Testing My Skill

"Commander," Trenton greeted the older knight.

Trenton elbowed Henry, but no words were coming out as he tried to swallow the spoonful of porridge but his mouth felt dry.

"G-good morning, Commander," Henry finally choked out after what felt like an eon.

Commander Lothian stood without armor but he might as well have been wearing it considering how massive he was. Before he had thought Sir Trenton was the biggest knight, but it was clear that the commander took that title.

Surprisingly to Henry, the commander wore a simple light brown shirt and dark brown pants that weren't appropriate for his status. On the basic brown belt around his waist, a sword that had to be over three feet long was sheathed, but it didn't come close to touching the ground.

The commander sat down on the bench across from Henry and stared for a long time before he started eating.

In front of the commander, Trenton couldn't defend his apprentice. He could only peek occasionally at the interaction while he continued eating.

Eventually, Henry gained the courage to finish his meal despite having lost his appetite. He kept his head down the rest of the time and could feel the commander's gaze practically burning a hole in the top of his head.

It was clear by the silence that others were eavesdropping, wondering why the strongest knight in the room decided to eat breakfast with the seemingly weakest apprentice.

"This afternoon we're going to have a match," Commander Lothian suddenly said. "You're going to show me how such a timid peasant won an entire sword-fighting competition."

Henry couldn't help his eyes snapping up to the commander in response to his request. This man confused him. There was no reason an apprentice should face the commander much less a peasant.

"Commander, i-it was luck," Henry said. "That's why I won."

The expression on the older knight's face was unreadable, but Trenton let out a chuckle anyway. Henry didn't know how he could be so comfortable in this situation.

"Sir, he's got good instincts," Trenton explained. "He's skinny but don't allow it to fool you."

Henry shot Trenton a pleading expression, but all Trenton did in return was finish the last of his meal.

"Enjoy your breakfast, commander," Trenton said and stood up.

Henry couldn't say anything else, unable to trust his voice not to stutter like a fool. He only nodded shamefully at the commander and scurried off behind Trenton.

Despite being an entire six feet tall, Henry felt like a flea in comparison to the commander.

As they exited the dining hall and eventually made it outside once more, Henry ran his hands through his now shorter hair.

"How do you talk to him so effortlessly?" Henry asked.

"He's cold, but he's not a bad man," Trenton slowly spoke, choosing his words carefully. "I've faced monsters in battle with him. I only have respect for him."

They walked along, heading away from the fortress and towards the fields where the practice areas were.

"Well, what about his clothing?" Henry wondered. "Why does he dress like… like me?"

Even in comparison to other knights in the dining hall, the commander's clothing was plain. It bothered Henry for some reason.

"The commander doesn't have a desire for material possessions," Trenton continued explaining. "He saves the spoils of war and treasure from monsters' dens for emergencies and practical reasons."

Henry seemed satisfied with this response because he didn't ask anything further.

They walked in a different direction than Henry had ever been in so far, away from the fortress and the barracks. He could tell that the large fenced fields were practice areas for the knights.

The far grassy fields were worn to dirt from horses, while the ones closer by were less damaged because there was only sword-fighting allowed in these parts.

In the furthest reaches of what seemed to be the knights' lands, the wall that wrapped around all of Hydrogia stood. Beyond that there were forests and in the distance tall mountains with their peaks constantly topped with snow.

Henry and Trenton took to the path that walked along training grounds and at the base of the wall as they made it back to the main area near the fortress and barracks.

After an hour of browsing the property, Trenton showed Henry the inner workings of the fortress.

The areas where Henry as an apprentice would frequent the most were explained in more detail, but much of it was vague. Trenton told Henry he could figure some of the places out for himself

Henry understood that he would spend the most time taking care of Trenton's armor and weaponry. If needed, he would also follow him into battle.

The latter scared him the most. He didn't feel like he was prepared for something like that, but the best way to gain skill was through experience.

If Sir Trenton asked him to do it, he would.

They made it back outside and Trenton pointed to the stables.

"I assume I don't have to tell you how to manage the horses," the knight said. "Try to run them both every day. Mind Axe's ankles if it rains since he's older."

Henry nodded.

"I'm familiar with your horses, sir."

Trenton smiled and said, "Good. Then I think you know what time it is."

Henry swallowed hard out of nervousness.

"What time is it?"

"We'll grab a quick bite to eat, but then the commander wants to see you."

Without waiting for an answer, Trenton walked into the fortress and went to the dining hall.

Lately, Henry was lucky to be able to eat twice per day, but Trenton said that they would have three square meals. It was going to take the younger man a lot of getting used to.

For lunch, Henry couldn't eat much, feeling like he had only just eaten breakfast. The real reason was that he felt almost nauseous at the thought of having to face the commander.

The meal didn't last nearly long enough and they were soon headed towards the training fields.

On the side of that particular one, there were places for people to sit and it turned out that some of the knights and the few apprentices were there to watch their commander beat the new kid in a match. The onlookers caused Henry to dread it even further.

Sir Trenton stretched Henry out, making sure he was warmed up enough that he wouldn't strain one of his shoulders. He also assured his apprentice that the commander would probably go easy on him.

Trenton stepped away and went to the stand. He gave Henry a reassuring nod and sat down on the closest spot.

Henry had to take a deep breath, but he didn't feel confident anymore. After he had witnessed the way the knights' matches went during the sword-fighting competition, he knew there was no way he could come close to harming even one of them. He knew the commander had to be even stronger than that.

As he was warming up his swing with his onyx blade, he heard a commotion from the onlookers and swallowed hard before turning around.

The commander strode out of the fortress with a couple of apprentices in tow. He looked strong and confident with his posture tall and a menacing look on his face.

Henry kept his sword raised, but he eventually lowered it, feeling like he couldn't lift his arms anymore at the sight of the man he was supposedly trying to impress with his swordsmanship.

Once Commander Lothian made it to the practice grounds' arena, he pulled out the blade at his side and did a few powerful practice strikes of his own. His apprentices went to the stands to watch him warm up.

Henry heard knights from the stands utter the words "draco eversor" over and over. It must have been the sword the commander carried.

Being a peasant, Henry didn't know much of the old language, but draco definitely meant dragon.

The sword was plain, but it looked sturdy. It wasn't decorated with anything. The way the commander swung it around, you'd believe it was an extension of his arm, his movements were so effortless.

When he was done warming up, he walked forward to Henry and tilted the large blade toward him.

"Are you ready to show me why so many seem intent on pouring out their riches over you?" the commander asked, his deep voice could be felt in Henry's chest. "I want you to try and attack me.

Henry's eyes widened.

"Commander, you aren't wearing any armor," Henry said.

Even if he didn't believe he could land a blow on the commander, he didn't want the man to get accidentally wounded because of him.

The commander laughed, but it didn't seem to reach his eyes.

"I don't need armor," he said. "Now tip your sword towards me or I'm going to believe you hold ill will towards me."

Henry did as he was told and took a deep breath in. This wasn't going to turn out well for him, he already knew it.