69 The Knight and the Maiden (1/2)

Contrary to how things were two weeks ago, the situation in Solon had returned to normal. It can even be said that the current Solon is more vibrant and busier compared to before.

Henry had heard from Freya that after King Timothy declared war against King Leopold, most nations which had broken their ties with Castonia turned to Western Castonia. Inkit, Hadea and Canton even made alliances with King Timothy.

”We should go back, it will rain soon” Henry said to Freya who was walking beside him.

Almost every day, the two of them would go around the city. Freya had said to Henry that enjoying the chilly and calming air of Solon will help wipe the gloominess off his face. At first Henry was reluctant. Most of the refugees from the surrounding villages still hadn't returned to their homes and were still in Solon. Even though none of them could recognize him, he was still ashamed to go near them.

But it worked. After more than two months, he can now look into their eyes. He was even able to buy second-hand books from a refugee yesterday. Henry felt delighted that his life was starting to have meaning again. And all of these changes were because of the woman beside him.

Freya put her index finger on her lips and thought for a while. ”Not yet” she said after a moment of contemplation.

”But we had already bought everything on the list.” Henry showed her the bag he was holding. It was filled with various food products like bread, vegetables and cheese. Since they were staying in Earl Mathias' villa, it felt wrong not to help with the chores.

”Don't worry, I think we can make it before the rain. And even if we don't” Freya spread her arms. ”Let's just enjoy the rain!”

Henry almost laughed but he prevented himself. Freya can be childish sometimes and that's alright. Actually, he likes her that way. Her youthful smile makes Henry's heart flutter. Her childish but sweet actions bring color to his dismal world. About a month ago, Henry realized that he had fallen for her.

”Still with that face?” Freya's voice had a hint of sadness in it. She then cleared her throat and smiled. ”Let's go Henry. I promise this will be our last stop. It seems you don't want to enjoy the rain with me today”

”No, I..” Henry wanted to tell her that she was wrong, he wanted to spend more time with her. Every moment with her was golden. Enjoying the rain with Freya would be a memory he wouldn't forget. But he prevented himself from saying so. What if she realizes his feelings for her? What would be her reaction? Henry was afraid. He is a criminal. A criminal falling for a noble lady? What a joke.

So he just asked, ”Where are we going anyway?”

In response, Freya just smiled and grabbed his hand. ”It's a secret” She then ran and dragged Henry.

After running for a while, a familiar sight was revealed to him. He had been here before, albeit in hiding. Thousands of tents sprawled for as far as the eye can see. This was the place King Timothy set aside for the refugees.

Being a refugee camp, the place was disorderly. There were garbage lying around and the odor wasn't nice.

”I had seen you go here last week. I didn't mean to spy on you, but I was curious so I followed you. You were hiding in that fence” Freya pointed at the fence that serves as the border between the refugee camp and the rest of the city. ”Even after two months, you still felt guilty for what happened to them”

”That's because we caused this Freya” Henry looked down ”When the Grandmaster of the Knights asked me if I wanted to join the invasion, I agreed. I thought that since it's my duty to serve my nation, then I should go. I thought that our only job was to break the spirit of your soldiers. The Tulosan civil war was like that. Even though many civilians died, the Order of the Knights did its best to keep the civilians out of the war. But the invasion is different. We caused this and my hands are not clean.”

A cry for help then reached Henry's ears. He looked towards the direction of the cry and saw two men bullying a thin refugee with tattered clothes. One of them, a man with a big belly, was holding the refugee by the collar. The second man was holding a knife.

Years of learning the doctrines of the Knights trained Henry on how to act in this situation. His sense of justice was still sharp even though he had already committed crimes.

Without a second thought, he rushed towards the men and rammed them with his body. Even without a horse, a knight's charge is powerful. The fat man was downed by the impact while the other was stunned.

Henry tilted his body and punched one of the assailants in the face. His punch was powerful and it broke the man's nose. The fat man stood up and grappled Henry from behind. But contrary to what he expected, the fat man's grip was weak.

It didn't take long for Henry to escape the man. Henry elbowed the fat man's belly. He then turned his body and delivered a punch to the chin. The fat man staggered and fell backwards. Henry lunged towards the man, but Freya held him from behind.

”Henry, don't!” she shouted.

Henry looked at her. He was confused. Why would she stop him? He still needs to tie their hands or something and wait for the city watch.

The two men didn't waste time and ran. Henry was left staring at their vanishing figures. Evil had escaped again.

”Why?” he asked her. But Freya did not answer. She just looked blankly at Henry and remained silent.

The silence was broken by the refugee. ”Thank you for saving me. I would have been hurt if not for you!” the refugee bowed.

Henry was still confused by the turn of events. ”It's…It's fine. Think nothing of it” he waved his hand.

”But without you, I would have died! You saved me from those men. What you did was good.” The refugee bowed again.

Henry's felt his heart jump with joy. It was an ecstatic feeling. It was true, what he did was good. Even though he had committed crimes, he's still capable of doing good deeds. Being thanked for a good deed was a great feeling. Henry couldn't help but smile. He then looked at Freya and saw that she was smiling too.

It seems his life just got better today. Although he still felt guilty of what he did, he just discovered that he can still do good deeds. His dark past can't prevent him from making his future bright. Freya was right, nobody is beyond redemption.

”Thank you” he said to Freya.