it..." Arthur tapped his finger on the desk and thought for a moment before shaking his head. "Not today. I still need to put in an order with a blacksmith for armor and fetch a few things in the city.

If you could, please make a note of our route and inform Baron Iken about my arrangements so he can find me if needed."

"If it's armor you're after, I have some lying around that might fit you, lord. It isn't adamantite, but it should do the trick."

Adamantite armor was the best of the best when it came to fantasy metals in Nithe. It was lightweight, strong, and had an inherent mana-absorbing property that allowed mages to saturate it with their own mana, and due to that property, any spells that came into contact with it would have significantly diminished power.

Admantite's powerful properties didn't necessarily lay in the armor itself but rather the mana that a mage could radiate from it. Since mana didn't like mixing with mana from another source, adamantite armor essentially created a sort of magnetic field around the wearer that diffused most of the force behind a spell before it impacted the armor itself.

It didn't make the wearer invincible, but an otherwise deadly spell would be survivable in most cases. Unfortunately, the metal was scarce and mind-bogglingly expensive. It wasn't something Arthur couldn't dream of acquiring at the moment despite his urge to do so.

Arthur shook his head again. "Thanks for the offer, but I intend to purchase some trinitite mail for now. Besides, I need to get some repairs done while I'm there anyway."

Trinitite was like adamantite's weaker little brother. It had the same properties except with a greatly diminished effect. It could only absorb about a third of the mana adamantite could, which meant that it had less mana available to radiate and diffuse magic.

Arthur decided on chainmail mainly due to time and financial constraints. The army would begin marching in a few days, and there wasn't enough time to make a custom set of plate armor that he'd grow out of within a year or two anyway.

Meanwhile, chainmail could be quickly tailored to Arthur's body size by removing some chain links from one that was already made. It would also be easy to modify as his body grew.

However, even though it was nearly a dozen times cheaper than adamantite, trinitite was prohibitively expensive for the majority of the empire's population. Arthur would likely have to dish out around two thousand Riis for his armor, but his safety was worth such a cost.

"Trinitites a good choice." Fenric nodded approvingly. "I'll be off then, lord. If you need anything while I'm away, ask for Kale. He's got a good head on his shoulders, unlike Mara and Alan."

Arthur waved him off and asked Senna to have his carriage prepared before eating his breakfast. Once finished, he grabbed Foster and Jeren before departing.

He chose to take Jeren along because he appeared to be someone the other guards respected, and Arthur surmised that acquiring Jeren's loyalty would force the others to follow suit.

"You're noble-born, yes?" Arthur asked Jeren as the carriage departed.

"That's correct, lord. I'm the second-born son of Baron Orna. You likely wouldn't have heard of my insignificant family. Our lands are small, and we have no achievements to our name." Jeren replied.

Arthur brought his hand to his mouth and pretended to think in an exaggerated manner. "I was told by my tutor that a second-born son is a backup in case something happens to the first-born. Since you're here, does that mean your older brother already inherited the barony?"

Jeren wore a troubled expression and hesitated to speak. "...No, lord. I left of my own volition."

It was clear to Arthur that there was more to the story, but he didn't push for answers. "What about you, Foster? You've never told me about your family before."

Foster awkwardly scratched his cheek. "I'm not a noble, young master. My ancestor purchased a baronetcy a few hundred years ago when the emperor raised funds to conquer the Hessil kingdom. That's how my family ended up with the Welt surname."

Baronets weren't considered nobles in Ollerin, and the title wasn't inheritable either, making Foster's family commoners the moment his ancestor died. The title was only granted as a way for the imperial family to raise money, but many wealthy merchants jumped at the opportunity to increase their status.

Jeren's eyes lit up. "Your surname's Welt?"

"Is his family famous?" Arthur asked, feeling curious about Jeren's surprised expression.

"Yes, very. The Welt family is one of the wealthiest merchant families in the empire." Jeren explained.

Now it was Arthur's turn to be shocked. "Why haven't you ever told me this before?"

Foster shrugged, looking embarrassed. "My family's wealth is nothing compared to the Revan's, young master. It would be like a farmer swinging a sword before a master swordsman and claiming they were skilled."

Arthur stared at Foster, who appeared to be more of an enigma than he initially thought. "Why are you serving as a guard if your family is so wealthy?"

"It's nothing interesting, young master." Foster shook his head and turned his gaze to the carriage window. "I just wanted to forge my own path in life without being constrained by my family."

His response sounded to Arthur like a mobster telling a civilian they work in sanitation. It seemed to be a rehearsed half-truth to cover up the lie.

Much like Jeren, there was definitely more to the story than Foster let on, but he didn't see a reason to force open old wounds to sate his curiosity. Arthur considered him a friend, so he'd let Foster open up about his past when he was ready.

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