I Will Be the Greatest Knight

Felix was ever in tune with Irene the moment she arrived. As soon as she got into the inn's dining hall and looked cautiously at the man who was once irritated and bordering on disrespectful to the knights, the second in command perked up.

"Over here," he called his friend, forcing her to come to the table where the man, the Commander, and Felix were all dining.

Luckily for her, there were plenty of others around, so there were unlikely to be any awkward pauses that she would feel the need to fill with something else.

Rather than going to the side where the man sat to the Commander's left, Irene sat beside Felix and furthest from the Commander. It would certainly be more comfortable for her like that.

"Good evening, gentlemen," she addressed the man she was joining.

A few other responses of 'good evening' were heard throughout the tables, but the Commander took it a step further.

"Lady Irene, this is Josef," the Duke introduced. "Josef, this is our third in command, Dame Irene Litharion."

"It's a pleasure, dame," the man responded a bit gruffly, but nodding in respect.

Irene didn't feel like dwelling on it. The people in this area were a bit strange as it was, and they clearly didn't trust knights even more than Siverly.

"Likewise," Irene responded with a small, polite smile and a nod in return.

A waitress soon came by with the ale and plain stew that was feeding all the travelers that night. It was plain because they hadn't been participating in the usual trade that brought in people from all edges of the kingdom, so they were lacking spices. Since they were on lockdown with the magical wall, people couldn't easily stop.

Irene had found out they were the first visitors in the inn for over a month, considering that's how long this issue had been going on. That was why they were so eager to accept paying customers to fill the rooms.

"He's a half-mage who works as a blacksmith in Idona," the Commander continued. "And one of the ones responsible for keeping the mana stones charged so that the magical wall doesn't fall."

"That's quite an impressive feat," Irene admitted. "My understanding of magic is very minimal, but I imagine it must be difficult."

"A worthy cause to keep our people safe," the man insisted.

Even though she sat down, being overall cautious of the situation, she genuinely was impressed that it was mana stones keeping this place protected. When she heard that it was a mana wall in the first place, she pictured the ones Siverly had to put up manually. Were a lot of mages working on it at once?

She realized she was staring eagerly at the man, dying to know more, but when she felt another gaze burning into her face, she realized her Commander had caught her eagerness, and her gaze dropped back to the bowl in front of her.

It was best to drink ale and get some rest rather than drag out the conversation.

Conversations lulled as everyone finished their food. Some of the knights retreated to their various sleeping quarters while others remained and drank ale, internally soothing themselves from the weeks' worth of travel they had been subjected to. It was wonderful being able to sleep with a roof over your head after not doing it for a while.

Each time Irene woke up inside an inn after traveling, she always found it jarring and almost forgot where she was.

Since Felix remained in his seat, Irene did as well, and then the conversation became more interesting.

"I suppose I should first ask what it is you would like to know," Josef questioned as he lifted his eyes from the mug of ale, emptying faster than he would have liked.

"When did this begin?" the Commander wondered. "What have you seen so far? Give me everything you know. I'm familiar with the way this place used to be. All I've seen so far throughout the village is evidence of destruction, although no one is outside to do the repairs."

Joseph was drinking for a while before answering the Commander, which Irene found disrespectful, but she wasn't going to correct another person's disrespect, considering the way it turned out last time.

"One of the reeves sent out a decree telling everyone to stay inside after the most major attack. Katerina isn't the only mage who pushed themselves to the brink of death. There were two initial attacks, and we foolishly thought that it was over and done with." The man explained the situation quietly.

Katerina… Irene recalled the woman she had corrected before when addressing the Commander so casually. She felt a bit bad that she was so sharp with her when the woman had suffered something horrible because of the monsters.

"How many so far?" the Commander asked.

"Two smaller, easier to handle situations," Josef continued. "Not unlike the one you just saw. Monsters running through, not interested in attacking. After those two, Katerina decided she should reach out to the Knights of Hydrogia, hoping they could help figure out a way to prevent this from happening, but soon after, the worst happened…"

By that point, Irene's ale had been forgotten, and her green eyes had settled on the man again. His voice was full of sorrow. She felt a bit anxious thinking of the strange behavior of monsters before the Monster War.

These monsters were escaping something, but what could cause monsters to be afraid except for humans? They had driven the monsters into hiding since they had Commander Henry's thorough culling of the lands, but this area lacked that. Could it be the mages from Nickron…?

"When Katerina and many others met their limit, the monsters found themselves at a dead end in Idona and started attacking anything that moved. Amongst them were ogres who did the most damage. Perhaps we've gotten used to the peaceful world we've created for ourselves. Many of us are out of practice with defensive magic." Josef finished his explanation with a sigh.

"I imagine this has something to do with Polona," the Commander suggested. "Perhaps after the last lava flow, the barrier was damaged."

Two shocked faces were staring at the Commander, but not Felix, since he already knew about the Commander's feats in Polona. The Duke realized he should explain himself quickly.

"Ah… I was sent by His Majesty to go into Polona before I was a duke. Not all that long ago…"

He was as well-traveled as they said, Irene realized. He had so much experience for someone so young. Five years older than her was what she had discovered.

"That's an interesting observation," Josef observed. "A mage from Nickron was sent to Idona, saying that monsters had escaped the damaged border soon after the largest attack. They gave us nothing more than that. I'm not sure they know themselves what's happening in that damned place."

The Commander finished off his own ale and stretched out his back as he decided what to respond.

"Admittedly, I'm not sure what to say," Commander Henry confessed. "If we're able to, we'll simply wait and see if there are more attacks. We'll do what we can to prevent them. All we need is to be allowed to exit on the chance that happens."

Josef was somewhat caught off guard by a knight volunteering himself to the aid of the mages. What was more surprising to him was that his second and third in command looked on in full support. Irene even nodded in agreement, willing to lay down her sword to take down more monsters.

"I'll talk to those in control," Josef assured them. "Now, I must depart. I have a few things to finish before I'm able to rest."

The half-mage raised his hand towards the barmaid who had been standing towards the counter and keeping her eyes on the needs of the knights. He handed off his mug when she returned and began to pull out his pouch to offer a few coins.

However, the Commander was quick to stop him.

"I'll cover everyone's food and drink this evening," he assured the man. "You've given us valuable information, and I can only thank you this much."

Again, the man seemed caught off guard, so he merely nodded and made his departure.

Things became quieter after that. Those who lingered for a while started to slowly get up and leave. After a while, the only ones who remained were the three highest in command, finishing off the fresh drinks that the barmaid had brought to them upon hearing that the Duke was paying, of course.

"What are our next steps, Commander?" Felix wondered, his voice hushed.

Irene and the Commander leaned forward, considering the secretive tone Felix used.

"I don't know how long we can stay here, but I want to be sure that no more danger befalls these people, at least not until the Knights of Hydrogia are here," their leader explained. "Katerina is Sir Maximus's mother. If I were in his shoes, I would want him to do the same."

Felix and Irene nodded, their expressions somber. Each Chemoian had their own run-ins with their loved ones facing danger.

They were left to their individual thoughts for a moment until the Commander broke the silence.

"It's late and I still haven't seen Siverly," the Commander realized. "Perhaps he found the Idonian mage not entirely repulsive to be around."

Their Commander let out a lighthearted laugh that caused the mood in the room to lift a surprising amount despite the prior topic. Both Felix and Irene's expressions seemed to lighten up at the man's rare moment of ease.

Irene found herself admiring the Commander's handsome smile, and her heart raced momentarily.

She internally gasped at self-realization.

What the hell was that!? she wanted to ask herself.

"I suppose I will bid you two goodnight first," Irene quickly stated as she pushed away her unfinished mug of ale. "This drink is making me tired."

She departed quickly after bowing her head, not wanting to look at the Commander again.