“Wake up!” I jumped up in fright on my bed. One of my mother’s squires was standing next to it. She tossed some clothes and armor onto the bed.
“Put that on, quickly. Your training begins immediately,” she said. I wanted to ask questions, but her stern look and harsh tone made me hesitate. I chose to listen since my mother said to obey whomever she sent as my tutor like it was her.
After putting on the under clothes, I struggled with the armor for a bit. “Tighten that strap. Tighter. This is light armor and you must be sure the straps are tight, so they don’t become loose in combat. They are designed to not limit your mobility as much as possible.” I followed her instructions.
“Good, but slow, we will work on that. I am Squire Jessica in service to the Supreme Warlady Elena Burnstock. A level 83 spellblade. I will be your tutor for the next three months. After the three months your mother will return from the dungeon and evaluate your progress and another Squire will take over your training,” she explained.
“Yes, Squire Jessica,” I replied and nodded my head. The leather helmet felt a bit weird, but I didn’t complain.
“I have the following rules. First, you will tell me immediately if your healing, stamina, or mana drops below a half or a quarter. Do not hesitate to say something. I need to know this so I know exactly how much I can push you,” she said.
“Yes, Squire Jessica,” I replied. She seemed to like that as she gave me another nod.
“Second rule. Don’t look at your stats or skill levels. It clouds your thinking. We will train these three months without looking at them. If you focus on each small increase, it will take much longer to level up your skills. Better to check every three months for any bottlenecks,” she said.
“Um, but how will I know my healing, stamina, and mana if I don’t check?” I asked.
“When you focus calling up your status, just think of a shortened version or a combat version. You will only get your level, experience, and your reserves. In time you will sense these things naturally, but that is a tier 2 skill. We will not concern ourselves with that at the moment,” she said.
“Yes, Squire Jessica,” I replied.
“My third and final rule. When I give you instructions you must listen immediately. Think about your actions, but you must trust me. Sometimes too much information can cloud your thinking when improving a skill. That is why the position of tutor is one of utmost trust and respect,” she said.
“I understand,” I replied.
“Good. I have procured the necessary supplies for a three month excursion into the dungeon. Follow me,” she said. This was happening quickly, but my mother wasn’t one to waste any time and neither were her Squires.
We left the estate at a quick walk, and then she had me set off on a light jog. “Increase the speed of your breathing and maintain the rhythm,” she said as we jogged along a road leading from the estate.
“Keep it steady as you go up the hill.”
“Keep your pace steady on the downhill. Don’t speed up.”
She kept giving me instructions as the sun rose into the sky. We stopped for a quick breakfast, pulling out food from a spatial pouch. Those were incredibly expensive and rare. But it made sense for my mother’s Squires to have such an item.
“Chew and drink. Measure your actions. Keep your breathing steady even while eating through your nose,” she said. I carefully ate while trying to follow her instructions. It was hard.
“Good. Do you need to use the bathroom?” she asked me.
“Yes,” I nodded quickly.
“Then do your business there in those shrubs. Keep your breathing steady,” she said. I went into the forest and did my business. It was difficult to do my business outside . While she wasn’t staring at me, she kept an eye on me.
Eventually I finished and used leaves to clean myself off. I didn’t really feel clean. “While it might be embarrassing, that is a common mistake adventurers make and when they are the most vulnerable. When they are relieving themselves. As you level up higher, your body will produce less waste, which makes things easier,” she said.
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“Maybe I should level up then,” I replied with a bit of a tone.
“Ha. While people might not say it, that is a big reason why people don’t stick around at the lower levels. But your mother would beat me half to death if I didn’t follow her instructions. Let’s go, remember your breathing,” she told me.
We stopped for lunch and dinner on the side of the road. We passed various farms, merchants, and other travelers as we ran along the road. The duchy of Burnstock was well settled and prosperous. We were following the signs towards the city of Burnstock, so the number of travelers would only increase over time. We only got a couple of looks, but no one stopped us. Squire Jessica stayed right behind me, matching my pace while constantly watching me to make sure I kept my breathing steady.
Just as the sun hit the horizon, she called a stop at a small village. There was an inn for travelers. She got us a room and stew for dinner. We took a corner table and ate quietly. The villagers gave us glances, but no one came to sit with us.
Squire Jessica was quite imposing with her armor and sword. Everyone could tell she was an adventurer and probably a powerful one with the quality of her gear. No one in the right mind would start trouble with her.
Once we were done eating we went up to the room. “We will stay in inns while they are available until we reach the entrance to the first level of the dungeon in two days. Now you will begin reading and copying this. Your tutor Damian suggested to do this after your mother spoke with him,” she said and pulled out two books from her spatial pouch.
One was a dictionary of the Eldarin language. The other was blank. She also got out a metal fountain pen and a vial of ink. “Your soul is like a building. Each skill is like a support beam. It is important to complete your support beams. Copying the dictionary and reading it out loud as you copy it will boost your Eldarin-Language and Writing skills,” she explained without me having to ask.
“Why didn’t Tutor Damian do this?” I asked.
“Do you think most kids want to read a dictionary and copy it? He probably had you working on fun exercises to keep you mentally engaged in his presence. Having such a high skill level at the age of eight is already incredibly impressive. But I am not going to coddle you. If you can’t do something , you will struggle at future training I plan to give you,” she explained. She was right, Tutor Damian had done fun exercises with me in the past.
Squire Jessica might be harsh, but she wasn’t being cruel. She was pushing me, like I had wanted. “Light Orb.” A white orb of light appeared and lit up the room. “Read out loud and copy, I will tell you when to stop and go to bed. Remember to focus on the task at hand. Don’t think about other things. I will answer one question each morning,” she said.
I got to work. Focusing on the task at hand. I carefully pronounced each word and definition, copying everything into the blank book. It was slow, tedious, and hard to concentrate on something so boring, but I endured.
If I was going to be the best, I couldn’t let a little tedious task slow me down. I would perfect it and finish it as soon as possible. I knew that language came before learning Eldarin script as a tier 2 skill. I had no doubt this was the skill I was aiming for by mastering an earlier one in the skill chain.
“Stop,” Squire Jessica finally said, and I stopped writing and speaking once I came to the end of copying the word I was on. “Good job. I can tell you kept your mind mostly on the task. I expect that kind of focus on everything you do going forward. Now sleep,” she said and the light orb disappeared.
“Um, should I get changed?” I asked.
“No. You have to learn to sleep in armor. You are lucky you get an actual bed tonight. The dungeon floors aren’t so kind. Don’t worry, each night we will be alternating mental skills to focus on, so you don’t get bored.”
“Thanks,” I said hesitantly.
“Don’t worry Justin. Your mother wouldn’t place her trust with me if I didn’t know what I was doing. This kind of tutoring is reserved for nobility or very rich individuals who can afford to pay a high level fighter like myself to handhold them. If it wasn’t for your mother, I wouldn’t be doing this,” she explained.
“Thank you, Squire Jessica,” I said. I meant it too. She was a higher level than my father. While he had a higher social standing as a Duke, no one would disrespect her. A level 80 spellblade was considered an elite. While not a legend, she could get a job anywhere, from guarding a high level noble, to becoming a high ranking soldier in an army or mercenary company.
“While your thanks is appreciated, don’t waste my time. You did well today, but always push to do better. That is how your mother trains her Squires and I know she expects the same of you, especially if you want to follow in her footsteps.”
My mother truly was going all out. I hadn’t been sure what would happen when she returned, but I was still in shock with everything changing so quickly. Just yesterday I was dining in luxury. Now I was sleeping on a lumpy straw bed that had a slight smell to it.
It would be easy to quit or give up. But I refused to. I was going to become the best. The become a legend, not just any legend but a supreme legend. I would go to the bottom of the dungeon. When people spoke of me, everyone would know my name.
Training was hard, but it wasn’t impossible. Squire Jessica specifically tailored everything to my ability and skill level. It was impressive, since she wasn’t a dedicated tutor. I would have to ask her about that tomorrow.
I didn’t say anything else as I kept my breathing steady and drifted off to sleep.