The knight brought his daughter to a sitting room on the far northwestern wing of the Duke's Tower. There weren't many people passing by because all of the maids were in other areas of the small castle preparing for the evening meal and cleaning up the late lunch.
Since the Duke was feeling under the weather, the butler remained close to him on the upper floors of the tower.
Arthur glanced out the two windows along the wall of the sitting room. No one was giving them any attention.
"It's been one week since I've seen you last," he began as his eyes drifted back to his daughter. "Are you still certain this is what you want to do?"
Each night he worried for her and, even though his wife wouldn't say it out loud, he knew that she was worried sick as well.
However, Rochelle was of the opinion that Irene would come running back home eventually. He knew it was what Rochelle wanted rather than what was likely to happen. The man stood in a complicated position of wanting to support his wife but hoping that his daughter remained where she wanted even if it was hard.
There was no hesitance from Irene and her green eyes lit up.
"I love it here, dad," she gushed. "I am doing things I never imagined before."
A smile spread across Arthur's face and he reached out to ruffle his child's hair.
"Tell me what has happened since I've seen you last." Thɪs chapter is updated by novel·fiɾe·net
Irene went over the past days in great detail from the dire wolves to the goblins then the mages and the priest. She talked about how they stayed in a comfortable inn and how she got to sleep under the stars and wasn't even afraid.
"Oh!" Irene remembered. "There is a blacksmith named Samson who will deliver me a new sword in about a week. He gave me a bow after I used it to help with the goblins. He said he knows you. Do you remember him?"
Arthur was in disbelief at this.
"I do remember Samson," the knight responded warmly. "I also remember the circumstances in which he was forced out of the township to become a mercenary because his father had overdue debts to the monarchy. He was running a business without paying dues. Since only Samson's mother remained, he did what he could to ensure she wouldn't have to worry about money. I'm surprised that man is still alive and kicking based on what he put himself through."
"He said that about grandmother, too!" she exclaimed. "I can't believe he knows grandmother. Did he have the scars back then that he does now?"
"What are his scars now?" Arthur wondered and waited, hoping that after what he remembered the man's life hadn't been too difficult.
"One of his eyes has a scar right through it," she explained. "He has a cut in his beard and into his lip. His ears were a bit worse for wear if I remember correctly. Even his arms were covered in scars. He seems scary, but he's actually quite nice."
While Arthur didn't think he was nearly as scarred as the man, people often were surprised that his demeanor didn't match his appearance. He could only laugh at this.
"I will pay him a visit one of these days," Arthur promised. "Have you been making friends?"
"I like Felix and Leif the best so far," she explained. "I like Sir Gunnar too but he isn't my friend. I feel like I can trust him, can't I, dad?"
"You can trust Gunnar," he confirmed. "Felix, however. You like him? He's a bit..."
Irene knew of all the things one could possibly say about Felix and she knew she agreed, but she had to defend the other apprentice just a bit.
"Even though he makes fun of me for being small, he does stand up for me when necessary," she admitted. "I feel... safe here."
Her sentence was punctuated with a small smile.
While Arthur was sad to not have his daughter under the same roof as the rest of his family any longer, her happiness over the situation couldn't be ignored. She finally found a place to belong. He would simply have to accept it and see her as often as possible considering he was in the same order.
How amazing would it be to be knighted under the same order once she was an adult.
Beyond checking on his daughter, Arthur was there to give her a few items she had left behind considering she wasn't expecting to stay there so abruptly.
He hoped that her bare barrack started to feel more like home as he brought her stationary to write them letters and a fur his mother had hunted for Irene when she was a few years younger. It would be useful in the autumn and winter when it became drastically cold and the small stove in the corner of her barrack no longer did the best job.
To Irene's surprise, at the bottom of the bag Arthur had brought for her, there was also a blanket she knew her mother made a few months prior. It was knitted dark and light green. When she held the blanket to her nose, there was the faint scent of the lilac oil her mother wore in her hair. She made it herself every summer using the plants in the garden of their home.
Nostalgia struck her.
She realized she was thinking with her twenty year old brain and not the eleven year old she was supposed to be. How could someone so young be so nostalgic already?
The following morning, Irene was forced to bid her father goodbye once again. Even though time apart for them was usual considering his demanding job, there was always a small tinge of worry within her. Hypocrisy at its finest because she was ready to begin the more dangerous aspects of her life as an apprentice.
After the early morning practice, Gunnar approached Irene.
"It's time you learned how to balance enrichment of the mind and body," he explained. "Go to the library after breakfast. You will be joined by other apprentices and a few squires today."