Aronia crossed her arms, rolling her eyes but unable to hide the faint smile tugging at her lips. “As reckless as it was, it worked. Look at you all now, alive, competent, and mostly literate.”

“Mostly being generous,” Yvar murmured.

Aleia shot him a glare; he didn’t bother denying it.

Ludger, still standing near the doorway, listened to the laughter and half-nostalgic complaints with his usual blank expression. But there was a flicker in his eyes, something between amusement and reluctant understanding.

Selene caught the look and grinned. “Don’t pretend you’re any different, Luds. You were one of Arslan’s ‘random picks,’ too. Vice Guildmaster, child labor supervisor, and part-time terror of paperwork.”

Ludger exhaled through his nose. “I prefer the term efficient management.”

The guildhall filled with quiet laughter again, a blend of mockery and warmth that only people who’d survived together could share.

Outside, faint shouting echoed through the streets, tiny voices arguing about which way the lap was supposed to go.

Ludger sighed. “They’re lost already, aren’t they?”

Selene shrugged. “Probably. But so were we, once.”

Half an hour later, the sound of small, uneven footsteps returned to the guildhall.

Ludger didn’t even have to look up. Through his Seismic Sense, he’d tracked their movements the whole time—tiny vibrations circling the town walls, not once taking a shortcut or stopping to rest. They’d actually followed his order. All the way.

That earned them a single, silent point in their favor.

When the door burst open, the kids stumbled in, faces flushed and breathing a little heavy, but not exhausted. Sweat beaded their foreheads, clothes dusty, but none of them looked ready to collapse. If anything, there was a strange mix of pride and stubborn energy in their eyes.

Ludger crossed his arms and regarded them quietly. Ten kilometers on their first day, he thought. And they’re still standing. Not bad.

Yvar arched an eyebrow from his desk. “They made it back in one piece. That’s… faster than expected.”

“Barely half an hour,” Selene added with a grin. “Maybe they’re not as soft as they look.”

Ludger stepped forward, gaze steady. “Alright,” he said, voice calm but firm. “You listened. That’s a start.”

The recruits straightened instinctively.

“Now,” he continued, “introduce yourselves. Name, where you’re from, and why you think you belong in the Lionsguard.”

The room went quiet except for the sound of heavy breathing.

One by one, the kids glanced at each other, then the brown-haired boy who had spoken first before took a step forward again, chin high.

Ludger nodded once, expression unreadable. “Good. Start there.”

And just like that, the evaluation began.

The brown-haired boy stepped forward first, still flushed from the run but standing tall.

“My name’s Renn, from the south side of town,” he announced, voice too loud for the small hall. “I wanna be strong enough to guard the bridge one day, like Lady Viola! My dream’s to fight monsters out on the sea, and my favorite food’s meat pies, especially the ones from the market with pepper on top.”

Ludger’s expression didn’t move. “…Next.”

A small girl bounced up beside Renn, practically vibrating. “I’m Marie! My family runs the laundry near the east gate! I wanna learn healing magic, because Lady Viola once helped save people during the Froststeel expedition, right?, and my favorite food is honey bread, but only when it’s still warm!”

Before Ludger could open his mouth, another voice jumped in.

“I’m Bramm! I’m gonna be a knight!” the third kid blurted out. “I wanna wear armor, fight beside nobles, and ride a horse! Lady Viola rides one, right? I like horses. And fried fish.”

Ludger’s eyelid twitched. “We’re not running a cooking club. Next.”

But they weren’t listening anymore.

The next kid, a wiry boy with wind-tossed hair and a chipped tooth. threw his hands up dramatically. “Name’s Jorin! I’m from the farmlands near the hills. I don’t care what I fight, I just wanna be faster than anyone! My dream is to beat Lady Viola in a duel someday!”

The others gasped.

“You can’t beat her!” Mirae protested. “She’s a noble!”

“Yeah, but nobles can lose too!” Jorin said defensively. “I’ll just train harder!”

Ludger raised a hand, trying to interrupt. “Alright, that’s—”

“I’m Tali!” piped up another girl, cutting him off before he could finish. “I wanna learn magic too! I tried using a wand once, but it exploded! My favorite food’s dumplings! And my goal is to make Lady Viola proud!”

Ludger closed his eyes, mentally counting to ten. Yvar, Selene, and the others stood at the far end of the hall, pretending to busy themselves with paperwork. Their shoulders shook violently as they tried not to laugh. Cor was whispering something to Harold, who bit his lip to keep a straight face.

“Stay strong, Ludger,” Selene called softly, doing her best not to smirk. “They’re just… passionate.”

“Doing great, Vice Guildmaster Ludger,” Yvar added with exaggerated professionalism, making sure not to use the forbidden nickname. “Excellent rapport building.”

Ludger cracked one eye open at him, the look promising later revenge.

Meanwhile, the kids had already launched into another round of excited chatter, arguing over whether Lady Viola liked dumplings, if she really fought in armor, and which of them would impress her first.

By the time they finally stopped talking, Ludger wasn’t sure if he was training recruits or hosting a fan convention. He rubbed his temples and muttered under his breath, “I should’ve just gone looking for that wind mage.”

Ludger stood there for a long moment after the introductions were finally, mercifully over. His brain felt like it had just been bludgeoned with enthusiasm.

He let the silence hang until even the kids started to shift uneasily under his stare. Then he sighed, pinched the bridge of his nose, and said, flatly,

“Alright. Since nothing makes sense anymore… one hundred push-ups, one hundred sit-ups, and one hundred squats. Each.”

The kids blinked.

“Right now.”

Renn hesitated. “Uh, Vice Guildmaster, is this, like, a warm-up?”

“Yes,” Ludger said without blinking, “for the rest of your lives.”

That got them moving. Soon the courtyard filled with the sounds of grunts, thuds, and the occasional complaint muffled under Ludger’s glare. To his mild surprise, they weren’t hopeless, they were fit. Not trained, but conditioned. Probably from running errands and chores all day around their villages.

By the time they finished, they were breathing hard but still standing. Ludger gave a small nod. “Rest until lunch. Then we’ll continue.”

Their faces lit up at the word lunch, but the smiles vanished when he added, “After that, another run around town. Then repeat the exercises.”

Groans rippled through the group.

“But when are we gonna learn the real stuff?” Jorin blurted out, wiping sweat from his brow. “Like magic or sword techniques?”

“Yeah,” Marie added, pouting. “We already know how to run!”

Ludger crossed his arms. “You’ll learn the real stuff when you show enough discipline not to ask things like that.”

That shut them up. A few muttered under their breath, a couple pouted, but none dared argue. The message landed, clear, simple, and heavy.

Ludger nodded once. “Good. Progress.”

He turned away, hiding the faint smirk tugging at his mouth. They’d learn. Sooner or later. Behind him, Selene and Yvar were watching from the balcony again, trying and failing to keep straight faces.

“Classic Luds,” Selene whispered. “They have no idea what they’ve signed up for.”

Yvar chuckled softly. “Discipline first, trauma second.”

Ludger pretended not to hear them. But deep down, he agreed with both.

When Ludger got home that evening, the smell of dinner was already drifting through the house—and his father was waiting.

Arslan was sitting at the table, boots off, a satisfied smirk plastered across his face like he’d been expecting this moment all day.

Ludger didn’t even sit down. “I want answers,” he said flatly.

Arslan chuckled. “You sound like your mother when she catches me sneaking sweets.”

“I’m serious,” Ludger said, crossing his arms. “Who are those kids?”

Arslan leaned back, grinning wider. “Oh, them? Found them while traveling through the southern villages. They wouldn’t stop pestering me with questions about Viola, how strong she is, if she really helped rebuild Lionfang, if she rides into battle with flames behind her and so on.”

Ludger’s expression didn’t change. “So naturally, you decided to recruit them.”

“Exactly!” Arslan said cheerfully. “They’ve got spirit, and I could tell they’ve been helping with difficult tasks. They’re tough for their age.”

“And their parents?”

“Gave permission,” Arslan said with a shrug. “Some of them even thanked me for taking the kids in. Said it’d give them purpose.”

Ludger sighed and rubbed his temple. “Unbelievable. Did you forget about the mountain of problems we already have? The Empire’s spies? The smugglers? The people intentionally stirring unrest to make the frontier look unstable?”

Arslan’s smirk faded, his tone softening. “No. I didn’t forget.”

He looked out the window for a moment, voice quieter but steady. “But time doesn’t stop for us to fix everything, Ludger. The world keeps moving, whether we’re ready or not. We can’t only fight the fires in front of us, we have to prepare for what comes after.”

He turned back, meeting his son’s eyes. “Those kids might not matter now, but give them a few years, and they’ll be the ones standing where we are. If we don’t invest in the future, all we’ll ever do is patch the present.”

Ludger was silent for a long moment. Finally, he sighed again, this time more tired than frustrated. “You’re impossible.”

Arslan smiled faintly. “You say that, but you didn’t send them away, did you?”

Ludger didn’t answer. He just grabbed a cup from the shelf, filled it with water, and muttered, “Next time, at least warn me before you start another generation.”

Arslan laughed. “Where’s the fun in that?”

Arslan leaned back in his chair, that easy grin returning to his face. “You know,” he said, “those kids remind me a lot of us back in the day.”

Ludger raised an eyebrow. “You mean reckless and loud?”

Arslan chuckled. “No. I mean blank slates. A canvas where anything can be drawn. None of us knew what we wanted when we started—me, Harold, Selene, Aleia, Cor… we were just kids with weapons and bad ideas.”

He looked at his hands, the faint scars on his knuckles catching the light. “I only knew I wanted to hunt monsters. To see what was out there. The rest of them… I just convinced them to come along. Said it’d be glorious.”

Ludger leaned on the wall, arms crossed, listening quietly.

Arslan’s grin softened into something more nostalgic. “And look at where we are now. Still alive. Still standing. Still building something that matters.”

Elaine’s voice cut in from the kitchen, cool and sharp as ever. “Yes, and their ‘leader’ also roamed half the Empire chasing skirts and leaving unknowingly pregnant women behind.”

Arslan froze mid-sentence, the color draining slightly from his face. “That’s… an exaggeration.”

Elaine turned her head just enough to give him a look.

Arslan winced. “Alright, fine. It was only two.”

The spoon in Elaine’s hand stopped stirring.

He cleared his throat immediately. “Anyway,” he said quickly, straightening in his seat, “the point is, potential. You’ve got a group of kids who’ll become whatever you make of them. Train them your way, teach them discipline, skill, whatever you think the next generation needs. Build the team you envision, Ludger.”

Ludger stared at him for a moment, his father’s half-guilty earnestness hard to take seriously after that confession. Still, the sentiment hit home.

“Train them my way, huh?” he murmured.

Arslan nodded, smiling again. “Exactly. You’ll see. One day they’ll surprise you, just like we surprised everyone else.”

Elaine snorted softly from the other room. “Yes. Especially the women.”

Arslan groaned, dropping his head into his hands. “I walked into that one…”

Ludger didn’t even hide the faint smirk that crept across his face. “And you’ll walk into more if you keep talking.”

“Fair,” Arslan muttered, but there was pride in his eyes when he looked up again.

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