"You're looking good, my friend." Everin said standing at the doorway of Kevin's room.
Three manservants were running around the room helping the Earl get ready for the day while Kevin and Everin were speaking. Kevin stared into the full body mirror inspecting the design of the ruby long-sleeved tunic on him. He had gone through four shirts and only this one pleased him. The golden pattern embellishments around the collar and the sleeves gave the tunic a rather dazzling look compared to the other duller and darker designs.
Kevin lifted his arms while the manservants wrapped a leather belt around his waist. The leather belt was decorated with flower-like metal embroidery and the fancy buckle secured the accent of the outfit. One of the manservants brought over an obsidian long coat and Kevin extended his arms out as his manservants pulled the coat over his shoulders. One can say that Kevin has adjusted to his new lifestyle. He was once a humble manservant of an evil baron, but overnight, he became a son of a Marquis. He didn't have to lift a finger around the manor and was pampered by the servants. And it was still safe to say that Kevin's underwear was still more expensive than all the clothes that Everin was wearing.
"I'm nervous. What if I mess up or do something stupid? My father will be so disappointed in me." Kevin said without breathing.
"Mister Park will not be disappointed in you. You are his son who hasn't returned home in almost a decade. If anything, he is the happiest man alive. If you ran his horse into a tree, he will still forgive you." Everin reassured him.
These past few days, Kevin has been spending his mornings learning how to ride a horse. He learnt all the basic while working for Lord Bullock, the only thing he lacked at that time was the horse. Kevin took deep breathes to calm himself down.
"This is for ye." Kevin said handing Everin an expensive looking tunic.
Everin held up the forest green and extravagant tunic that Kevin handed to her. It was the complementary color of his ruby red tunic. The golden strips of pattern were like the designs on the tunic that Kevin was wearing.
"I was right. Green suits ye better against ye softer complexion." Kevin said matching the tunic against Everin's good looking face.
He inspected the belts on the table, trying to select one that matched Everin. Hold on a second. Why was Kevin selecting an outfit for her? Was Kevin expecting Everin to accompany him to the afternoon meeting with the nobles and Mister Park's friends?
"Are you trying to buy me with an expensive tunic?" Everin asked not knowing that Kevin cheaply regarded their friendship as the same value of a shirt.
"Everin, father and I are meeting with his friends and the nobles today, ye should join us." Kevin suggested. "Ye are also his son, and it will make me very happy to see my brother standing next to me."
"Adopted son." Everin corrected. "I respect Mister Park's decision to take me in, but this kind of lifestyle doesn't suit me. I made it clear that I don't like crowds or attending parties."
"At least attend for my sake. I need the moral support." Kevin pleaded.
"Why do I feel like it's not your father that you are nervous about?" Everin said sensing that Kevin was acting weird. "Spill it before I break your fingers."
There was no point of keeping it a secret from Everin. She read him like a book.
"He is finding us female suitors." Kevin confessed.
"What!?" Everin's jaw dropped.
Wasn't that a bit too early to decide considering that they only returned home several days ago? Kevin wasn't expecting this either. He was horseback riding with his father and suddenly, his father mentioned how he wanted to see both his sons get married before leaving this world. Tonight, he arranged a dinner for Kevin and Everin to hopefully meet the daughters of the noblemen from the clan.
How can this be? The shock hit Everin hard. She hasn't lived her life to the fullest and she was already getting married at such a young age. Moreover, Mister Park and Kevin still believed that Everin was a man. If she gets married, her identity will be exposed.
"My father has set his mind." Kevin said fixing his collar. "If ye don't have someone else already in mind, then ye should get yeself a beautiful maiden."
"You think I have time for that, I am busy training!"
"That's true. But I don't think that's the problem. As a good brother, I am giving ye some advice. Despite what people say about character, it's all about the appeal and women don't find... that attractive.," Kevin said pointing at Everin's entire being.
Everin crossed her arms. "You realize that you just pointed to all of me...,"
"Ye lack masculinity and ye face is too... round." Kevin said gesturing Everin's soft features.
Was this déjà vu? Everin felt like had had this conversation with Kevin before, but it wasn't about marriage, instead it was about her getting a boyfriend.
Everin grabbed Kevin's finger. "Oh really, Lord Kevin!"
In her world, she was too masculine. In this world, she was too feminine. Oh, Kevin, Kevin, it must have been suffocating to keep all these comments to himself.
"Everin! Lord Everin! I am sorry!" Kevin apologized taking back everything he said. "Have mercy on me! I was wrong!"
Everin was happy that Kevin was back to his usual self. She much preferred seeing him filled with confidence and sass. She grinned like a proud sister or brother, whichever one she was.
Jokes aside, Everin had no intention of getting married to anyone, especially not to anyone from this world. She had to do something about that before Mister Park tricks a poor maiden into walking down the aisle with Everin.
Everin arrived at the place where she usually trains with Sir Williams, but the knight was not there, instead Sir Lee and Taylor was waiting for her. Sir Lee was standing next to his horse while Taylor was plucking the grass out of boredom. When the squire saw Everin, he threw the handful of grass on the ground.
"Pretty Face, what took ye so long? My leg has gone numb waiting for ye." Taylor complained.
Everin got caught up talking with Kevin that she didn't realize that she was running late.
"I am sorry, I had something to do before. Are we all training together? Where is Sir Williams?" Everin asked tightening the buckle on her armguard ready for another fight.
"Today's lesson will be taught by me, but don't worry Sir Williams will join us later."
"Ooooh." Everin was curious about what the baronet will teach her.
"You won't need your gear today, so you can leave it with Taylor." Sir Lee informed the lad.
Leave her gear? What was the occasion? Taylor gestured Everin to strip her gear. Everin took off all leather armor and gambeson jacket while Taylor carried them all in his arms.
"Thank you, Taylor."
"Ye are welcome." The squire leaned in and whispered something to the lad. "My Lord, if ye need help selecting the best maiden, know that I am always here to help."
How did the squire know? Everin pushed the nosy squire away.
"Catch ye later." Taylor said running off with a smile on his face.
The baronet chuckled when he saw the lad's cheeks flushed red. Everin bit her cheeks when she saw the baronet laughing at her.
"Don't tell me that you also know about me and Kevin... and the female suitors...,"
It was hard not to know when Lord Kendryk has spread the news around town to find more candidates. Usually, the lady will have many suitors and the males will try to court her, not the other way around. It was Sir Lee's first-time hearing the female candidates coming to see the male party.
"I want to dig a hole and die." Everin cried.
The baronet lightly flicked the lad's forehead. "We can talk about this later. Let's learn the basics of riding a horse first."
Without further delay, the baronet started to teach the lad about the functions of the saddle. The bands and latches around the head of the horse were to secure the bit, a metal tack, inside the horse's mouth. A bit can hurt a horse if the rider is inexperienced or too rough on the horse. The design of the bit was not to inflict pain, but to communicate.
"If the bit was a poor fit, it can cause pain to the horse." Sir Lee said concluding with the information about the front of the horse. "Moving on from the bit, we have the reins, they are connected to the bit and you will be using these to communicate with the horse."
Everin listened attentively as the baronet taught her about every feature of the saddle. She knew a bit about the saddle when she was accompanying Kevin in the mornings for his horseback riding sessions. She also learned some of the cues from watching Kevin. The first rule to riding a horse was to never ever let go of the rein. If the rider lost the reins, then he won't be to communicate with the horse.
"Okay, Zeus. Let's be friends." Everin said petting Sir Lee's horse on the neck.
Everin tucked her foot into the stirrup and kicked herself up onto the seat of the saddle. Zeus was a large trained war horse of Friesian breed. It was an onyx black stallion(male horse) that had a thick mane and tail, feather on the lower legs, and powerfully muscles. Compared to other horses, it was agile and had the strength to carry the weight of horse armor and a knight in full armor.
Zeus was very patient with Everin and stayed incredibly still when the she mounted it. The baronet saw the lad stiffening up and placed his hand behind the lad's lower back.
"Straighten your back. If you slouch, it will be hard for you to control the horse and to balance."
"Yes, Sir." Everin said straightening her back.
The front of the saddle was called the pommel, like the pommel of a longsword and the back of the saddle was called the cantle. To prevent the rider from being unseated during war, the pommel and the cantle were usually made higher. Sir Lee handed the reins to the lad.
Everin kept the reins at her hip level, this way the reins were not in the air and she will have control of the horse. Following Sir Lee's instruction, Everin held the reins with her thumbs up and centered around six inches or 15 centimeters away from her body. She used both her lower legs to squeeze the horse lightly behind the girth area to cue it to walk.
Zeus started walking forward and Everin's body bobbled up and down to the horse's gait. She closed her hands and squeezed backwards, and Zeus stopped walking. Everin proceed to make a left turn by moving the reins to the left and laying the right rein on the side of the horse's neck. At the same time, she used her left leg to cue the horse to bend around her leg. Zeus turned and Everin was impressed. She couldn't believe that she was riding a horse.
"This is so cool!" Everin said.
When Zeus strutted a bit farther from the baronet, Everin grew nervous.
"Sir Lee, don't leave me!" The lad called out for the baronet.
The lad was the one traveling on the horse, how could the baronet leave? Everin cued Zeus to turn right, but he turned left. The horse shook his head to signal the rider that he wasn't happy with the reining. The sudden upward movement made Everin more anxious.
Zeus picked up his speed and began to canter. Everin tensed up as she wasn't used to the quick pace movement of the horse. Sensing that the horse was moving too fast for a beginner rider like Everin, Sir Lee knew that Everin had lost control.
"Everin pull the reins to stop." Sir Lee told the lad.
"Zeus! Slow down!" Everin shouted at the horse.
Just when Everin could feel her butt flying off the saddle, a white horse closed in on them.
"Eyes forward, back straight, and loosen your upper legs around the girth!" Sir Williams, who came out of nowhere, instructed the lad.
Everin did as told and the knight circled his horse around Zeus from the outside. The white horse tested Zeus's dominance and kept Zeus from going out further on the field.
"Keep your arms and hands at hip level and gently squeeze the reins."
After following the knight's instructions, Everin was able to bring Zeus down to a trot. Everin's butt was bumping up and down against the seat.
"Don't clench onto the seat. Let your body go with the movement of the horse."
The two riders circled two laps and Everin gained more confidence when she got used to the trotting movement.
"Squeeze the reins once more, this time, push your seat deeper into the saddle, stiffen your back, and close your legs on the horse slightly."
When Everin cued the horse, Zeus came to a halt. The horse was calm once again and Everin exhaled in relief. Sir Williams stopped his horse besides the lad.
"The horse can tell you are nervous or unsure about your decisions. If you give them wrong cues, they won't listen to the commands."
"Yes, Sir Williams."
Everin knew that her knowledge about horseback riding was inferior to the baronet's and the knight's. There was so much that she had to learn, and she couldn't rush it.
"Everin, are you alright?" Sir Lee asked when he came over.
Sir Williams cued back his horse to retrieve third horse that he had left on the field and Sir Lee helped the lad unmount the horse.
"I am sorry, Everin. I should have stayed close to you." The baronet apologized.
Zeus turned away its head nonchalantly. The baronet stroke the Zeus's neck to praise the magnificent creature. The baronet and his horse have been through war together and overcame harsh times. Their bond was one where they could entrust each other's life to one another.
"I think he hates me." Everin said.
Sir Lee laughed as he helped the lad remove its feet from the stirrups. Zeus was a very friendly horse and loved to run. Everin leaned forward with both hands on Zeus's neck and shifted her weight to her arms. She swung her right leg up and over the horse's haunch. Her body vaulted over the horse and her feet landed clumsily on the ground. The baronet caught the doe deer in his arms before it stumbled over.
"Based on my experience, Zeus likes you." The baronet said helping the lad stand up.
As soon as the baronet said that, Zeus flicked his tail and unexpectedly whipped the lad in the face. The startled lad flinched as the horse brushed against her back.
"See, he likes you." Sir Lee said.
Stallions or male horses are prone to aggressive behavior, particularly toward other stallions. This is due to their instincts as herd animals. However, this doesn't mean that they will result to violence when challenging each other. When two stallions meet, most commonly, there will be bluffing behavior and the weaker horse will back off.
Stallions are very social creatures and live in herds. When the horses are yearlings, they are usually raised in a harem of mares, female horses, with one dominant stallion. When the male horses become colts and fillies, they are drive out of the herd to prevent competition and inbreeding. These colts or young stallions, without mares of their own, will join small bachelor herds. Bachelor heads were composed of stallions and can contain older stallions who have lost their herd in a challenge.
Sir Williams got off his horse and reined the two horses to the baronet and the lad. Daisy, Sir Williams's horse, was a mare and was the foster mother of Zeus. Zeus's mother died during birth and Daisy was too old to have any children of her own. So, Zeus was given to her to raise, and she raised him as her own child.
Following behind Daisy was another horse that was much smaller. It was a young brown stallion that was abandoned by a breeder because it was a lazy horse. The horse was slow and didn't respond to any cues which Sir Williams thought was a perfect match for the lad who never paid attention.
"You spent the whole morning to buy me a retarded horse?" Everin asked the knight filled with discontent.
"Do you know how much a war horse cost? It will be wasted in the hands of an amateur." The knight roasted her.
"So how much did he cost?" Everin asked upset. "There must be a reason why you chose this horse out of all the ones in the barracks."
Everin didn't know why she hoped that the knight had a good reason for buying this horse. Maybe it was secretly stronger or faster than the other ones that he saw.
"It was the cheapest in the barracks." The knight straightforwardly said to the lad.
"The cheapest...," Those words repeated in Everin's mind over and over. "You are so mean! How could buy me just any horse!? I am your squire! Aren't you supposed to teach me how to be the best!?"
"I don't think you have the right to complain when you aren't the one paying for the horse."
The baronet chortled enjoying the bickering between the knight and the lad. They argued like a married couple.
After spending her half of her afternoon on a stubborn horse that didn't listen to single cue she made, Everin returned to the manor filled with rage. She was not letting this slide and will get her revenge against the knight for wasting her precious time.
As Everin made it back to the courtyard of the manor, she saw a line of carriages and people crowding around the entrance. What surprised Everin was that there were noble ladies dressed in extravagant dresses. Each one of them had female servants on their sides tending them and all of them were stunning.
It was Everin's first time seeing ladies from the nobility class. A noble lady spent most of her time indoors, so it made sense that Everin would have never encountered one. These ladies were probably the female suitors that Mister Park invited to the dinner party. When three ladies saw the lad strangely staring at them, they became offended.
"Who is he? Is he a servant? Why is he covered in dirt?" One of the ladies squealed at the sight of Everin's horrifying filth filled outfit.
Another lady pinched her nose. "He smells like horse manure. And why is he staring at us!?"
Everin scratched her head and smelled her hand realizing that her haggard look was scaring the ladies. She did just come back from the horse barracks after cleaning horse poop. Before the ladies called for security, Everin ran back into the manor to take a bath.
She washed her hair and all the dirt under her fingernails. The clear water in the tub turned black when she exited out. Promising Kevin that she will attend the party, Everin wore the clothes that Kevin gifted her. She was his wingman for tonight and she will do whatever it takes to ensure that Kevin was happy.
According to proper etiquette, a man could not speak to a woman until someone has introduced her to him. That was the rule that the nobles followed. Lord Kendryk had the guest entered through the garden so they could spend the pastime drinking tea and admiring the beautiful scenery before entering the dining tents. It was also a way for Lord Kendryk to introduce the two earls to the fathers and the daughters.
There around 9 noble ladies that came to the event. They were all from noble families and their fathers were wealthy or power men. So far, the marquis and two earls have greeted eight of the female suitors. The first family had two daughters, one older and one younger. The older one was ten years older than the two earls, which automatically made the marquis disqualify the first daughter. The third female suitor was thirteen years old, a marriage arrangement could be made and proceeded later when the daughter has become of age.
Everin and Kevin felt uncomfortable. They were not pedophiles and disqualified the third suitor. The next three suitors were the ladies that Everin frightened at the courtyard. They failed to recognize Everin in her new clothes and greeted the two earls with curtsies. In front of the earls, they acted differently and were all sugary. Their change of character was a complete turn off. The seventh and eighth female suitors lacked a bit in appearance, but they were still probable candidates.
"My, her teeth were crooker than my crooked strike." Lord Kendyrk whispered to his sons.
Everin, who got the joke, burst into laughter.
"Father, ye can't say that about a lady." Lord Kevin told his father to stop acting immature.
Lord Kendryk nudged Everin in the arm. At least, one of his sons shared the same humor as him.
"Ah, Lord Kendryk, long time no see." A tall baronet bearhugged the marquis.
"Sir Guarinus, my friend!" Lord Kendryk responded regarding the baronet as his equal. "What brings ye here? Ye didn't inform me that ye were visiting."
"I heard ye reunited with your son. I had to come to congratulate ye." Sir Guarinus said. "Me and my second daughter, Naomi, has brought a small gift for him."
"Good day, Lord Kendryk and Lord Kevin. My name is Naomi. " A lovely lady in a dark pink long gown said while bowing her head respectfully to the marquis and the earl.
Lady Naomi was the last of the nine female suitors. She had long brown wavy hair and the draping sleeves of her dress highlighted her elegance. One of the lady's servant handed Lord Kevin a sword.
"This is my father's and my gratitude. Please accept it." Lady Naomi said in a sweet soothing voice.
Lord Kevin accepted the lady's gift from the servant and thanked her and her father for their kindness. The baronet and his daughter were kind indeed to gift such an expensive sword, but Lord Kendryk saw that the baronet and his daughter disregarded his second son and decided to remind them that he had two sons.
"Sir Guarinus, ye gratitude is short of one." Lord Kendyrk said not pleased with the lacking gratitude of the family. "I have ye know that Lord Everin is also my son."
The baronet and his daughter should show their regards to both sons even if they only had their eyes set on one. Their one sword was not enough for both of his exceptional sons.
"Father...," Kevin said trying to stop his father from being rude to their guests.
Lady Naomi lowered her head and apologized to Lord Kendryk. "I am sorry, Lord Kendryk. Please don't blame my father. This is my fault. I was the one who insisted on giving the gift. I didn't know that ye had a second son. If I knew I would have prepared another one."
Lady Naomi's clumsy and forthright personality gained the marquis and Lord Kevin's approval. It was not easy for a lady to stand up for her father and for her own mistake. Sir Guarinus leaned in to speak to Lord Kendryk.
"Lord Kendryk, please forgive me and my foolish daughter. She spends most her time indoors reading. I already prepared another gift to be sent to ye manor by the end of today."
Seeing that Lady Naomi didn't have any ill intentions, the marquis and the two earls forgave her.
Lady Naomi turned to Everin and bowed. "I am sorry, my Lord. I did not know that ye were also Lord Kendyrk's son. Please forgive me for my ignorance."
Everin was silent the whole time because she was wondering why the name Naomi sounded so familiar. When Everin saw Lady Naomi's face, she realized that she was speaking to Kevin's first girlfriend.
End of Chapter 24
Hello readers! Back with another update. Feeling weak because the horses in my story have a better backstories than me. T^T LOLs
I apologize if this chapter feels a bit slow. Hopefully the next chapter will be more fast paced. Thank you for reading and I hope you all have a great day!