John stepped forward, hoping to at least sound authentic. “Jacke and I were dueling and I ended up hurting him by accident. I’m sorry.” He tilted his head down and faked an apologetic look.

“That’s a lie,” a woman spoke from behind him. One of Jacke’s bodyguards, a pale woman with dark hair, came forward after him. She pointed a finger at John. “He tried to murder Ja— milord. He tried to murder milord. The knight even yelled at him to stop, but he didn’t listen.”

So that answered who had called out to him back then. “If it really had been my intention to murder him, then I would have aimed for the heart instead. I was simply too focused on the duel to pay any attention to my surroundings. When I came to, the damage had already been done. ”

Athalia’s gaze traveled from John to the bodyguard and finally to the unconscious Jacke still lying on the ground. She knelt down again, this time reaching for the sword that she had removed from his abdomen. “And you were both dueling with real weapons?”

John nodded. “We were going through training as usual when Jacke arrived, being as rowdy as usual. He started harassing Neina so I stepped in. We exchanged some words and he claimed that I had insulted his honor and demanded a duel to the death.”

“You did insult him,” another of Jacke’s bodyguard spoke. “You said that milord was weak and spineless.”

“I stated facts, nothing more,” he retorted with a shrug. “I said that he was too weak to take part in the King’s Tourney. Both him being here at this time, at the eve to the tourney, and his defeat right now are evidence to it. As for him being spineless, well, he did try to hide behind his grandfather’s rank. But as I was saying, he demanded a duel to the death and that’s when Dame Marleya stepped in, stating that he couldn’t issue such a duel, so we settled for first blood.” John looked at Jacke’s figure on the ground and his bloodied clothes. “I won.”

Athalia glanced to her side. “Is this true Marleya?”

The knight nodded. “I did try to prevent the duel, but Jacke invoked his right as a noble to challenge anyone who sullies his honor. As for the injury, John claimed to be too focused on the duel and there’s no way to prove otherwise.”

“Very well, then. I’ll convey everything said here back to my husband, but to me, it seems clear that this was all an unfortunate accident.” Athalia continued before the female bodyguards could start protesting again. “Jacke will be fine for now, but I’ll check on him again later to finish the healing. In the meantime, the four of you are to take him back to his quarters inside the castle,” she said, leaving no room for argument.

And so, the four women did as told and carried the noble away.

“I see a lot of guards stopped doing nothing. Marleya, I trust you to correct their behavior,” she said, handing the bloodied sword to the knight. “As for you, John, I want you to come with me. You too, miss Neina.” She then turned back towards the castle.

John quickly picked up his pieces of armor from the ground and followed after her. She didn’t speak a word as they walked through the castle’s hallways and up the flights of stairs towards his room. Only after they had all walked inside did she finally speak again. “Now, I’ll ask you a question and I expect you to tell me the truth. Was that really an accident?”

“Yes,” John lied. He then took a deep breath and paused, glancing around the room as if considering something to try and sound authentic. “But… I didn’t actually feel sorry that it happened. That fool only knows how to swagger around and boast about his status. It was high time that he learned a lesson.”

Athalia lightly shook her head. She placed a hand on his shoulder. “I understand that Jacke is far from being a likable person, but you shouldn’t wish this sort of harm on him, and not only because he is a noble. That’s not the right way, understand?”

John nodded.

“Good,” she said with a smile. “Now, after what happened, I wouldn’t put past Jacke’s grandfather to try and harm you. I want you to stay here in your room, at least for a few days. Miss Neina will be keeping you company, and I’ll be telling your spell teachers to come tutor you here. Alright?”

John nodded again. This gave him a chance to ask about something that had been bugging him. “Speaking of spells, how come it took you so long to heal Jacke? Back when you healed my broken nose, for example, it only took a couple of moments.”

“That’s because you were just a Fighter back then. The stronger your body, the harder it is to heal it back to proper conditions. A Warlock-level spell would have healed him faster, but I didn’t want to risk him bleeding out while I chanted. If it instead had been a Paladin with such a wound, then it would be even harder to heal it, requiring weeks of dedicated care from a Warlock, without the certainty of a full recovery. That's a downside of advancing though, considering that it also makes it less likely to receive such wounds, I'd think it to be a worthy tradeoff.”

John agreed.

Athalia made to leave but, seemingly recalling something, turned back to John. “One last thing. You’ll be confined to your room for now, but later when you’re free to leave again I want you to stop going to that bakery near the main street.”

John kept a blank face. “Why so?” He didn’t ask how she knew about it because either Neina or Rud, the carriage driver, could’ve informed her about it.

“You already know about the coming war. Living near that bakery is Devran, the son of someone very important for the coming conflict. Jacke’s grandfather, Edgarth, may or may not try to harm you, but he’ll definitely try to harm Devran and I don’t want you to get caught up on any eventual conflict. So don’t forget, stay in your room for now and later stay away from that bakery. Understood?”

“Yes.”

“Good.” She then turned to Neina who, as usual, barely said a word near the noble lady. “As for you, I hope that you keep John company, but I also want you to step in if he ever gets in trouble again. You have my blessing to use force if necessary,” she said the last part with a laugh before turning around and leaving the room.

John stopped to think about Athalia’s last instructions to him. He wasn’t too worried about being noticed passing near Devran’s house, as it was bound to happen eventually. He often passed around the place on an eye-catching carriage. It would be foolish to expect total secrecy in such a situation.

As long as no one suspected of plotting something, then he would be fine. Probably. He had no doubt that, under the slightest threat of physical violence, Kai as well as his other two assets would rattle on him at the drop of a hat. John’s safety lied on the fact that no one should have a reason to try anything against the three kids he employed.

Neina looked at John, a smirk on her face. “You heard the lady. If you ever get in trouble again, then I’m allowed to make you stop.”

“Given that I’m the stronger of us both, that doesn’t worry me all that much.”

“Maybe, but that doesn’t mean that I'll make it easy for you.” She smiled. “Thanks for the help back then, though,” she said in a lower voice as if someone could be eavesdropping. “I’m glad that you stood up to that fool for me. Despite what lady Athalia said, I’m glad that he got hurt, and you shouldn’t worry about him.” John already didn’t. “After he gets better, he’ll probably hide at Melina’s Pearl, drinking and whoring just like the last time you beat him.”

The name wasn’t unfamiliar to John. Melina’s Pearl was a well-known brothel located only a few minutes' walk from Rothar’s church. A lot of the younger, single guards, and even some married ones, all made sure to visit the place every month after receiving their payment.

He had considered visiting the place himself, but the situation with Vasilis and the constant pressure to improve himself made sure that he wouldn’t be able to relax there. Besides, with Neina accompanying him whenever he left the castle, it would be downright cruel to visit such a place knowing how she felt about him.

While he had never entered the place, it didn’t mean he knew nothing about it though as Tylan, another one of his assets, was brother to one of the working girls there. John met the boy at Rothar’s church, ironically enough, accompanying his sister. Apparently, a lot of those working in brothels visited the churches in their free time. And, if Tylan's claims were to be believed, not a small number of priests went the opposite way during the dead of the night.

“Wait, why would he go to a brothel when he has those bodyguards around him?” John asked. “Knowing who he is, I doubt that he chose them only to protect him.”

“I doubt it too, but he is a noble, remember? He is probably accustomed to getting everything he wants. Doesn’t really matter if he can handle it or not,” she remarked with a sneer. “Speaking of not being able to handle, it looks like you’ll be stuck with me for some time now.”

He raised an eyebrow. “Is that so? I’d think it to be the opposite given that this is my bedroom and also how easily I can make you flustered.”

“And how will you do that exactly?”

“Like so.” John grabbed his tunic’s hem and pulled it over his head to remove the sweaty upper garment, revealing his bare torso. “I’m going to take a bath. You’re free to join me if you want,” he invited with a wink and her face immediately blushed.