James, 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?” James 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 Merchants, 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” James said, “you won’t be able to get a Class for a long time.”

  James’ mother put her hand on her cheek. “It might be hard for you to become 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 proclaimed.

  “Oh my!” Now it was James’ 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 James 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. James 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 some himself, if he got good enough.

  To the left, under a canopy, was the Lord of the barony and several other men. 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 James and his father, Jared nodded in greeting but otherwise continued on his way back to the village without stopping.

  James 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 Farmer Stephen and his son, James, 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. Farmer Stephen, does James 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 James has any aptitude as a Ranger? Does he spend much time in the forest, hunting or gathering herbs?”

  “No sir.”

  “And I don’t suppose James has displayed any talent for magic? Producing flames, communing with spirits, or anything like that?”

  “No sir, not that I’ve seen.”

  “Hrrrmmmm…” The baron groaned.

  James 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 time down at the forge of late.” James’ father volunteered.

  “Oho…” the baron said.

  “Very good.” the old man said. “If James decides to take the Smithing class, the village Smith Jared will be directed to mentor him, and his Lordship may call upon James from time to time 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 James and his father. “Farmer Stephen, has James had any experience with Enchanting?”

  James’ father turned to him and raised an eyebrow. James 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 James. “Go ahead, young James. What is your experience with enchanting?”

  James 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, Meridox.”

  The man with the sword, Meridox, bowed to the baron and then stepped forward next to Jeeves. “James, answer in your own words: do you have an interest in Enchanting?” James could hear from the way Meridox 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 me.” Meridox said.

  Jeeves looked to the baron, who nodded.

  “Very well. Farmer Stephen, we will have James observe the enchanting of this sword, and determine if James has any hitherto unknown latent talents for Magic. Would you like to stay with James, or return this afternoon to take him home?”

  “If it pleases the Lord I will return in the afternoon.”

  “Very good.”

  The baron then turned to James for the first time. James 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 Meridox, James, and observe his craft. My barony is in need of talented Enchanters, and you would be welcomed into my service if you were to answer this call. But know this: my barony is also in need of Smiths, as well as Farmers, Hunters, and many other classes. Do not feel pressured to take a Class for which you do not feel an urge in your soul merely because you believe it would please me. An Enchanter who lacks passion for Enchanting is useless to me, whereas a humble Farmer with a passion for Farming is much more valuable. Whatever you choose, so long as you obey the laws and serve me faithfully, you will be a valued subject of mine.”

  James gulped. “Y-yes m’lord.”

  “You may go.” The baron said.

  James and his father, still kneeling, bowed their heads then stood. Jeeves and Meridox bowed as well, then Meridox, James, and his father walked out from under the canopy.

  “I expect we’ll be done by mid-afternoon, barring any unexpected Magical talent James may have. If he does, we’ll still be done by late afternoon.” Meridox said to James’ father.

  “Yes sir, I’ll be back by mid-afternoon.” James’ father replied.

  “James,” his father said, “be on your best behavior with Enchanter Meridox.”

  “Yes father, I will.” James said.

  “Good boy. I’ll be back this afternoon.” With that, James’ father departed, walking back up the path to the gate, and then through the gate back to the village.

  Meridox clapped a hand on James’ shoulder. “Come along now, Young James… Oh, you’ve got some muscles on you! Looks like you’ve been preparing to be a Smith, eh?”

  “Yes sir, for a while now.”

  “Well that’s alright, come along with me. We’ll measure your mana pool and if you’ve got any affinities, and then I’ll get this sword enchanted.”