Jas, having heard the wisdom of his parents, ate his dinner with his younger sister and his parents.
"Oh, that's right." His father said. "You've been invited to the Lord's manor to see if you have aptitude for any Classes he needs for the barony. I'll take you there the day after tomorrow."
"Classes for the barony?" Jas asked.
"Yes, although since you're already interested in Smith, you should be fine. A Lord can never have too many Smiths. But there are other classes, like rchants, Strategists, Mages, and so on that the Lord might need."
"Oooh, Mages?!" his younger sister's eyes sparkled. "I wanna be a mage!"
"You're only twelve, Sarah" Jas said, "you won't be able to get a Class for a long ti."
Jas' mother put her hand on her cheek. "It might be hard for you to beco a Mage, Sarah. Usually only the nobility can study to get a Mage class, and then you still have to study and practice a lot to be able to do good Magic."
"What if I was a Mage and a Brawler? Then I'd be invincible!" Sarah proclaid.
"Oh my!" Now it was Jas' mother's eyes that were sparkling. "That would be wonderful! I'll support you all the way Sarah! We can start practicing tomorrow morning!"
"Yeah!" Sarah yelled excitedly.
Two nights passed, and Jas and his father walked out to the Lord's manor in the crisp morning air. The manor was surrounded by a stone wall, and they passed through a gate revealing a large garden bisected by a tidy path leading to a courtyard in front of the manor itself. The manor had two wings forming a U shape around a courtyard, in which a corps of Knights were drilling in full armor. Jas already knew that to take a Knight class one generally had to be a squire first, so even though like most boys he thought Knights were very cool, he was more interested in their armor. As a Smith, he'd be able to work on armor for Knights, maybe even make so himself, if he got good enough.
To the left, under a canopy, was the Lord of the barony and several other n. Surprisingly, Jared was also there, presenting the Lord with the sword he had made several days earlier. As he approached, he was able to overhear the conversation.
"...quality is acceptable, m'lord."
"Yes, very well. Jeeves, pay the Smith."
"As you wish, sir."
An older man, with thinning hair but impeccable posture, counted out silver coins for everyone to see, then placed them in a small cloth bag and handed the bag to Jared. Jared took the bag and bowed to the baron.
"My thanks, Lord."
"You may go." The baron replied. Jared bowed again and left swiftly, but not so swiftly as to cause offense. As he passed Jas and his father, Jared nodded in greeting but otherwise continued on his way back to the village without stopping.
Jas and his father knelt outside the canopy and waited to be summoned. After a few minutes, Jeeves called them under the canopy and they knelt where Jared had been before. Jeeves then spoke to the baron.
"Sir, this is the Farr Stephen and his son, Jas, who is due to reach his fifteenth birthday in seven days."
"Hmm." the baron grunted.
"Currently there is a need for Calculators, Rangers, Smiths, and Mages. Farr Stephen, does Jas know mathematics?"
"No sir, I regret to say that I'm unable to teach him, as I do not know mathematics myself."
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"Do you think that Jas has any aptitude as a Ranger? Does he spend much ti in the forest, hunting or gathering herbs?"
"No sir."
"And I don't suppose Jas has displayed any talent for magic? Producing flas, communing with spirits, or anything like that?"
"No sir, not that I've seen."
"Hrrrmmmm…" The baron groaned.
Jas saw the old man give his father a look.
"If it pleases your Lordship, my son has displayed an interest in Smithing, and has been spending ti down at the forge of late." Jas' father volunteered.
"Oho…" the baron said.
"Very good." the old man said. "If Jas decides to take the Smithing class, the village Smith Jared will be directed to ntor him, and his Lordship may call upon Jas from ti to ti with tasks for the good of the barony, which will be rewarded appropriately upon satisfactory completion."
At this point, a man behind Jeeves coughed, holding the sword that Jared had delivered.
"Oh, right. Jeeves." the baron said.
"Of course, sir." the old man, Jeeves, replied. He then turned back to Jas and his father. "Farr Stephen, has Jas had any experience with Enchanting?"
Jas' father turned to him and raised an eyebrow. Jas hesitated, then nodded. The man holding the sword looked surprised.
"Apparently so, sir. May my son answer in his own words?"
"I permit it." the baron said.
Jeeves turned to Jas. "Go ahead, young Jas. What is your experience with enchanting?"
Jas answered, "I was present the day the sword that Smith Jared presented was forged, and I saw how the sword was prepared to receive enchanting, according to a design that had been provided. That is my only experience with enchanting, m'lord."
The man holding the sword stepped forward then. "If I may, m'lord?"
"Go ahead, ridox."
The man with the sword, ridox, bowed to the baron and then stepped forward next to Jeeves. "Jas, answer in your own words: do you have an interest in Enchanting?" Jas could hear from the way ridox spoke that the word Enchanting was capitalized.
"Sir, uh, I haven't seen any Enchanting done before, but I guess I'd like to see it."
"Good enough for ." ridox said.
Jeeves looked to the baron, who nodded.
"Very well. Farr Stephen, we will have Jas observe the enchanting of this sword, and determine if Jas has any hitherto unknown latent talents for Magic. Would you like to stay with Jas, or return this afternoon to take him ho?"
"If it pleases the Lord I will return in the afternoon."
"Very good."
The baron then turned to Jas for the first ti. Jas froze under his piercing gaze. The baron was on the younger side of middle aged, but he had an awe-inspiring presence with his stern expression, clean, fine clothes, and large calloused hands. "Go with ridox, Jas, and observe his craft. My barony is in need of talented Enchanters, and you would be welcod into my service if you were to answer this call. But know this: my barony is also in need of Smiths, as well as Farrs, Hunters, and many other classes. Do not feel pressured to take a Class for which you do not feel an urge in your soul rely because you believe it would please . An Enchanter who lacks passion for Enchanting is useless to , whereas a humble Farr with a passion for Farming is much more valuable. Whatever you choose, so long as you obey the laws and serve faithfully, you will be a valued subject of mine."
Jas gulped. "Y-yes m'lord."
"You may go." The baron said.
Jas and his father, still kneeling, bowed their heads then stood. Jeeves and ridox bowed as well, then ridox, Jas, and his father walked out from under the canopy.
"I expect we'll be done by mid-afternoon, barring any unexpected Magical talent Jas may have. If he does, we'll still be done by late afternoon." ridox said to Jas' father.
"Yes sir, I'll be back by mid-afternoon." Jas' father replied.
"Jas," his father said, "be on your best behavior with Enchanter ridox."
"Yes father, I will." Jas said.
"Good boy. I'll be back this afternoon." With that, Jas' father departed, walking back up the path to the gate, and then through the gate back to the village.
ridox clapped a hand on Jas' shoulder. "Co along now, Young Jas… Oh, you've got so muscles on you! Looks like you've been preparing to be a Smith, eh?"
"Yes sir, for a while now."
"Well that's alright, co along with . We'll asure your mana pool and if you've got any affinities, and then I'll get this sword enchanted."
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