The poor junior officer colt had come from an impoverished noble family, and hadn't been able to afford more than the most basic of infantry platoons for his commission. Violetta almost felt sorry for him, but there was a reason that the purchase of commissions was slowly on its way out, after all. Soon, the Royal Guard's officer corps would be composed entirely of trained professionals like herself. That would be a welcome change, though it would take some time to get there. There were still plenty of high-born ponies in expensive posts who looked down upon any officer who wasn't a gentlepony and hadn't paid their way into the Guard. Nopony would ever question their loyalty to the Crowns, of course, but it wasn't an ideal situation.