I got into the academy on my first try at the knights academy, I was normal, your everyday person in the academy, decent grades, decent sword style. I wasn't the strongest, and that's fine with me after all I can protect people now from those who choose banditry over normal living. Killing others for their own gain. Disgusting, after graduating from the academy I was lost bouncing around different locations as a knight until I was assigned to this village. To guard their gate from any intruders, even though others find this position for those who almost didn't make it out of the academy. It's wonderful, I can see how safe the people feel in this town, every time I click off my shift to switch out with another person, and walk down the road to my home. They give me gifts from time to time for protecting these gates, smile at me when I walk by, or when I help with moving boxes or hay around on my days off. They also call me over to the bar to show gratitude. Every day brings me warmth by staying and guarding their gates, that is until a letter arrived not too long ago.
It was a promotion letter arriving in the courier hands, looking at me like it was my time to say farewell to this village and move on to my next post. I took the letter from the courier into my hands and thanked him for his service. He simply bowed and waved goodbye then ran off to deliver his next letter. I closed the door and went over to my desk, sitting and grabbing the letter opener that those fancy nobles used, given to me by a good friend of mine. Slicing the letter open and letting it fall on my desk before grabbing the letter and reading I was interrupted by another knock on the door. I stayed silent, unlike the usual me who would go and immediately open the door for whoever it was. I didn't move, waited for them to leave, another knock came with a yell. "Did you already fall asleep already, youngen? I have a pie I made in gratitude the other day for you helping me move my old lover's things." It was grandma Daisy, a sweet old lady who always smiles at everyone and once you talk to her a few times you'll feel like she became your own grandmother. I sat there for a plain second before getting up and opening the door, "good day beautiful young lady." I said to her, she gave a chuckle and handed over the pie to me, "enjoy, you deserve it after all the help you've given me and the others. I hope your job promotion goes well, youngen."
When she said that it caught me off guard how did she already know what blasphemy, it just got here. "The courier just stopped by and it seems everyone believes I'll be moving on already?" She looked at me and just stared then walking away whistling the imperial tune, it seems that everyone is already ready for me to move on. I walked over to my small kitchen and sat down the pie in a spot for later moving on towards my desk. There the letter was sprawled out over the desk, sitting back at the desk picking up the letter for better reading. I slowly read it, surprisingly I'm being reassigned to the border on the east. The worst part is that there have been rumors lately that we could be going to war with the Atingkok Kingdom. It seems I'll be reassigned to a much more dangerous place than here, but in the same position as now. A gate guard who will be greeting those who come to enter our kingdom, "who would want to enter during this time?" I push back my hair and rub my temple, I'll be in a much more dangerous place than now. My brain feels rather dizzy thinking about what my future will be like.
I give up on that thought and place down the letter, it seems I'll have to be packing very soon, a knight order will be riding by soon, stopping here for only an hour before continuing their journey to the eastern border gate. Seems they want me to join them on the move, great, I get up from my desk pushing the chair back and looking about the place. At the bed that has given me its comfort, the night stand that has supported my old lamp given by one of my juniors. The walls, ceiling, and floor that have kept me safe from storms, the kitchen I cooked in every morning for breakfast, cooked in during the night for dinner. Everywhere in this house has served its purpose, it was my turn to say goodbye before any of them could give out or rot. I walk over to my small closet, opening it and taking out the bag I've been using since I graduated from the academy. Then taking all the clothes and things I would need, putting what I can into the bag then sitting everything near the door. Sitting down on top of my bed looking out a window near the desk, half the town lit up like a bustling street, the other dark and gloomy. I hope they are all safe when I'm gone, healthy, well, free from those bandits and thieves, who scuttle around like rats.
I went to bed that night with hopes, woken by the morning sun, taking my things and leaving the house, looking back at it in reassurance everything would be okay, my fears wouldn't be real. Walking away was my best option I had, I walked and walked, then waving goodbye to everyone, everything felt like a dream? No it was weirder. I was there walking saying goodbye to the baker, butcher, and to grandma daisy but my head felt elsewhere. Was I scared? I shook my head to get my head in the game and I was already at where the knight order was staying. Multiple horses, gear and armor, was sprawled out, people sitting around taking a break, then I saw him, the captain of this knight order. A tall man wearing armor, I thought I recognized him and I did. He graduated from the academy the same year I did, he was one of the top performers that year. I walked over to him "You're the captain I'm guessing?" He looked at me, it wasn't the most pleasant look but in the end he said "The horse you're riding is over there near Phalton." Pointing over to a younger looking man, It seems they brought along an extra horse just for me, I felt sorry for burdening them. I walked over to the horse I would be riding, rubbing its head gently, not too long after, it was time to saddle. I secured my luggage on the horse and hitched my leg over getting on, it seems I'll be riding near the young boy Phalton.
As we started to depart, Phalton came over to me and smiled. I'm not sure if it was courtesy or him being nice, so I simply nodded and smiled back. Then the race began or what felt like a horse race, big nobles would watch sitting in their mighty chairs, I could barely tell it was a knight order. I could only ride along my head growing dizzy from the sudden motion of riding again, then growing cold and cool as the air wiped by. Bringing those days in the academy back as clear as day, where I would ride along with my trusted cadets, Phalton then called out to me "Hey old man pay attention or I'll knock you off your horse!" He pulled his horse closer to mine, almost knocking his horse into mine. I would be lying if I said it didn't scare me, so I decided to pull an old trick in the book, slowly leaning off my horse and hitting the back of his horse. The horse immediately flipped out and threw him off, I sped up my horse grabbing the reins of the scared horse slowing down both the horses and going back to Phalton. Getting off the horse I was riding, "are you alright?" He looked at me and said "not nice old man, not nice."
I lent a hand for him to get off the ground, he started mumbling something, and it turns out some of the knight group stayed behind with us making sure we didn't fall behind. I hitched back onto the horse and he was already back on his and our journey started up again to the eastern border gate. Trees flutter by in a whisk, I was worried Phalton would try to get back at me but he never did, in the end we got closer but made a stop for nightfall. Tents were set up, and the cooks got up to cook, Phalton after docking his horse came over and told me I would be staying with him in his tent. I got off my horse feeding it and brushing it off, I walked over taking a look at the cooks. It looked good but I didn't want to burden them much, so I ended up walking out of the camp. I walked for a while, finding a tree larger than the others so I climbed up it and found a good branch I could sit on. I sat there for a while looking back towards the camp wondering if what I'm doing is right or wrong. Then I heard a bell. I was confused at first then I remembered back in training it meant it's time to eat, I just sat there as it rang one more time, I got up and jumped down from the tree. Walking back to camp, it turns out I walked quite far away from the camp, I heard a flutter of leaves, then a snap, something or someone was behind me. I rushed to look around but it was already too late. A man plunged a knife straight into my side, it hurt, it was warm.
After realizing what happened the man was already ready to plunge it again into my torso, I grabbed the man's wrist and slammed him to the ground flipping him to his stomach, grabbing the knife away from him. I tried to catch my breath, dizziness was taking over already, trying my best to hold him down, I yelled for anyone in hope that the knights would hear me from so far away. I shouldn't have gone too far, I shouldn't have put my guard down, I've forgotten this world is cruel. Then in an unfruitful endeavor of keeping the man restrained another person appeared lunging at me with force, I jumped off the man stumbling then holding a nearby tree to stay steady, was it poisoned? Or have my senses become so dull and weak that I am unfit to be a knight, this very thought haunts me, it sends shivers to my bones. There was no more time to think both of the other men were back up on their feet, one pointing a knife at me the other looking at me like a prey on a hunting ground. I took a breath, I can not die here, not yet, I can still protect more, I can still protect everyone, if I take these two out I can protect the knight's order. I can stop feeling like a burden, but is that true? Isn't the reason I feel like a burden because of me? I'm a knight just like them, I can fight, so get up and don't let ourselves down. My body wouldn't move, I pushed my body to move, forcing every muscle to move, then I finally moved but it wasn't the way I wanted. I fell to the ground taking my last breath, my final thought being "I couldn't protect everyone, I can't protect anyone anymore."