I Will Be the Greatest Knight

The only way to enter the space was to clear off all of the snow first. When Irene began to push snow off of the roof and onto the ground, Henry readily helped her, getting all the places she couldn’t reach.

The familiar dried grass that insulated the roof was slowly revealed to the pair. Henry eventually got his sheathed sword and began to push as much snow off as he could reach towards the rocks that the dilapidated structure was certainly leaning against.

So far, it seemed that the structure was holding up. Relief spread through Irene’s chest.

Next, the two worked to push the snow away from the door despite lacking the tools to do so. Well, at least until they dug a bit further and Irene found a rusty shovel that would help them get hardened snow and ice away from the door.

As soon as things were clear, Irene took a few steps backward and observed their handiwork with a proud smile as she pulled away the scarf that once hid her face.

"There’s a place for the horses as well," Henry realized as his attention went towards an area beside the house that was nothing more than a roof, but the way it leaned against the stone face beside it, it would do a good job of protecting the horses from the cold—not that they seemed bothered by it much in the first place.

"That’s why I was looking forward to this place so much," Irene admitted. "Warmth for us and warmth for them. Now, I hope that the inside is still in one piece. It’s impossible to say without going inside."

What was left of the snow underfoot crunched under her boots as she went forth. With her hand on the door, she took a deep breath before putting effort into opening the door. While it wasn’t frozen solid, it did stick before she could get a good enough grasp to tear it open all the way.

The smell of old wood struck her senses the moment it was open, and as her eyes adjusted to the shadows, she was relieved to see everything in order. Her biggest fear in a place like that was finding a dead body or dead animal as they sought shelter to survive in the harsh Sunstoian North.

"It’s just as I remembered," she uttered as Henry approached. "The smallest house I’ve ever witnessed, but a house nonetheless."

"We’ll make it into a home in no time," Henry assured her as he gently placed a hand on her armored shoulder. "Start a fire for us; I’ll make sure the horses have plenty to eat."

Not bothering to shut the door since the inside was practically as cold as outside, Irene knelt in front of the small stove, finding small pieces of old wood stacked beside it. It was that way before. She didn’t have to use her supplies and relied on the preparedness of someone who had likely come far before her.

Had anyone used it since she had been there? She doubted it, but she always held hope that this area of the world wasn’t forgotten by everyone except for her and her immediate family.

The fire was easy to light, and she kept it open for now, allowing it to warm the space more quickly even if it would waste wood at first. For now, she shut the door and did a quick observation of everything. The furniture created decades before was still sturdy. The pipe that acted as a chimney was clear so they wouldn’t smoke themselves out.

She also remembered the small square windows on either side that went through the roof and allowed her a view of what could hardly be called a stable. She opened it, finding herself at eye level with Henry’s shoulder as he worked to get the horses situated and removed their saddlebags.

The fact that she could still get butterflies at this stage of their journey together was so interesting to her. She wished she could tell her lonely self from the last trip that it wouldn’t be that way forever.

Irene shut the window.

Soon enough, Henry had managed to get off the saddlebags, and he knocked on the front door with his boot.

Irene opened the door quickly and welcomed Henry to what would be their home for at least the night, maybe two. She hadn’t hit a wall the first trip to this region, but perhaps it was because she didn’t have anyone to be lazy with.

"Welcome home," she joked lightly and took her saddlebags from one of his shoulders, quite impressed that he could carry both without issue.

"It’s already warm in here," Henry realized, impressed.

Irene shut the door behind him quickly.

"This place is well-insulated for how old it is," she explained. "I remember this place feeling like heaven when I first found it."

Henry put down one of his saddlebags, and Irene did the same.

However, she didn’t stand back up and sat down on the floor. She got to removing her boots. For the first time in god knows how long, she also began to remove her armor.

Henry followed her lead, realizing it was finally an option. They would eventually get too hot in here. What a luxury that was after such a long journey.

"It feels like heaven when you can finally remove your armor and move around your body as usual," he went on. "We had a restful sleep last night, but I imagine tonight it will be even better."

Irene nodded and let out a sigh when her armor was in a neat pile on the floor. She rolled out her neck and shoulders.

Removing armor after such a long time made her feel so light she could fly through the roof if she wasn’t careful.

It gave her the energy she needed to find more of the meat they had brought with them from the deer and cook it slowly using both their pots now that they had room to cook on top of a stove.

It truly felt blissful being able to cook side by side. There wasn’t much to say for a while, and their only language was touch and small smiles until they could sit at the small table—one of them sitting on the bed and the other on the only available chair—before they settled down for the evening.

It was an earlier evening than usual, though.

"I should give the horses more water before we settle in," Henry decided as he pulled back on his boots.

The water was warm, so it was unlikely to thaw too quickly as long as he kept it out of the wind.

"Would you like me to go with you?" Irene asked.

"No," he insisted. "Relax while we can. I’ll be doing the same once I get back inside."

There was no argument from Irene as she sat down on their bed. Eventually she lay back onto the fur with her feet still on the floor. Even this felt so relaxing.

She only perked up when Henry came back inside. Despite how quickly he shut the door, there was a chill that struck momentarily.

He kicked off his boots.

As she observed him, she realized he was moving quicker than usual. She thought it was because he was cold at first, but she finally realized his true mood.

The normally reasonably proud and strong knight settled on his knees before her. He dared to reach for her knees and bowed his head.

That was enough for Irene to sit up as she stared down at him, surprised yet no less eager.

"I’ve been missing you," Henry admitted in a low voice.

"You’ve been holding back," Irene teased, her voice quiet. She then lifted up his chin so his dark eyes met her green ones. "A reward for your patience?"

Henry practically dove onto her. Their early evening turned out to be extremely late.

Visit and read more novel to help us update chapter quickly. Thank you so much!