The Grim Sovereign

The fighting had ended hours ago.

But the land still felt... uneasy. As if it hadn't forgotten what happened here.

Thousands of soldiers row after row stood across the open plain.

Their dark uniforms blended together and looked like a huge shadow spreading across the floor. No one talked. No one shifted in place. The entire army stood still.

Every single one of them was looking at the man standing in front.

He stood a few steps ahead of the formation.

On the long coat hanging from his shoulders. Three silver emblems rested there.

His name was Cassian Vale.

In war zones and military camps, that name had become something people whispered about.

To enemies, he was called the Grim Sovereign.

To the soldiers who served under him, he was something else entirely-the man who always walked into battle first and somehow walked out alive.

Stories about him had spread everywhere. Some said he had crushed entire rebel armies with barely any support. Others claimed he had ended wars that had dragged on for years.

People argued about it all the time.

Some said fate protected him.

Others said fate was slowly destroying him.

Right now though, standing there, Cassian didn't look like a legend.

He just looked... worn out.

Next to him stood another man. Much older, maybe by twenty years or so. His hair had already gone gray.

He was, Marshal Aldric Thorn.

The Supreme Commander of the Eastern War Council. He was the one who had trained Cassian back when he was still a reckless recruit who picked fights with everyone.

Aldric watched him quietly for a while before speaking.

"So it's really happening," he finally said.

"You're leaving."

Cassian was staring at something in his hand.

A photograph.

The corners were bent, and the surface had faded.

Two people stood in the picture.

One of them was Cassian. He looked younger. Smiling too, which was strange to see now.

The other person was a woman.

She has the kind of beauty that drove attention.

For a moment, Cassian's expression changed.

Just slightly.

"I did what I came here to do," he said after a while.

"The Nine Tyrants are dead. Their armies are broken. The frontier won't see another war for a long time."

Aldric let out a slow breath.

"You almost died doing it," he said.

His eyes moved to the thin scars running along Cassian's neck.

"That last fight... even the council believed you were finished."

Cassian shrugged a little.

"But I wasn't."

There was silence between them.

Eventually Aldric spoke again.

"You've done enough for this country. More than enough. No one would blame you for wanting something normal now."

Cassian put the photograph back into his coat.

A normal life? The words sounded strange to him.

"I made a promise," he said.

Aldric already knew who he meant.

The old marshal cleared his throat.

"I assigned someone to travel with you when you head back to the capital."

Cassian frowned slightly.

"That's not necessary."

"Her name is Lyra Quin," Aldric continued. "She'll be your administrative officer."

Cassian slowly looked at him.

"You mean a spy."

"Well... it depends on how you want to see it."

Cassian smiled.

"You were never good at lying."

Aldric chuckled.

"Maybe not. But the council is nervous. You're still the most dangerous commander this country has. If you vanish quietly, people will panic."

"I'd rather know you're still alive somewhere."

Cassian didn't answer.

For a moment, both of them thinking about the same years of war they had survived.

Then Aldric spoke again.

"If you're really leaving... then at least let your soldiers say goodbye properly."

Cassian sighed.

"Aldric-"

But the marshal had already stepped forward.

"ALL UNITS!"

Thousands of soldiers slammed their boots gainst the ground at the same time.

Aldric shouted,"PAY RESPECT TO THE LORD COMMANDER OF THE OBSIDIAN LEGION!"

The soldiers roared. "GLORY TO COMMANDER CASSIAN VALE!"

"GLORY TO THE OBSIDIAN LEGION!"

Again.

"GLORY TO COMMANDER CASSIAN VALE!"

Cassian just stood there while the voices of thousands of soldiers crashed over him like a wave.

The sun was going down slowly.

His battalion stood in rows behind him.

Every soldier was looking at him.

Cassian raised his hand as a gesture to acknowledge them. Still, the soldiers straightened immediately.

He didn't say anything.

They already knew what this meant.

This was the end of his time leading them in the field.

Cassian turned and started walking down toward the skyrunner waiting for him.

Soon the skyrunner carried him away from the desert.

Just like that, he was gone.

Commander Cassian Vale of the Night Talon Corps.

His name alone had ended wars. Tyrants feared him. Rogue warlords had surrendered just hearing he was coming.

And now he was returning to a world far from the battlefield maybe far dangerous.

---

( At the Larkspur Enclave, S. City)

Cassian entered into the Larkspur Estate.

Five years had passed already he still can't forget about the the night his life completely fell apart.

He remembered about the night he woke up in a hospital bed 5 years ago, confused and weak. That was where he met Ardenne Sylver. Things moved too quickly after that. They ended up married in a sudden decision.

But right after the marriage, Cassian left.

At that time, Cassian believed the best way to protect her from the dangerous life he lived was leaving.

Now he was back.

He wasn't the same unsure young man anymore. He had become a commander, someone people listened to without question.

Cassian walked further into the estate courtyard.

Children were playing there. Their laughter filled the air, loud and bright.

But one child caught his attention.

A small girl sat on the ground away from the others. She looked weak and thin. Her clothes looked thorn and there were bruises on her arms, and dirt on the parts of her face.

Just then, a woman in a red dress walked into the courtyard.

Everything about her movements looked confident, almost arrogant, even her dress she wore was expensive and perfectly fitted .

She walked over to one of the richer-looking children, she bent and carried him up.

"Are you okay, darling?"

The child then sniffed and pointed. "She pushed me."

Before anyone could react, the woman slapped the poor girl.

The sound echoed across the courtyard.

The girl cried out and held her cheek. The other children stopped laughing immediately.

The woman looked at the girl coldly.

"You will regret it, If you hurt my son again, Do you understand?"

At that moment, someone rushed forward.

Ardenne Sylver.

She wrapped her arms around the little girl.

"Kids fall all the time. That's normal. She's just a kid and also your niece. Stop it, Marla. This is too much already. You're an adult, you should know better than this." Ardenne said firmly.

Marla gave a small cold laugh. "Oh please. Stop pretending to be some good person. That girl isn't even my real niece anyway. If that dirty little thing hurts my son again, then she deserves whatever happens to her. Even if she dies from it."

Sandra froze for a second.

Then tears started running down her face. Her hands were shaking while holding her daughter. It looked as if she had been holding this anger inside for a very long time.

"She's my daughter. And you... you don't have any right to touch her."