1 hour later
"The four provinces each have an ethos chosen by the current family in charge of the province. Right now they are, Murias holds up scientific development above all, for Findias it is military power, for Falias it is agricultural development, and for Gorias it is labour development.
These are the reasons for a lot of the differences between the four provinces. A great example of this would be your education. It is a standard that all people between the ages of three and eleven must be in full-time education, and we subsidise the family for the lost labour and other expenses."
Shocked, I say, "So the kids in other provinces don't have to go to school? How do they even learn anything?"
"Most learn from their parents, but as you can probably guess, this leads to very broad distances between the average mental abilities of people throughout the empire."
My brother says, "Does it really matter though, not many things we learnt in school are going to help us better cut off our enemy's heads on the battlefield."
"Exactly, Ibar, as of now, such things are useless, but our king Lugh believes that as we conquer more and more of the world, eventually the strongest and most powerful people in the red branch won't be those who have the biggest military might, but those who hold the keys to a strong society.
So he develops his people and encourages them to put their hands in many different fields, and as they grow strong in each of those fields, we gain a head start on all of the others. This has also allowed us to be far more self-sufficient than almost all of the other provinces; to many, we can be seen as a mini country ourselves."
Looking at our teacher, I say, "You take great pride in Lugh."
"I and everyone else here does, especially Setanta. If he hadn't created this providence this way, our paths in life would have been heavily blocked, but thanks to him, many of us can hold our heads up high knowing that we are also fighting for the future."
We smile, and then I say, "Though it does seem funny that Setanta is the son of such a studious man, considering how much of a brute he is."
"Setanta is actually quite a scholar."
"Huh?" My brother and I say.
"I know it might be surprising, but when it comes to anything involving ruling, he is quite an academic; it seems he wants to take over his dad's position."
My brother says, "That can't be true; he is always picking fights and going on detours that end our lives in danger."
I furiously nod my head up and down in agreement.
"He never goes on detours when it comes to official business; at times, he is even more level-headed than Darragh. He is also quite skilled at conversation when the time comes, and knows how to differentiate between situations he can and cannot be rude in. Yesterday was an example of something he knew he could get away with."
Shocked, I say, "That cannot be true?"
Holding up two sheets of paper, he says, "This here is the sheet filled with questions I asked you to give me so I can judge your skill level, and this is the letter I asked Setanta to give me in under five minutes last night."
Looking at Setanta's page, we see lines far more beautiful than even the sights of the castle, and if one were to compare that to my messy handwriting, they would equate it to comparing a diamond to shit.
Feeling as if I am about to have a mental breakdown, I say, "Is Setanta smarter than us?"
Ibar says, "Don't worry, sister, he has had years to master this. Just give us some time, and we will surpass him."
"YEAH!"
The two siblings stare at their teacher with passion in their eyes, which frightens him, and they say, "No more holding back."
"Give us all the knowledge in that head."
In unison, they say, "RIGHT NOW!"
-Six hours later-
Φ Sitting down beside the steps outside of the room, the two siblings look utterly exhausted, and noticing them in the distance, Ferdiad walks over and asks, "How are you two doing?"
They look over at him with dead eyes, and he says, "Ehh, what happened?"
"Study, information, too much."
"Need sleep, annoyed, beat Setanta, smart."
"Class long, it never ends, we overestimate our brains."
"Teacher break, free time, have two hours."
"Ahh, I see you guys had to attend the classes as well. When I first got here, they almost made me cry, but I eventually got used to them. But I did have some tricks that I used to get back on my feet, the first one was food."
They both jump up and say, "Food!"
Composing themselves, Ibar says, "Well, if you want to provide us with some sustenance, we won't be angered."
Laeg says, "Only if you want to, not like we are demanding you to do this."
Both of their stomachs growl so loud that everyone in the area looks at all three of us. This quickly embarrasses both of them, and I say, "Oh I didn't know how hungry I was I guess I better go eat a big meal, but knowing me I always overestimate my food so I wish I had two people who would come with me."
Recovering from their embarrassment, they put their hands on my shoulder and say, "Ferdiad, you little baby, don't you know it is foolish to skip meals just because of your pride."
"But don't feel embarrassed, it happens to everyone, now let us go and fill this foolish child's stomach."
As they are about to run off, I grab both of them and say, "Wait a minute."
Turning to one of the servants, I ask, "Can you bring a hefty meal to the training grounds, please?"
"I will be on it, Sir Ferdiad!"
As the maid runs off, the two siblings ask, "Why are we going to the training grounds?"
"You will see?"
-Break-
Location: Training grounds
With Ibar flung over my shoulder and with Laeg in my arms, I look down and ask, "Is anything wrong, Laeg?"
"No," she says in bright red. "I just hope I am not heavy."
"Oh, you most definitely are."
Depressed, she says, "Sorry for this unfortunate event."
"Don't worry about that; those muscles are a sign of your physical upkeep, and I hope you grow stronger ones for the battlefield."
"Muscle princess," Ibar says.
Reacting to this violently, Laeg responds, "SHUT UP!"
Calming herself down, she says, "I am sorry again for this. I wish we weren't this much of a burden. I didn't expect us both to collapse after taking a few steps from the classroom."
"It is fine; it was like that for me as well. The classes here are intense."
Ibar says, "I feel like my head is about to explode."
Laeg says, "I wish our maids were here to escort us instead. Why the hell did they even run off to?"
"They had to return to work."
Ibar asks, "I thought those were our personal servants. Aren't they supposed to stay and do our bidding?"
"Their schedule is too packed for such a thing; they don't have the time to weigh hand and foot on someone."
Sadden Ibar said, "They made me feel important."
Laughing, I say, "I know how you feel, but if you both were to look around, you would notice something."
Both of the siblings look around the open area where we are currently walking. In the area leading to the training grounds, there are many people moving back and forth, and almost no one is standing still.
Whether they are working, moving, or eating, everyone is doing something. Laeg says, "I felt this yesterday, but no one here ever stops?"
"Aren't nobles supposed to be lazy?"
"There is a war brewing down south, and whenever combat does take place, the house in charge of the province has ridiculous workloads to do, especially since our house will be at the head of this upcoming battle. Our king Lugh is rather cautious and believes in getting work done fast because we never know what might show up later."
Laeg says, "So that is why the maids had to leave so fast?"
"Exactly."
Ibar says, "Hey, Ferdiad, will we be playing a part in this war?"
"Of course," I say while laughing. "This will be your first big battle and is the main reason both me and Setanta went to go look for Charioteers. It was the condition Setanta had to reach to be allowed to go."
Instantly, I notice that both of them tense up, and I say, "You might be feeling a little scared, but don't forget this is the man who will be protecting you."
ΦAs Ferdiad brings me and my sister and through a door, we are in a great expansive area; the training grounds.
Many are running in the distance, and others are maintaining their weapons, but what draws the most people is a battle in the centre. As it rages on, Ferdiad says, "You should go and watch."
Placing us down in front of the crowd, we see that Setanta is fighting a man over twice his size. Setanta is holding a wooden staff with a soft end, and the man is holding a wooden hammer.
Soon, two plates of food are placed in front of us, and Ferdiad says, "Enjoy the entertainment and the meal."
Φ Gripping my hammer tightly, I swing it towards the young lord, but before the attack hits, he has already moved back, so I keep up the attacks again and again, forcing him back with each blow.
As this continues, I hear people shout, "Cruadhlaoich beat him."
"I have my next two meals bet on you, Cruadhlaoich."
"If you lose, I am going to break your kneecaps, Cruadhlaoich."
"So, that bull strength."
"Go kick the ass of our young lord."
Inspired by the cheers, I swing even faster and hit Setanta, sending him back a bit. "How was that?"
"Amazing, Cruadhlaoich, you have come a long way from our last fight. If that was a real hammer, I would have broken my arm."
"Don't forget I am your senior; I have survived countless battlefields, so don't look down on me."
Entering a stance, Setanta says, "You're right, so I will try a little."
In front of me, Setanta speeds up and in next to no time, his staff is already near my eye, but already anticipating this, I moved my hammer to block his spear.
After this, with a thrust, Setanta hit my kneecap at a forty-five-degree angle, which caused me to buckle. In that moment, he moves his speed and strikes me in my stomach.
But not feeling the blow, I say, "Don't think you can pierce the body of an adult with a thrust that weak." And then I swing my hammer towards him.
Backing away, Setanta says, "A spear is a precision weapon, so don't think those stupid muscles will stop a real spear."
"Most of my enemies have said the same thing!"
"And all of my enemies didn't even have time to speak!"
Feeling angered, I charge towards Setanta and keep up the attack.
ΦLooking at the battle, I say, "Why does it look like Cruadhlaoich is more agitated than Setanta? He is twice his size."
"Because Setanta is fighting like he is an adult."
"What?"
"Setanta is shorter than Cruadhlaoich since he is a child, but he isn't using this to his advantage; he is intentionally putting himself in places that are easy to see and hit."
"Why?"
"To make it fair, he wants to be treated as an adult, so he goes this extra step to make sure people are only judging him by his skill, yet despite that, he is still dodging perfectly, and as a warrior, great skill, Cruadhlaoich understands and is getting angry."
Looking at Setanta, I say, "He really is a monster."
Seeing Setanta enter a stationary position, Ferdiad says, "You haven't seen anything yet, Ibar, the real show is about to start."