Life in a new Kingdom

"I... Um... I didn't mean to..." The young boy stumbles over his words. I glare before shaking my head.

"Listen up! I am going to have you practice some group tactics. Posted around are targets with certain conditions applied for you to defeat. It is up to you and your new members to figure out the quickest and most effective way of handling the situation. Use whatever you know and display your plans to each other. Teamwork is the goal of this practice!" With my demands, I point to them and send them into the deep end. Straight forward into stationary dummies with heavy armor.

Observing the adventurers, issues on who should attack from each party instantly occur, which causes a disgruntled argument between the two parties. One of the mages uses his artifact to conjure a small ball of flames and blasts the armor, ricocheting toward a small dwarf girl who blocks the spell but falls back. Absolute chaos is what I could sum up with. After ten minutes of bickering, they proceed to argue and finally take down the heavily armored targets using the warriors to engage and have their rogues or rangers get in close and sever the ropes holding the armor in place.

Furthermore, I examine the other groups from afar to see vastly different experiences. Eckhart's group seems to be giving up or unable to continue the practice, leaving him in a tide wave of orders and demands, telling them to pick it up and finish. Carlo seems to have some progress, but his group shows a lack of care or urgency. Tackling each group with barely any synergy. Day one of their evaluation and training left us quite worried about their efforts.

"These spoiled brats don't know what even being an adventurer means anymore! Tsk! If I had half the mind to whip them into shape with force I would but sadly that would just cause them to run away." Eckhart grumbles to himself. His brow curls. For his age of seventy-six, his scowl makes him look much older than usual. His short, dark blonde hair is slicked back with sweat, making it glossy. He gently scratches the scar on his face before turning to us.

"Do look at me; my group is just lazy," Carlo interjects and shrugs, his arms held high. Now sixteen years old, he is starting to grow up a bit, his hair slightly longer now that it hits his shoulders. With broader shoulders and a slightly deeper voice, he is still on the smaller side, as it isn't until around the age of twenty that humans start to resemble young adults and have their growth. I am only eleven; I have some years on me before I can be taller than four feet.

"This is only day one of our month. Let us focus on their strengths and weaknesses. We can focus on their goals if we approach them from an angle. With our groups, we have a solid balance of warrior types, support types, and magic casters."

"You only have the one caster Caleb, are you sure that they can handle with one?" Eckhart looks at me. His eyes trained on my face for any signs of reaction. I curl my brow and rub my head, thinking.

"Your group, Eckhart, is missing a priest or cleric for any powerful support or healing. Carlo, you only have one archer and two mages for range, correct? Otherwise, it has the two fighters and a cleric. Each group is lacking or missing an important piece of their party."

"What do you suggest we solve this? We don't have enough to trade around to make it work; something has to be done." Eckhart sighs while speaking.

"They would refuse any trades and lose any close friends or companions, which is out of the question. What we could do is specialize one or two members of the parties to have them qualify for that missing role."

"So, what, you want them to train in another class or role? Are you seriously suggesting that? One month won't be enough to allow such a special case." Carlo crosses his arms and stares at me for an answer.

"Give me a moment to think about it. Have them continue their normal practice for the next few days. Thoroughly examine each of them and determine which ones don't stick well. I'll do the same with my group, and then I will look into what can be done."

"My lord, we don't have time to do something like this."

"Don't worry, Eckhart, I believe in them."

"Hmph, at least you do."

"What can I say? I was a bad student at first, wasn't I?" I give Eckhart a ridiculous face to playfully mock him.

"You were awful, unable to pick up a sword without throwing a fit or passing out."

"But I still learned."

"You did. But after some time."

"They already have knowledge of their roles. You'll be surprised how quickly one can adapt if given the proper focus. It should work out, given our limits." I turn away and look outside to see the three parties are split between the groups they were before. With a soft tilt, I come up with a good idea.

Approaching slowly, I began to ask each individual about themselves. At first, most were hesitant to answer, but realizing I had no ill intent, they quickly started to share about themselves. I ensured the other members would hear during my talks with them. Letting them get to know each other better would surely yield some benefit.

After leaving, I noticed that both Eckhart and Carlo were watching me. For how small I am, I act more grown up than they would think to believe. Little do they know, this isn't my first time in life doing something similar. After seeing the effect of my efforts, they smile and nod at each other. Approaching their respective parties and begin to talk to them like ordinary people. Eckhart seems intimidating, but he cares deeply about anyone who he trains or fights with, so he starts to express himself and his battles to wow his crowd before having others join in and express themselves. With his happy-go-lucky self, Carlo quickly caused a scene to be weird yet entertaining them. They begin to laugh at him and start to get comfortable with each other.

It's progress, and I will take it. I won't expect them to improve overnight, but it will boost their compatibility with each other. After a long walk in the night, I arrive at the manor and am nearly about to enter before I am stopped in my step. A figure behind me stares, and I turn to face them. To my surprise, it was the female Ranger in the Phantom Blades. She was the only one who didn't sustain any serious injury. She looks at me with a look of disdain, but behind her eyes, I can see she is holding back her fury.

"May I talk to you, Caleb?" she speaks, a hint of anger deepening the words.

"You took the time to get here; I might as well listen."