.
Serera and Dilorè both moved in front of us, growing their wings and drawing their swords as the group reined their horses to a halt in front of us. Dilorè’s wings were the same butterfly wings that seem to be the rule among Oberon’s descendants.
The cavalrymen kept their lances held upright rather than brandishing them at us. The knight practically sprang off her horse, to drop to her knee and bow her head. She yelled at the ground with a loud voice.
“Please pardon me for obstructing your path, Fair Knights!”
The woman kept her nose facing steadfastly groundward as Serera stared at her, stern and intimidating. After several seconds of silence (including from the people surrounding us), Serera raised her chin and surveyed the nervous cavalrymen one by one. Finally, she deigned to look back down to the knight once more.
“Raise your head.”
The woman looked up, meeting Serera in the eyes.
This was not your anime-standard sexy teenage female knight. She was an athletic woman around thirty who looked like she’d earned the right to her station on the battlefield. I was a little troubled by the scar on her cheek. I mean, a good healer could have fixed that while it was fresh, you know?
When Serera didn’t say anything further, the woman moistened her lips, then declared, “Fair Knight, I have approached you on the orders of His Majesty the King. The mage whom you are escorting is well-known to us. His Majesty received word of that unusual flying craft landing beyond the city wall appeared to be carrying this mage, who has assisted our kingdom in times past.”
Serera glanced over her shoulder at Manlon. “Your Wisdom?”
The title ‘Wisdom’ is usually only addressed to highly placed mages, such as Royal Mages or the leadership positions in a magic order. But, Mother is sometimes accorded it as well, even though she has no such official position, so I wasn’t surprised hearing it being used toward someone like my uncle.
He stepped forward and spoke to the knight. “You say that you recognize me. I have an excellent memory, I think. Why do I not recall you?”
She gave a slight smile. “I was quite young, Your Wisdom. When I was small, you greatly helped my father, then Captain of Knights.”
“Artin’s little daughter?” Manlon smiled. “Time truly has wings. Can you tell me why His Majesty is so hurried that he sent a cavalry detachment? I came here to consult with the Temple, but he well knows I would not fail to stop and give my greetings at the Castle.”
She nodded. “We currently have a serious situation. Your arrival here at this time may be truly Heaven sent. Will you come with us directly to the Castle, Your Wisdom?”
Manlon looked wary, and while he hesitated, he glanced toward me. I suspected he was wondering whether this was somehow an excuse to intercept me. My mother’s message had obliquely warned of the possibility that my enemies might know I was coming.
He nodded to the knight. “I would be honored. However, there is a young noblewoman traveling with us, unrelated to my party. She has business at the Academy.”
The knight looked at the three women behind him. I was currently wearing the enchanted dress and slippers my grandmother had given me, but with the sword harness carrying Durandal, I probably looked more like an adventurer than nobility. I curtseyed lightly to indicate that it was me he was talking about.
She nodded. “The summons applies to you and your party. If My Lady is not attached, then it does not apply to her.”
Lady Serera stated, “We promised to escort her to the Academy. My squire shall remain with her for now.”
Her tone said, very clearly, this is not a negotiation.
The Arelian knight nodded. “I understand, Fair Knight.”
Four of the cavalry took Manlon’s party onto their mounts’ backs. The golem caused them a little uncertainty, but Talene laughed and said, “My helper can outrun your horses.” With that, they departed, leaving Dilorè and myself.
I had retrieved my bag before the others left. Dilorè laughed a little, bowed and took it from me, playing the escort.
“Please allow me to escort you the rest of the way, My Lady,” she said while gesturing onward with her hand.
“I would be honored, Lady Dilorè,” I replied with a curtsey, and we resumed walking.
After a bit, she said, “Lady Tia Mona.”
She seemed to be practicing the name. I nodded. “Mhm. Or just Lady Tia.”
“Why do you need to use an alias?” she wondered.
“Didn’t you hear about Feraen trying to arrest me? My enemies back home are claiming I’m a criminal.”
“Hundreds of miles of mountainous country separate this kingdom from yours.”
I nodded. “Yes, but my kingdom is the biggest one around, unless you still count the Regaritan Empire. We have influence everywhere and we offer nice bounties on our fugitives. Who knows how far my enemies have spread my name?”
After we had turned the corner onto the avenue that led to the Academy, I wondered, “How far do you have to stay with me?”
“Until I understand what is waiting for you at our destination, at the very minimum.”
“I suppose it is up to your judgment,” I nodded. “Serera really didn’t give you any orders.”
“Actually, she used her [Secret Voice] while they were riding off. She told me to accompany you until she recalled me. And she wants regular reports.”
I shook my head. She was still treating me as a princess rather than a knight.
The Academy was impossible to miss: the avenue we were walking ran directly up Academy Hill to the front entrance. Actually figuring out where to find the Headmaster was very much another thing. We passed through the grand gate into the walled confines, then…
Well, where next? I looked around at wide paved lanes, brick multistory buildings, larger structures with colonnade fronts, and a truly impressive bell tower at the top of the hill that looked a lot like the Leaning Tower of Pisa, except it wasn’t leaning.
“Do you have any idea where we need to go, My Lady?” Dilorè asked.
I raised my eyebrows. “Do I look like I have one?”
She chuckled. “No.”
We attracted a lot of stares– as a woman in a silk gown equipping a bastard sword escorted by a fairy knight wearing a halter-style cuirass and a leather miniskirt– but nobody approached us. All I could see were students rather than anyone in authority, so I continued walking further into the campus, using the bell tower as my destination in lieu of any clear goal.
“We should choose somebody to ask,” I noted, “but I’m really not sure whom to pick on. Everyone I see looks like they would faint if you got anywhere near them.”
“Why are they acting like that?”
I frowned. “Is this your first time out of Relador?”
She tipped her head. “No. I’ve lived on the Far Western continent several times. I was born there.”
“Were there mortals where you lived?”
She thought for a moment. “There were some elven tribes on the coast, but it was mostly just fairies and magic beasts. There were merrow tribes living off-shore.”
That’s what I thought. If it weren’t for my Senhion memories, I wouldn’t even know what she meant by the “Far Western Continent”, because Tiana had never heard of such a thing. She only knew of the Three Continents and a handful of large island chains.
“So you haven’t been to any mortal lands,” I concluded. “The mortals in Tëan Tír are probably used to you, but most mortals are afraid of fairy knights. They only know about them from the impact they have on battlefields.”
“Shall I remain behind while you ask somebody?”
“I think that would be best.”
“Please stay in sight.”
I looked at her with a slight frown. “Between the two of us, I’m the actual fairy knight, right? My Lady Squire.”
She smiled. “But, between the two of us, you are also the actual princess? Your Highness.”
I sighed. Dilorè was only one generation away from being a princess herself. On Huade, one is a prince or princess if one’s father or grandfather is king or crown prince. She was the great-granddaughter of the crown prince, but in my eyes, she was closer to being a real royal than I was.
With a nod of assent, I walked away from her, having picked out someone old enough to be a faculty member. But a voice came from the side almost immediately.
“Do you need help?”
I turned to see girl who looked high-school age hastening to intercept me. Like all the other girls her age that I could see, she wore a pink dirndl with white blouse and apron. It looked a bit like Oktoberfest on this campus.
I wondered with a smile, “Is it obvious?”
“Well, you aren’t in uniform, and… students don’t generally carry swords.”
I also glanced down at the weapon she had looked at while saying that, and then laughed. “I imagine it would make discipline in the classroom troublesome.”
The statement left her non-plussed for a moment, but she recovered and laughed lightly, understanding I had tried to make a joke. I already knew it had badly failed, so her late reaction made it worse.
I stated, “Perhaps you can tell me where to find the Headmaster?”
Again, she was taken aback. “The Headmaster? Um… may I ask why?”
I frowned a bit, wondering why she needed to know.
She saw my expression and quickly waved negation. “I’m not prying. You look around my age, so I thought you were perhaps coming to apply for admission. It wouldn’t be the Headmaster that you want in that case. You would need to go apply at the Admissions office.”
Relaxing, I answered, “I see. I am sure your school is excellent, but I am not seeking admission. The Headmaster is acquainted with my mother, and she wants me to contact him. Other than that, my business is private.”
She blinked, then wondered, “You were walking with that… um, lady over there. Is she with you?”
I glanced back at Dilorè, then nodded. “She’s escorting me.”
“A fairy knight is escorting you?” she retorted, a bit astonished.
“I should introduce myself. I am Tia, Noble Daughter of Baroness Mona of Orestania. Lady Dilorè is ensuring my safety.”
“Oh,” she answered, her tone losing some of its strength. Intimidated by nobility, perhaps? “Well, I don’t have the authority to get you in to see the Headmaster, but I can escort you to the building where he can be found. I assume your escort will follow us?”
“Please,” I nodded, then waved to Dilorè to follow. As it turned out, we had nearly reached our destination already.
Once we ascended the building’s front stairs and entered a wide hall, the need to find the Headmaster became moot. I was tackleglomped by a beastkin-strength cat-eared projectile at high speed.
“Lady!!!!”
