Chapter 3 - The General is a Noble

“You did what!?” my mom screamed, pacing around the room. It was the fourth time I explained the story to her, and every time she sighed in disbelief at the craziness of my actions. According to her, I could have gone blind if any piece had flown into my eye.

The test I performed is only used by people wanting to see if they have the potential to be mages. The problem is, I’m already going to be a mage… my mom is a mage, and my dad was too. Children of mages don’t need to take this test or it will result in accidents with their mana… I admit, there was no way I could have predicted this; I skipped the small print and warnings…

“Sorry, Mom. I promise I’ll be more careful next time.”

My mom sighed.

“Nathan Evenhart!” she looked at me sternly.

Gods! She used my full name; I’m dead.

My mom doesn’t like us mentioning my last name, so if she used my full name, I’m in trouble.

“You’re only 3 years old! You should be eating mud and stealing candy,” my mom said, staring at me. She’s very scary.

Why would I eat mud? Stealing candy, I understand; they’re very good.

“My son, don’t try to do that again. It’s dangerous, and you could get hurt,” Katherine gave me a hug.

Her hugs always make me feel like the most special person in the world. I don’t know what kind of power moms have, but being loved by them is the best feeling of peace that has ever existed.

“I messed up, I promise I won’t do anything dangerous again…” I tried to give her puppy eyes.

She sighed.

“Alright, the important thing is that you’re okay.”

Katherine continued hugging me.

“By the way, Nathan Evenhart, where did you get the leaf for your test? I hope for your sake… you didn’t pluck it from one of my plants…”

I am definitely dead now.

***

POV Katherine Evenhart

My baby recently turned 5 years old. He keeps getting cuter and cuter, and I don’t know if it’s possible for a child to become more adorable, but mine has managed to do just that. I know all mothers say they have the most beautiful child in the world, but mine truly takes first place in my heart.

“Will that be all, ma’am?” the shop attendant asked me.

Oops! I got lost in my thoughts.

I was so absorbed in imagining him wearing these new clothes that I didn’t even realize I was still in the store. Nate doesn’t like being dressed in my style, but he needs to understand that I’ll make him look as cute as possible, whether he likes it or not.

My heart melts even more when I see him in these outfits. I can’t wait to buy him a little suit.

I left the store, taking the opportunity to look at some stalls. Nate stayed at a weapons shop; he became friends with the owner since he lives near our house. He spends hours listening to the stories behind each weapon and how they’re used.

I hope the shop owner doesn’t tell battle stories to my baby again; I don’t want him to get scared.

“Lady Katherine?” a voice called from behind me.

Hearing that made my heart freeze.

It can't be! They've found me!? But what about the agreement we made?

I turn around and see a figure standing there, eyes wide as if he’s seen a ghost.

“It’s really you! You have no idea how long I’ve been looking for you!” the man exclaims, coming towards me.

They weren’t supposed to track me! THAT WAS ONLY IN THE LAST RESORT!

“Stay back!” I tell him. “Stay back or I’ll scream for help,” I say, glancing around to see if there are others nearby.

This can’t be what I’m thinking. I can’t let them take Nathan from me!

“My lady, please. I beg you, you don’t know how long we’ve been searching for you. H-how is the child? Are you both well? Are you in need? How are you managing? Gods! I finally found you,” he says.

I swallow hard, weighing my options. I don’t know what to do.

I need to run and get Nathan, but if Hugo follows me… he might discover where we live. He’ll take my son from me.

“H-Hugo! Please, pretend you didn’t see me. I… I don’t want to get involved in these power struggles. I just want to live my life in peace with my baby. That was Ethan’s greatest wish… his father never wanted to get involved, but he had to act. Look where it led him! Leave my son alone!” I try to appeal to him. Hugo is a father too, even though he’s a noble vassal, I hope he understands.

“A son!?” he exclaims, even more shocked. “A male heir!? The lord… left an heir…”

This story originates from Royal Road. Ensure the author gets the support they deserve by reading it there.

He rushes to me and falls to his knees.

“Lady Katherine! I beg you, come back with us. His father was a mage, and you are a mage too! This child will be blessed with magic and is our future. The way things are, we have no choice and there’s a risk the Wolves will take over the Evenhart family. Come back with us! I beg you!”

Everyone is staring at us in the middle of the marketplace. They’re seeing a knight with the crest of a ducal house kneeling before a commoner.

I need to get out of here!

“Mom!” Nate runs to my side.

Of all the times you could have shown up, this was not one of them! What do I do?

I look at Hugo, who has lifted his face in shock, staring at Nathan.

“Y-y-young master!?” the knight shouts.

POV Nathan Evenhart

“So, this type of sword is more for thrusting, while that other type is better for warriors in heavy armor,” the weapons shop owner explains to me.

Clyde is our neighbor, and he and his brother run the business. His brother, Anthony, is a blacksmith who’s always busy making weapons and is a terrible salesman. His brother can’t price things right and always gives in when someone haggles. Things get worse when nobles get involved; his brother is too embarrassed to demand payment when they’re late. According to Clyde, it’s easier to make money selling equipment to adventurers than to nobles.

He explained that true nobles have their own blacksmiths. He said there are families so powerful that other entire families serve them for every need, including blacksmithing. The lower-ranking nobles are the ones who serve the higher families and buy their things in the city. Clyde suspects it’s because they like to feel superior and enjoy showing off so that we plebeians ‘lick the ground they walk on.’

As if I would ever do something like that…

These nobles often end up causing trouble and delay payments. That’s where Clyde comes in. He says he's a terrible blacksmith but a great negotiator. The guy’s a natural con artist. The first time I talked to him, within five minutes, I felt like being friends with this scoundrel.

He’s naturally charismatic.

Clyde has a knack for spotting problems and can identify a noble who’s likely to delay payments. When a noble places an order, the blacksmith stops earning money to focus on that order. If he doesn’t get paid at the end of that time, it screws him over. That’s why Clyde uses his silver tongue during negotiations to mention he knows other nobles, implying he’ll report any issues. He also has a knack for attracting customers, and everyone from the guilds prefers to buy here.

“Clyde, is this sword called a Claymore?” I ask him.

Luckily, he likes talking about these masterpieces and doesn’t mind.

“That’s right. It’s a giant sword used with both hands. Usually, warriors with a more brute and ‘berserker’ style use it, equipping heavy armor and charging into the front lines, throwing themselves at the enemy. This sword is known as a ‘mage slayer.’”

“Mage slayer? What do you mean?” I ask, curious.

Clyde scratches his head.

“I don’t know if I should tell you... last time, I got scolded by your scary mom...”

I get scared of her when she’s angry too... I understand, buddy.

“Don’t worry, I didn’t tell her any of your stories. It was your fault for getting so excited and not noticing when she arrived.”

He sighs.

“Alright. The term ‘mage slayer’ is because berserkers charge straight at mages on the battlefield. Usually, fighting a mage is tricky, but if a squad of berserkers decides to team up against one... that mage better be powerful or they’re dead,” Clyde explains.

“But isn’t a mage worth at least 50 warriors?” I ask, intrigued.

“A lousy mage is worth 50 warriors... a good mage... if they’re also a battle mage, oh, the sky’s the limit.”

My mom doesn’t like explaining magic to me. She says it’s not time yet. I understood why when she touched my hand and placed it on her belly. I could feel the energy of her Mana Gem flowing inside. My Gem is still dormant and will remain so for a while until it awakens.

“And what about that type of weapon over there?” I point.

“Those are halberds.”

Clyde begins to explain. I ask all the questions I can. In this world, there’s a great variety of weapons. In my world, we practically only had two weapons: a sword or a spear. The rest were banned by the Goddess Athena, who said they were useless to learn. As the Goddess of Strategy, she knew she’d have more efficient power in her army if she focused on teaching these two types of weaponry.

The weapon ban happened long before I was born since no one could compare to her army, and the best way to try and fight back was to learn the same fighting style. In the end, blacksmiths in the world only produced single-handed swords and long spears.

Of course, there were other weapons like daggers, shields, bows, and knives. I’m talking about the most commonly used weapon by frontline soldiers, which was usually a sword or spear, while support soldiers used bows.

I don’t disagree with what Goddess Athena did in that regard. A warrior who learned to use a spear could be useful on horseback or even against another warrior on horseback. When Athena revolutionized the world with the invention of the spear, she became unbeatable. Armies of a thousand cavalrymen fell to a hundred spearmen. They just needed to hold their position, and if the horse charged... it died.

Athena also revolutionized the world with the best use of 'Battle Aura' or just 'Aura,' teaching it to her soldiers. I mentioned before that there was no mana in my world; Aura was the fuel for our power.

Battle Aura is someone's vital energy condensed into the physical plane. If you manipulate your vital energy through the intensity of your fury, you'll have a great accumulation of physical power while it's active. I'm talking about true brute power: we could crush a skull with our hands or make the enemy soil their pants just with the intensity of our killer glare.

The final test to see if a warrior was fit to be called Athena's Soldier was pretty simple. They threw the boy in front of a hungry tiger... it might sound crazy, and it is crazy, I agree. The test was about making the tiger fear your gaze. If you made the tiger back off in fear, you passed the test. If not... let's just say the tiger wouldn't stay hungry.

Few survived the final test, and that was just the test to allow you to be a soldier... I haven't even mentioned the tests to become a General. In my old world, earning the title of Athena's General meant you reached the pinnacle of battle power and Aura mastery, becoming a Born of War. This was the special training Athena developed after subjugating Sparta and using her ultimate intelligence to forge true warriors.

In Spartan training, only 1 in every 100 children reached the title of General. In the improved Spartan training by Athena, only 1 in every 10,000 children could become a General.

It's a shame there's no Battle Aura in this world... all my deadly techniques died with my old body. What's the point of knowing how to flick off someone's head if I don't have the Aura to make it happen?

I sigh, remembering my past.

Why should I lament? I promised to live a simple life with my mother. I'll make her proud and be a good son. I've never had someone love me this way, and I'll treasure it. She doesn't talk to me about mana or what she can do... I don't want to become a soldier again, but I think it would be fun to at least play around with the ability to generate water.

How many times did I go days without water in a battlefield? Feeding an army is hard, especially in the middle of a war. I could just turn my finger into my mouth, generate water, and drink... man, being a human in this world is awesome.

I went through Athena's special training and became part of her army. No wonder she is the Goddess of Strategy; with her knowledge, she formed an empire aiming to dominate the world, and for that, she needed to forge these skilled Aura warriors. I don't even need to tell you who trained the next Generals personally... I think you guessed it. Was it Athena? No! She wouldn't dare reveal any of her techniques... my mentor was someone different and hungry for battle. I think you guessed it, him... Ares, the God of War.

“What is he doing?” someone shouted outside.

A crowd is forming. Clyde ran to look.

“What’s happening?” I ask Clyde, who’s looking at the commotion.

It sucks being short...

“Trouble!” he shouts. “Big trouble, I see an Evenhart knight on his knees. That’s crazy! Why would someone like him do that?”

Evenhart? Isn’t that my last name?

“Kid! Isn’t that your mother?”

Before he even looks at me, I run when I realize my mom might be in trouble.