Adopted Soldier

Lyner looked at Niel dumbfounded at his request. Is this kid nuts? Why would he want him to be his teacher? Also what should he teach him, Lyner was simply a teacher in name only. He wasn't really a certified teacher.

"Kid you're asking the wrong person. What do you want me to teach you, anyway?"

"I want you to teach me on how to be a merc." When Lyner heard Niel he thought he heard wrong, so he asked him just to be sure.

"Did you just say, that you want me to teach you, how to be a merc?" Niel nodded his head resolutely, seeing this action made Lyner sigh.

"Hey kid, I don't know what kind of misconception you have on being a merc, but being one is more difficult than walking through hell... Well not like I can talk." Lyner shrugged his shoulders at his own explanation. Cause he himself didn't treat being a merc seriously. He simply thought being a merc would give him the freedom he wanted, and bring him to the ultimate battle. That was true at the start, being a merc gave him wings to fly freely, but now being a merc became his chains instead.

"I know being a merc brings in a lot of money, fame, and glory. Is that wrong?" Niel asked, since most countries promote mercs, of course being a soldier has better benefits, but nowadays being a soldier is solely made for the upper class. Basically a merc, can be anyone, while a soldier is basically the elite of the elite. Training soldiers nowadays is much more expensive than, simply paying mercs to do their jobs. Of course compared to a merc, soldiers are more loyal, and better trained.

So right now the Berdonian government promotes being mercenaries, than one to be a soldier. The opposite is happening in the Granado Empire, which almost basically denounces mercenaries, and promotes soldiers. Of course they couldn't do anything to the truly strong mercs like their own SS rank merc, but his situation is quite controversial to begin with.

"Hmph, what you said isn't truly wrong, but it isn't right as well. Money, fame, and glory is indeed what most people think they can have once they become a merc, but that's simply because of this country's propaganda. The truth is those three things, are only available to the truly strong mercs".

"Money is only good to those who survive, fame you will obviously get if your strong enough, but most of the truly strong mercs stay hidden, and the public really doesn't know much about them. Unlike that idiot Ryan Gold, who made himself into something like a superstar, even though he is the bottom of the barrel for an A rank merc. Finally glory, that's the easiest to achieve, it only depends on what type of glory you're looking for. So which of the three are you hoping to get?"

After explaining about the truths of being a merc, Lyner looked at Niel thinking that saying such things would finally dissuade him. Yet the opposite happened instead, Niel's eyes started to sparkle even more brightly than usual, his golden radiance intensified, and his smile turned fierce.

"Sir Lyner you told me those things so I would back out, didn't you? But to tell you the truth, what you just said made me even more excited. I really don't care about money, since with my skills, as long as I graduate even in some random college I can still get a decent amount of money. Also not being arrogant or anything if I wanted both money and fame that would be easy for me as well, since I've been offered numerous times to be a model, I was even scouted to become an actor. Finally regarding glory, like you said it's the easiest thing to gain so no need to expand on that."

"Yet I don't really care about all of that! What I care for is the thrill of it all, the freedom it will give me! Also based on what you said the three things, Money, Fame, and Glory are the hardest to achieve if one becomes a mercenary. To gain all three while being a mercenary will be the most difficult as well as the most fulfilling. So once again I ask of you, Sir Lyner please teach me on how to be a merc."

Lyner who heard Niel's reply looked at him with a dumb expression on his face, but that only lasted for a moment before he started to laugh.

"HAHAHAHAHAHA!" Lyner was laughing heartily, and deep inside he felt a bit good. When he looked at Niel's face which was grinning so viciously, Lyner remembered the past him. He too thought of the exact same thing as Niel, which was the reason why he became a mercenary in the first place.

'This kid does indeed posses the talent, his way of thinking is also to my liking... But does he have the will necessary enough to endure? Well he did stood strong in the face of my bloodlust, so he has potential.'

"Kid why do you think I can teach you how to be a merc? Though you claim I'm not an ordinary teacher, but who's to say what I am. Are you truly sure you want me to teach you?"

"You are right that I am not sure, on what you truly are Sir Lyner... But seeing as how you responded to my earlier question, I'm sure you know a lot more about mercenaries than you let on. So no matter what I want you to teach me! Truthfully I do have some doubts about you teaching me, since all I've ever seen you truly do is sleep, but when we played that game of tag, something deep within me told me, you are the one who should be teaching me how to be a merc. So once again no matter what I truly wish for you to teach me!" Niel bowed his head.

"Fine then kid, I will teach you, but I do have one condition for me to agree to teach you." Lyner finally gave in, hearing this Niel was overjoyed.

"What kind of condition?" Niel asked with a bit of excitement in his tone.

"The condition is simple, for the next two weeks I will teach you a bit on how to be a merc, and after that two week period, I will give you a test. Fail that test, and don't bother even thinking about becoming a merc. So do you agree?" When Niel heard Lyner's condition for agreeing he started to think.

After thinking for awhile Niel asked, "What will the test be about."

"It could be anything in relation, to what I'm going to teach you in the next two weeks. So do you agree or do you not?" Without any further hesitation Niel answered.

"I agree!"