Chapter 179: A Bit Too Much
How strange to not know the status of any other knights or apprentices as she climbed down from the rooftop where she shot at the ogre.
By that point, her body felt numb because of how exhausted she was. Not only had she gotten only a handful of hours’ worth of sleep before having to ride for nearly a day’s worth of travel, but the emotional weight of what she experienced so far was dragging her down.
She ran forward once her feet were on the ground and got to the end of the alleyway between buildings. Her head swiveled left and right. One way meant going back to Samson. The other meant going back to where she last saw the knights dealing with the ogre’s skeleton.
It was impossible to make a decision at that moment—at least until she heard someone behind her.
The girl pulled out her sword and held it in front of her as she turned, daring someone to sneak up on her. If it were a goblin, their fate would be quickly decided.
"It’s me," Sir Gunnar quickly explained, stepping a few paces back so that his apprentice wouldn’t catch him with her blade. "I will commend you for a good response."
The girl’s body slouched in relief at the man’s voice. She had a fleeting feeling of wanting to be small and comforted, but there was no place for thoughts like that in a battlefield.
"What shall we do next?" she wondered. "Where are the next monsters?"
Pride and pity coexisted within the knight’s heart for a moment. He wanted to say that all of Irene’s training had paid off thus far, but he never liked the idea of a child being burdened by adult choices. As far as he was concerned, the situation they were dealing with was the fault of the monarch who pretended that the north didn’t exist at all. They were left to their own devices and felt like they were failing.