Chapter 269: Unlikely Knight Work
Early morning in the southeastern corner of the duchy. This area was surrounded by mountains and cliffs that looked over the severe floodplains at the very southern end of Chemois.
Autumn was always so brief in this area of the kingdom, which was why Irene and Felix felt the need to rush through the duchy in hopes that the people would feel comforted, even though they would have a brief amount of time at each place.
However, they experienced rain after seeing Stanley at a township in the south central region, and when the sun finally came out to greet them, it felt like a false summer had returned to them.
Both knights rode with their cloaks hanging behind them. Underneath the silvery armor they wore, they were both overheating. Because of this, Irene opted to take off her helmet entirely, and it rested between her thighs so there was no way of it coming loose and being lost to the hoofbeats on the ground as they went north from where they were.
Luck had been on their side as monsters stayed away. Despite their caution, it felt like the safest Chemois had been in a long time. The sheer number of monsters they killed during the war was taken into account. Their hard work felt like it meant something.
They were closing in on the furthest eastern township, but it would take another day to get there. Luckily, they passed a village they were already familiar with. Felix had rescued the reeve’s daughter from goblins before and maintained a good relationship.
As they closed in on the village, the two knights heard shouting, and they were shocked as they rounded a small forest that led to the edge of a river. A bridge had collapsed, cutting the village in two.
One would think a knight’s only duty was to lay down their sword when needed, but the truth was that they became skilled at a lot of things. Despite the titles they carried, they were meant to do anything in their power to help the average person. It was one of the first rules of chivalry and one that both Felix and Irene found important.
"Faster," Felix ordered, and he squeezed his knees so his horse would respond.
Irene did the same, and they went all the way until they were able to dismount their horses at the riverbank.
Seeing as the water was up to one of the men’s waists, Irene and Felix began stripping out of their armor. Otherwise, they were going to get washed away with the logs that had floated downstream after the bridge’s collapse.