I Will Be the Greatest Knight

The intimidating bird only held still long enough for Irene to pull out the letter from the pouch.

Before she could fully turn away, Irene was stopped by a maid.

"His Grace often feeds Blade a snack when he's brought him a letter," she explained.

"Of course he does," Irene responded with a small smile. "Then give it here, please."

Irene had barely unwrapped the meat when the massive raptor swooped down and took it into his large talons. After that, he was nowhere to be seen as he disappeared over the roof and out of view.

"Fortunately, I'm wearing gloves," she muttered to herself as the maid took back the paper to dispose of elsewhere.

Irene looked out across the plains that led down to the ancient wall segment, and a gentle breeze brushed through and tossed her hair backwards. She sighed lightly before leaning against that outer wall along the side of the stairs and unrolling the letter. Whatever her Commander must have needed to send to the Duke's Tower had to have been of importance.

She recognized his handwriting instantly.

To her surprise and, admittedly, relief, she was the one addressed in the letter in the first place. It seemed that he trusted her as much as he claimed to, after all.

One thing she had realized was that the longer Commander Henry was at their head, the less he referred to her as Dame and more as 'Lady Irene.' It caused her to wonder if he knew that it was obvious when he was trying to bring someone a bit closer.

She continued into the heart of the letter.

"Lady Irene

I rest well knowing that the Duke's Tower is under your care, and I hope that all who remain there are doing well. However, I must get directly to the point of why I sent a letter so suddenly.

Commander Lothian has received word of unusual monster activity in Idona outside of Polona and has requested the aid of our knighthood because it is likely we can arrive there faster than those in Hydrogia. There have been many casualties in the area, and if it is something the Commander of the Knights of Hydrogia feels he must address, I feel it is something I must address as well. After all, Polona is a region that we must get ahead of if monsters are somehow escaping. It could be catastrophic for not only Idonians but those in our region if the monsters travel far enough in this direction.

That is why I ask you to gather the knights and apprentices you see fit for battle, as well as Siverly. Bring them to the easternmost township in all of Tenetium. Leave a few behind to ensure that the tower and maids are protected, but I trust your discretion in this. You know the knighthood even better than I.

We will need the required supplies for battle. Again, I trust your discretion.

Only once you all have arrived will I press on and find what awaits us in Idona.

I will see you soon,

Commander"

"The safety wasn't bound to last," she said to no one as she gazed at the place where she nearly lost her life—the place where many others certainly did lose their lives.

The Commander taking knights across the duchy was relatively low stakes in terms of things the knights had to face. Her job to take care of the apprentices and look out for the Duke's Tower was too easy a task after the Knights of Hydrogia spent most of their time monster-culling in the foothills and mountains.

Compared to times before, she should have looked upon the times she was living as idyllic, but she wasn't aware that they were times she would have to look back upon as they pressed on into more dangerous things.

The word "war" was never mentioned, but the letter still incited a fight-or-flight response that caused Irene's heart to race. Unfortunately, she had the 'fight' and less of the 'flight,' so she would undoubtedly follow her Commander, even if it meant going back into another war.

Before she could get ahead of herself, Irene realized she couldn't think of this situation the same way as the war they once faced. Everyone was stronger than before. She wasn't at risk of dying or losing anyone. They were regular monsters, not the ones controlled by a black poison.

The woman gathered herself enough to rush down to the main level and into the Commander's study on the opposite end of the Duke's Tower. Her writing utensils were all the way in her barrack, and she felt that a quick response was necessary, considering the tone of the letter sent to her.

"Commander,

I will gather all you have asked, leaving behind a few so that the lands surrounding our home do not fall into ruin. The monsters will eventually notice if they aren't being kept in line.

We will see you in only a few days. The straightforward path to the eastern edge of the duchy is far closer than the path you went on in consideration for townships and villages.

Until we meet again,

Irene"

She decided it was good enough. It was time to find Blade once more. She hoped that he would wait for a response rather than leaving for wherever he went at the most inconvenient of times.

However, as Irene lifted her head, she was met with a sight most unexpected.

On the wall above the entrance to the study was a painting of two people framed in gold. It was mostly undetailed, as the two were faceless. Yet it was enough to understand what she was looking at.

There was a blonde princess and a brown haired knight in what she thought was quite an intimate embrace. It was a moment not meant for the eyes of others, but it seemed someone had seen it anyway.

For Irene, it only confirmed the words that had been traveling through the knighthood about how close Commander Henry was to Her Highness. It seemed that even a princess wasn't immune to the dark hair, mysterious deep brown eyes, and muscles that peeked out of his clothing occasionally.

Their Commander was undoubtedly an attractive man.

A strand of wavy, red hair fell into Irene's line of sight as she was brought back to reality. A reality where someone with her rough, freckled appearance wasn't appealing to a man like their Commander. She supposed it should have been a relief.

Should have been…

Her appearance did not matter when they were in the face of a looming battle.

Irene stood up from the Duke's chair and rushed out of the room. There was a maid she passed before she could exit.

"I need you to gather all the available apprentices and knights into the dining hall," she requested.

"Yes, my Lady," the maid responded and redirected herself to do as she was asked.

Before the Commander left, he made sure everyone in the Duke's Tower knew just who was in charge while he and Felix were away.

Irene's quick-paced steps then brought her outside until she was within earshot of the apprentices who were tending to the half-rebuilt stables that would keep their horses warm next winter.

"I need you to wake up the knights and other apprentices who were on night duty," she requested. "Afterward, you must go into the dining hall. We have an announcement from the Commander."

When she made it to the center of the practice yard, Irene felt a bit hopeless when she realized Blade was still there, but he was all the way on top of the Duke's Tower. He stood on one of the two smaller towers—this one over the Commander's personal quarters. It was almost like the bird was waiting for the man to return.

"Blade!" she called, waving a letter at the hawk.

The animal regarded her; she could tell as much when it turned in her direction. But it didn't do more than that.

Irene sighed. She had heard the rumors that the past Duke trained the bird to respond to a sword, and Irene grasped the handle with her sword and then waved it into the sky.

The moment the sun caused her sword to glisten, the bird took to the sky and practically dive-bombed onto the woman. However, in an intimidating display of his control, the bird stopped short with an extension of its wings and landed surprisingly daintily for a bird of his size.

She cursed in Sünstoian.

There was no time to waste as her arm trembled under the weight of the bird while also trying to secure the letter inside his pouch with her other hand. Irene then did an upward slash of her sword, and the bird took to the sky. He knew who to go to, at least she was secure in that much.

Irene then turned to the Duke's Tower, realizing there were a few eyes on her.

"Wait for me in the dining hall," she directed. "I must go talk to Siverly."