"This... this is General Alaric’s token."
The words, once spoken, sent a ripple through the room. The drawn swords hesitated, then one by one were sheathed.
Lara exhaled silently. But as she stepped forward, a guard moved to intercept.
"The letter was entrusted to ," she said firmly. "General Alaric’s order was that I personally hand it to General Odin."
The guard looked to General Odin for confirmation. The general gave a slow nod. The soldier stepped aside.
Lara advanced, coming to a stop re inches from him.
For the first ti, she was close enough to see him in full—the man who was both a stranger and a ghost of her own reflection.
Wordlessly, she handed him the letter.
Then, she looked up.
And when their gazes t, she stilled.
A pair of eyes—sharp, piercing, identical to her own—stared back at her.
Odin’s expression did not waver, but sothing in his gaze shifted.
Recognition. A question.
Suddenly, he rembered his youngest —the only daughter he had, kidnapped and drowned on the lake. He felt that he was looking into her eyes; only the person in front of him was a soldier and not a young lady.
He shook his head as if trying to dispel a bad mory.
"Odin, what’s wrong? You seed distracted. What does the letter say?" General Her asked.
General Odin’s gaze turned sharp as it landed on the envelope.
"Guard, escort these two soldiers to Asael’s camp."
Two guards ca inside to escort the two.
Lara’s eyes flicked to the diorama on the table.
"General Odin, there is sothing wrong with the diorama." Lara boldly declared.
Silence.
The two soldiers gestured for Lara and Aramis to leave the room, but Lara stubbornly stood before the diorama and pointed at a section of it.
"The pass between Mount Graza and MarNubes is no longer the sa. A ravine was ford after the torrential rains in June. You could no longer go to MarNubes using the Graza Pass."
Twelve heads turned to Lara with different expressions.
General Odin was calm and composed when he asked.
"How did you know?"
"I got lost in the mountain and happened to pass by this area," Lara answered casually.
"Thank you for the information." Turning to his deputy general, he asked with a stern voice. "Didn’t we send out scouts to check the terrain? Though MarNubes is five mountains away from us, we cannot afford to have incorrect information."
"General Odin, this diorama was only made last year. Who knows that there is such a major change in the terrain."
General Odin signaled the two soldiers to lead the ssenger out of the tent. They would be checking Alaric’s letter and discussing war strategies.
Lara silently followed the two soldiers while Aramis walked behind her. He suddenly beca aloof and silent, which was probably how he usually was.
Lara looked back and scrutinized Aramis. But looking at his stoic expression, she did not bother to talk with him anymore.
It took them thirty minutes to reach the Westside camp, where the lieutenant assigned was Asael, General Odin’s first son. Bener and Gideon, the third and fourth sons, were part of his troop.
"On the Eastside camp, the lieutenant was Odin’s second son, Galahad, and with him was Percival, the general’s fifth son." The soldier told Lara.
"Odin is a great general. He is the only one who has the courage to take all five of his sons in battle. I admire him for that, though I pity his wife. What if sothing happened to the general and his sons?"
Lara glanced at the man at her right. He was a bit talkative for a soldier. She rembered the Blabbermouth, Agilus. She thought that Agilus was an exception, but it looked like there was another one who was like him.
"I have heard that the Norse is a military family and has been protecting Northem for decades. Perhaps it’s the reason why General Odin has been training his sons to follow in his footsteps." Lara shared her thoughts.
"Yes, you are right, that’s why the Norse family are well loved by the people. They are willing to sacrifice their lives for the country."
When Lara and Aramis arrived at the Westside camp alongside their horses and supplies, the soldiers were preparing for dinner. They were instructed to have a good al and rest early for the night because tomorrow, they would march toward Mount MarNubes to launch an attack and recapture the remaining five towns at the foot of the mountain.
Two years ago, Estalis seized those territories, igniting a fierce and unrelenting war that has raged between Northem and Estalis ever since. This act of aggression plunged both kingdoms into a conflict marked by turmoil and desperation, forever changing the landscape of their relationship.
Estalis asserted that the territories should rightfully be theirs, emphasizing its proximity to their lands. A formidable mountain range stood as a natural barrier, separating them from Northem, reinforcing their claim, and illustrating the geographical divide that underscored their connection to the disputed land.
But which sovereign would simply hand over their vast territories to their foes? Estalis cunningly snatched those lands through deceitful ans. Had they approached King Heimdal of Northem with an earnest offer to purchase the land, he, in all likelihood, would have considered selling it.
Even the King of Northem recognized the difficulty of managing those territories because of the mountain ranges and was willing to sell. It would also benefit the people.
But they played dirty.
While ministers from Estalis attended a peacekeeping treaty at the capital of Northem, the King of Estalis deployed troops and occupied all the twenty-four towns at the border along the Alta-Sierra.
It was too late when the King of Northem learned about the traitorous act. What angered him the most was that they even escorted the ministers of Estalis to the borders with great fanfare and many gifts.
A week after the peace treaty concluded, war broke out on the eastern border of Northem. After two years, they had recovered nineteen towns and were left with only five.
But those five towns were the most difficult to reach from Northem. They needed to cross four more moutains from Hainai, then they need to cross the Graza Pass to reach Mount MarNubes.
But Graza Pass was impassable.
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