#AIDEN WILLIAMS POV#
Groaning, I open my eyes for a moment before closing them as I enjoy the comfortable bed that I am lying in
I freeze as that thought enters my mind
Bed...I don't have a bed, I have a sleeping roll
Sitting up, I look around and find myself in a room
Taking a look outside, I see the crop fields and I can even tell that some of them won't yield anything
I shake my head as I can tell that if they use something like Calcium Carbonate, the crops will grow better
Shaking my head as memories of my home threatened to overwhelm me
Being born into the Williams family as the third child, I wasn't going to inherit the Family Crest
To be honest, I was admittedly jealous of my brother as while our crest didn't have any actual Magecraft in it, it still contained knowledge about it in general
My family itself didn't really specialize in anything
My oldest brother preferred the study and creation of Chimeric creatures and Homonculous to a certain extent, and my sister who is the second-born was interested in exploration and investigation and the last time I saw her she was heading to an expedition in Egypt
While I never really chose a path for myself as I had time to choose for myself, I was partial to the study and theory of Phantasmal Beasts and possibly Jewelcraft
Getting up from the bed, I slowly make my way over to the door and open it, my eyes widen in shock as I see a girl about 2 years younger than me on the other side with wide eyes as I can tell that she was probably spying on me as I slept
"Who are you?" I ask taking in her features
She has blonde hair and bright emerald-green eyes which remind me of my own except that mine are a darker shade
I used to have hazel-colored eyes but that changed when I was brought back to the past
"I am Artoria," The girl answers as she looks at me nervously
"Aiden...do you know where I am?...I fell asleep," I ask her trying to get more information
"You are at the manor of Lord Ector," She informs and I nod as I have seen the manor at a distance when I was trying to get used to the land
"Was there any reason you were leaning on the door?" I can't help but ask her causing her to blush slightly
"I...I was curious I shall admit, we hardly get any visitors that aren't merchants, and I...never mind," She says turning around while I blink at that
"Come, Lord Ector will be pleased that you are awake," She says walking away a bit fast
"Well...that just happened," I say a bit more relaxed now as I follow her
"So, are you Lord Ector's daughter?" I ask her
"No, I am his ward, that he has taken in, Lord Ector was a friend of my father and was entrusted with me when I was five," She responds while the blush on her face dies down
A shame...
"What about you?" She asks me curiously but attempting to hide the fact that she wants to learn more about me
"Not much to say. I am an orphan and a hunter that lives in the forest," I tell her as there is no way that I am going to tell her that I am a Magus
Well I am more of a Spellcaster than anything, my family never had the goal of reaching the root as we consider it a fool's errand
All the sacrifices that one would have to make in order to even create a pathway to it is not worth the effort for the knowledge that one might gain
We do not have the resources for it...
My mind stops as I realize one thing
I am living in the 5th century, near the end of the Age Of Gods, if anything this might actually be the time when someone reaching the Root will be possible
I shake my head as I pay attention to Artoria and I learn that she is a knight in training which makes me frown once she stops looking at me as I remember that women are not treated particularly well in this age
"Oh, if becoming a knight is your dream, then I hope you shall reach your goal," I tell her as she stops to look at me for a moment, wondering if I am serious
I smile at her to let her know that I am
She smiles back at me and my own smile widens as I watch her features
She is pretty
Reaching Sir Ector's dining room where I can see he is eating a piece of bread reminds me that I have to cook my own food
"Come sit and enjoy a meal," He says as I go over to sit down while trying to ignore his staring
"My son told me your name is Aiden, it is an honor to meet you," He says
"My name is Sir Ector the lord of this house," he says introducing himself as I bow my head in recognition
Lifting my head, I barely catch the approval in his eyes as he gives me a look over
"What have you been doing in the forest alone?" He asks me
"Sir Ector, I am an orphan that has been living in the forest hunting and gathering supplies and surviving on the land. As well as trading some of the furs that I have from hunting," I explain and how I have been surviving
"Well now, you are quite resourceful aren't you," He notes while rubbing his beard in thought
"How would you like to stay in the manor and become my squire?" he asks me as I do my best to hide my shock at his question
"What?" I stammer out as I look at him
He chuckles at my reaction and I glance at Artoria who is still eating but I catch as she glances at me and lets out a small smile in my direction causing me to look down as I try to think more about it
If I accept, I won't have to deal with living in the forest anymore
Due to my new body, I am able to catch up to animals even as they run and either snap their necks or stab them with my knife
Looking down I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding
"May I...have some time to...think it over?" I ask him
I ignore the small gasp that Artoria lets out, its then that I remember her dream
Oh, I can see why she would be surprised that I didn't accept right away
But, I am going to follow the lessons that I had with my parents
One of which was to never make a decision without thinking about it thoroughly if there isn't a need to
As much as the benefits of being a knight appeal to me...I need to think this over
"I can't say that I didn't expect that after all such an offer made in such a short amount of time would obviously require thinking. If you would like, Artoria would be delighted to show you around the manor," He offers and I glance at her and catch the expression on her face
She is looking at me with a look that says that she is trying to figure me out
"I...would like that," I tell Sir Ector as he motions for Artoria to show me around the manor...