David left Mom's notebook on the table and exited the house. Dad was just coming out of the smithy, his face red and covered in soot, his wet shirt clinging tightly to his chest. Soon after, Mom came out of the shed. She seemed happier again.

  “What's all this about, dear?” Mom wiped Dad's face with a piece of cloth.

  “Brenn called for help.” Dad shrugged.

  They mixed in with the stream of villagers and walked to the square, arriving just in time to watch a column of knights in polished, gleaming armor ride in on beautiful shiny horses.

  The first of the knights dismounted in the middle of the square and removed his helmet. He had a wrinkled, scarred face and short grey hair. He walked over to Brenn and Darryl and exchanged a handshake with Brenn.

  The rest of the knights lined up in formation, dismounted, and stood next to their horses, some looking around smugly, others just watching their leader. David stared at them. If he could be as strong as they were, he wouldn't have to be at the mercy of random monsters falling from the sky.

  The knight commander exchanged a few quiet words with Brenn, then raised his voice and addressed the villagers. “Proud people of Grainwick! I am Sir Viel, leader of these knights under the banner of Kira. We are here to track down and eliminate the deadly creature threatening your village. Until it is done, we will depend on your hospitality.”

  People cheered, at least most of them. The owner of Rising Sun, the only tavern in Grainwick, looked concerned.

  David sighed. These nobles had never cared about the boarmen attacking the village every Long Night. It was all about that predator monster. They probably would stop caring about it too after a short while.

  Dad grumbled something, but David didn't catch it. Mom wrapped her hands around Dad’s bicep and asked. “What's wrong, dear?”

  “Brenn is pissed,” he grunted. Dad wasn't one to speak if something wasn't important.

  The commander and the chief both smiled and appeared confident, but under closer scrutiny, Brenn's brow was knit tightly, and he seemed to be rubbing his chin nervously. Sir Viel seemed uncomfortable too. He refused to meet Brenn's gaze, scanning the crowds instead.

  A young knight with a smug grin strayed from the line and walked toward the villagers. Sir Viel excused himself to follow his subordinate. The armored boy, no older than twenty, sauntered over to Sophie standing at the front of the crowd, a bundle of herbs in her arms. He leaned far too close to her face. Sophie shrank back. The man opened his mouth to say something, but Sir Viel spoke first.

  “Sir Calland Kira, get back in line this instant.” The knight commander looked ready to draw his sword. Judging by the harshness of his tone, it wasn’t the first time something like that had happened. Some of the other knights smirked and murmured to one another, though they straightened as soon as Calland looked at them.

  Sophie scuttled away to the back of the crowd, looking at the ground. Dad scoffed and started home. Mom followed, but David stayed behind and kept watching.

  Darryl told the knights to follow him to homes that had been prepared for them. The knights filed out, and the crowd slowly dispersed. Despite Calland’s arrogance, there were only a few scrunched-up faces among the crowd, and most of the villagers seemed relieved. As soon as the knights were out of the square, Brenn turned a corner and spat on the ground.

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  Brenn was a veteran soldier, and David had never seen him with such a scowl on his face. On the other hand, the knights looked capable of protecting the village. Probably. So why were Dad and Brenn so angry?

  The next day, David was on his feet at dawn, carrying a freshly repaired cleaver to deliver. He also had to buy meat at the square, since the prices were always lowest right after the Long Night.

  He took a short detour along the palisade, though the persistent cold wind made the walk unpleasant. Two columns of knights, thirty of them in total, were lined up in front of Brenn’s house, fully armed despite the early hour. Calland and Sir Viel were in front.

  David walked up closer, shielding his eyes from the sunlight reflecting off their polished armor.

  “Do not stray from your groups,” the old knight's words rang out clearly. “If you engage the unique, signal for backup and adopt a defensive formation.”

  “Commander,” Calland said, “I beseech you, do not sell us short. Surely even half of us is more than enough to deal with one pesky monster. Why, I think two would likely be enough.”

  Sir Viel shook his head. “Don't make me reconsider letting you take command. Move out!”

  Calland frowned but didn’t argue. It seemed the commander had a tight grip on his men, at least so far.

  The knights moved in columns toward the western gate. Sir Viel gave David a tired smile as they passed him by, and with the deep crow’s feet around his eyes, it felt genuine.

  David thought it might be a good idea to monitor the knights’ movements around the village, but there would be time for that. He still had to deliver the cleaver and buy some meat.

  By the time he made it to the meat stall, which was just three boards nailed together, several people were already waiting in queue. Alicja's dad, Fran, was carving a deer carcass, letting it bleed onto the ground as he prepared cuts of varied sizes. His wife, Mira, her muted pink hair recently cut short, was serving the customers. “I brought your cleaver, Mister Fran,” David called out, moving past the queue.

  “About time.” Fran, a middle-aged man with a belly, looked up, wiped the sweat off his forehead, and raised the bloody cleaver he was using. “This thing isn't even good for weeds at this point.” He put it down, snatched the new one from David, and swung it around a few times. “This will do.”

  “I also need to buy some meat,” David told him, placing a silver on the wooden plank.

  “Ay,” Mira said with a smile. “Coming right up!” She wrapped a few cuts of meat in leaves and put them in a basket. “It's a lot. Take the basket with you, but give it back to Alicja when you see her.”

  “But I only gave you one silver,” David said.

  “Ay. The knights will do a number on those beasts,” Mira explained. “Gotta get this meat sold quick to make room!”

  The basket was full and heavy. David thanked her and made his way home, his mouth watering at the thought of all the delicious venison stew mom would prepare.

  When he got home, he laid out half of the meat on the table, and rubbed some rock salt on it. It was coarse and bit into his hands, but he didn’t mind. As he worked, he thought of the forest surrounding the village. According to Mira it would get safer soon, perhaps safe enough for him to finally check it out?

  He didn't have knife skills like Sophie had, but aside from the monsters, the forest didn’t sound too bad. Maybe he could even find some special plants and mess around with them.

  He packed the salted meat into a small wooden box, poured a fistful of salt on top for good measure, closed it tightly, and set it on the kitchen counter.

  “David?” Mom called from outside.

  “Here!” He cleaned his hands and met her at the door. “I got lots of meat, salted half already.”

  “Thank you, sweetie.” She rustled his hair and checked his temperature. “You look much healthier today. How do you feel?”

  “Good!” he said, puffing out his chest again and trying not to wince from the wound. “Does that mean we can have another lesson?”

  “Well,” She tapped her finger against her lips. “Dad just went to visit Chief Brenn, so we have a little time.”

  “Great! Let’s go.” David grabbed her notebook and dragged her by the hand to the shed.