0. Hey, Ingrid. Glad I tracked you down. Have you ever [cdb]heard of Tobias's Mercenaries?
1. What an odd question. Tobias, hm? The name does [cdb]sound familiar somehow.
2. Huh, I thought everybody knew about them. Captain Berling must've exaggerated that part.
3. Anyway, they were a big mercenary group my old [cdb]captain used to be in when she was a kid.
4. Apparently their leader, Tobias, was so loyal to one [cdb]of the local lords that he was practically an honorary [cdb]advisor.
5. Strange. I thought mercenaries kept interactions with [cdb]their employers strictly business.
6. Most do. But not only did these mercs fight for this [cdb]lord, they pitched in building the castle town, too.
7. They even went so far as to trade their swords and [cdb]bows for hoes and pitchforks, and tilled the barren [cdb]land for the farmers of the region.
8. And they opened up shops in town when the lord was [cdb]going through some financial troubles.
9. It sounds like they went far beyond what is expected [cdb]of most mercenaries. Unless, is that something you [cdb]all do?
10. Oh, not at all. We're fighters through and through— [cdb]nobody in their right mind would ask us to drop [cdb]everything to become farmers or merchants.
11. Basically, both the mercenaries and the lord were [cdb]doing stuff way different from how they normally do.
12. Yes, of course. A bunch of sellswords planting seeds [cdb]and tending a shop is certainly unheard of.
13. In the end, this captain grew so close to the noble of [cdb]the region that people started calling him the lord's [cdb]right-hand man.
14. I guess my point is, it doesn't matter what you are— [cdb]mercenary, knight, noble. You aren't tied to any one [cdb]role just because of the title you hold.
15. Even battle-hardened mercs can end up as farmhands [cdb]if that's what the client calls for.
16. And if that's possible, surely a noble can do anything [cdb]they want, too.
17. True enough. That ties into our conversation from [cdb]before, as well.
18. Thank you. I will give the matter some thought.
19. Offer your support.
20. Encourage her.
21. Good. I know it won't be easy to find the answer, [cdb]but I'm here to bounce ideas off if you ever need it.
22. Good. Can't wait to see what you come up with.
23. And no matter what, I'm just glad my old captain's [cdb]story actually helped you.
24. All this stuff about Tobias and his mercenaries really [cdb]caught me off guard the first time I heard it.
25. You're right about that. But...hm. I cannot shake the [cdb]feeling that this Tobias person is familiar somehow.
26. Wait, I remember now! I believe the noble in your [cdb]story may have actually been my grandmother.
27. Really? The last head of House Galatea?
28. Yes. I don't remember very well since I was still so [cdb]young, but I recall she had a friend by the name Tobias.
29. Though I find it difficult to believe the old man I [cdb]knew was once a strapping mercenary captain.
30. If it really was him, he must've climbed the ranks [cdb]even further than I realized. I mean, not just anyone [cdb]can meet a noble's family like that.
31. Who would've thought this old story would hit so [cdb]close to home?
32. Certainly not me.