“You know I’d protect you, Marvin,” I hiss. “We don’t need him.”
“But then who would protect me?” Byron asks, his mouth turning up into a lopsided grin.
I roll my eyes. As if the magical prodigy of Woodsburry Grove needs protection.
“Seriously, though, if we are to make it to the academy before dark we should get going now.”
“We should!” Marvin pipes up, he shoots me a desperate look as if pleading with me to stop arguing. I groan, bending over and grabbing my bags. I loop them over my arm. I already look bad enough saying Byron can’t come, if I keep insisting it then I’m just going to make myself appear worse.
And I’m already low enough in Byron’s eyes, best not to give him any more ammunition to throw at me. Besides, I’ll be seeing plenty of him at the academy anyways, so it isn’t as if I’ll be getting away from him anytime soon
No, it seems I’m stuck with Byron Coalbiter a bit longer. But hopefully when I manage to find a way to keep Byron from stealing my dreams and achieve my knighthood, I’ll be able to move far away from him. Him and his smug little smirk.
Now that will be the day.
Chapter Three
Ialreadyknewthatthis was going to be a long trip without the addition of Byron. Marvin wasn’t made for traveling… or anything strenuous easily. His fair skin blisters in the sun, and he has difficulty breathing sometimes, especially when he has been moving too much.
Not exactly the best qualities to find in a farmer’s son, but fortunately for him his father is wealthy enough to hire men, so he doesn’t have to work in the fields. No, his father has risen so far above his station, accumulated so much land and so much wealth that now he has high aspirations for his son.
Knighthood.
Not just any knighthood though, a Gilded Knighthood. There are other factions an aspiring knight could join such as the Hallowed Knights or the Knight of the Order or Brotherhood, but none come with quite so many perks as a Gilded Knighthood.
With each of the other knightly factions—with the exception of the Knights of the Sword who are basically glorified mercenaries— one joins a knightly order. Each one comes with its own perks and downfalls, but they don’t leave much room for individualism or forging your own fame. What you do, you do in the name of your knightly faction and likely with help. You don’t see just one templar from the Brotherhood slaying a dragon; no, they always travel in groups of three or four.
I suppose if you like working as a team, then that’s great for you.
If you want to become something, really become something then the Gilded Knights or the Knights of the Sword are the only two factions for you. And if you want to become something great then that rules out the Knights of the Sword.
A champion of the Gilded Order is a knight chosen by a fae lord, personally selected and granted a boon in return for their service. They serve one master, and they keep all the glory of their battles, but due to the limited number of fae lords out there who are willing to part with a piece of their magic in return for a loyal follower —they are very selective.
Which is where the academy comes in. It is more than just an elite training center like the other knightly academies. No, The Academy of the Gilded Knights is a competition. Only the best will graduate from it as a knight champion, the rest… well, I suppose they’ll just have to reconsider their options. Anytime a fae lord decides that he or she needs a new knight, they go to stay at the academy. They look over the prospects and watch the contests, and then they choose the one who seems the worthiest to serve them.
Iwillbe one of those knights chosen, and I’m going to be chosen by one of the more powerful high fae. I’ll get a great magic as my boon and finally live down the shame of being born a low-magic fae.
Word is that the fae lord Menavilion is staying at the academy right now. He is looking for a knight, and I intend to be the one chosen. No matter his connections to Byron and his family, or the fact that Byron already wields magic from Menavillion. I’m not about to let that upstart steal another thing from me.
It’s bad enough that he is the most powerful person in our village, despite the fact thatI’mthe only fae here. Or that he has claimed the hearts of everyone in the village. Or that my own friend Marvin is willing to stick up for him against me…
At least I’ll get that knighthood and if Byron thinks that he has a chance in Skyshire of taking it from me, then he has another thing coming at him.
Marvin puffs out a breath, reaching up to wipe at his already perspiring forehead. I think he is wanting us to call a break, but the unfortunate fact of the matter is that we have only just reached the outskirts of the village, and the sun hasn’t even fully risen yet.
We’ve barely even set out.
This is going to be such a long day… Poor Marvin, but if he wants a break then he is going to have to ask for it himself because if I speak up then Byron might think that I need it for myself, and I refuse to show weakness to the likes of him.
Maybe this will teach Marvin not to invite just anyone to travel with us, because if he hadn’t, we could move at our own pace instead of the pace of that other person.
“So…” Marvin begins with a heavy exhale. “How is your grandfather?”
My mouth drops open and my foot stalls. The boy is fighting for his life over here to keep up with Byron’s quick pace and he wants to makesmall talk?
Byron glances over at Marvin, his lips pressed into a thin line. “I wish that I could say he’s doing better, but alas he didn’t raise me to be a liar.”
“That bad, huh?”
