Chapter 76: An Easier Path
Beyond the introduction to the Knights of Hydrogia’s Commander, Callum Lothian, the rest of the night was uneventful and all of the apprentices slept mostly soundly next to a fire. Sir Gunnar kept watch, insisting that their path ahead was a lot faster than the one the others would take. That meant that he would be able to sleep much sooner.
When the apprentices were awake, they were met with the sight of the Commander, his knights, and Sir Gunnar already getting things together which lit a fire under the apprentices since their ultimate goal was to always impress the knights they worked underneath.
Since Duchess Arlin had a maid with her to help her get dressed and ready to face more traveling, all she needed from anyone else was her trunks taken off the wagon so the maid could go through them and get things ready for her. Meanwhile, the Duchess remained in the wagon and hidden from everyone unless she needed water, food, or to use the bathroom—which she undoubtedly made a huge fuss over.
When Her Grace was finally ready and waiting in the carriage, Irene was with the luggage, helping the others load it back on. She stood next to a chest, waiting for Felix or Leif to grab the other end but the apprentice, Alix, came to her aid instead.
She dropped her gaze almost immediately when he approached.
"I’m not a fan of women like that either," the older apprentice muttered before gesturing to the chest and helping her lift the other end.
"I don’t know what you mean by that," Irene quickly argued, not willing to be caught staring.
This caused the handsome apprentice to smirk at her a bit more accusatory than she would like.
"Then you ought to get better at hiding your eyes," Alix responded but he continued helping the younger apprentice until the trunks were all put away and secure so they wouldn’t get ruined during the journey.