I Will Be the Greatest Knight

Henry continued sitting on the floor, and he pulled one of his wife’s feet into his lap. He began to gently massage her foot through her stockings, slowly working his strong hands up the back of her calf.

"I’ve told you before that His Majesty sent me to Polona as a test to become the Duke of Tenetium," he quietly confirmed, immediately being met with a nod from Irene. "To get to the region from Hydrogia, you have to pass through Eastern Mountains that make the Northern Mountains of Chemois seem small, but that’s only because Hydrogia sits lower, so tall mountains seem far more extreme."

"I’ve seen them on a map before," Irene responded.

Henry switched to the other foot that he massaged before he began speaking again.

"Before you go into the foothills that lead up to the rocky area of those mountains, there is a village that once was a center for trading and a stop that travelers braving the mountains would always go to to restock their supplies," he continued. "Thinking we would have a break and be able to socialize, we were shocked to find the village completely deserted. When we went to sleep that night, I wish it truly was deserted."

He sighed, and Irene placed her hand on his shoulder.

"Something pulled me out of bed in the middle of the night by calling to me," he explained. "It lured me to a building that clearly had fire damage inside of it. When I got inside, I thought she was screaming for me to rescue her from the fire. The woman in white turned out to be the product of a powerful necromancer in the area. Worst is, I almost got Commander Lothian killed. I fought him when he tried to destroy the woman who was screaming for my help. I was horrified when he burnt down the building and only when I was on the other side of the magic did I listen to reason again."

Irene’s mouth hung open. Disbelief was evident.

While the story of Henry’s rise from peasant to Duke wasn’t perfect, she had thought there weren’t pitfalls like that.

"I had no idea," she responded.

"Imagine," Henry went on. "Someone just barely knighted, leading one of the greatest knights in the world to his death all because he fell for a necromancer’s call. I had to face Callum the rest of the journey, living with that guilt, but I eventually saved him from the very lava flow that Sylaron came from. I suppose then we’re even."

He laughed lightly and shook his head. Since he had finished massaging both of Irene’s legs, he stood up.

She grabbed his hand before he could get far.

"I saved you," she realized.

"That’s the point I was trying to get at," he responded with a smile. "If it matters to you, we’re even."

She seemed to collapse into him, and with her chin on his chest, he kissed her forehead.

"That does make me feel better," she admitted. "That even someone like you has had a few blunders to get where you are today."

"Every mistake still led to you," he muttered. "I also believe the magic was affecting me in some way because there’s no way you could get out of bed without me noticing. We were both caught in a trap beyond our control."

Even though there would always be lingering guilt about almost killing her own husband—how could there not be?—it felt like a huge weight was lifted. Something that had been weighing her down since she came back to consciousness and was no longer under the effects of the magic.

The two of them pulled away from one another as the room heated up more and more. It was finally a temperature where they could both remove their outer coats and get into comfortable clothing that allowed for more movement rather than the layers they had on before.

The rest of the day was dedicated to making food with the last of the venison and melting more water for their horses. It was slow and peaceful as they settled in.

A bed was made up with both of their blanket rolls combined, offering a bed so comfortable it could almost rival the one they shared at the Duke’s Tower.

It turned out to be just what Irene needed because the following morning, she woke up to pains in her lower abdomen. Right away, the two of them knew that it would be a couple of days before they could even think of leaving the comfortable home they created.

Henry spent the following days taking out the horses and comforting his wife. They lazed around as they were supposed to during the season of hibernation.

It was on the third day that Irene woke up feeling normal again. She recalled a time when she didn’t have anyone on her side to get her through her monthly cycles. There was no such thing as loneliness in the life she had now.

As she stirred, Henry did as well.

He rolled over and delicately placed an arm over his wife.

"How are you feeling?" he asked, nuzzling into her hair.

"I feel like I want to go through the village and see if we can stock up on some supplies," she admitted.

A grin spread across Henry’s face that made him look almost childish. Irene loved it.

"As you wish," he responded.

In a short time, the two of them had eaten breakfast and were dressed to face the cold Sunstoian north. Irene couldn’t wait to show her more of her ancestors’ culture. In only a few days more, they would likely be at the actual village her family came from.

She could tell that the horses were eager to be ridden, but it was best for them to go between the buildings on foot. The two knights kept an eye on their rambunctious animals as they found various doors they could try to enter despite how buried they were in the snow.

Their work was certainly going to be cut out for them.

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