I Will Be the Greatest Knight
Chapter 217: Meal Duties (Castle Bonus - )

Chapter 217: Meal Duties (Castle Bonus Chapter)

For the time being, the knights didn’t have apprentices bother with night duties. Because of the lack of maids or women in the area, meal duties lay solely on the apprentices’ and squires’ shoulders.

The knights strategized and took over the night patrol. They were certainly lacking sleep, but they were more used to it compared to those younger. That meant the apprentices all had to be up early to relieve the night watch of their duties and have breakfast ready for them so the knights could rest.

Having to rise early when sleeping was nearly impossible in a place like that was so difficult for any teenager. It made morale low each time the apprentices were robbed of their precious sleep and had to face another day.

That day, clouds full of what was expected to be snow loomed in the distance. They had already covered the upper peaks of the northern mountains, and everyone from Chemois knew that it was only a matter of time before they got a fresh blanket that hopefully wouldn’t collapse any of the wider tents.

For now, they would enjoy the ground without snow.

Irene felt a little bit frustrated that she had escaped the duties of girls and women in the kitchen only to be foisted back into it. She was primed to fight and not to cut carrots for stew, but she knew she had to be obedient or she would make a lot of people mad.

At least meal duties meant that she could warm her hands after a cold night, feeling like the warmth of the center hearth in their tent didn’t reach her. Even with her blanket roll and the additional knitted blanket from her mother, it felt like the cold went to her very core.

As she warmed her hands by the large pot where they would throw the cut food, she smiled faintly at the thought of how useless the other apprentices were in the kitchen. They were clumsier than her, but they also likely weren’t taught in the first decade of their life to cook and bake. She bet that if they requested her to make bread, she might be able to conjure up something edible.

It was time to get back to potatoes and carrots, as always, while others cleaned a rabbit that had just been hunted. She hoped they found a couple of deer as well so that the evening meal would be heavier.

The mindless work allowed Irene to get lost in thought once more.

Since the Knights of Hydrogia had arrived, they had been taking over many duties, and, as much as she was grateful, she felt a bit pushed off to the side, considering it was their homelands they were protecting.

The apprentices had the pot full of bone marrow, water, salt, vegetables, and cuts of rabbit meat within the hour. They would let it boil off and occasionally stir it with a massive spoon.

In another pot, they worked together to start porridge. Since it was a fortified meal, it would stave off hunger for a long time. The knights could take their pick of what they wanted.

Personally, she would go for the porridge since it would keep her full for longer.

As the girl wiped her hands on a towel, she jumped when she heard a horn sound off at the top of the tower. Her heart raced for a moment before her eyes narrowed and she became focused once more.

The horn always brought her adrenaline, but she found ways to calm herself down and remember that the goblins were nothing but the lowest creatures in the kingdom. They were only strong because they banded together.

With that logic, the knights were strong since they banded together. There, they had two knighthoods, which she heard could be three if the Royal Knights decided they ought to get involved.

The porridge would have to wait as all hands were called onto the battlefield. She was permitted to drop the wooden spoon she carried and unsheathe her sword with a flourish from the excitement she felt.

Killing every single goblin was the common goal.

She realized it all wasn’t so bad, after all.

Just like the Knights of Chemois, those from Hydrogia had started wearing fabric on the lower halves of their faces while they fought. It seemed that one casualty was enough for them to realize just how serious the unknown substance was. It wasn’t something men could face on their own.

As she ran towards the fields, she was shocked to see Sir Sven approaching her on horseback, pulling along Sorrel until he was able to hand off the animal to Irene.

"Same method as before," the knight ordered. "Use the torches for fire. Avoid the humans."

That was another aspect that she had taken time to adjust to. People didn’t speak much on the front lines.

Everyone communicated minimally and went on their duties automatically with no argument and few mistakes. It made the camp run smoothly, but it felt a bit lonely despite the area being packed with knighthoods.

"Yes, sir," was all she could say as she reacted quickly to jump onto Sorrel and ready her bow.

Since it was early morning and the goblins were still willing to fight, she hoped that it wasn’t going to be the theme of that winter. Would they be given a break when the snow fell, or would they still have to face near-daily waves of goblins coming from God knows where? After all, short expeditions up the mountain didn’t give way to anything.

Unfortunately, they couldn’t use all their manpower exploring the area, or they would lose energy quickly. Their time was best spent fighting.

Irene took a deep breath as she readied her bow and took out an arrow. The farthest off torch she used to light her arrow, then she aimed for the largest group of goblins, where she didn’t see any knights or apprentices fighting for their lives.

She glanced over her shoulder and saw the squires protecting the camp a bit closer.

Good, she thought. No one small and hard to spot in the field.

Which meant she could shoot off fire arrows with a bit less inhibition.

She pulled the string even tighter before shooting off the first arrow.

However, she soon saw something that would change her opinion of the goblins forever. What they knew about the lowest class of monsters was ever evolving, it seemed.

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