I Will Be the Greatest Knight
Chapter 123: The Aching Doesn’t Stop

Chapter 123: The Aching Doesn’t Stop

Since the days were short, Irene only had a couple of hours of sunlight before she was cast into a world of darkness and felt paranoid at each turn. She remembered exactly the direction she needed to go to get home, but it was still jarring to do it all by herself.

Luckily there weren’t any complicated twists and turns and only one bridge to cross before she would find the inn.

For a long time, all Irene heard were hoofbeats and the sound of her breathing as she tried to calm herself down from all she had experienced that day.

Times like that, she wondered if she should have just come clean in the first place about who she was. It was her father’s idea to hide herself, but it had complicated things so very much.

Not only was her relationship with Felix strained because of her secret, but she was experiencing something she couldn’t tell anyone about. Her only option was to power through and hope that it didn’t hurt so bad each time it came or it might make her an awful apprentice.

The doubts followed and caused her to wonder if that was the reason women didn’t try to be knights in the first place. Was it simply too fussy to have to deal with something like that when dealing with monsters or traveling for a long time?

She dreaded the hurdles she would have to climb with this added complication, but if that’s what it took to be the best knight she could be, Irene imagined there was no other choice.

If she could get through this moment, she could get through practically anything.

It took hours, but the girl finally made it to the very inn she had been seeking in the middle of the night. Luckily the innkeeper lived close by so, even though he was resting when she arrived, he still was able to get her a room in exchange for coins.

Once the apprentice was able to settle in a small room, she tried to lay down for a while but the pain in her back and hips was too uncomfortable. Instead of hoping it would get better, she decided to move around a little bit with the blanket from her bed over her shoulders.

Eventually, it took her to the small stove in the corner of the room where she put in another small log and hoped that the fire would get bigger. Even if she didn’t feel entirely better, at least the warmth seemed to soothe her just a little bit.

This led to Irene finally falling asleep in a heap on the floor in front of the fire, but the sleep took away her worries and problems for long enough that she woke up feeling energized enough to keep pressing on.

Despite only a few hours of sleep, Irene was ready for the last half of her journey. She would likely arrive at her father’s home when it was late in the day.

As she went down to give the innkeeper her key, he stopped her.

"Lad, would you like a piece of bread?" he asked. "Fresh from the oven. The wife made a lot and there aren’t many travelers this time of the season."

"Please," Irene responded.

When the bread was given to her, she offered her thanks before heading outside to the cold which caused her to pull her hood up and cover her face. It was frigid so early in the morning, but she reminded herself of the necessity of this journey.

One hurdle to get to the next.

Sorrel was eager to see her when she arrived at the connected stables. There were only two other horses there and not a stablehand in sight so she opted to get her horse and not bother anyone else.

"Just a bit further," she uttered to the horse as she climbed on. "I’m sorry that this winter will be far less relaxing than the others."

She thought Sorrel would have more of a break before escorting the Royal Family, but it seemed like that wasn’t the case at all. There she was having to burden her horse who had already been through so much with her.

He hadn’t even had time to get fat that season before she took him out again.

After scratching the horse’s mane, she squeezed her knees and passed the other bridge on the other side of the place where the inn stood at the edge of a small village.

What met Irene and Sorrel were white plains, another forest, and more plains that would lead over the hill to the valley where her family lived.

Normally she might think the surroundings were beautiful, especially the way that the sun made the fresh, untouched snow sparkle, but she was still too anxious.

Upon arrival, there was no doubt her family would be upset with her for leaving the knighthood. On the other hand, she was leaving behind the Duke’s Tower where there were undoubtedly people getting upset for her sudden departure. She hoped that her reasoning was enough for them to trust her. It was an emergency she couldn’t discuss with the others but it didn’t take away the significance it would have in her life.

Because of the season, the girl saw no more travelers, not even when she approached the north-central region where her family home lay. The snow was mostly untouched and it seemed that the valley had an even fresher layer than where she had come from.

As she got to the edge of what would seem to be a ghost town if it weren’t for the chimneys smoking into the air, she was happy to see that there was no one to stop her. Red hair meant something even more there. All of her cousins around the place also had red hair and they were forced to acknowledge one another the moment they were seen.

She also doubted that her cousins had realized she was living her life as a boy.

A sharp pain in her lower stomach reminded her that she was currently failing at that and she squeezed her knees to keep going.

Only when she crossed the small bridge that led to her family’s home from the township was she finally able to get off of Sorrel. There were no stablehands working so she put the horse away by herself.

Before she could enter the home, she stood in front of it for a few moments in contemplation. That was the last place she wanted to be, but it seemed that there was no other choice.

She sighed and knocked on the door with the heavy metal ring that made up one of the door handles. The heavy door was undoubtedly locked considering they didn’t get help in winter and everyone mostly stayed inside.

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