I Will Be the Greatest Knight

Aurium spoke first. "I imagine this has to do with the state of Polona."

At his words, things somehow became more tense as the Commander's posture became rigid.

Irene was still in total disbelief that the knights and a duke were interacting so openly with Nickronian mages. It was something she never knew of happening, even when the past King wasn't so opposed to the mages.

"My knights were asked to come to Idona due to the possibility of another monster war breaking out," the Commander responded. "Bad management of the barrier around Polona has caused a lot of worry for the people who live nearby."

Sir Trenton had to look away from the fire so that they wouldn't be able to see a smirk pulling at the edge of his lips. He was always proud when Henry's softness left during the times he was faced with unfairness.

Aurium was less than amused, and his eyes narrowed. "Poor management on my part or poor management of the one chosen by a dragon?" he shot back.

Henry's defenses momentarily came down, and his expression faltered. He seemed a bit confused.

"Ah, so you didn't know," Aurium stated, stroking his long, thin beard. "A large, magic-conjuring beast has broken its way through the barrier, irreparably damaging decades of defenses. The monsters were only running from her fiery wrath. You're pointing an accusatory finger at us, while I should be here seeking damages."

Irene's eyes were wide. So it was Sylaron's fault that the barrier had been broken and monsters were causing havoc?

It did make sense that the monsters seemed like they were escaping rather than attacking, only knocking down whatever was in their way, blocking their path.

"Even if they chose me, I don't control her," the Commander persisted. "I thought she was dead for an entire year. I didn't see her that entire time." He then pulled his eyes from the mage and gazed at the dragon, his expression holding quite a bit of internal debate. "She prefers to be where there's flowing lava."

"Considering she seems about full-grown, there's no need for her to be around a volcano for much longer," Aurium observed. "My request is that you take her far from this area, or I will make a case to seek damages from you. That includes the ones in Idona."

All the knights' eyes went to the Commander. At this point, they were all lost. Most of them wanted to know where the Commander could possibly take the dragon. They didn't feel he was responsible for the dragon's actions, but they were realizing he and Sylaron were connected far more than they initially realized. It was more than an animal liking a human, but a bond.

"I will take her far from here," the Commander promised. "But since I represent more than myself by being here, I feel the people deserve an answer for when they can expect the monster attacks to stop."

Aurium lifted one of his thin hands to the mages on his right, and a woman with pale skin and black hair set her pale eyes on the Commander after revealing her appearance by taking off her hood.

"We're working with the King to restore our supply of magical stones," she explained. "Many were destroyed after the barrier failed."

The Commander sighed, seeming to relent a bit at this.

"I'm sure you're fully aware of my possession of a magical orb by now," the Commander admitted. "If this can be helpful in your endeavor, I would be more than willing to give to the cause if I'm fairly compensated for it. After all, my most important task is building a safe dukedom for the people of Tenetium."

Chemois, the Commander silently said as he glanced at Irene. He hoped she forgave him for having to speak a certain way towards people who were in talks with the King.

However, her widened eyes weren't because of what he referred to Chemois as, but because he had a magical orb in the first place. She had gasped at his admittance, which caused Felix to gently elbow her and quietly shush her.

As the Commander gazed at her, he recognized her expression that begged for forgiveness from the day before. He could get used to her finally acting like she needed him for something.

Meanwhile, Bren had a hand over his mouth so he wouldn't get in trouble either.

Siverly silently observed his grandfather, who was fidgeting a bit. It was clear he wanted the orb for himself, most likely, and was disappointed that he didn't get to pocket it for himself, considering they had a few dragon orbs that were undoubtedly overused and nearly devoid of mana by this point.

Aurium knew Siverly was observing him, and he folded his hands in his lap so that he could contain himself. It seemed he would have to behave himself since kings on different sides of the world relied on the mages to keep Polona in check. Their meddling in Nickron's affairs was not an option.

"The magical orb is unused?" Aurium inquired.

"Siverly," Henry requested. "Is it unused?"

Siverly's arms were crossed, and he cast his grey eyes towards the Commander. "Entirely unused," he uttered. "Pure magic, hundreds of years old."

Henry shrugged, and his dark eyes were set on the head mage once more.

"If this is what you want to do, I'll send mages to your dukedom soon," Aurium relented. "They'll bring the compensation you're searching for."

Felix had to shake his head as he took in the mage's words. The magical orb was worth more than a fortune. He couldn't believe Henry was finally played his hand. The treasury was going to need even more guarding after the mages compensated him for such a thing.

"Then I suppose we have nothing else to discuss," the Commander stated. "I bid you well."

Although Irene realized his voice was devoid of emotion and rather cold. He wasn't going to stand for the mages either after the way they had made their presence known.

The mages said nothing else as Aurium directed them away.

A few had it in themselves to remove their hoods and give slight nods to the Commander, who was staring back at them until he was comfortable with their distance.

To the knights' shock, Siverly stood up and went with the mages until they were close to the water's edge.

Aurium turned to his grandson.

"Even if I don't approve of your decisions, I understand them," the old man stated before he was helped into the boat.

Siverly merely watched as the boat was then pushed away from the shore, and the other mages' mana propelled them onward. He stood there silently for a while, conflicting thoughts stirring up his mind.

That was probably the nicest thing his grandfather had said to him, considering he had been rebellious from a young age.

When the boat was further away, Siverly finally rejoined the camp and tried to ignore the relieved glances he was receiving from both the Commander, Irene, and Felix. He was growing too protective of a bunch of knights. The way his grandfather made his presence known shouldn't have irritated Siverly so much, but it surely did.

Irene had been practically holding her breath as she helped Bren fix them a breakfast while the rest started to clean up their camp. She was unbelievably worried they would lose Siverly to the other mages. She would only be understanding if he did so, but she had grown fond of the mage, even if he was still resistant to the knights. He had been a massive help to the knighthood.

When the porridge was ready, Irene dropped a bit of honey and ground cloves into bowls and spooned a bit of the hot meal over what she had already added, so that the honey would melt a little. They all deserved a pick-me-up after the hell of a morning they had already faced that day.

Even though she didn't want to approach the Commander while he was in contemplation and leaning against a dragon, the woman managed to pull herself together and walk forward to the man, carrying her bowl as well as his.

"Commander," she quietly uttered to him, hoping she wasn't interrupting his thoughts, but wanting him to eat something. "You ought to eat as well."

Whenever he wore a miserable expression on his face, it always burrowed itself well within her heart, and it became her goal to fix whatever was upsetting the man.

Even though she knew it wasn't her duty to make the Commander happy, it was so nice to see him smile.

Her goal was achieved when the man faintly smirked at her.

He really is handsome, she cursed.