Lyn bristled immediately upon hearing the tone of his voice. Her jaw tightened as he stared at her in shock, asking if her presence was a joke. Had he not known she was a girl? And now that he’d found out, did he think her a lesser knight because of her gender? “There is no joke, your highness,” she said stiffly. “I’m here in response to the job that was offered to me in your name and service. I was told that I was qualified to be your protector on this journey, and that you requested me personally."

She watched him silently, waiting to see if he really was so shaken up about the fact that she was female. If he sent her away, fine—Lyn would just accept that Leincrad would be going to the dogs once he was king, and be on her merry way. But she had a feeling that he needed to leave as soon as possible in order to complete his mission, and most of the other knights were already en route back to their scattered places of dwelling across the lands.