I Will Be the Greatest Knight-Chapter 265: A Nice Surprise

It was the dawn of their winterization trip, and Irene had been too giddy to sleep. At least it didn’t reflect in her tenacity going forward, because she still found herself easily getting up and getting into traveling clothing.

Was she supposed to dress up or down? Would they take her seriously if she wore something shabby or otherwise? fгee𝑤ebɳoveɭ.cøm

She thought of the Royal Knights who were always put together. Whether it be the cleanliness of their armor, the lack of dirt and grime that covered them, finely crafted clothing, or gilded weapons, they were always outshining everyone else on the battlefield.

It was a running joke that they were able to remain so pristine because they never lifted a finger out there. Whether or not it was true was something she would try not to discuss. All she knew was that they never left more of an impression on her than being pretty.

Even though they were knighted, there weren’t enough resources for armor readily available. It had been discussed that they might commission a blacksmith on their trip, but funding for a full suit was also up in the air.

Regardless, Irene pulled on her apprentice armor and left the guest room that was her temporary home for a while.

She felt a bit bad that she was still afforded such a large space when her father had already left, but the other rooms were now full. All other rooms, except for the Duke’s personal quarters, at least.

While everyone used the Duke’s personal guest rooms, no one dared use the master’s space. It was the same as when they wouldn’t sit at the head of the meeting table when there wasn’t a Duke there. Something about it felt disrespectful. No one wanted to overstep.

The girl’s brown leather boot touched the bottom step, and she looked around once before heading directly towards the back entrance. She and Felix both decided to eat on the road. It meant they would try and ride through the day to get to the first town where there was an inn. Samson’s town. They would get there late.

However, she was only expecting to see Felix waiting for her, but there were a few other knights as well.

They seemed to be eagerly waiting her arrival, and she looked behind herself and then back to the onlookers.

"What is all this?" she wondered out loud.

"Did you think we were going to allow the two of you to go out into the duchy like that?" Sir Gunnar asked.

Irene looked down at herself a bit insecurely, and then her green eyes traveled to Felix, who was wearing only a bit of a knight’s armor, but not a full suit.

"I figured there was no other option, sir," she responded honestly. "I don’t mind it much."

Sir Gunnar merely shook his head at her and gestured for her and Felix to follow him into the basement.

Irene had been avoiding the basement as much as she could. She knew that it was a place she ought to get better acquainted with since she was going to have to deal with more hands-on activities in the knighthood. However, she couldn’t get a lot of things out of her head from when the Duke’s Tower was invaded. The clanking and the sounds of goblins as they tried but failed to block off their path were a big one.

In front of the knights, she knew she couldn’t resist, and she followed down to the dimly lit basement.

Luckily, the air smelled of its usual moisture of a dirt-floored basement rather than poisonous, as it did at one point.

While some of the walls had collapsed and rubble was along the edges, they had made a decent dent in the piles on the ground. At least there were places to walk.

The armory was where they were headed, and Sir Gunnar gestured for them to go forth where Sir Phillip was guarding the rooms below.

They both stepped foot inside and saw the multiple racks full of weapons and armor that hadn’t yet been cleaned off. Some were broken, others were simply too dirty to handle all at one time.

However, what stood out to her were the two full suits of armor waiting for them.

A gasp involuntarily fell from Irene’s mouth, and it hung open in shock.

"For us?" she practically whispered, finding herself unable to say more than that.

"Of course," Sir Gunnar answered. "From the very blacksmith who apprenticed under Samson before his death. I’m sure you will go in that direction first, so you can thank him then. Admittedly, it was your father who set most of this up, but the suits weren’t delivered until after he was gone."

"Shows you how much I’ve been paying attention," Irene muttered in disbelief, but then she turned to Sir Gunnar and looked over the other knights who stood there, watching in amusement. "Thank you so much. I have never worn a full suit before, but I promise to put this to good use."

Felix had already walked forward to what was obviously his suit. He had a moment of pause as he looked at the finely crafted suit.

After the things he had seen, all he had been through, he had been finding it so hard to be appreciative of certain things. It was as if a part of his heart couldn’t be accessed, no matter how much people tried.

However, as his blue eyes traveled over the armor, he realized he was thawing out. Perhaps his internal coldness wouldn’t last forever. He wanted to feel like he was living again rather than going through the motions.

It would be good for him to get away from the Duke’s Tower, he realized.

The seriousness of his thoughts made him crave the opposite.

He couldn’t help reaching over and looking at Irene’s suit of armor. A small smirk appeared on his face.

"That’s the smallest suit of armor I’ve ever seen in my life," Felix admitted.

"A slight about my height, how shocking," Irene responded flatly.

"At least we know that you’re merely a girl and not some sort of dwarf now," Felix jested under his breath, not wanting the others to hear his immaturity at that moment.

Irene was tempted to lift her gloved hand and smack him, but she resisted the urge so she would also not seem like a child in front of all of the older knights.

"Thank you very much." Felix turned to the knights. "I will cherish this my entire career."

"Cherish it by getting into it," Sir Phillip responded from the doorway. "You’ll be traveling late into the night if you don’t get out of here soon."

Irene and Felix both nodded quickly and quickened their pace.

However, it was Sir Sven who defended the two.

"They might be young, but mind their rank, old man," he warned.

"Yes," Phillip relented, slightly bowing his head. "Of course."

Despite the warning that they would be late, Irene couldn’t help staring at the armor for a moment longer.

Sure, it was small as Felix said, but it was so beautiful. She had never seen such beautiful armor in her entire life. It wasn’t a hand-me-down, but hers. All hers. It was just another gesture to make them show her how much they accepted her as she was.

The years of hiding felt like they were for nothing, but they felt so valuable at the same time.

There was no time to rethink her life’s choices.

As she had seen Sir Gunnar wear a million times before, she found padded wool leg coverings so the armor wouldn’t sit uncomfortably. She pulled them over the clothing she already wore. Then she removed her outer coat in place of a gambeson, which would pad her arms and torso so they wouldn’t be uncomfortable either.

Her fear was that it would be hard to move, but she found it wasn’t as stiff as she had always expected.

Next, she pulled on the Chausses over her legs and over the padding. After that, the foot armor and then the shin, thigh, and knee armor. Even her hips were covered.

She came to her chest plate and realized this was where she usually helped Sir Gunnar get into his armor if he requested it. Most knights could figure out a way to get it on all on their own, especially when they were in a dire situation.

However, Sir Gunnar stepped forward and immediately offered his help through action rather than words. When the breast and backplate were secured over her body, the knight gave her a faint smile.

"Never thought it would be me helping you with your armor," he realized with a chuckle. "Time surely does go faster the older you get."

"It feels miserably slow, sir," she admitted softly.

"You’re young, so you’re allowed to think that way," he responded.

Her shoulders, arms, and neck were then protected with Sir Gunnar’s help, and he handed her the greaves that she would pull over her hands and wrists.

She did so very carefully, amazed at the way they had been articulated for movement. They were so much more flexible than she could have ever expected.

The older knight then helped her with one final piece, her gorget, which was meant to protect her neck. He handed her the helmet, and she opted not to put it on until she was on her horse.

"How does it feel?" he asked.

"Heavy," she answered honestly, which caused him to chuckle.

"I doubt that you will face much action during this journey, but it’s best to present yourself as ours rather than the inexperienced as you are," he admitted. However, at her eyebrows raising, he corrected himself. "Inexperienced as knights, but very experienced otherwise."

She seemed satisfied with this correction, and he gave a short chuckle.

It seemed that Sir Sven was helping Felix get into his own armor, and when he offered him his helmet finally as well, the knight stepped back.

"The two of you will have to have apprentices of your own do this sometime," he explained as he admired their armor. "If you see any children of interest, don’t hesitate to tell their family about our need for squires."

"Will do, sir," Felix responded dutifully.

With that, it was truly time to let Irene and Felix go off on their first big journey as knights.

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