Miniarc-Villains-02

Miniarc-Villains-02

There were two ways to become a knight, the most common method of joining a knight order or receiving the title for the crown. Any higher noble, those above the middling rank of viscount, could establish an order. The nobles funded the order, providing equipment and training for its members. In return, the knights served the family; sometimes, they were a private security force while other times their duties carried to every corner of their lord’s territory.

A lesser known caveat of the arrangement was that the noble also chose the doctrine that the knights followed. They weren’t always about honor and chivalry. They represented the house behind them; they wore the family’s colors and wielded its authority more often than they did their swords. A noble’s reputation was their livelihood, and that reputation was directly tied to the actions of the men and women they employed. They wanted those men and women to embody their values.

A knight never did anything suspect in public. However, out of their uniforms, their lives were their own. All it took for them to be considered for the job was enough ability to dissuade the commonest of criminals from causing trouble. Rarely did they face true threats.

The royal knights were exceptions.

The Royal Order of Harvest Knights was a throwback to the days when the title sir meant more than the ability to kill something. There was only one way to join their ranks, excellence. It wasn’t enough to be competent; a potential recruit needed both natural talent and the drive to take it to incredible heights.

Most royal knights were chosen from the army; the exceptions were children of previous members who trained from the moment they could hold child-sized training weapons. No soldier with less than ten years of service was considered, nor was any officer that had led less than seven successful campaigns. Long service demonstrated loyalty to the crown or at least the willingness to commit to duty.

They had to be talented fighters, both magically and martially. The character was also scrutinized. Royal knights lived on the palace grounds. They had regular interactions with the royal family. There could be no doubt about their suitably, no flaws in their reputation that could reflect poorly on the crown. Being convicted of a crime took any hopefuls out of the running. An official reprimand was a crippling disadvantage. A royal knight had to be beyond reproach.

The best and the brightest would be given the opportunity to attempt to them. Their final hurdle was their would-be peers. The knights would test the hopefuls, under the direction of their knight-captain. If he found them wanting, they were gone. Not even the king would go against his word.

It was a difficult journey, but the position came with considerable perks, the most subtle being close proximity to the crown. The knights became friends with the heirs. One day, those children who looked up to them would sit on the throne and marry into powerful families. The ability to whisper a word in their ears was priceless.

Their accommodations were comfortable and their access unrivaled. They had standing invitations to every ball and feast. They received a generous salary and their marriage prospects were excellent. Every royal knight had the means to establish a flourishing house whenever they chose to retire.

For their journey, for their means, for what they had the potential to become, the royal knights were universally respected. Samuel was no exception. The second prince didn’t like soldiers in general, but he gave those that protected his bloodline their due. Even the commoners among them.

“You’re stalling us because the stone is chipped?”

“No, my prince. I’m saying we should use caution because a section of the wall was destroyed and we have no idea what did it. I don’t want you in the city if there are active dissidents and madmen about.”

Samuel’s thoughts raced. Ewan’s words weren’t without merit; walking into a conflict blind was stupid. It likely had nothing to do with him, but a prince always had a target on his back.

On the other hand, the Hall wouldn’t care about his circumstances. If he didn’t sign up for any classes before the new semester started, he’d simply be out of luck. Worse, the gap in schooling would reflect poorly on him and hurt his chances of getting into good classes the following year would be tarnished.

However, classes meant nothing to a dead man.

Samuel sighed. “How long will it take?”

“If they ride hard and the saints smile on them, they can return in four days.”

“Four—” The prince swallowed the rest of his retort. It had to be done so there was no use complaining. All that would accomplish was creating an embarrassing scene where Ewan pulled rank and told Samuel what would be happening. “Very well. Let me know the moment you have news.”

“Of course. Please let me know if there is anything I can do to help you pass the time.”

“...if that is a subtle way of asking me to join your morning drills, I refuse.”

Ewan smiled. He had a great smile, bright and full. It made Samuel feel bad about rejecting him, despite having done it countless times before. “I’ll be here if you change your mind, your highness.”