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Of Arms and Arcane: Chapter 42
🕑 Added 2023-12-27 07:11:54 +0000 UTCTime passes, it is now spring of my 8th year in this new world, and that means I will be entering the Royal Academy. School Arc!
*Sounds of internal cringing*
I already spent most of my previous life in the education system, I do not want to go through school again to learn what I already know… but obligations must be met to upkeep the prestige of my house.
I guess it is the same no matter the world, I need to go to school and get the certification that says “Luke is a smart boi!”.
*Sigh* The things I do for my family.
From what I gathered, my curriculum for my lower education, which is supposed to last 4 years, includes languages, basic mathematics, etiquette, basic combat training, basics of magic for those who have magic, and for some unknown reason, music. Fortunately, music is an elective subject, and I always wanted to pick up the guitar. Are there even guitars in this world? I think I saw a bard playing the lute for coins at the town square before. At least I think it is a lute.
I guess I could pick up an instrument, but I do not want to waste time sitting around with a bunch of snot-nosed brats. Fortunately, there may be a way around this, Mum told me that I had nothing to gain by staying in lower education, so if I should aim to get a recommendation from Dad’s boss, a one Earl Rupert Beaufort.
With his recommendation, I can skip my lower education by taking the Royal Academy’s lower education final exams straight away, and if I pass, I will go on straight to higher education.
Along with that advice came a warning, if I took this route to accelerate my education, alot of attention would be drawn to me, especially the nobles of higher standing feeling offended by being outdone by some country bumpkin of a newly established noble house.
Fearing the repercussions, I asked my parents and grandparents for their opinions, only to be scolded by Grandma, “Silly child, that is not for you to worry about. You just fly as far and high as you can, it is the grownups’ job to open up your path and protect you. Besides, most of those so-called “High Nobles” have not done anything great in the past few generations, and few nobles take them seriously.
And attracting attention by being outstanding is not all bad. The king has many eyes and ears, if you show off your magic, and maybe your aura (even though you are abit young for it), word of your prowess would get back to the king, and knowing that muscle hea- *cough* I mean knowing his Majesty’s fondness of martial pursuits, there is a good chance gaining his favor. That should keep most of the pests away.”
These are all good things to know and consider, but I did not want to dwell on these things with the time I had left before I was subjected to the tedium of an education system. So for the past year, besides maintenance training while others were having classes, I have spent most of my time with my siblings and friends, playing and helping them with their studies, and I must say it was fun to just leave behind the training with aura and magic to just be a kid again without a care in the world.
The ones who knew and comprehended that I would be going away for an extended period of time became rather clingy after knowing how long I would be gone, namely my sister Charlotte and my childhood friend, milk buddy, and for the past few months, personal maid, Emma.
Luckily both of them had to attend classes, so I could have some free time to myself, or else they would be stuck to me all day, and then Charlotte and Emma would get pissy at each other as they fought for my attention.
I am just glad that Charlotte is still young and innocent enough not to pull noble rank on Emma, they treat each other like sisters and I hope that never changes.
But as fun as my break has been, all good things must come to an end.
***
I am currently in the courtyard saying my goodbyes to Mum, my grandparents, my siblings, and my friends. While Emma is openly sobbing, Charlotte is pouting while holding back her tears. She was then prodded by Mum, “Come on honey, say goodbye to your brother, it will be a few months until we see him again.”
After a few seconds of lip quivering, Charlotte ran and practically headbutted my chest as she sobbed into my shirt, this was soon followed by Anna prodding her daughter who also crashed into me with renewed sobs.
As I petted their head, they began demanding daily letters from me, which I bargained down to once a week. When the time came, their mothers pried them off of me. I gave Charlotte a last kiss on the forehead and then moved on to give another one to my cute little brother, Cedric, who had no idea what was going on but cried along with her sister anyway.
When all was said and done, me and Dad loaded up on a carriage. As we left the estate with an armed and mounted escort and passed through the town, our carriage linked up with 3 other less decorated carriages. These 3 other carriages carried other kids my age from town and surrounding villages who were deemed smart enough to have a shot at a Royal Scholarship.
These Royal Scholarships were only for non-nobles because admittance and tuition fees at the Royal Academy cost more gold than most peasants see in a lifetime, and it was expected that nobles were rich enough to afford to send their own children to the Royal Academy.
So understandably, this was a huge opportunity for these children and their families to improve their lot in life, and even if they failed their Royal Scholarship test, all was not lost. There were merchants and other minor nobility who would willingly snap up the failures and offer to sponsor their education at a less prestigious but still reputable academy, in exchange for this scholarship, upon graduation from higher education, they will be obligated to work for the scholarship provider for a set amount of time.
This effectively guarantees the scholarship providers, who are willing to wait, educated and trained manpower for their business and/or territory.
This reminds me of one of my colleagues in my previous life who had to serve in the military to get a scholarship. For some reason, he always looks back at his so called “crayon eating days” with both love and hate whenever he regales us with the stupid things he and his friends got up to while in the military.
This makes me wonder what to do with my life after my studies… further my magical studies? Join the military? Join the Adventurers Guild and go gallivanting across the lands? Set up a small restaurant and introduce all the wonders of Asian cuisine to this world? Who knows, 1 step at a time.
