Read The Reluctant Mage: Book One in the Zandar Series for Free Online Page A

me.”
     
    “Thank you! Both of you!” Marko exclaimed. He was finally going to see the great city of the Emperor. Maybe he would even meet the council when his uncle made the report.
     
    “Don’t thank me yet, m’boy. We both feel that it is time for you to learn to make your own way in this world. You are almost fifteen years old. Most boys your age have apprenticed themselves to a guild or are learning to take over the family business. No fault of yours, of course. The Maker bless your father’s soul.”
     
    “No, we need to get you a proper education so that when the time comes, you can choose your own path. You have put on some muscle since you have been here so the path of steel might be a good choice. Even soldiers need a basic education, especially if they want to lead men. It will also allow you to fulfill your obligation to the Emperor so that your children do not have to serve. If the life of the book is more to your suiting, you will need more education. Did you know your mother once studied at the University? That was before a dashing young cadet swept her off her feet.” Marko’s mother blushed. He had heard how his mother and father had met, when his father was posted at a village nearby the University.
     
    “I have some contacts at the imperial orphanage in Zandar City. Your mother and I will cover your tuition out of the money she brought with her and my stipend. We won’t be able to afford an allowance, but the orphanage will take care of your basic needs. There have been many successful officers and even a few mages that once called the orphanage home. It is not a place of luxury but it will offer you the foundation of knowledge for you to be successful. What you do with the opportunity is up to you. I encourage you, however, to study hard. I doubt the council will fund me to work here for more than another year, unless I discover something of great importance. That means I will head back to the Universite and there will be no job for you here.”
     
    They spoke most of the morning about what supplies they would take, how long the journey would be and what to expect at the orphanage.
     
    That night Marko sat in his bed and stared at the pictures on the wall. He had just gotten to the point where he considered this cave his home. He knew that turning fifteen meant that life would change for him. The Emperor expected all men of fifteen to begin a career, but being here seemed like its own little world. His uncle’s conversation had brought him back to reality. The problem was that Marko had no real idea of what he wanted to do. Training with his father in combat skills was probably the most enjoyable time he had ever had. He was not sure if it was because he liked sword work or if it was due the time he spent with him. His father had told him that he had a gift with the sword. Although Marko was not the strongest boy of his age, he was certainly the fastest. He often scored touches on this father with practice swords, just because his father would become tired and slowed down. Still, being stuck on garrison duty at some outlying village did not sound too exciting.
     
    His father often made fun of the “soft careers” as he had called it. Marko’s father made fun of the bureaucrats of the Empire. These were the men who ran the towns and villages and shuffled paper in the capital. He said that when you worked behind a desk, you lost focus on what was important. He said that unless you lived near the border or were in the army, you never knew your responsibility to serve the Emperor. He often joked that all officials in Zandar City should be required to perform a tour at a border post at least once in their career. “At one time,” he said, “all people that reported directly to the Emperor had been in the Imperial Army. Now, most of them have never looked death in the eye.” 
     
    The next morning, Marko and his uncle departed their home. They took one of the mules to carry their