I Will Be the Greatest Knight
Chapter 72: Trustworthy

Chapter 72: Trustworthy

When the knight’s away, the apprentices will play—the saying went something along those lines.

With her father no longer there, there was a sense of freedom she felt to no longer having him hawking over everything she did. It wasn’t as if she was that much worse behaved, but he required a level of perfection that she found exhausting after a while.

It was almost as if he had to ensure she was doing perfectly well to convince Rochelle that everything was alright with Irene being an apprentice and trying to become a knight.

It made Irene wonder if her mother knew that she had been wounded at the beginning of the winter or if he had omitted that information from her so she wouldn’t appear on the Duke’s doorstep herself.

Regardless, the knights and mages continued to hold secrets with one another as monsters appeared and Irene found it grating. She knew that Felix did as well.

Leif was always satisfied with whatever the knights did but he would certainly be roped into whatever his friends were doing so they tried to keep it from him. Unfortunately, he was much more in tune to them than they realized.

During outdoor duties, Felix, who had been elsewhere in the Duke’s Tower approached Irene quickly as she began to walk out of the stables. Instead of allowing her to continue on her trek forward, he pushed her shoulder, forcing her to walk backwards until she was inside the stables once more and her back was against a post.

She glared up at the older apprentice.

"What is the meaning of this?" she asked, pushing his hand away from her shoulder. "Manhandling me—?!"

Felix put his fingers over his lips and the girl immediately shut her mouth. It seemed he wasn’t being annoying without reason at that moment.

His blue eyes went to someone else who was staring at them in disbelief from the other end of the stables.

"Leave, Leif," Felix ordered. "I have stuff I need to talk to Iro about."

"Since when do you leave me out of things?" he asked in disbelief.

Irene pushed Felix further away and turned towards the other apprentice.

"Do you even want to be involved in this?" she asked. "Ever since my father’s been around you’re too serious to do much of anything."

His lack of visiting her when she was hurt still stung a bit and she was taking it out on him in other ways. For the time being, all she had was to blame it on him since he refused to play around with her while so many knights were watching.

Felix’s eyebrows raised in interest. Iro’s spine continued to grow.

"Well, how can I know if I want to be involved if you won’t tell me what it is?" Leif asked in disbelief. "Your father has already returned to your township anyway."

Irene rolled her eyes.

"It’s your call, Felix," she relented. "Is he trustworthy?"

Felix was even more pleased and he smirked as he began to stalk over to Leif who tensed up as the older apprentice walked around him, sizing him up.

"What do you want me to do to him to test it out?" Felix asked, but he winked at Irene and she knew he was joking.

"Hmm... Push him around a bit," she instructed. "Ask him what sort of friend doesn’t visit their friend when they’re bedridden and forbidden by the knights from leaving. It will be the ultimate test of trust."

Felix’s face lit up in delight, but the outcome of Irene’s words was the most unexpected, in her opinion.

"Didn’t visit you?" Leif shouted in disbelief. "I sat next to your bed whenever Sir Arthur wasn’t—"

"That’s right!" Felix interrupted in amazement. "You were crying like a little—Agh!"

Irene’s eyes widened. She wanted to hear the rest but she was too stunned to speak.

Leif had turned and elbowed Felix swiftly in the stomach. Since the apprentice lacked armor at that moment, the smaller apprentice’s bony elbow sunk right into his stomach.

"Okay! That’s enough!" Irene relented.

She met Leif’s eyes and they both glanced away. There was more understanding but perhaps a little bit less at the same time.

Felix stood up straight after grabbing his stomach for a moment. As he went towards Irene once more, he darted to the side as if he was going to jump on Leif and the younger apprentice jumped away in shock, nearly pulling out his sword in the process. Felix was satisfied enough to continue on.

After looking around the stables and ensuring there wasn’t anyone else out there, he approached Irene.

"They are going out again tonight to investigate a bit of activity in the forest," Felix explained. "I overheard a meeting with the mages in the library as I was taking something to the maid’s quarters for... someone."

Irene’s lips upturned in a smirk at Felix’s vague explanation even though she knew all too well who he must have been fussing over or doing favors for. He was too obvious.

"I just want to see," Irene admitted. "Can we? Why are we being kept in the dark over something that we were there for from the start?"

Felix shrugged.

"Won’t be hard," he admitted. "Night patrol will be going to the forest. We’ll just have to follow them a little later."

"Then after we’re meant to go to bed for the night, we ought to wait an hour before meeting on the other side of the barracks," Irene decided. "Wear dark cloaks to conceal ourselves. Does that mean you’re in, Leif?"

His eyebrows were lowered as the other two looked at him. He felt he had something to prove after Iro shot such an accusation his way. Even if they were joking about his trustworthiness, he still felt there was something to prove.

"Why wouldn’t I be?" Leif responded and crossed his arms. "It will be better if there are monsters. Three of us can take goblins just fine."

"Then I will see you later," Irene said and walked towards the door, showing them that she was the first to go. "We can’t let them know what we’re up to."

"See you," Leif uttered a bit nervously.

All Felix offered was a nod before he went and completed his own special tasks he had been doing for a knight.

They were all eager to get to the bottom of whatever had been transpiring just under their noses.