Clay laid on floor with a blanket that had fallen off the bed while Katrina contorted everything into some sort of nest that she was curled up in. It took him quite a while to fall asleep since he kept thinking about how he was going to interact with the lord when they were going to meet him the next day.

He had a strange dream that night. Four people were sitting around him in a room much like his old living room. Two were on a couch, spread as far from each other as they could be. One older man was sitting in a reclining chair, slowly rocking back and forth, and a smiling girl was sitting on the floor next to him. They kept talking and looking at him, but Clay couldn't understand them. The world itself eventually crumbled away, leaving him in a white space before he finally woke up.

Katrina wasn't in her bed anymore, and a fragrant smell came from the kitchen. Clay was met with a bizarre sight, as Katrina swung around a large pan full of what looked like a thick white paste and yellow flames followed the bottom of the pan.

"Good morning sleepyhead."

Clay looked around for a place to sit down and finding one, sat down in a chair against the wall.

"Clay! You still asleep?"

"Oh, no. I'm just a little nervous about meeting the lord."

"Don't be. He's a pushover most of the time. Just don't be rude to him and you'll be fine."

"You sound like you appreciate him a lot."

The flames sputtered a bit, and Katrina refocused on them.

"He's alright."

Katrina left it at that, even as Clay silently tried to pressure her to continue. Sensing his own defeat, he continued the conversation.

"So what are you cooking?"

"Gruel, or maybe porridge?"

"You don't know?"

"Well gruel is more liquid, and porridge is a lot thicker, but this is somewhere in between I guess."

"I would prefer something thicker."

"I can do that I guess. You'll have to use a spoon."

"What's it made out of?"

"Some ground up tubers, then you just boil them with water."

"What's a tuber? What does it taste like?"

"They are these small orange things that grow under the dirt. They keep for a really long time, so they get sent over to us pretty often. They don't taste too good on their own, but there are plenty of ways to cook them."

"And is that magic, that you are using to keep the fire like that?"

"Yeah, it's easier for me to get a stable temperature with magic than relying on the stove. Wood isn't really great at keeping a constant temperature."

"You don't have anything like a normal stove?"

"Normal stove?"

"Oh."

'No shit they don't have a normal stove.'

"Oh! You mean the fancy gas stoves they have over in the southern continent."

"I guess so."

"Yeah, we don't get many heroes over here in the east, some say it's because Terrastra kept getting infatuated with them and refused to summon more. We don't get many summoned folk over here, and it's a rare one indeed that will know anything useful. I've heard about half of them keep trying to reinvent mayonnaise."

"Who is Terrastra?"

"Oops, I shouldn't have said any of that. Wait until you meet the earl."

'This again?'

"Speaking of, when are we going to meet him?"

"When the driver comes to pick us up."

She put a bowl down in front of him, filled with a chunky, orange paste.

"Food is ready to eat. I won't be waiting for you."

She dug into her own bowl, wolfing down spoonfuls of the stuff. Clay gave it a taste and was met with what was almost the flavor of potatoes. The entire thing was like a runny version of mashed potatoes, so it was atleast familiar for him. He ate it at a reasonable speed, careful to pay attention to his manners.

Three loud thuds came from the door, precisely on time with when he finished his meal. Katrina was already meandering about the place. She sprinted to answer the door.

"So Erwin- err, the earl is done preparing now?"

The silent man who had knocked nodded his head and beckoned for them to follow him.

It was a relatively short way to the lord's manor, only about an hour of travel. Clay kept rehearsing a few phrases in his head to try and impress the lord while Katrina just laid against the wagon. The road wasn't nearly as bumpy as the one between Seltmark and Velona was. There wasn't even any forest between the town and the manor, just more and more fields. The building slowly poked itself above the horizon.

The area around the manor, or rather the palace, was a massive garden, larger than any of the farm fields Clay had seen up until that point and covered in flowers. Stone paths snaked through the bright patches of color and came together at a large fountain in front of the building. The dirt road turned into a cobbled one as they turned into the estate, right paste a border wall of hedges.

The driver waited for them to get off the wagon at the fountain, and then drove off without them. A tall man with a full head of silver hair opened the door. He was dressed in black slacks and a black vest over a long-sleeved white shirt. Clay approached him cautiously, it could either be the earl or a butler.

"Erwin! I'm home!"

Katrina ran up to him and went straight past him, even as he let out a sigh.

"Don't break anything, Katrina."

The man turned toward Clay, regaining his initial composure and half smile.

"I greet you humbly. I am Earl Erwin Seltmark. Welcome to my family home. I hope it's not too imposing for you. I don't usually entertain guests."

'Alright, now I can't seem uncivilized. Just try to keep polite speech.'

"It is not of any discomfort to me, sir."

"You seem tense."

"Not at all, sir."

"If you say it is so, so it shall be. Let us go find where my mage ran off to."

"Sure- yes, let us."

The inside of the building was grand and ornate, the walls were what Clay could only describe as gaudy. Bright golden curls covered every surface they could reasonably be put on, with intricate paintings of people and red swirls serving as wallpaper. The various stands and tables in the entry hall were oddly empty, and a frame for a painting at the base of the stairwell was also blank.

If you spot this tale on Amazon, know that it has been stolen. Report the violation.

Erwin lead him off to the left hall where they saw Katrina being pushed out of a room while carrying a basket full of dried fruits. A smell of food came to him, along with an seemingly normal smell that was oddly pronounced.

"Katrina, you could have waited until dinner. There was no need to bother the servants."

Katrina responded by slowly shoving a piece of the dried fruit in her mouth.

"I suppose I should lead you to the study for a discussion of why I brought you here. I trust Katrina has made it clear."

"With all due respect sir, absolutely nothing has been clear since I got here."

"Wait until we are in the study. There are potentially ears for others even in this very building."

"Ah."

'There are spies, got it. That might be why he didn't trust Katrina to explain anything to me. I should be more careful with my identity.'

Erwin lead the way, followed by Katrina, and lastly Clay. They headed up the stairs and off into the right wing of the building and into a small room behind a wooden door that was oddly thick. The room was filled with burgundy furniture and shelves full of books. The patterned rug on the floor was a matching microcosm of the colors on the shelves, full of many reds, yellows, and browns. Another doorway lead off from the left side of the room, and a giant window flooded the room with light from the back wall.

"This room is soundproof, so we should be fine to speak freely here."

"Okay, thank you."

"Clay, I need to speak with you about a few important matters. I'm sorry for dragging you all the way here, but it was necessary. Would you give me the honor of showing me your Status?"

"Uhh... yeah, no problem."

Clay rolled up his sleeve and held out his left hand to Erwin.

[0 VIT (NULL)] [2 STR (Low)] [1 LCK (Low)]>

Erwin stared intently at his wrist, analyzing every character profoundly. He gently took his finger across the Unique line.

"Is there some sort of problem?"

Erwin's eyes snapped back up to him before reverting to their calm nature.

"Of course there is a problem, you need to keep this hidden. If others learn of your Status, it would be the best weapon they could have against you. Especially for a Unique person such as yourself."

"O-Okay, why did you drag me out here?"

"I wanted to get to you before word spread of a new hero. So I had Katrina return immediately with you. It was the best course of action to take. I couldn't afford letting the church throw you into one of their schemes without giving you a fighting chance at your own freedom. Heroes are rare in my lands. I at least wanted to give you a head start, especially since you hold a Unique."

Katrina kept slowly shoving pieces of dried fruit in her mouth, staring at Erwin and occasionally glancing over at Clay.

"Why do you fear the church? They seemed fine when I went and got healed back in Velona."

"You already needed healing? Did Katrina fail to protect you?"

Erwin shifted his gaze towards her.

"No, no. I was injured by some bandits in the forest before we met."

"Bandits... I see. I'll make note to put up a quest to eradicate them once and for all. Back to the topic at hand, the landed clergy are a scheming lot, since they haven't been blessed with land by the system. They take it for themselves by using the power of the people in the name of the gods, but it's really just for their own gain. It would be unsurprising for them to weave tales of a local lord and send you against him. The rest of the clergy seem amiable enough to me, but it only takes one rotten egg to birth a litter of snakes."

Clay was caught up on the expression for a moment, trying to find a way to defend the strange priest and cleric with his words. After stuttering for a few seconds, he decided to change the topic.

"Do you know a lot about all of the stuff on my Status?"

"I'm not particularly more learned than any other noble, but I can try to answer your questions."

"Why is my max health zero?"

"I am uncertain. It is within the beliefs of the church that everyone's stats are that way for a reason, as a basis for them to learn from, to adapt to, and to overcome. Perhaps one of the gods decided you needed to work from this situation. I personally find it odd that all of your stats and their potentials are so low."

"What does the 'low' after all the attributes mean?"

"Call it what you want, affinity, potential, or even talent. It is a qualitative value for how fast your stats grow. It is used as a prime determiner for career choices for youth. A naturally smart yet weak boy is not suited for the fields after all."

"I see."

"Now I wish to ask you something."

"Go ahead."

"Why do you carry the sword of Erica? Last I had heard, her sword was an heirloom passed down by her grandfather and was very dear to her."

"She's the bandit that stabbed me with it and left me for dead with it still embedded in me."

"Stabbed you? Where?"

"Through the chest."

"Might I take a look at the wound?"

"Sure."

Clay lifted his shirt yet again, showing the intricate floral design spreading outwards from opposite his heart. There were now eight flowers blooming in a circle, and they stained much of his chest a deep black.

"Oh Goddess of Purity, please have mercy on this poor boy. That is terrifying to see."

"I was told it was called night's rot and that is reduces max HP, since my HP is zero I figure it's not important."

"Well, yes night's rot is indeed quite the curse, this is not that. Night's rot only has two flowers blooming, this has eight. I'd like to inspect that sword in my free time to determine what caused this, if I may."

"Go ahead. I don't have much use for a sword."

"You don't know how to use that sword?"

"You should know, you read my Status."

"As a noble, I'm quite skilled with them myself. If you would be willing, I could give you a few pointers so that you may train yourself."

'Wait. Maybe I can actually learn swordsmanship from him.'

"Is there any way I can get you to teach me instead?"

"Just promise to not give up and I would do just that. I will warn you, a noble's training regime is intense."

"Sure."

***

"Goddammit, what the fuck is this hellish training?!"

"Quite the sailor's tongue you have. It's in your best interest to not waste your breath. This is a noble's training, I will make you strong enough to take up my mantle when I am gone, the same as any heir I would have trained."

Erwin smacked the wooden stick firmly against Clay's wrist yet again, a painful snap sound yet again cracking through the air.

"Isn't this just bullying? My stats haven't even changed since we started!"

"This is training not for your body, but for your mind! Do you think you can endure against a stronger foe with an inferior will? There are no stats for your force of will, and there are no second chances at life. Stand!"

Clay brought himself to his feet, leaning on his stick, only to have his wrist smacked and the stick brought out from under him.

"I'm not even standing yet!"

"You hold a weapon and you tell your opponent you are not ready? Should I show you my back for your dagger too?"

"You must be like level thirty or something, what could I do to you?"

"Coward! My level is of no concern. Stand up and face me again!"

The back and forth of Clay being knocked to the ground with a swollen wrist, and him being forced to stand continued until the sun was low in the sky. Worse still than the physical assault, was the mental one. His entire actions here were meaningless. If he didn't stand, he would still be hit. If he stood, he would be hit. He couldn't run, and he couldn't beg him to stop.

"How am I going to learn anything if I can't hold a stick, let alone a sword?"

"The first step of a noble's training is of the mind. Keeping a clear head in battle is the most important. Mental fortitude is the greatest decider in an even battle, and the only way to fight those stronger than you. It would be foolish to falter at measly pain when your opponent would never make the same mistake."

Clay sprawled out on the ground, breathing heavily.

"Check your Status. It should have appeared by now."

"What?"

Clay weakly held his wrist above his face, and stared at the blurry words until they came into focus.

[0 VIT (NULL)] [2 STR (Low)] [1 LCK (Low)]>

"Why'd my mana go down?"

"Because you are out of stamina, so your body used the reserves of mana to replenish it. It is the crux of being a physical warrior in a battle of attrition to conserve and replenish your mana to maintain your stamina. Now pay close attention, your task for tomorrow will be as such."

Erwin walked over to the stone wall of the courtyard with his stick in hand. He went into the position of a thrust, as though he practiced it thousands of times. All of his movements came together and accelerated the stick. His entire form focused the entirety of the impact into the tip of the stick. The single stone he stabbed had cracked and he still didn't waver from his stance. The stick shattered, and he tossed the remaining bit to the side.

"Crack one hundred stones. We will be practicing in the forest to the south of here. I will accompany you. You may use any skill you have to assist you."

"I don't think I can even crack one."

Erwin openly glared at him. "As for tonight, you are to begin learning our language with Katrina as soon as the magic wears off. You will not sleep."

"Why can't she just-"

"Keep casting the spell on you? Forever following in your wake so you don't have to put forth the effort? You know this wouldn't work. If you seriously intend on taking so much of her life, then take her hand in marriage. Though I do not expect her to accept someone like you."

Erwin walked off, a stern look hardened on his face.

***

Back inside, he sat alone in the room he was given while Katrina slept across the hall. His entire body ached and he couldn't help but regret asking for training so quickly. He would have much rather built up a solid constitution first before going through this hell.

Once she woke up, Katrina came into his room with a picture book in hand. She had a pleased smile on her face, even as Clay's turned beet red. They spent the night teaching Clay some basic words.