Chapter 301: Hero
Horses of knights were trained to be conscious of what their master’s feet and knees meant. Hard squeezes vs soft, only using one side over the other, and even the way their knights leaned into the saddle was enough to send a message to these horses. They were trained this way because, in battle, a knight’s arms were often in use carrying a shield or wielding a sword—although a lance was always more efficient at such a distance that horses offered.
Since horses and knights had such deep-rooted bonds, it seemed like an impossibility that Sammy would be there without Irene unless something unbelievably awful happened. Scenarios pushed their way into Arthur’s thoughts, and he felt sick to his stomach.
Seeing Sammy rushing along in slight panic, he directed his grey horse, Hrett, in the direction of the other. He had to be fast because the other horse was in distress, but he also had to be precise because it was likely he could scare off the horse rather than catch it as he intended to.
Since he only had one hand he could reliably grab with, he was forced to use only his legs to control his own horse and reached towards Sammy’s reins with his right hand, hoping that the animal was responsive to him.
Sammy resisted almost immediately, which caused Arthur to shout "Woah!" and jump off his horse and in front of the other.
"It’s alright," he said to the beast of an animal. "I’m here. Tell me where we ought to go."
The animal whinnied and hopped up off of its front feet, in disagreement that the former knight was trying to send him to his death. The bad feeling regarding the place he left Irene behind in lessened the further he was from there. He didn’t want to go back at all.
However, Sammy did give a few clues, glancing in the direction northeast, hesitantly, and pulling himself in the opposite direction. After a few more tugs, Arthur tugged even harder and the horse realized the former knight was serious in his commands.
Finally having a certain master to guide him, Sammy stopped panicking and held still, showing that he was, in fact, well-trained; he had just been sent in the wrong direction before.