Just as he placed his foot on the first step leading into the carriage, he stopped as a few people ran up—
"Lord Schoeller!"
"Wait up—!"
He turned to find a group of adventurers in a rush to catch up. A swordsman, a dwarf, a tall man in burly armor, and even a mage—he saw each type of stereotypical "class."
"What is it?" Leon asked.
The swordsman with shaggy, red hair bowed his head, "Thank you for slaying One-Eye!"
"Thank you!"
"Thanks!"
Finding himself confronted with such clear gratitude, Leon didn't exactly know how to react.
Salvatore stepped out of the carriage with a cold look, "Are these hooligans giving you trouble, Master? Shall I "take them out?"
"First off, don't casually talk about killing people! But, no—they're fine," Leon said, brushing off the remark from the butler.
It almost felt undeserved to him, seeing the degree of relief from those of Newfard in his accomplishments. That is, the fact he claimed their praise in just a short time made him feel unable to grasp their grade.
Leon decided to accept their words nonetheless, "Keep up the good work."
As he began to get into the carriage again, he was halted as the red-haired swordsman spoke up—
"Actually…" The youthful adventurer called out.
"Yeah?" Leon looked over.
The sword-carrying warrior placed his hand over his heart, looking intently at the young lord with his azure eyes, "…My name is Phoenix! A gold-ranked adventurer!"
"Err, alright, nice to meet you—?" Leon responded.
"Please hire me to work for the Schoeller Estate!" Phoenix suddenly insisted, bowing his head lower.
While it was a bit unexpected, it wasn't hard to see that the forward adventurer was certainly capable. If nothing else, the greatsword with a red-jeweled handle on the man's back piqued Leon's interest.
"I'll have a carriage sent for you a few days from now," Leon said. "I'll give you a proper interview then, alright?"
Phoenix's expression lit up as he nodded, "Right! Thank you!"
As he finally let himself get into the carriage, setting himself down with an exhausted sigh, he could hear the celebrations of the townspeople outside.
"To the Schoeller Estate!" Frederick announced from the driver's seat, guiding the reigns.
While the carriage rolled along the bumpy road, he positioned himself to lay against the wall, letting out a yawn.
"Are you tired, Master? If so, you can use my lap as a pillow," the offer came from Salvatore, who patted his own legs.
Leon raised an eyebrow, "You're definitely not the one I want to hear that offer from, man."
The exhaustion he felt wasn't unexpected, recalling the witch warning him about using an abundance of mana.
["Well, I'd say today was a good test. In this world, I'm more than capable of handling threats."]
—
With a few days needed of complete rest after the encounter with the ogre, the daily life of the young lord resumed as usual, finding himself in the midst of his magic lessons.
Beatrice leaned against her desk with a raised eyebrow, tapping her fingers against the wooden material. By the way she watched him, it was as if she could smell the magic he had used.
"So, you say you defeated a powerful ogre? Obsidian skin, four arms…Ah, that wasn't a normal ogre," Beatrice considered with a hand to her chin.
"It wasn't? Well, I mean I could tell—it was way stronger than the other," Leon responded.
Beatrice smiled, "That was an Onyx Ogre."
"Oh, so he was like part of a special clan?" Leon presumed, leaning in his seat.
"No, any ogre can become an Onyx. When one slays enough powerful foes, they physically evolve—as this "One-Eye" fellow did," the witch explained, waving her wand as the stool behind her morphed into a velvet sofa, sitting herself on it.
The idea of the fearsome savage he defeated being only one of many was a bit unsettling, though he brushed it off.
He leaned over the desk, snapping his fingers as a firefly was born into his palm, "This spell was great, but it felt like I was barely scratching that guy with any of my attacks."
"It's only natural. Mana refines itself and becomes more potent with experience. Just keep using it and you'll be turning ogres to ash with a flick," Beatrice assured him with a confident exhale.
There was only a slight wiggle of the witch's wand, prompting the sofa she sat on to produce legs. It carried her forward, placing her right in front of him.
"Err—?" He looked at the eccentric instructor.
Beatrice leaned in, closely watching him, "I must admit I've never quite had a student with talent to your degree. Ah, I really shouldn't admit that, should I?"
'No, no, keep praising me,' he thought in jest.
The busty woman backed up on the self-moving seat, crossing one leg over the other, "How would you like to become a certified Archmage?"
"An Archmage?" Leon asked.
"Yes, there are many benefits to it, you see," Beatrice explained, waving her hand. "An Archmage gets access to any grimoire they want, for no fee at all. You're basically given authority within every region, as well."
"Sounds nice. What's the catch?" Leon asked, sitting up in his seat.
"Only that you'll need to past the Trial of Merlin," Beatrice told him with a sly smile. "It's held in Arcania, the Capital of Magic."
"Arcania? Well, fitting," he mumbled.
The idea seemed somewhat alluring, with the thought of a "magical city" being something out of his furthest dreams. He sat there in his seat, imagining a place of rampant magic and, somehow, plentiful cat girls.
"I can tell you're intrigued," Beatrice remarked.
"Well, I guess a bit," Leon brushed off.
"Well, think it over—the Trial is only held once a year, but you still have some months before it's commenced," Beatrice informed him while adjusting her sable dress.
With the event to consider, the lessons for the day were at their end, leaving him to his own.
He let out a breath of relief, heading towards the library for a bit of studying before—
"Master."
"Ah—? Yeah?" Leon turned around, stopped in his tracks from his planned reading, finding himself staring at the tall maid with silken, scarlet hair.
Irene bowed her head, "The adventurer you sent for has arrived."
"Oh, yeah, I almost forgot about that. Thanks, Irene," Leon said.
As was proper, he went to the front of the vast structure for the arrival of the first. Through the lavish doors of the manor, the swordsman walked in, staring up at the sheer scope of the interior.
"Woah…This is the famous Schoeller Mansion?" Phoenix said in awe.
Leon called out from the second story, looking over the ivory railing, "Welcome, Phoenix."
The fiery-haired adventurer looked up towards the young lord before bowing his head, "Lord Schoeller! Thank you for giving me this opportunity!"
"Don't get ahead of yourself yet," Leon said, gesturing for him to follow.
Into the main lounge room of the vast mansion, he sat himself in the sofa where Phoenix was welcomed across.
The guest twiddled with his thumbs, glancing around at the exuberant room like a child out of his depth.
Leon found it somewhat amusing, feeling the same way himself, only that it was his own abode.
"So, you want to work for the Schoeller Estate?" Leon asked, sipping from his cup of tea.
Phoenix nodded energetically, "That's right, sir—I mean, my lord!"
"Leon is fine," he said, easing into his seat as he set the cup down.
"Alright, Leon!" The adventurer nodded again.
The plentiful scars worn on Phoenix's face told of a hardened life, though the youthful swordsman seemed friendly in contrast. One look at the guy reminded the reincarnated man of the stereotypical "hero" he'd see in an RPG, striking some bit of nostalgia in him.
"So, what is it exactly you want to do around here? Guard the mansion?" Leon questioned.
The swordsman in red-and-orange armor sat there, sticking out like a sore thumb amidst the lavish decor, "That's part of it, sure. I want to accompany you on missions–like when you came to Newfard to take down One-Eye."
"I see. That's not a bad idea, actually," Leon remarked, putting his hand to his chin.
"Exactly! I'm great at tracking down monsters and beasts as well, so–" Phoenix reasoned fervently.
Leon interrupted him, holding his hand up as he leaned forward, making sure his words were listened to carefully, "That's nice and all, but are you strong enough?"
"Huh?" Phoenix stopped.
"When I'm called in to handle threats, it's usually powerful creatures that most adventurers are unable to handle," Leon explained bluntly. "The truth is, I was called in because you couldn't handle One-Eye. The way I see it, you might just be a liability."
Listening to the conversation from just outside of the room, the short maid huffed with a slight shake of her head.
Ruby mumbled, "Isn't that a bit too harsh?"
Beside her with a distinguished look, the elder butler responded, "Quite the opposite." Thorgul corrected the young maid's remark.
"Seriously?" Ruby said, looking over at the wizened servant.
Thorgul caressed his beard, nodding his head subtly, "The young lord is speaking bluntly to make certain the swordsman is not led to a quick death."
For Phoenix, the pride of the gold-ranked adventurer was hurt by the noble's words, though seemed to be swallowed.
"What you say is true, but—I promise you I won't be a liability!" Phoenix claimed as the fiery passion was driven past his lips.
While he was certain the fiery-haired swordsman could certainly handle a goblin or two, maybe even an orc, he considered a better way to decide—
"Alright, then," Leon said, standing himself up. "I'll see for myself what you've got."
"What…I've got?" Phoenix repeated with a raised eyebrow, not seeming to pick up what was being suggested.