CHAPTER 278: MISSED OPPORTUNITIES

It was hard to imagine missing the collaborative environment that came with the two year monster war, but as Irene and Felix joined the other knights in the takedown of what they could in the forest, the teenager realized she did miss it.

The Knights of Hydrogia were everything Irene hoped that the Knights of Chemois would one day be. They were powerful and organized. It seemed that all of them practiced religiously because their sword skills were honed and precise.

As someone who was set in a position where she needed to pay attention to the knighthood so that it could become better, she found herself observing other knights as they went through their tasks. They were all a well-oiled machine that didn’t need much oversight. Everyone understood their role in the knighthood and went forward without a hitch.

Admittedly, Irene was a little bit sad that Commander Lothian had business to take care of in the south, so it seemed that she wouldn’t be able to see him that trip, but she hoped she would see him again in the near future. She felt there was much she could learn from him.

When the goblin bodies were burning and everyone was standing around, there were a few familiar faces Irene remembered from the war.

However, she hesitated to remove her helmet as some of them had already, so she opted to merely lift her visor.

A feeling crept up that she wasn’t used to. While it had been practically against her will to have to re-enter her knighthood as a woman, she knew it was a necessary step to become a knight; it was a bit different for her to see the Knights of Hydrogia.

Considering all of the strange biases held in the south, she wondered if women wielding swords was something that would bother them. They already didn’t travel with mages, and she knew that those close to the king were pious.

Fortunately, she had to work, so these thoughts didn’t plague her for too long. Cleaning up the goblin mess was more important than her strange hangups on how she would present herself to knights who already had a preconceived idea of who she was.

Since they were all interacting with her as if it was nothing, even lifting their spirits after going into the forest and practically lighting the place on fire to ensure that the goblins were chased out, Irene decided that she would present herself to them as she was tomorrow morning.

At least it would be in an environment where she could have more control. After all, there would be no way for her to hide herself if she wasn’t wearing armor. Her hair had gotten far too long, and the clothing she wore, while still different than what women normally wore, suited her feminine frame rather than the boxy things she used to have. Her mother made sure she would at least look like a woman, even if it was hard for a traditional woman to imagine their daughter not wearing dresses.

The Knights of Chemois filled a couple of communal rooms, and the Knights of Hydrogia filled what was left of the last one. That meant they weren’t sharing a room with her, but it was probably better that way for now.

However, once morning struck, Irene woke up and went to one of the bath areas to quickly wash herself. When she was finished and those in her room were slowly getting themselves together after having such a late night, she approached Felix, who was already standing and wearing his clothing except for his armor.

"Shall we eat breakfast, sir?" she asked.

He nodded.

"Let us lock our armor in this room," Felix announced to the others. "We might as well enjoy the breakfast here in more comfortable circumstances."

Irene and Felix went down first, but the others were sure to follow shortly.

However, when they made it to the bottom step and the few feet it took to get to the dining hall, Irene was shocked to see that messes were being cleaned up rather than knights eating their morning meals.

The innkeeper was enjoying his own breakfast in the corner, but it seemed that even he had nearly finished.

"Good morning, knights," he greeted the order who soon filled the just cleaned tables. "The Knights of Hydrogia have already come and gone. But there is plenty for everyone to eat to their heart’s content. Please, help yourselves. Your contribution in taking care of the monsters didn’t go unnoticed."

At Irene’s slightly confused expression, Felix turned to her.

"The Knights of Hydrogia decided to head further east to ensure that there are no more disturbances," he explained. "Their second in command, Sir Alix, suggested we stay within our duchy and catch anything that might run this way from their disturbing of eastern monsters."

It seemed her opportunity to present herself to those men had come and gone, and she realized that it was important to get those sorts of things out of the way if she wanted to have a comfortable relationship with people.

With a silent internal sigh, Irene sat down at one of the tables and ate her fill of breakfast. The porridge was sweet, and the bread fluffy and well-risen. She knew she needed to merely get past this bump in the road that she had complicated all on her own.

Soon enough, it was time to move on and they got into their surcoats and armor.

"The journey will be cold," Felix announced to everyone who was on horseback by that point. "We will be leaving knights across the duchy in the places they will settle for the winter. Onward."

They were like an army as they went on in such a large group of travelers. Since they were taking a direct route from east to northwest, it would only be three days of travel tops.

As Felix explained, knights started slowly breaking off of the group and going the routes that would take them back to their various homes for the winter. Much of the knights who went home hadn’t been home in a year.

It made Irene feel a little bit warm that there would be so many happy reunions to be had over the cold season. She had an idealized version of receiving affection when it was cold from her father who offered the warmest hugs when it was cold outside.

Unless she was at his side, she didn’t imagine that she would experience anything like that again in her life since she refused to be affectionate to any of the other knights in the knighthood.

By the time they reached the Duke’s Tower, they were thoroughly cold and the group had gone down by quite a bit. A few apprentices that had gone south to be in a more stable environment went all the way to the tower with them.

They would be trained all winter long as Felix and Irene once were.

Soon enough, the first snow to reach the valley finally hit while Irene, Gunnar, and the apprentices were outside on the practice yard doing warmups.

The girl lifted her head and smiled faintly at the sight of snow falling over the valley. For days, it had been only sticking to the tops of the mountains.

As she once was, she got to witness the apprentices become riled up at the snowfall. They were having genuine fun even though it meant they would be covered in mud and have to clean themselves up before they were allowed into the Duke’s Tower for breakfast.

Things finally felt settled. Irene was happy in her position.

Rather than worrying about honing her swordskills, Irene and Felix stuck to the library a lot of times, researching the best way to organize their knighthood and the duchy. Not only did they go over theory, but law as well.

There were a few accounts in books about duchies, counties, and even baronies after losing a leader. Unfortunately, most resulted in the King having to get involved, so Irene and Felix merely had to settle with the fact that they would merely have to wait just as they already had been. They didn’t want the King involved more than he already was.

If it meant the complaining of the state of things turned into only words of frustration shared between the second and third in command, then that’s how it had to be.

When the snow was deep, Irene was shocked when she received a letter from a hawk that had been spotted trying to enter the front door of the Duke’s Tower.

At first, she assumed it had to do with the mages, but when she saw her father’s seal and handwriting, she quickly opened the letter.

She didn’t know whether or not to be initially worried or simply happy that he had sent something in her direction. But when she saw the words "Your grandmother has fallen ill..." her heart settled on worried.

Uncontrollably worried. She should have seen her when she had the opportunity.