Chapter 336: Recruitment

After finishing the day's visual training, Gao De had his free lunch at the "canteen" as usual, then returned to his dormitory in Building 6.

But unlike other days, as he prepared to go upstairs, Gao De suddenly noticed two people standing at the corner of the stairs, seemingly waiting for someone.

The moment they saw him, both of their eyes lit up slightly.

It looked like they were waiting specifically for him.

Gao De's gaze swept quickly over their attire.

Their tight-fitting tops were meticulously tailored, the fabric clearly of very high quality. The shoulders and elbows featured clever patchwork, facilitating movement without compromising aesthetics.

Their trousers were tight-fitting wool, matching the tops in color, with a row of exquisite buttons running down the outer side from the waist to the ankles.

Paired with high-top leather boots, they looked very sharp.

Such attire was, without a doubt, only worn by nobles.

"Gao De?"

As Gao De sized them up, the two men were doing the same to him.

One of them, who looked gentle-faced, spoke first.

"And you two are?" Gao De raised an eyebrow and asked in return.

"We are also Sea Hai Shao Bing mages living in this building, but we usually live at home and don't stay here, so even though you've been here for a while, we haven't met," the man said with a smile.

"My name is Zuowen Burns, currently a Corporal."

"Uer Newman, also a Corporal."

The two introduced themselves in turn.

Uer Newman looked significantly older than Zuowen Burns, and though they held the same rank, he stood half a step behind Zuowen, clearly treating him as the leader.

Gao De hesitated for a moment before stating his name, "Gao De, Second-Class Apprentice Mage."

After confirming Gao De's identity, Zuowen Burns asked with a smile: "Mage Gao De, may I ask, do you have any difficulties or needs regarding money or resources?"

Seeing Gao De's expression shift, Zuowen explained calmly: "It's like this. We know your background isn't great. To walk all the way here from a small place like Saint Xi En and join the Sea Sentinels purely on your outstanding talent is truly remarkable."

"In a place like Saint Xi En, where resources are scarce, and hearing you were a stray child, you must have suffered a lot and put in great effort to achieve what you have today, even with your innate talent."

"Thanks for your concern, but it's actually fine," Gao De replied flatly.

Zuowen didn't mind Gao De's reaction and continued on his own: "No matter how high your talent, you need sufficient resources to realize it. Being all alone in Ducheng with no one to rely on, you must be stretched thin in this regard."

"Take basic cultivation, for example. If you could drink magic potions to assist your cultivation method long-term, your mage rank would surely rise much faster."

"This bit of potion expenditure is nothing to us, but for you, it must be quite a significant expense, right?"

"Not to mention going out on missions. Clearing out sea beasts is a very dangerous task, but if you were equipped with supernatural gear, potions, and had corresponding intelligence support, you would surely achieve twice the result with half the effort."

"There have always been many mages of commoner origin in the Sea Sentinels who, because they lacked resource support, couldn't fully utilize their talents despite having good potential."

"Some even ended up being dismissed by the Sea Sentinels after failing their assessments for three consecutive years because they couldn't keep up with mission progress despite working very hard due to a lack of resources."

"Getting into the Sea Sentinels is so difficult; how could one be reconciled to being dismissed like that?"

"We find such situations very regrettable."

"In view of this, we noble descendants, whose family backgrounds are decent, hope to provide some help to commoner mages with talent like yours, to prevent you from wasting your gifts in vain. We have jointly established a sponsorship society."

At this, Zuowen smiled: "The so-called sponsorship society means we are willing to provide you with sponsorship so you don't have to worry about resources anymore."

"I have come this time representing my family, the Burns family, to extend a sponsorship invitation to you."

"The Burns family is one of the best among the nobles in Ducheng, possessing deep foundations and wealth, as well as rich channels for magical resources."

He said slowly: "As long as you sign a sponsorship contract with our Burns family, you will have a stable supply of resources and can cultivate with peace of mind."

"And we won't restrict you or force you to do anything; we just need you to stand on our Burns family's side and do some things for us when we need it."

With the other party having said this much, how could Gao De not understand their meaning?

This was essentially angel investment. Nobles provide resource sponsorship to individuals with potential they favor, in order to gain certain returns once the person achieves success.

Looking at it this way, this sponsorship contract seems quite decent; it feels like sending charcoal in snowy weather, an excellent opportunity to change one's fate.

But the reality was not so.

In most cases, the sponsored party often ends up becoming a tool for the nobles, constrained by them.

To put it bluntly, it's easy to become a "lackey" for the nobles.

"Eating someone's food makes your mouth soft, taking someone's hand makes your hand short"—this is a universal truth.

Once you accept sponsorship, it's like being shackled with invisible chains; your actions and decisions become limited by the noble power behind you.

Regarding this, not to mention that Gao De wasn't as lacking in resources as Zuowen thought, even if he were truly lacking, he wouldn't agree to such a thing.

Being controlled by others is truly unwise.

He nodded slightly and gave his answer: "Thanks for your concern, but I don't need sponsorship for the time being."

Zuowen Burns was not surprised by Gao De's reaction.

How could a commoner mage who passed the strict selection and re-examination to enter the Sea Sentinels not have any pride?

But so what?

No matter how much pride they have, in the end, they will all choose to sign sponsorship contracts with nobles. Bowing before reality is the general trend.

He didn't try to persuade Gao De further, but took a roll of parchment from his sleeve and handed it to Gao De.

"This is the military merit points for mages below the rank of Second Lieutenant in the Sea Sentinels this year, including Second Lieutenant rank mages. Although new members don't need to participate in assessment ratings before completing initial training, you can take a look first so you have an idea, right?"

Hearing this, Gao De didn't refuse. He took the parchment, untied the drawstring, and began to flip through it.

The information on it was somewhat like a table, divided into three main pieces of information: name, military rank, and cumulative military merit, listed in descending order of merit.

Gao De's gaze swept all the way down, finally landing on the few names at the very bottom.

It was then that he noticed an artificial "X" marked behind those names.

How could Gao De not realize the problem? He looked up at Zuowen Burns, "What does this mean?"

Zuowen Burns wore a calm smile and said in a subtle tone: "These are all commoner mages who haven't accepted our sponsorship."

"Could it be that if one doesn't accept your sponsorship, one will be targeted and suppressed by you?" Gao De put down the parchment and looked at the two of them.

Zuowen Burns made an exaggerated expression and waved his hands repeatedly, "How could that be? We nobles believe in classical teachings and value honor more than life. How could we do such despicable and shameless things?"

"It's just that..." He smiled slightly, but the smile carried a hint of chill, "Mutual support is also part of classical teachings. As long as you accept our sponsorship, you are one of our own. Since that's the case, we won't sit idly by and watch our own people fall into the unqualified category during assessment ratings."

"You only need to complete the Sea Hai Shao Bing missions; they don't investigate how they were completed, and there is no rule saying they must be completed independently by you."

"As long as you accept a mission and submit it, the Sea Sentinels recognize it."

"If you sign a sponsorship contract with us, we will put in the effort to help you complete some missions when your military merit falls behind. We can't guarantee you'll be at the top, but at least we can ensure you won't fall into the unqualified range."

Zuowen Burns spoke very euphemistically, but the meaning was obvious, and Gao De understood it instantly.

To put it bluntly, it was just a small clique, a community of interests dominated by nobles.

They claimed not to suppress commoner mages who didn't accept sponsorship, but helping those who signed contracts was itself equivalent to suppressing those who refused to submit.

Seeing Gao De didn't speak, he put on a posture of heart-to-heart talk and said very "sincerely": "Gao De, to be honest, we aren't willing to provide sponsorship to every commoner mage who enters the Sea Sentinels."

He spread his hands helplessly: "The rules of the Sea Sentinels are here; every year, someone must be rated as unqualified."

"Your talent has already been initially recognized within the Sea Sentinels, which is why I came personally to extend an invitation to you. Ordinary people wouldn't get this kind of treatment."

This meaning was even more direct.

Someone has to be cannon fodder.

It certainly wouldn't be these noble-born mages, nor would it be the commoner mages who signed sponsorship contracts with them.

Then who the cannon fodder was went without saying.

At this point, Zuowen Burns didn't try to persuade Gao De further, but said calmly: "Of course, if you have the confidence and feel that you can surpass those mages who receive our help and rank at the top in the assessment ratings on your own, you can also choose to refuse our sponsorship."

"I can understand that you have reservations and don't want to accept our sponsorship, but the sponsorship we provide is not just help with resources and missions."

"In terms of your future military rank promotion and so on, we can also put in effort for you. These benefits are hard to explain in detail; you will understand once you sign a sponsorship contract with us."

Gao De looked deeply at Zuowen Burns and then said slowly: "I will consider it."

This was actually a polite refusal.

The other party naturally understood Gao De's meaning, but didn't become angry from embarrassment. Instead, he nodded in agreement: "This is a big matter; it indeed needs careful consideration."

"If you have any thoughts, come find me at the Burns family."

"Of course," he raised his chin slightly, carrying a trace of faint superiority, and said meaningfully: "I can only give you three days. If you come to me within three days, it still counts as me inviting you. After that, it will be you requesting us to provide sponsorship."

"The treatment then will be completely different; you should understand that."

After dropping this final sentence, Zuowen Burns left leisurely with Uer Newman beside him.

"I was once just as full of pride as you, unwilling to accept noble sponsorship, but later I fell into the bottom half of the assessment range for two consecutive years and was almost dismissed by the Sea Sentinels. Fortunately, I woke up in time and went to seek sponsorship."

"An arm cannot twist a thigh. Look at me now; is there anything wrong with it?"

As Uer Newman brushed past him, Gao De heard the other party's advice sent via 【Message】.

Looking at the well-fitting attire on the other party that only nobles could have, Gao De remained silent, not knowing what he was thinking.

"Uer, when do you think he will come to find me?"

After leaving the "dormitory building," Zuowen Burns suddenly asked, his tone carrying a hint of ridicule, as if this were some interesting game.

Uer Newman was startled. He lowered his head, thought for a moment, and then said respectfully: "I think he will have to wait until next year's assessment results come out before he can recognize reality."

"Hahaha, looking at it this way, you are the one with the most backbone. You held out for two whole years back then."

Zuowen Burns laughed loudly: "It is precisely because of this that I picked you out from among the many Sea Hai Shao Bing mages sponsored by the family."

—The more backbone a person has, the more satisfying it is to order them around.

Uer Newman smiled awkwardly: "Young Master Zuowen is too kind. This can only be said to be me being stubborn about face, wasting two precious years for nothing. And having two records of unqualified ratings has also delayed my current military rank promotion."

"Haha!" Zuowen Burns patted Uer Newman on the shoulder, the action appearing intimate but carrying the condescension of a superior, "Having this realization is very good. Rest assured, as long as you work well for the Burns family, military rank promotion is no big deal."

After saying this, Zuowen Burns boarded the luxury carriage waiting on the side and left.

Watching the carriage go until it disappeared from sight, Uer Newman withdrew his gaze, lowered his head, and couldn't help but clench his fists, his knuckles turning white from the force, before slowly relaxing them again.

Who is willing to be a noble's "lackey" and be constrained by them?

To master great skills only to sell them to the powerful.

But he had no choice. One must know that many people want to be a noble's lackey but cannot; at least he still had a choice.

Since the development of the Jin Quehua Dynasty, the rigidity of the social strata has reached a point that others simply cannot imagine.

Even the Sea Sentinels, which seem to have the most fair and transparent promotion channels and are the best path for ordinary people to rise, are actually basically controlled by nobles on the inside.

Yes, the Sea Sentinels have their overt rules; if you perform outstandingly enough, no one can stop your rise.

But the problem is, the powerful can completely manipulate these rules.

They can use the resources and connections in their hands to pave the way for their own people, making it difficult for commoner mages, no matter how talented or hardworking, to compete with them.

Therefore, for most people, it is either to sell themselves to these powerful people or to leave the Sea Sentinels in a sorry state with their backbone and pride.

Unless your fist is hard enough to break the copper wall and iron fortress built by the powerful.

But is that possible?

Uer Newman shook his head, his heart full of bitterness.

But in his heart, there had always been a glimmer of hope, a hope that such a person could appear.

If for nothing else, to set up a banner for the commoner mages who come after, having a direction is good enough.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 337 =====