The gates opened and the lord with his son entered the courtyard welcomed by warm applause and the smiles of Albert and Elizabeth. Alexander wore the same cloaks, as clean as it were when they left but patches and repairs were clearly done. The servants and stable boys tended the carriage and carried the leftovers and weapons away while the squires dismounted and ran beside the father and son,

“Your orders, sir?” Alexander’s squire asked; the knight dismounted,

“Take my horse in the stables and get some sleep, it has been a rough endeavor,” he said and held the squire’s shoulder with appreciation and respect. The lord and his squire did the same.

Elizabeth walked towards and embraced him, she looked at his face closely,

“What happened, dear husband?” she asked touching the scar on his left cheek. Alexander smiled,

“It is an interesting story, I shall entertain you all with my deeds in dinner,” he replied and gave his wife a passionate kiss. Albert also walked towards him, his eyes were filled with admiration and a smile so welcoming and warm, Alexander embraced him tight and tousled Albert’s hair. The lord finally entered the castle’s keep first and everyone else followed.

***

A feast was prepared in the dinning-halls, the lord and his family were seated in their usual places. In front of them were a mouth-watering banquet; roasted beef, pork, and fish with various stews and colorful fruits and salads were served. Alexander and his father inhaled the heavenly aroma, the long marches had made them glutinous. The lord gave grace to God and they ate dinner. Alexander and the lord’s appetite surprised Elizabeth and made her and Albert chuckled.

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Alexander’s father wiped his mouth and said,

“I have missed you all and I am glad everyone is safe and healthy. I know what everyone is thinking when we arrived: what is the story behind that horrid scar on Alexander’s face?” Everyone chuckled,

“So, my son, please tell them it’s tale,” the lord continued. Alexander gulped some wine, cleared his throat,

“This may be anti-climactic, but this scar did not actually come from a battle against the heathens. We were encamped on the border; father and I were hunting in the woods, this is admittedly embarrassing, but I was to lead the chased and I lost my way. Dear lord, I got a tongue-lashing from father,” he chuckled, “then we finally managed to find and retrieve the doe we shot but it was already sunset and when we traced back our way, it had been nightfall. We found the road and followed it southward to our camp. When we turned on the bend, there were a small group of merchants that were ambushed by bandits. Father unleashed the dogs, and another hunt was set. He led the chase in the woods and followed close behind him, one of us stayed behind to look after the merchants. It was night and the leaves covered the skies, I was blind as a mole, I could not see anything in my helmet, so I raised the visor. The bandits decided to split up, so we decided to do the same. As I was chasing a bandit, my horse, which I rode through the foliage, slipped on a rock, and fell taking me down with him. As I was getting up, a spear point flashed before my eyes and rushed towards my face. Luckily, I grabbed it before it could bury more of its metal inside my flesh. I draw my sword, rushed him back, and slayed the dirty dog. My mount was fortunately unharmed so I rode him back to the locations of the merchant after wiping the black blood of the filth I punished. They tended to my wounds and my father returned there too, carrying two filthy heads, well everyone was carrying heads except me! Because of that no one believed me that I had slayed the parasite I chased down, what a waste of opportunity,” Alexander shook his head and chuckled again.

“I believe, I believe!” Albert said impressed.

“Well, I still don’t,” the lord remarked, and everyone laughed.

Everyone stood up after the lord invited them to the fireplace for more stories. While walking together, Elizabeth leaned on Alexander,

“I will show you my new dress later and you could take it off me if you want afterwards,” Elizabeth whispered. Alexander answered her with a devious smile.