Dungeons and Dalliances

7.04 – Mentorship II

In long, confident strides, Instructor Robin led them out of the administrative building. After a short walk, it became clear they were headed for the entrance of Tenet and thus onto the streets of Aradon. Natalie had assumed they'd at least be staying on campus.

"Can I, uh, ask where we're going?"

"My home," Instructor Robin replied easily.

She stumbled a step. Her home? Why in the world would Instructor Robin be taking her to the place she lived? What sort of 'mentorship' did she have planned that couldn't be handled inside her office, or some other space on the Tenet campus?

Naturally, Natalie's thoughts went toward less appropriate places, but she squashed those down—an inability to control her fantasies was how she'd ended up in this mess in the first place. Though really, taking a student back to her private residence had to be inappropriate, right? Was Tenet aware Robin was doing this? Maybe they didn't need to be; it was her prerogative to handle Natalie's mentorship as she deemed fit.

Putting aside the surprise, Natalie found herself eager to see what Instructor Robin's home looked like. She was a decorated academy instructor, someone accomplished even more so than the average high-ranker, who, as a whole, were already among the upper echelons of society.

Leaving Tenet's gates behind, Instructor Robin guided her to a carriage and opened the door for her. Natalie hesitated, but stepped up and inside. Instructor Robin followed.

Thus, it was just the two of them. Instructor Robin didn't need to give directions to the coachman; without a word, the carriage stuttered forward and began plodding along Tenet's streets. Probably, he was under her employ, the same man who drove her back to her house every day.

Instructor Robin sat across from her, facing her with that usual cool demeanor. Blue eyes searched Natalie's face with a quiet, intense contemplation.

"It's not a far ride," Robin said. "I don't intend to keep you long, a few hours at most, but especially for our first session, I would rather host you somewhere more comfortable—a place where we can speak freely."

"Uh," Natalie said, still caught off guard by all of this. She frankly couldn't see why she would need to be taken to Instructor Robin's home under any circumstances. The vague explanation had cleared up nothing. "Sure?"

"I would like to remind you that this will be guidance-giving as much as punishment," Robin continued. "In normal circumstances such sessions would normally involve grueling physical training supplemented by discussions of the flaw that brought you to one-on-one training with an Instructor. Considering the particular nature of the mistakes you've made, though, I've decided other methodology is more appropriate."

Natalie barely stopped herself from replying with another ineloquent, 'Uh.'

"And those plans are?"

"You will discover shortly," Robin said. "No need to rush." The Instructor crossed her legs and leaned back. "Before we get to the crux of the matter, I would prefer to get to know you."

"Get to know me?" she echoed.

"Tenet keeps files on all of its students, yes, but such reports are clinical in nature. I would like to hear your story from you, if you don't mind. Briefly—no need to divulge what you don't wish to. Let's begin with, say, what brought you to Tenet?"

"Ah." That sort of question, at least, was more or less what she had expected from a mentorship session. And she didn't mind answering. Instructor Robin was a person she respected, and while the 'punishment' to come was somewhat foreboding, she didn't mind a candid conversation. "I have to figure the same reason most people end up at Tenet. I want to level up and get stronger. Get better at what I do. Delving, combat, my class, so on."

The Instructor's lips quirked. "Distilled, yes, that is the essence of what brings most students to an academic institution. But I meant the particulars." She cocked her head. "You come from a small village to the south, no? Along with your two teammates?"

Ah. The full story, then. Her life in brief.

The ride lasted fifteen minutes, and Natalie and Instructor Robin spent that time getting to know each other. Or, well, it was mostly Natalie responding and Robin asking, but there were a few times Robin interjected some insight into her own life, like how she had also attended Tenet however many years ago.

She was a polite and attentive listener, and Natalie nearly forgot her circumstances, relaxing into the easy flow of conversation. When the carriage shuddered to a stop, though, she was reminded.

The carriage had taken them to Instructor Robin's house. Though 'house' was an inadequate word. The place Robin lived was closer to Baron Crestwood's manor than it was a place Natalie would call a home as she knew them. Not quite as spacious and gaudily constructed, but not far off, either.

It was another reminder of Instructor Robin's status within the city of Aradon, or society as a whole. Delving was a lucrative career even for low-rankers, hence why so many people, both prepared and unprepared, were willing to risk their lives down in the dungeon. Natalie and her team could pull in more money in a single weekend delve than her parents would earn in months. And they were only level twos and threes. Instructor Robin, who was somewhere between ten and fifteen? Not to mention the significant paycheck she must be earning from Tenet? This woman was rich in the way even many noble families weren't. The three-story manor in front of her was probably well beneath her means, even.

Or…maybe. Property in the middle of Aradon, with an expansive grounds to go along with it, probably quadrupled the value of the manor, if not more. Natalie wasn't sure what real estate was worth, especially in the capital city.

"It's somewhat ostentatious, I admit," the Instructor said, catching the way Natalie had paused to look around at the manor and grounds. "I do believe I would have been fine with something simpler. But Isla came from a less affluent background than I, and it was obvious she admired the spectacle." Her eyes roamed across the lush green grass and the elegant structure. "I find myself unable to resist spoiling her."

Natalie blinked at the genuine affection in Instructor Robin's voice, then smiled. Whenever Robin spoke about her wife, her calm and reserved tone didn't survive—fondness always leaked through. It was more than a little cute. The woman was obviously still in love, even twenty-seven years of marriage later.

"Please, follow me," Instructor Robin said. "We should begin this session in earnest. I don't wish to waste your time."

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