knight quest: task

Saiph and ■■■■■ lived in a small hamlet between Wingfell and Valorise, which served as a rest stop for travelers between the bigger cities. Since the Corrupted Lands were to the northeast of town, a small contingent of knights were stationed here permanently. As a result, the young xyns that lived around the area would either inherit their family’s profession, or train to become knights and protect their home. There was no profession for either Saiph or ■■■■■ to inherit, so naturally they were taken in by the knights – not that ■■■■■ would ever want another career, though. His mind was firmly set on the path of a Royal Knight, though his motivations were of a darker sort compared to most other recruits: revenge against the Corruption Beasts.

Months of combat and magic training had turned the two Moxyns into (hopefully) capable defenders. As part of their training, they were often sent out to run errands for older knights or just to aid the residents around town. This was to develop their ‘soft’ skills, such as communication and problem-solving. Given ■■■■■’s blunt personality, he was rather ill-suited for such tasks, so he often relied on Saiph to negotiate with others in his stead. Not that Saiph particularly minded; the two of them were near inseparable, and ■■■■■ was much more efficient at completing physically demanding tasks. It was better to focus on their individual talents – at least, that’s what he thought.

Today’s assignment was to help out around the hamlet. Earlier, the two knight trainees had helped an elderly Moxyn restock her groceries. As thanks, she gave them each a slice of starfruit pie. They stopped under the shade of a roadside tree to rest and enjoy a quick snack. Desserts were one of the few things that ■■■■■ liked – one would never expect him to have a sweet tooth given his gloomy countenance. Saiph watched him scarf down the pie with surprising gusto, yet careful enough to avoid dropping crumbs everywhere. He couldn’t help but chuckle at the sight of the usually dour ■■■■■ with his eyes almost sparkling after eating a sweet treat.

“What?” He noticed Saiph’s curious gaze and quickly tried to resume his usual serious expression, but couldn’t quite manage it. The faint trace of a smile still remained at the corners of his mouth, along with a few bits of starfruit jam.

“Nothing…” It was probably bad taste to tease ■■■■■ in public. He could do that later when they’re back at the knight dorms. “D’you want some of my pie?”

■■■■■ looked away. “Well, if you can’t eat anymore, I guess I don’t mind…”

Saiph grinned and passed over his share of pie. He only took a few bites to sample the taste (it was pretty good), but seeing ■■■■■ in a relaxed state was much more important to him. After glancing around to make sure no strangers were looking their way, he quickly demolished the second slice of pie.

“... It’s nice.” He let out a sigh after a few moments of silence, almost wistful at having finished all the pie.

“Isn’t it?” Saiph poked him in the side with one paw. “Helping people isn’t so bad, eh? Especially if you can get pie later.”

“I guess…”

He looked up at the three moons overhead. They seemed to be shining beautifully tonight.