Chapter 12: A Knight's Honor
Kenric grabbed his sword and left his chambers, being as stealthy as he could, and closing the door ever so slowly so as to not make a sound and wake the other man up.
Kenric then made his way down to the dungeon where the prisoners were held. He ordered a guard to open up Edgar's cell before entering the small room and closing the gate shut behind him. The anger that had cooled down in Archie's presence was back now, and Kenric could not remember the last time he felt rage like this. Rage that made him want to bathe in the blood of the bastard that dared to harm his beloved.
Violence was not anything new for Kenric. He had seen men he cared for get injured and die both on and off the battlefield. But nothing... Nothing in the whole goddamn world was enough to make him feel even a fraction of the terror that he did when he saw his stable boy with a blade pressed against his throat.
Just the thought that had Kenric been remotely late then he could have lost Archie forever...
No. Kenric would never let that happen.
"I wanted you to be executed in front of the whole town," Kenric began, "I wanted everyone to know what happens if you commit crimes as horrific as yours in my kingdom."
"I know my fate," Edgar muttered. His only attempt at escaping failed and he knew he would die two days from now, there was no running away now.
"How did you escape from your cell?" Kenric asked. Edgar laughed, looking at the prince as if he had cracked a joke.
"You are wasting your time, prince. What makes you think I will tell you anything?" Edgar spat.
"You will," Kenric raised his sword, aiming it at Edgar's chest, making the prisoner scoff. But Kenric smirked as he lowered the sword slowly, till it was pointing at Edgar's groin. "Unless you want to live your last few days in unimaginable pain."
"You...you wouldn't...you wouldn't be so cruel," the color from Edgar's face drained, making him look as pale as snow.
Kenric could only scoff in response. This was nothing compared to the torture that Edgar deserved, torture that Kenric would have happily carried out if he was not in a rush to return to the man that was currently asleep in his chambers.
"How many women have you raped and killed?" Kenric rose an eyebrow. "This would indeed be a very fitting punishment for you."
"It was...it was that blond guard. With the scar across his brow!" Edgar ratted out, the terror clear on his face.
Kenric immediately knew he was talking about Oswald, he was aware of every single guard in the castle.
"Why would he help you?" Kenric asked.
"He...he wanted me to kill his old lover. She left him for a richer man and he wanted me to murder them both," Edgar explained, "he said he would free me and pay me once the deed was done. He was a fool to believe me when I said I would do it. I was not going to, I swear. I was only going to run away!"
"That bastard," Kenric muttered as he shook his head in disappointment.
He felt repulsed that one of the men he had trusted with the safety of the kingdom would risk freeing a criminal as dangerous as Edgar just because he wanted revenge over his broken heart.
"Now leave me to live the last of my days in peace. I told you what you wanted to know," Edgar said as he took a step back in fear.
"Our business is not quite done," Kenric said. "You hurt someone today. Someone that means a great deal to me."
"The stable boy?" Edgar asked, looking almost disgusted.
The rage that Kenric had felt when he saw Archie scared and bleeding took over him again. For a moment he was afraid he would lose him, and the thought terrified him to the bone.
Kenric had fought in several battles and been in more dangerous events than he could even bother to recall, but nothing had ever left him so petrified. His jaw tightened and he gripped his sword tightly, before finally raising it and piercing Edgar's chest, stabbing him right in his heart.
Edgar desperately attempted to cover his wound with his hands, blood pouring from it as he fell on the ground of his cold cell. Dead within seconds.
Kenric was almost disappointed at how quickly Edgar had died. He wanted the bastard to suffer, but he also could not bear breathing the same air as him. Kenric was sure Edgar would get all pain he deserved in the afterlife. For now, he just wanted to rid the earth of his evil.
"He is not just a stable boy." Kenric whispered the other half, "not to me."
***
When Kenric woke up the morning after the incident with Edgar, he found the blankets he had given to Archie folded up neatly and kept on the other side of the bed. The man was nowhere to be seen. Kenric could not help but feel a little disappointed, he would have given anything to wake up to Archie's beautiful face. He did not get the chance to do so even when they had stayed at the inn together.
Kenric got up and walked over to his window but he could not see the stable boy even then. He sighed and walked to his desk hoping that maybe Archie left a note. But he realized that Archie would not do that even if he wanted to, he would not touch Kenric's belongings without his permission.
Kenric tried to divert his mind for he had other work to do. He had to decide the fate of two men— Sir Alan that did not care if Edgar killed Archie, and Oswald the prison guard that helped him escape. After he finished his business with Edgar, Kenric ordered the knights to find Oswald and throw him behind bars.
Luckily, Edgar had opened his mouth in time and they caught Oswald just when he was trying to escape.
Once Kenric ate his breakfast, he went to meet with his brother.
"I am not going to order Sir Alan's execution, Kenric," King Godric said as he pinched the bridge of his nose in irritation. "Sure, what he did was terrible and no knight should be that careless about the lives of citizens but it is not a crime worth chopping his head in public over!"
"He was going to let Edgar kill Archie and he deserves to die for that!" Kenric raised his voice, making Godric sigh as he looked at his brother tiredly.
Godric knew that Kenric cared about Archie, but this was crossing a line and he could not support the younger prince simply because he was infatuated. Someone had to view the situation without a biased perspective, and as the King, it was Godric who had the final say.
"The guillotine is being set for tomorrow, and that traitorous guard will be executed for helping the prisoner and for plotting the murder of two people," Godric paused, "but I am not executing Sir Alan. You may decide his punishment, anything but death."
"Anything?" Kenric asked.
"I hope you know your limits, brother," Godric said. "You already crossed a line killing Edgar in his cell last night. I trust you...but your mind can be clouded when your stable boy is involved. Do not do anything of that sort again, especially not without asking me first."
"He deserved to die. I could not risk him escaping and terrorizing more innocent people." Kenric defended his actions. The reason was not exactly a lie, though it had more to do with Archie.
"Oh?" Godric raised a brow. "And it had nothing to do with the fact that he harmed your precious stable boy?"
"I have known Archie since I was a mere toddler, brother. He was my first friend...my closest friend. Of course, my anger has everything to do with him getting hurt. He could have died!" Kenric frowned.
"And that is all he is to you? Your friend?" Godric asked, when Kenric did not say anything in return, the King continued, "all I am asking you is for you to know your boundaries, brother, be it regarding Sir Alan's punishment or how far you go with the stable boy. I may be tolerant but the people are not. And you know that I cannot bear to see any harm befall you."
"Understood, Your Majesty."
***
Kenric had decided what Sir Alan's punishment would be. As much as he wanted to kill him, he knew he could not do that. He would also probably regret that later on too. But that did not mean he was going to let the man off easily.
It was time for the daily training of the knights, they were all sparring in pairs when Kenric walked into the field. Kenric gritted his teeth in anger, trying to keep it at bay when he saw Sir Alan chatting away with another knight. It was as if he was not even aware of the gravity of his actions.
Kenric asked them all to stop and stand in front of him, saying that he had something to show them. They were all standing patiently, waiting for their prince and leader to reveal what he had in store.
"As Knights of this Kingdom, it is our duty to protect each and every citizen. They trust us with their lives, and we should be ready to lay ourselves down if it means we are able to save even a single innocent soul," Kenric continued, "but there are some that do not uphold this sacred rule of being a Knight."
Kenric looked towards Sir Alan, who had visibly turned pale now. Kenric motioned for him to come forward. The scared knight looked to his sides as if making sure that the prince was talking to him and not anyone else.
After a moment of hesitation, he walked forward and stood in front of the prince, his head held low as he stared at the ground in both fear and humiliation. The knights respected Kenric and were ready to lay down their lives for him. But at the same time, they also knew the level of brutality that Kenric was capable of. And that was enough to terrify each and every one of them.
"What do you have to say for yourself, Sir Alan?" Kenric spat, the man in front of him was no longer deserving of his title.
"I...I thought you would be pleased. I know how much time you spent trying to hunt down Edgar. I thought you would be angrier if he escaped than if some random stable boy got hurt," Sir Alan said, attempting to justify his actions.
Kenric could not control himself as he landed a punch to the knight's face. How dare he call Archie a random stable boy? The audacity of this man fueled Kenric's rage that he had tried to control earlier, but now he was not going to stop. He took out his sword from its sheath and raised it towards the knight.
"Take out your sword and fight me!" Kenric ordered.
Sir Alan stared wide-eyed at Kenric, but when Kenric's expression remained unchanged, he hesitantly did so. Everyone knew that the knight was no match for the prince, none of them were.
The two swords met, and within moments Sir Alan had fallen to the ground as Kenric pressed the tip of his sword at Sir Alan's throat. Nobody said anything, and everyone thought Kenric would kill him. But imagine their surprise when Kenric retrieved his sword and took a step back.
"I am not going to kill you," Kenric said, and Sir Alan let out a breath of relief. "But I am stripping you of your knighthood. You are no longer a knight in King Godric's army."
Even more than their lives, what the knights valued was their pride. Their honor was what separated them from others, and Kenric was stripping Sir Alan of his. Some would consider this punishment worse than death itself.
"Sire...sire, no! Please, I will do anything to right my wrongs!" Sir Alan, well, just Alan now, begged.
"Leave before I change my mind and kill you instead," Kenric hissed. Alan's eyes widened as he quickly got up and rushed out of the field. Kenric faced the rest of the knights and continued, "let this be a lesson to you all...do not ever forget your duty."
***