Chapter 209: The King’s Speech
Chapter 209: The King’s Speech
Now, I march alongside the brave knights of the Kingdom of Braveheart and the royal mages of Solara, heading back home — back to Braveheart. Our mission: to report the outcome of the battle, tend to our wounds, and await the decisions of King Aslan regarding what must come next.
The journey was slow and heavy.
Our troops were still reeling — not only in body, but in spirit. We were forced to stop often, to let them rest. The fatigue went deeper than muscle and bone. It dug into the soul. No healing spell, no restoration chant could mend the weight in their hearts. This… was the kind of wound that only time could hope to heal.
I rode in a carriage with my fellow heroes: Cain, Theresia, and Magi Silvanya. With us were Princess Aria and the Patriarch, both lying unconscious — caught in the fragile border between life and death.
The mood inside the carriage was suffocating. Silence pressed on us like a second skin — suffused with grief, with fatigue, with unspoken fears. Only Theresia kept talking, rambling nervously, trying to chase away the gloom. Cain eventually snapped, yelling at her — but ironically, it brought a flicker of life into the moment. I found myself chuckling, just a little. It was a fleeting escape… but even that was precious.
Marius, Julius, Leopold, Lyra, and Freya traveled in another carriage. When I told Lyra and Freya about the deaths of Erik, Falken, and Linda, their faces crumbled.
They couldn’t believe it. Another trio of friends… gone. Just like that. Another cut in the heart.
I tried to console them, offering what words I could… but they remained submerged in their sorrow. They needed time — as we all did.
After a full day of somber travel, we finally arrived at Braveheart the following morning.
The kingdom stood… but not untouched.
Even I, who had seen war unfold before me, felt a jolt at the destruction. The northern and southern walls — once towering symbols of safety — were shattered, broken like glass. Burn marks streaked across the streets. Blood still stained the cobblestones in places. The remnants of chaos were everywhere.