I Will Be the Greatest Knight
Chapter 96: Siverly

Chapter 96: Siverly

Rightfully so, the mages were hesitant when they heard a knock on their door for the second time that day.

It took a while and a bit of shuffling before someone even bothered to open the door a mere crack.

Irene could see eyes peeking out at her but the mages were wordless as they waited for her to voice her reasoning for being there.

She felt a bit uncomfortable as she shifted from foot to foot and spoke up.

"I’m not here for anyone specifically," she admitted. "However, I’m in need of a mage who is able to send letters to the healer in north central Tenetium. I will pay you whatever it takes, especially considering my father’s outburst from before."

To show her sorrow, she bowed her head and held the letter where they could see it so they would know she wasn’t lying.

The door finally opened more and a young mage with shaggy grey hair stared down at her with narrowed eyes. He wore a robe like the others but it was grey like his hair. He also had skin even more pale than her.

After all the reading she had been doing, she realized that there were degrees of mage and she wondered if he was a pure blooded mage like Stanley.

"If we go outside, I can do it," he responded, using an unamused tone that suited his expression. "I would like payment immediately."

"I would appreciate it," she responded quickly, causing the mage to flinch.

"Lead me outside and I will find the mana tower," the mage requested.

"Right," Irene responded.

However, she didn’t realize what he meant when he said ’lead’.

Even though he was clearly older than her and taller, the mage stuck close to her and didn’t lift his head as they made their way out of the Duke’s Tower, making it truly seem like she was guarding him. He would avoid eye contact with everyone they passed until they were outside where he separated himself from her.

Wordlessly, he lifted his hand towards her, indicating he wanted the letter. She delicately handed it off considering he was doing his best to stay far from her.

The mage had brilliant silver mana which was different than she had seen coming from Stanley. When he conjured into a shape where he put smaller circles and symbols she didn’t understand, that was more familiar.

He put his hand inside the magic circle and closed his eyes.

However, they soon snapped open and he looked over his shoulder at the Duke’s Tower.

"There is far too much mana over here," he grumbled. "We must go further out."

Irene nodded and when he started walking, she caught up to him.

"What is your name, sir?" she asked.

In disbelief, he glanced at the apprentice. He was tempted to tell her she didn’t need that information but he relented. She was just a child, after all.

"Siverly."

"I’m Iro," she introduced herself without him having to ask. "How old are you?"

"I’m almost thirty," he responded stiffly, still walking forward and not paying her questions much attention.

Her eyes widened because he looked like a teenager to her.

The mage stopped and his eyes narrowed at her.

"I know what you’re thinking and how little regular humans know of mages, but full-blooded mages age much more slowly than humans," he responded. "Stanley is nearly a century old. His aging will soon speed up."

Rather than a judgmental stare as he was accustomed to from people, Irene’s green eyes widened in amazement.

"That’s so amazing," she gushed, momentarily forgetting her burdens. "I have never met anyone that old before."

Since he was on guard, her response was a relief and he relaxed slightly enough to crack a small smirk.

"Get used to it," Siverly said. "With the knighthood suddenly accepting mages, word is traveling fast and many are moving from Idona and around Nickron."

They finally stopped quite a ways away from the Duke’s Tower. They were about halfway to the wall where Irene used to do night watch with Leif before things had changed a lot for them.

Siverly lifted his hands and did the same mana circle as before, except she noticed that it seemed a bit larger. When he reached his hand into the middle of it, he closed his eyes and focused.

"I have found the pillar," he uttered before shoving his other hand into the circle. Unlike his other hand, it disappeared for a moment, and when he pulled back the hand, it no longer had the letter inside of it.

When the mana circle disappeared, the mage was out of breath and he put his hands on his knees.

"Takes quite a bit of mana," he uttered. "Even for someone as experienced as me."

When the mage stood up straight again and pulled his robes closer to his body, Irene spoke up.

"Thank you very much for going through the trouble," she expressed. "You are very talented."

"I was born in Nickron," he responded. "I am objectively one of the worst mages from there because I don’t want to stay there."

The girl’s head tilted and her eyebrows lowered.

"Well, here in the Kingdom of Peroda, you are quite impressive," she said more firmly. "I don’t quite care what the people from the south or the people in the east have to say."

Siverly cracked a soft smile and merely shook his head before he began the long walk they had back to the Duke’s Tower.

When they were much closer to the property, Irene turned to the mage.

"Will you wait for me to get my coins from my barrack?" she asked.

"Of course," Siverly responded. "I didn’t say I would do it for free."

"Right."

The girl nodded and rushed off to the other end of the property to go to her barrack. There she had a bag of coins from various villagers, Baron Dethorn, and even a bit from her father. Even if the mage decided to take the whole thing, she wouldn’t be upset. She was in the comfortable position to need very little money to survive considering the Duke funded the knighthood from his own treasury.

When she returned to the mage with a pouch, Siverly’s eyes widened at the amount she brought with her. It seemed she really was good for the job and he was going to have to keep working for her in the future.

However, his damned conscience made him feel bad to take her for everything she was worth and he only took enough to feel satisfied.

By that point, Irene felt tired and she decided she would simply go back to her room for the time being.

Even though she was still full of misery due to the state of her father, she couldn’t bring herself to go to him.

These thoughts led her to sleep.

The following morning, she woke up even before the sun rose. Having skipped supper, her stomach was growling but she paid it no mind. She was more worried about how cold her room had gotten and she built a fire in the stove.

When her hands and feet were finally thawed, she peeked out of the window. It was still practically dark outside. The early morning rays hadn’t even gone over the horizon.

Regardless, she no longer felt like staying in her room, and the guilt of not seeing her father before she went to bed ate away at her. She must have slept for nearly twelve hours. It was surprising that no one fetched her, but they seemed to be going easy on her in light of the past couple of days.

The girl was dressed quickly and brushed her hair before she decided she would face the day.

Nothing could have prepared her to see her father taking out his frustration on a practice dummy. His left hand piloting his sword led to jagged, imprecise hits.

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