"I will strive hard to meet your expectations, teacher," the pupil promised. He looked at the stack of books and decided to start by opening the geography textbook; it was the least thick among them.
Lord Evans quietly departed and left his student behind.
Chapter 48
Training & Tutoring (Part 2)
Luka devoted the rest of the afternoon to memorizing the maps within the geography book. He paid particular attention to the map showing the Morninglory Kingdom, which had five provinces: the Morninglory Archduchy at the center, surrounded by the Heavensfell Duchy in the north, the Eblain Duchy, the Ustiasla Duchy, and finally the Droustan Duchy in the west. The populace of Morninglory, Heavensfell, and Droustan duchies were primarily humans. Beastmen ruled Eblain while demons controlled Ustiasla. The Divine Church of Light served as the overseer and mediated disputes between the dukedoms.
The elves once ruled the Delfrir Kingdom in the land which became part of Droustan. This proud race refused to submit to the church's plan to unify the Latima continent; consequently, the church drove them out under the Religious Wars. Luka was surprised to see an old map depicting Latima before and after this event included in the textbook. Conversely, he was curious about Lumina city, but the book made no mention of it.
Luka paid particular attention to the map of Heavensfell. He discovered that this dukedom contained the most amount of arable land. In comparison, half of Ustiasla composed of hills and mountains; the populace primarily lived in valleys or the seafront. A third of Eblain consisted of deserts, but paradoxically, woodland made up the other parts of the duchy. Luka could understand how beastmen would survive and even thrive in this environment.
Hanna brought the young master to the dining hall in the early evening, where he ate a small meal with his mother and guests. Then Luka returned to the parlor room to finish studying from the geography book.
Sanjiv reminded Luka to be up at six in the morning to start his staff training during the meal. Cloten then chimed in and cautioned his pupil not to stay up too late.
The next morning, Hanna fetched her master from his bedroom at a quarter before six and helped Luka put on exercise clothes and washed his face. Then they hurried out the door and waited for the monk to arrive.
Sanjiv appeared promptly with his quarterstaff. The top-end reached the monk's mouth; white cloth wrapped that side while a black scarf bound the other end. The monk's pants rolled up just below his knees and revealed thick calves. "I'm humbled by your punctuality this morning, young master," he said with a slight nod.
"Thank you for agreeing to teach me," Luka replied with an aristocratic salute.
"First, we'll do some light stretching, and then I'll begin our lesson in earnest," Sanjiv said. He sat on the ground and stretched his legs and arms one limb at a time. After five minutes of stretching, the instructor hopped to his feet. His right hand held the staff at its center. His left hand gripped the top-end while barely grazing the white cloth; his hand was in the inverted position with the thumb sticking downward.
"Notice my stance," he said and started a demonstration. Sanjiv's right foot took a step forward while his left foot leaned a step back. The monk then turned the staff over so that his left hand was at the bottom; he promptly shifted his feet so that his left foot took a step forward and the right a step back.
"The basic attack uses your bottom hand to generate power while the other hand acts as a pivot to direct your strike. Your legs are not static. When you attack, you take a step forward to generate power. When you retreat, your feet move backward." The instructor demonstrated the attack from the left and right sides. "Okay, now you do it."
Luka took out his Staff of Alraune and tried to copy the teacher. When the student held the weapon, Sanjiv moved Luka's hands and adjusted his grip.
"Yes, I know it's awkward at first and feels counterintuitive. But as you practice moving your staff, your muscles will eventually adapt," the monk said in an encouraging tone of voice. "Now try striking toward the left."
The student made a jab.
"Repeat after me." Sanjiv demonstrated the overhead strike.
Luka made several attempts before he got it. He felt weird because his wrists continuously twisted and turned.
"I want you to repeat this move a hundred times. Once you do it correctly, we will shift to attack your right. Begin!"
The student obeyed and began his one hundred strikes. But halfway through the exercise, his wrists became sore; Luka dropped his weapon on the floor with a loud "bang!"
"Okay, take a break."
Luka sat down and massaged his wrists and forearms. Once he cast Light Cure, his soreness immediately vanished.
The instructor smiled wryly at this cheat move but remained silent.
The student returned to his feet with renewed determination and continued his exercise. Luka took several breaks to cure the soreness erupting throughout his entire body. But somehow, he finished both sets of a hundred strikes.
When Luka sat on the ground, Hanna knelt beside him and gently wiped the swipe from his face. "Thank you," Luka huffed between gulps of air.
"You're welcome, young master," she replied.
"Today's session is over," Sanjiv announced. He felt impressed by the teenager's tenacity in completing the exercise. "I'll see you in the dining hall for breakfast," the instructor reminded his pupil.
Luka gingerly climbed to his feet. Then he returned to the mansion and leaned heavily on the railing to ascend the staircase.
His maid hurried to his bathroom to prepare a hot bath for the young master. She helped remove his soiled clothing and assisted his entry into the hot tub.
Luka leaned back with his eyes closed as the young woman scrubbed him with soap and washed away his sweat.
Then Hanna dried his body and helped him to change to a fresh set of clothes.
The young master finally opened his eyes. "Ah, I feel like a new person. Thank you!"
The personal maid blushed and avoided his eyes. "Young master, please hurry to the dining hall," she reminded him.
Luka rushed down the staircase but used the handrails to prevent himself from tripping. He saw that he arrived last at the table for breakfast. "Good morning, everyone," he greeted.
"Good morning, Luka," the others replied.
"How was your training session this morning?" Juliette asked.
"It was very informative but exhausting," the son replied sheepishly.
"It will take time for your body to adjust to using the staff," Sanjiv noted. "During our first week together, I will emphasize basic attacking and defending. The next week, we will spar using the staff."
"I hope you won't work him too hard," Cloten joked, "or else, he can't concentrate during his lessons with me."
The monk raised a hand to placate his friend. "Yes, I won't push Luka beyond his limit," Sanjiv reassured.
The heir devoured his meal of scrambled eggs, bread, and sausage. He quickly asked for a second serving because Luka spent enormous energy during his staff training and required more food than usual. Afterward, the student followed Lord Evans into the parlor room to continue Luka's studies.
The instructor began this session with a quiz as promised. He distributed a parchment with an outline of the continent and boundaries of the duchies. Within each province, he drew a line. "Please write-in the names of each duchy and its capital. Also, include the primary race for each area," Cloten requested.
Hanna placed a quill and inkwell on the table.
Luka began to fill in the blanks and provided the necessary information on the map. Once he completed his assignment, the tutor checked the answers and confirmed their correctness.
"Excellent!" Lord Evans praised. "This morning's lesson will focus on your Heavensfell duchy and its vassals. From the map, I'm sure you noticed that your domain has the most amount of arable land. Thus, your territory produces a surplus of crops and cattle distributed
to the other duchies. In some ways, your dukedom is the second most important province after the Morninglory archduchy, which controls the kingdom itself."
"The governance of the Heavensfell duchy is split into the Defense Ministry and the Interior Ministry. The Marquis Landuweers family is in charge of defense and maintaining our borders while my Earl Evans family oversees interior considerations such as food production, trade, taxation, and law."
Luka raised his hand. "I have two questions. Marquis is ranked higher than an earl, correct? But your family seems to have a bigger portfolio of responsibilities," he observed.
Cloten laughed at this remark. "Hahaha! If only the other nobles think similarly as you, young man. The Landuweers are a prestigious family of knights, and most boys grow up wanting to become knights instead of farmers, shepherds, tradespeople, and merchants. Given this boyhood romance, knights retain higher social standings within the aristocracy. That's why the Marquis family's current head, Sijmen Landuweers, is considered the number two aristocrats behind Duchess Silverblade. And naturally, I was number three before I retired," he explained.
"Where does the Divine Church of Light fit into this structure?" the pupil asked.
The tutor pointed at the ceiling. "It's above everything. You could say that they are the true rulers of the Latima continent after the Religious Wars drove out the elves. According to speculation, the Delfrir royal family survived and built New Delfrir on another continent. Since the elves possess the greatest lifespan among the known races, they will slowly repopulate. Eventually, the Delfrir Kingdom will raise an army to rechallenge the church's rule over Latima."
"In other words, the elves are enemies of the church," Luka summarized.
"Yes. The elves are a beautiful race, and they have many admirers. When these sympathizers spoke out against the war, the church purged the most vocal critics and their families to silence the rest. These actions tarnished the church's reputation in the eyes of the citizenry."
"Altima selected the current pope, Isaac Demetrius, to restore the organization's image. He preached racial tolerance and reduced the church's influence in the demihumans' governance of Eblain and Ustiasla. And rumor has it that he sent secret overtures to the elves seeking to restore relations. But the Delfrir royal family has steadfastly ignored them. The elves wish to restore their homeland, which Demetrius is willing to offer. But they refuse the church's oversight."
Luka began to understand the hostilities he faced from a portion of the inhabitants of Langerlan. But he couldn't comprehend the reason why Alectos sent him there rather than a human village.
Lord Evans took a textbook off the coffee table and said, "The Religious Wars is an important historical topic, and questions about it always appear in the exam. Be sure to read and memorize chapter 12 of this book. The governance of the duchies is part of the law of the kingdom. Your Heavensfell duchy is in chapter 5 of that book." The tutor patted the cover of a second textbook.
"I'll let you read these chapters on your own for the rest of today. I'll quiz you on the material tomorrow and review the questions and answers together. Then I will provide another lecture. Does this format work for you?" Cloten asked.
"Yes, it sounds great!" the student nodded.
"I'll leave you now. Hanna, please ensure that Luka works diligently," the nobleman winked at the young maid.
"Young master Luka will not slack off one bit!" she declared in a hostile tone of voice.
Cloten chuckled and left the parlor room.
Luka felt embarrassed by her spirited defense of his honor. He picked up the law book and began to read chapter 5.
Hanna silently departed and returned with tea and cookies.
The heir worked diligently to memorize the material. Luka was reminded of his past life when Michael Bauer had to cram for his exams in school. Fortunately, Luka knew several memorization tricks to remember the material. Moreover, he thought the history of the Latima continent was fascinating, and the kingdom laws were crucial to his aspiration to help his mother in her work.
Frankly, Luka wanted her to remain as the feudal lord of the Heavensfell duchy for as long as possible. He wished to travel around the continent and even visit Sanjiv's homeland overseas. Luka also planned to spend a few years as an adventurer (under a pseudo name) and protect the commoners in his duchy from monsters and banditry. The more places he travels, the easier the mage could teleport back to these locations later on if necessary.
Furthermore, Luka had a nagging suspicion that rift holes frequently developed over time. Thus, his travel would allow him to come across them or learn of miasma seeping into the land and, hopefully, close the dimensional tears in a timely fashion. Finally, Luka desired to meet other mages and learn rare, unique magic from them. He hoped the royal academy would have some teachers who fit this description. If not, Luka might try to graduate a year earlier and go traveling instead.
The heir spent his mornings for the next week learning to fight with his staff. Luka found it challenging to continually slide his hands up and down the stick, turning his wrists inward and outward. The constant change in his "hand-action" messed up his attack rhythm and made him lose his grip frequently. Fortunately, Hanna ran like a ball girl to fetch his staff whenever it sailed for a "home run."
Seeing Luka's lack of progress, Sanjiv finally offered to train him in the evening as well. While this second session would cut into the teenager's study time for his entrance exam, the monk assured Cloten that the extra work would only last one week. The additional class time with Sanjiv helped Luka learn to change his grip correctly, and the student's proficiency in his weapon gradually increased.
Meanwhile, Luka encountered no problem learning the history and laws of the kingdom. His memorization tricks worked wonders in helping the student to remember the material. Consequently, Luka answered his daily quizzes correctly 95% of the time.
The second week came and went in the blink of an eye. Luka sparred with Sanjiv using the staff, and the pupil learned many painful lessons from the monk. But the teenager quickly healed his wounds (including contusions and fractures) and continued training with Sanjiv. On the flip side, Luka began to appreciate the kind of damage a simple stick could yield without taking a person's life.
Since Sanjiv was only staying for two weeks, he focused on teaching his pupil how to attack, parry, and counterattack while maintaining proper foot stance. The instructor thought Luka had some talent with the staff; therefore, Sanjiv pushed his pupil hard during their spars. Even when the monk accidentally cracked the child's skull, Sanjiv waited for Luka to heal himself and continued the training session.
When Sanjiv finally parted the mansion, he gifted Luka a rainbow-like seashell. "This comes from my homeland. If you ever decide to cross the sea and visit, please show this to the islanders you encounter there. This seashell is proof of your friendship with my people," he explained.
Luka accepted it gratefully and gave a deep bow to his teacher. "Thank you for everything. I hope to see you again someday."
"We are fated, my student. I have no doubt our paths will cross again. Until then, farewell." The monk bowed in prayer and then slowly walked out of the estate.
After Sanjiv's departure, Luka resumed training with his mother. However, he used his magic staff instead of his sword. She implicitly allowed it and sparred with her sword every morning.
Luka continued his tutoring sessions with Cloten. He took quizzes in the morning and reviewed the questions and answers. Then he listened to lectures. After lunch, Luka read the textbooks and memorized the material.
By the fifth week, he started taking practice exams in the morning. In the afternoon, he reviewed the questions and answers with his tutor. Afterward, Lord Evans expounded on the topic of noblesse oblige over afternoon tea and snacks.
The pupil listened to these lectures with great interest. Despite his current status as the heir of a high-ranking noble family, Luka's mindset aligned more with a commoner. He barely ac
cepted the so-called entitlements of his station in life and treated his helpers politely. Nor did the young master ever ask Hanna to become his night companion, although she half-expected it by now. Thus, Luka was very fascinated with the notion of noblesse oblige.
The tutor split this concept into financial, moral, and legal obligations. For example, whenever a feudal lord visits his territory, he should avoid being frugal in his travel expenses. The noble should stay at proper inns and visit local merchants to pick up trinkets and souvenirs. He should be considerate of those less fortunate and donate to charity. Finally, a noble must protect his subjects and strive to improve their livelihood.
As Luka listened to real-life examples of noblesse oblige, he felt glad that Lord Evans agreed to tutor him. After all, the instructor was the former Interior Minister and brought a wealth of experience from his previous job. Moreover, Luka imagined Tsunka receiving similar lectures from Cloten in his youth; the son felt connected to the dad Luka had never met before.
The lecturer noticed that his listener became distracted and ended the afternoon session. "Get some rest. The dinner bell will ring shortly." Lord Evans waved goodbye and left the parlor room.
"Hanna, may I use your lap as a pillow? I wish to take a nap," Luka requested.
The personal maid wordlessly sat next to him. But she avoided looking at his face to hide her embarrassment.
The heir pivoted his hips on the sofa and rested his head on her thighs. He closed his eyes and fell asleep.
Chapter 49
Royal Academy Entrance Examination
Luka stood before his family carriage, which depicted the Heavensfell family's emblem on the cabin door.
"Good luck, young master!" Hanna shouted from the front steps. All the servants gathered in a row next to the duchess.
"I leave my son in your care, Lord Evans," Juliette said.
The Divine Summoner: Godson of Altima Page 40
