I Will Be the Greatest Knight
Chapter 201: Uncomfortable

Chapter 201: Uncomfortable

There was a time in Irene’s career as an apprentice when she was petrified at facing a single goblin on her own. She recalled when she thought she had only just woken up from dying and being nearly paralyzed with fear at goblins in the forest near her home.

Back then, the goblins seemed so peaceful compared to what she was facing now. Even though they had just found travelers in the forest and had torn them apart, it was nothing compared to the organized horror the goblins were bringing to them.

She could tell that there was something different about them. Her only assumption was that it had to do with the poison and smoke. Perhaps the two were one and the same, and the smoke was the product of one.

When she, Felix, and Leif followed the knights and mages into the forest, they never told them what they discovered.

She knew if Sir Gunnar had something important to say that would help them understand the situation better, he likely would have already said it. She had to trust that he wouldn’t hide something from them.

However, as five goblins appeared before her and the others, she merely lifted her sword and lowered her eyebrows. There wasn’t an ounce of fear. Only determination remained within her.

The Duke’s Tower would be theirs again, they just needed to be patient until they could effectively handle everything.

Irene sprang forward first, and the largest goblin made a move. The pathetic, rusted sword it carried was too heavy for its frame, and her already superior speed was further exaggerated by this.

When the monster swung its weapon, all she had to do was slap it away with the flat side of her sword. As the monster had trouble righting his weapon again, she sliced off his arm and thrust her blade through its screaming mouth when it turned its head towards her.

The others handled the rest of the goblins, and she went for a second one. It was the smallest of the group and clearly most terrified, but, just like the knights, the smallest needed to be brave or get sliced down.

That’s just what happened to it as she cornered it in the stable and thrust her sword forward, slicing through its neck and the wooden wall behind it.

At the chaos that ensued, the horses who were cornered started to kick and let out whinnies of disagreement.

Since she had taken down two goblins and the rest were covered by each person with her, she approached the horses with raised hands.

"Woah!" she cried. "It’s alright. I’m not here to harm you. We will take you to safety instead."

As her eyes swept over the horses out of the pens, she was sad to see Sir Gunnar’s horse there but relieved to see Sorrel was still in his pen. Even though he was spooked, he was still safe.

However, she also saw that there were the lifeless bodies of two horses in the stables. One was crumpled in the pens, and another was in the corner where the others stood. She couldn’t see injuries initially, so she could only imagine what went wrong.

They had to press on and help the others. It was important to get the carts ready and load them with supplies that could be useful to them.

Working diligently, they fitted two carts with two horses each. The rest of the horses able to be ridden were brought with them.

Leif decided he would take a few of the horses to the ancient wall and away from the chaos so if worse came to worst, at least the goblins wouldn’t take that much from them. They imagined the horses could be affected by the poisonous smoke as well.

Into the carts, Irene lined them with straw, and she loaded shovels and rakes just in case they would need them for any reason. There were also extra boards and a few buckets. Anything useful at that point was brought with them.

With a bit of foresight, she managed to load in a long, narrow water trough for the horses. If they could make a place for the horses to stay, they would need to drink water.

With one of the wagons half-full, they were ready to go to the barracks and see how the others were faring.

Instead of going by way of the practice yard, they directed the horses into the fields and around the Duke’s lands considering everything in the center felt a bit wrong. Since they couldn’t see inside of the Duke’s Tower, all they could imagine was goblins looking out at them.

There was a sense of always being watched that they couldn’t quite shake.

When they made it to the eastern entrance of the barracks, they saw that some supplies were already lying on the ground outside.

Dutifully, the four apprentices began loading things into the wagons.

Sir Sven and Bren came out with a few more items.

"Would that be alright if we go inside and get our warm clothing, sir?" Irene asked. "I believe all of us should stock up for the winter ahead."

"Yes," Sir Sven agreed. "Good idea, Iro. Please make sure all of you keep fabric over your faces. We aren’t sure where the smoke is originating, but it’s filling up the higher levels unbelievably."

The others were there to hear what the knight said, and Irene nodded at them before deciding to run inside and go back to her barrack where she found clothing and armor that would be useful to her.

She stayed low to the ground as she moved through the room. Even with her collar high over her nose and mouth along with the fabric provided by Gunnar, she was still coughing due to the thickness of the air and the horrible smell.

She got dressed and, for the first time in what seemed to be ages, she was nice and warm and not even in her heaviest outfit or cloak. She would save it for the future. They were going to have to make a camp based on all the supplies they were bringing.

She also brought her old dagger and the blanket her mom had given to her. Everything else in the barrack would have to remain there.

In one of her packs, she also brought a few rags in case her monthly bleeding decided to appear at an inopportune time. It was something she knew was unavoidable. The reality of a woman in battle, she supposed.

Irene then had to rush out of the room. She was coughing until her throat was ragged by that point, and her eyes were watering.

When she finally made it back outside, she fell to her hands and knees and gasped for fresh air.

Finally able to breathe again, she sat back onto her heels and looked up at the people around her, looking down at her in concern.

Rather than offering pieces of advice or telling her to go take a break, she was told that they were going to bring the wagons back to the wall and come back for firewood and a few remaining supplies.

Such was the nature of their new reality. She imagined words of comfort were going to be few and far between.

The burdens ahead were compounding.