But for a Slime

Kukurnal looked back up to Joe, unaware of Joe’s antics and quickly taught Joe what he needed to know about apprenticeship and its purpose and function in society. It was a pretty quick and mean description and explanation, but Joe was able to understand it relatively easily as it seemed to hold many similarities to several of the apprenticeships he’d experienced throughout South East Asia while he was training over the couple decades he lived there with his family. Although, the apprenticeships were much more specific and limited to exactly what Joe was learning at the time, and not so all encompassing as what was described to him. The apprenticeship Kukurnal described were more reminiscent of feudal or ancient style apprenticeship. For all intents and purposes, Garnedell was now his responsibility, through and through. Joe was now his legal guardian and responsible for everything, including clothing, feeding, and raising the kid. Joe was also on the hook if Garnedell perpetrated any illegalities before his maturation. Well, I’m glad I got a good kid, then! The topic came to an abrupt end when Garnedell returned with the siblings and Joe smiled as he saw them sit. Well… going to do the rite sometime today, then? Wait…

Joe turned to Kukurnal quickly, “One last question. The rite. Public or private?”

“Public is always best.”

“Just anywhere? Or is there a special place?”

“Usually it is done at the master’s place of work, but as an adventurer, anywhere is fine.”

Joe nodded in thankfulness towards Kukurnal before turning to the three kids as they sat, “Well, took you guys long enough! Is everything OK?”

Zilnek looked to Joe quickly before ducking his head, “I apologize, sir. We were…”

“Alright! None of that, now,” Joe responded with a hint of heat, “I told you before! We’re friends. Relax.” Joe threw in a big smile and held it as he looked towards Zilnek.

Finally, after a few moments, Zilnek gave a whisper of a smile and Joe nodded before slapping a palm on his shoulder, “We’ll get you relaxed. You’re kids. You need your sleep. I’m not angry or anything. It’s fine.”

The two siblings smiled a bit at that and the group turned to getting their meals. Kukurnal, however, seemed unable to hold himself back anymore and finally began assaulting Joe with more questions, “So, our discussion of apprenticeships before seems to tell me that such things are rare amongst your people?”

“Well, they do exist, but their purpose is quite a bit different from what’s happening here.”

“How so?”

“Well. Apprenticeships… uh… I guess there are two kinds. The old school kind is a bit like what you have here, but we don’t do that anymore. Most are just one year or less where people … well, if I’m cynical, apprentices are cheap or even free labor and companies pretend to teach you how to do the job. What they’re supposed to do is to actually give experience for you so that you are ready to actually do the job, whatever it is, when you finish your apprenticeship and you’re ready to work.”

“One year apprenticeship? How can anyone learn?”

“Oh. You don’t… well… you’re supposed to learn … something? I guess? During your apprenticeship, if you have one, but most of learning is done in school.”

“School?”

“Mmhmm…”

“School. The nobility have schools, but… are you a noble?”

Joe smiled at that, laughing a bit, “No. I’m not a noble. Schools where I am from, for most countries, are free and required for all people.”

“Free!?” The siblings and Garnedell interjected at that point, surprised awe intertwining through their interjection.

“Yup. It sucks.”

All three kids gawked in shock at this point, “What do you mean?”

“School sucks! It’s annoying. So long, never ending. And takes so much of your life. It’s annoying!”

“If I had the chance to join a school, I would give everything,” Kilniara sighed wistfully.

“Well, I guess I can see how you guys would want it. It certainly gives you a better life… it gives the whole society a better life, so I shouldn’t harsh on it so much, but… still. It’s just so boring and long!”

Kukurnal nodded, “Four years is a long time, but your gains are significant.”

“Four years? Nah… more like twelve years just for the basic stuff!”

Kukurnal actually blinked his eyes in shock, “Twelve! Years!”

The conversation deteriorated from there and Joe spent the time explaining modern First World education systems to the fascinated Kukurnal. Their breakfast came a short while later and Kukurnal machine-gunned questions at Joe while the kids also threw in a couple of questions of their own. Joe answered as best as he could, but refused to give up his breakfast for the answers and only answered sparingly until his breakfast was finished. He then spent another ten or so minutes answering more questions while he waited for the rest to finish off their meals. Just when breakfast was almost finished, their conversation was interrupted by the approach of two soldier types. Joe saw them coming from the bar and realized that they were coming towards him so he sat up and turned his attention towards them. The rest, realizing something was going, turned to see two soldiers stopping at their table.

* * *

The spymaster took the lead as the two soldiers of Lord Grugtrim came forward. The spymaster, now close enough to their quarry, was able to follow the life essence compass that the life seer had created for them, it’s tiny bead of light directing them towards a young man sitting around a table with three other youths and an older priest. The spymaster came upon the table and blinked a bit in surprise when their quarry actually initiated the conversation.

“Hello. What can I do for you,” the young man at the table said to them.

“You are Joe? Your apprentice is Garnedell?” The spymaster asked, wishing to verify the man’s identity.

“Yes. I am Joe. And this is my apprentice, Garnedell. What do you want?”

“You met and fought the knight Toogarn?”

“Who? Who’s Toogarn?”

“The knight you fought in the forest outside of Lakeside.”

“I do remember defending myself from a greedy asshole in the forest outside lakeside. That was no knight, though.”

“You did not fight the knight Toogarn?” Did he not say he had fought Toogarn? Why the sudden change, is he fearful?

Their mark sighed with some exasperation, “I said… never mind. Yes, I did fight the person who attacked me, whoever that was.”

“Come with us,” the two men turned away and started to leave the inn.

“Sorry, what,” Joe retorted quickly, seeming to be angered.

The two men stopped, looking back at Joe with some confusion and the spymaster repeated himself, “I said come.”

“Why?”

The spymaster looked to the scout, shock easily seen on the scout although the spymaster did well to cover his own surprise, “Come, in the name of Lord Grugtrim, Baron of Soonesia, Rider of the Golden Gryphon, Sword Magister of His Majesty, Paragon Duelist, and Key of the Queen!”

“Huh… nice name, but, no.”

This time, the spymaster was unable to control his face, eyebrows quirking slightly at the blunt rudeness of the man. He took a few moments to control himself even as he laid a hand on the scout, calming him, “You reject Lord Grugtrim’s request?”

“I wasn’t requested. I was commanded. I don’t really appreciate commands.”

This time, the spymaster allowed a bit of his displeasure to settle on his brows, “And I do not appreciate belligerence.”

“Fascinating. So do I! Maybe if you hadn’t been so belligerent, this would be a very different conversation right now.”

The spymaster looked to the scout before simply nodding slightly and looking back to Joe, satisfaction rising in his heart as he waited for what was to come. Scouts were not the best at expressing their Presence, but scouts’ efforts in suppressing their own often led them to be experts in Manifesting as well. The satisfaction was short lived as he saw the man completely unaffected although the three youths, as expected, were overwhelmed by the bleed through of the Presence Manifested at their quarry. His exasperated cry quickly drowned out the satisfaction in worried caution.

“Seriously? Not this again! He better stop now or I’ll make him stop, man of Baron Grugtrim or not!”

The spymaster quickly waved off the scout, both exchanging meaningful glances as they quickly reconsidered their options.

“Sir, please. Lord Grugtrim requests your presence.”

“Politeness does wonders, does it not? But it’s a bit too little too late! Why does he want me? I have nothing to do with him.”

“He wishes to know what happened to his good knight.”

“And he needs me to come to do that?”

“He would prefer it.”

“I cannot just give you a report myself?”

“The Lord would like to hear the words himself.”

Joe sighed and stood up, “This will finish by lunch, right?”

“What?”

“I’ll be able to return by lunch, yes?”

“He lives a weeks’ ride away.”

“A week! I don’t have time to waste on that! I’m sorry! We are much too busy. I have way too much training to do to spend a week simply to travel, then a week to return! I was planning to conquer a dungeon today! My words will not change whether they are here or to him directly. Ask for a priest of Baldur, pay for his truth telling. Then you will know I speak truth.”

The spymaster immobilized in shock at those words, the scout joining him as the words seemed to freeze the very air. Conquer a dungeon!? They almost missed the last of his statement but when understanding came through, the spymaster leapt at the offering, not wishing to antagonize the man any longer.

“Yes, certainly! That seems an excellent suggestion. Will you be willing to wait while the… my man runs to get a priest of Baldur?”

“Sure. Sounds good.”

The man then settled back in his seat with his compatriots, enjoying a camaraderie that set the spymaster at ease. A kind man to his companions is likely to be restrained. How strong is... My Lord must know of this man and his plans, maybe?

As the spymaster sidled forward, Joe noticed the man standing and quickly reached out to grab a spare chair from a nearby empty table.

“Sit, man. Don’t just stand there. Makes me nervous,” Joe smiled despite the subtle threat hidden in his statement. Nervous man are men prepared for action. In spite of the hidden danger, the spymaster found the man congenial and relaxed. As he listened, he realized the man was preparing his apprentices for a dungeon exploration planned for that day. It seemed that the Acokzau were new apprentices, as the man… Joe asked if they desired to join. The two seemed eager, and as they went through their plans, he began to feel comfortable enough to join in.

“May I ask which dungeon you plan to conquer?”

“Well, today, we’re just going to do the beginner one. The others we’ll do after. But any benefit, even from a beginner dungeon, is worth it. Am I right?”

Any benefit! What strength does this man have to think so little of conquering a dungeon… Wait… others? “You are going to conquer the other dungeons?

“Hmm… yeah. If we can, of course. We’ll conquer the weakest and finish of with the expert dungeon. After that, well… hmm…,” the man seemed to drift off into his own thought, muttering under his breath, “Definitely might be worth it to conquer dungeons as we train. Get more bang for the buck.” The man seemed to quickly come back to the group, jumping in with a quick question, “Hey. You guys mind if we make a list of all the dungeons around. We might as well travel to each one and conquer them, if they’re close enough. I don’t want to waste more than a half a day or so in travel to the next dungeon, so… maybe we can make a list of the closest ones and line them up to travel through…”

The spymaster tuned out the man’s plans even as a cold sweat settled along his spine. In any other circumstance, the spymaster would have dismissed the man’s plans as lunacy, but his easy dismissal of the scout’s Presence as well as the overwhelming confidence he displayed as he planned left him nervous. The complete trust that his apprentices displayed towards him shifted his nerves straight off into terror. This is not a man to trifle with!

The spymaster removed himself from the conversation then, and simply listened, although he focused more on the overwhelming desire to be well rid of this man and silently pleading for his partner to return with the truth teller quickly. When the scout did return, it was with immense relief and quite a bit more politeness that the two took the Master’s statement. The truth teller reported no equivocation and the story turned out to be incredibly disconcerting. The good Knight Toogarn turned out to not be so good, attempting to thieve the Master’s slime cores. The Master retaliated, easily defeating Toogarn and grounded her in a single pass before simply walking away.

Shortly after the story was complete, the priest reported truth and the spymaster bowed before leaving, the scout hurriedly bowing as well when he saw the spymaster bowing. The two slipped out of the inn shortly after before the scout quickly interrogated the spymaster.

“What happened?”

“He’s here to conquer all three dungeons!”

“All three?! Truly?”

“Yes!”

“Do you think it’s possible?”

“He said it was easy.”

“Easy! The expert one is easy?!”

“No. Not the expert, but he looked down on the benefits of conquering beginner dungeons. He seemed to find such… blessings as useless!”

The scout gasped a bit, surprise coloring his speech as he hissed back, “Then… why?”

“His apprentices.”

The scout’s eyes shot up through his head and then he looked back to the inn, hesitation actually stuttering his steps. The spymaster knew exactly what he was thinking as he felt the exact same temptation, but he sighed as he had long poisoned the well; both of them had.

“If he does not take you as apprentice, the Baron will take your head!”

“Do you think…?”

“After what we just did to him.”

The two looked at each other before cursing vehemently, both regretting the lost chance.

* * *