Crest of the Strongest Knight

Chapter 93 - First Clue

Despite that, she would be willing to relive those painful memories if it meant that she could make her lady smile.

Viviane looked up at Medrauta guiltily. She knew that her knight was doing this to show her that it was alright to continue this line of questioning, but she still couldn't help but be upset at herself for forcing her beloved knight to remember such a traumatic past.

"It's fine, Vivi. What did you want to know?"

"Well... Do you... Do you remember anything before that? About where you used to live?"

"A little. My memory's quite hazy, but I do remember my mother and a few other things... Why?"

"No, I was just wondering if you'd be familiar with the duchy at all. I know you spent your squirehood in the capital, but I was hoping you'd know a bit about the lay of the land here."

"Ah." Medrauta understood Viviane's intentions at once. "You mean you want to know whether I'd be familiar enough with the duchy to know which fief would be the best place to lay low, yeah?"

Viviane nodded. As much as Medrauta portrayed herself as someone who despised complexity, she was surprisingly sharp most of the time and did fairly well in her tactics classes despite her disdain for them.

"...I used to live in Blanchet, as you know. It was a big city in a big fief. Before that, I lived closer to the ducal capital, so I know my way around the duchy pretty well. If I were escaping from the duke's castle, I'd probably want to go to... Orinth." Medrauta finally said after a hefty period of thought.

Viviane frowned. "That's around a day's ride from here, isn't it...? And hold on, isn't Orinth the place where Dame Marilyn wanted to meet!?"

"Now that you mention it, it is!" Medrauta's eyes widened in surprise, a grin spreading on her lips. "Looks like my memory isn't that shabby when it comes to the important stuff!"

...The important stuff? Viviane raised an eyebrow. You mean your apparent promise to the princess wasn't important? She couldn't help but wince at the thought. I mean, I think I should be happy about that, but... Ouch.

"Something wrong?" Medrauta asked, concerned.

"No... Nothing's wrong. My mind just kind of wandered off, ahaha..."

"Right." Medrauta would've pressed her for a more concrete answer, but she had a feeling it wasn't really that important compared to what they were supposed to be doing. "I guess we'll make our first stop Orinth then."

After making it past a small checkpoint manned by a few guards, Medrauta opened the carriage door and informed the coachman of the change in route. It'd take them a day of continuous travel to reach Orinth, but now that they were within the duchy walls, travel wasn't much of a problem anymore.

There were towns scattered all throughout the territory, and though the streets were empty, it looked as though the taverns and inns were still bustling. It was night when they pulled into the small town of Ancide, their carriage stopping beside a small and rustic inn.

The coachman had apologized profusely for failing to find better accommodations for the pair, but Viviane assured him it was fine. After all, the most important thing to her was that Medrauta remained by her side.

As the two approached the inn, sounds of mirth leaked from the entrance, intermingling with the warm light spilling from the establishment's curtained windows. Viviane grinned excitedly as she gripped the door handle, her giddiness clearly infectious as Medrauta smiled as well.

"...First time you've been to an inn, I'm guessing?"

Viviane nodded emphatically. "Yeah! I'm so excited! I heard that inns and taverns were where legends are born! I mean, I really wanted to give you an unforgettable night back in that high-class hotel, but something about staying in an inn makes me feel like I'm one of the main characters in a story!"