Gaius acted a bit more hostile out of nowhere and then Angela asked something weird… he wondered if his instincts were crazy or his mood was swinging in a weird way. Regardless, he couldn't do much aside from waiting to see what would happen.

While being more wary of his own actions and choices, Gaius returned back to the capital of Ekirenton's territory… Things didn't change much in the last month and Gaius didn't know if he would be trained in that place, so he decided not to rent a room in a random inn. First of all, he had to talk with Kennil and declare that he accepted the offer to be trained.

Gaius confirmed with Herac that he had to report to Kennil and he was in the training fields of the city. Although he worked as the main commander of the army, he was also the head instructor of the new recruits who came from all spots to receive training. Apparently, he wanted to make sure that all the kids would leave the training fields after five years with the right mindset and the right mindset for him was: that there was no time like today for training.

"You sure are well informed… weren't you just a mercenary working for Ekirenton?" Gaius asked.

"Is the master finally interested in my backstory?" Herac asked.

"Not really, just give me a brief summary," Gaius replied.

"Hahaha… after his father passed away, Lord Ekirenton became the ruler seven years ago and then contacted and hired a bunch of mercenary groups to work for him," Herac forced a laugh. "I was the leader of one of them and since our strength was the real deal, we became important soldiers under his rule. Well, we only had our importance forcing some small villages to join us and now we joined the main force of the territory."

Gaius thought that the loyalty of mercenaries couldn't be bought for certain, even less so for seven years… in any case, it was clear that Ekirenton had some crazy expansionist plans, but he didn't obtain much results in seven years aside from a few villages. He probably would need more than that and he should know it unless he was braindead. First of all, he would need more information about the world beyond his territories... that would be his first real step.

The training fields were located on the extreme north of the city since he camped on the southern side the last time, Gaius never saw or heard about it one month ago. So, he was caught off guard when he saw something like the Roman Colosseum in the area he was supposed to go… that was the training fields. It sure was grand, even though it was something that only kids and some instructors used.

"I guess it makes sense since they are raising the future generation of warriors that will serve this place…" Gaius thought.

Although his reading speed was far from acceptable, Gaius made some progress in that area, and thanks to it, he learned a bit about the history of the world and that territory. The areas that had lords weren't big enough to be considered kingdoms and empires… calling them fiefs also didn't seem accurate. So, over the years, people had a hard time naming the areas that they ruled. In the end, they ended up being called states…

The state's names changed according to the rulers and it was the norm to call them the same name as the lord, so Gaius lived in Ekirenton's state… when he noticed that, he suddenly felt annoyed. The most troublesome thing about that was the fact that he was living under the roof of some annoying guy...

Also, the history of that state was rather short… it looked like it suffered an attack from all sides fifty years ago and most of the state was laid to waste. Thanks to that, all the documents and books were destroyed… most of the people who lived in that period were killed as well, so it was hard to say how things were back then in that state or in others. Gaius was still learning, so he forgot about that and looked for the entrance of the training fields and only found a single massive wooden door… it sure looked out of place when everything on the building was made of some hellish thick and large bricks.

Stolen from its rightful place, this narrative is not meant to be on Amazon; report any sightings.

At the entrance, Gaius found some massive guards wearing full plate armor and holding some three-meter-long spears. It was a bit annoying to look up, but it couldn't be helped for Gaius.

"I am looking for the Commander Kennil, I am presenting myself to be trained," Gaius declared.

"... You are a bit too young to be trained, kid," One of the guards said after studying Gaius for not so long. "It isn't the time of the year when we receive new students either."

"... The commander invited me to receive training after the war, my name is Gaius, son of Zairus Aeolus… you can confirm that with him," Gaius furrowed his eyebrows.

It looked like in exchange for some freedom, Gaius also obtained the chance to be looked down upon by others… it couldn't be helped given his size. He just had to prove that kind of people that they were morons for judging a book by its cover. Still, Gaius would rather grow faster instead of proving them wrong.

The guards looked at each other and they showed some understanding. It looked like they heard something about that before… Gaius didn't know that, but the other kids who received their invitation had already come to the training fields a few days ago, only Gaius took his time to return.

Regardless, one of the guards pointed to the interior of the building and the other guard entered it to confirm things with Kennil. It was a bit bothersome that Gaius had to wait like that, but he couldn't complain… that kind of thing usually has some formalities and the guards couldn't let anyone enter the training grounds.

Nevertheless, the guard returned after twenty minutes with the confirmation that Gaius was supposed to present himself there. Such a massive waste of time for a simple confirmation... only kids being trained were supposed to be there... so Gaius could tell that he wouldn't enjoy his stay that much.

"I guess I am becoming bitchy," Gaius thought.

"You can take your things with you, but the horse will have to stay," the guard declared. "You will only be allowed to leave the training grounds once a week, so it is suggested that you sell it before entering."

Gaius had heard that the newcomers had to live and breathe the air of endless training in that place for several months, but he didn't think that he would have to be treated like that. After thinking for a short while, Gaius decided to sell the horse… they didn't work together for long, but it was better than abandoning him or killing him.

"I will have to work hard to have some freedom here… Herac also mentioned that the second-year kids have more freedom," Gaius rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "I guess I will have to show that I am at their levels."

After selling the horse, Gaius returned to the training grounds and the guards let him enter without a fuss. He had to cross a dark corridor for a while before he could see the center of the training fields where he could see a bunch of kids running around a round field while carrying their weapons while wearing full plate armor. That usually would make them grow less than they were supposed to… then again, that was a world of magic and swords, so perhaps things weren't the same as they were on Earth.

When Gaius reached the end of the corridor, he confirmed that the group of kids running were around one hundred, but there were other groups of one hundred doing other activities as well. Four other groups were doing other activities like sparring, doing push-ups, handstands, or just heading to a lesson about tactics from another instructor.

Gaius approached the center of the training ground where he could see Kennil talking with the other instructors of the place and they eventually noticed his approach.

"Your name is Gaius, am I right?" Kennil asked with his arms crossed. "You came a lot later than I had expected."

It looked like the offer was supposed to be something like an honor that Gaius had no other option aside from accepting it. That was why Kennil was acting as if Gaius made him waste a lot of time waiting for him. For the sake of the future, Gaius decided to endure the training, but he was starting to think that it would be more troublesome than it would be worth it.

"I came to report to training, head instructor Kennil," Gaius said while ignoring the previous comment.