knight quest: assignment

A Knight’s life is never idle – this was true no matter where said knight was stationed. Saiph and ■■■■■ grew up in a small town between Wingfell and Valorise, which served as a waypoint for travelers between the bigger cities. The hamlet was clustered around the main thoroughfare, and the inn also served as the town hall. Given the relative proximity of the Corrupted Lands, a contingency of knights had been stationed here since its founding, and the knight barracks also grew in size to match the town’s expansion. The path of a knight was an easy escape for young xynlets who did not want to inherit their family’s profession. Having lost their families to a Corruption Beast attack, Saiph and ■■■■■ had no family profession to follow, and so they naturally enrolled as squires once they came of age.

Almost a full year had passed since they started their training. Being on different knight paths meant that they rarely saw each other during teaching hours, but they were near-inseparable during their free time and often completed field assignments together. This wasn’t a bad thing - Royal Knights and Lullay Knights were meant to work together, after all.

Saiph’s assignment for the day was to collect herbs and observe the wildlife on the outskirts of town. He was fairly confident that he wouldn’t run into any danger, but ■■■■■ insisted on accompanying him regardless. Not that he minded the company, for he often felt lonely without his best friend around.

The two young knights set out from town in the morning, walking along the main road towards the Frosttouched Pines. The autumn chill was gradually setting in, and the trees were changing colour to reflect the seasons. So far, so good – they hadn’t encountered anything unusual by the time they reached the forest.

Now came the difficult part; searching the undergrowth for herbs. Saiph knew how the plant looked like by heart, but ■■■■■ rarely saw it (if ever), so Saiph lent him his potion textbook to use as a reference. They rummaged through the forest floor for a while, finding surprisingly few stalks of the herb. Maybe someone came earlier and took most of the harvest? Possible, but Saiph also considered the possibility that this year’s growth might have been stunted by outside factors. However, he wasn’t too well versed in ecology, so he made a note in his journal to ask a senior knight later.

After a short lunch break, the two knights continued their search. They managed to fill a single bag with the herb and reluctantly embarked on their return journey, aiming to reach town before the moonset. While they walked, Saiph talked about his observations in the field. ■■■■■ listened to his thoughts and gave his input. Since he spent most of his time training in combat, most other people thought of him as a musclehead, but he was surprisingly logical and attentive to details. When Saiph discussed things with him, he would try to learn from his best friend. Knowledge is also power, after all.

The two Moxyns arrived back at the knight barracks just in time for communal dinner. Saiph went to the storeroom to deposit the herbs before joining ■■■■■ in the canteen. Another day’s work well done – and there was even pie for dessert!