Return of the General's Daughter

Asael turned to leave, but something in Bener’s stillness made him pause.

"Father, do you know who the man is? Is it only one, or there are more?" Bener asked, his voice barely above a whisper.

General Odin exhaled heavily, shaking his head. "The letter only said he is someone close to me." His gaze darkened. "The bandits claimed the rebel leader from Northem has infiltrated my men."

A chill settled between them. Whoever these traitors were, they covered their tracks well.

Meanwhile, Lara traced her steps back to her sleeping area—a small hollow nestled between two massive roots beneath a towering tree. It was a modest space, shielded by the protruding root’s embrace. Overhead, the low-hanging branches bore white makeshift hammocks, swaying slightly in the evening breeze.

She studied them thoughtfully. ’I should make one for myself.’ She just needed to gather enough hemp to weave into rope.

As the night deepened, the tension in the air became suffocating. The storm of battle loomed ever closer.

...

At the break of dawn, Asael and ten members of the Eagle Unit, along with two persistent and determined additions, left the camp. They ate quickly—leftover meat from the previous night—before heading out to scout a kilometer-long stretch of the Agwe River. It was the shortest route to Carles, one of the last five towns under Estalis’s control.

The Agwe River fed into the mighty Praya River in the south, and the section the Northem Soldiers needed to pass through was the dangerous Meander Pass. To their left, a towering, jagged, and unscalable limestone cliff loomed. To their right, the river churned violently. A narrow strip of land barely clinging to the limestone wall where they needed to walk was like a fragile lifeline.

Then, Asael’s sharp eyes caught movement.