General Tusward doubted himself again. Passing through the villages after he brought an end to the skirmishes of their neighbour land inhibited by Ogres, instead of being well received, he saw the growing fears in the villagers.

Not towards the Ogre but towards them.

"General," Captain Rudimon called.

Tusward looked to the man on his right. Young man at the position of captain, an impressive feat. Lean muscles accompanied with intelligence and courage. He remembered him leading the charge against the enemy despite being outnumbered and achieved an overwhelming victory. Very impressive. "Yes?"

"What's bothering you, if I may be allowed to ask?"

However, it's a waste of time because he could see through the mask Captain Rudimon wore. Anyone who's a kin of the hero belonged to that category anyway.

"Reminiscent," Tusward replied.

The captain cocked his head.

"The amount of skirmishes from the Ogres are certainly increasing, that one back then was a fun one I must admit."

Captain Rudimon smiled and fisted his hand on his left chest. "As expected of our general, as long as you and the hero are with us, no foes shall step into the territory of the human empire. Long live the empire!"

The general mirrored the salutation. "Long live the empire. And I certainly hope I live long enough too."

"What are you saying, General? You still have a long way ahead in life."

Tusward laughed. "Young man, I'm sixty four this year, surely--." He paused he saw one of his scouts rushing to him.

"Captain," the scout whispered. "We found the spot."

Tusward eyes widened. He nodded and the scout dismissed himself.

"Captain Rudimon."

"Yes General!?"

"I hereby command you to lead our 'might' and return to the kingdom ahead of me, can you do it?"

Although Rudimon seemed slightly bewildered, he accepted the command and quickly galloped off with the whole army. He did not ask why, and this confirmed the General's suspicion too. He could already see Rudimon bathing himself in glory and blowing his achievements to the king.

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He couldn't be trusted. Not for the greater good.

"Alright. . . Now let's see what those bastard Wizards are up to."

With the scout leading, the general galloped off into the forest.

*

"How is she?"

Ellie struggled to move but her limbs were seized by numbness. Anaesthetics probably. Did that meant she was in the hospital?

"She's recovering well. Too well to be believable in fact. I reckon she will be waking up anytime soon," a female's voice replied.

Ellie managed to lift the weight of her eyes lid and was greeted by an old man and a lady in her fourties.

"Are you feeling okay?" The old man asked.

When Ellie realized she wasn't in the hospital but in a house with a wooden ceiling, wooden window and wooden door, she gasped.

The old man and lady exchanged glances and the former replied, "Don't worry. You're in good hands."

Two suspicious people dressed in suspicious clothings that resembled medieval era. Either she's in a film or she's kidnapped. Without any cameras around, Ellie guessed it would be the latter.

"I'm Tusward," the old man said. "And she's Lilisess."

The lady bowed.

Ellie's hand balled. The man seemed to grew larger and the air around him took a turn. She could recognised it because it resembled the experience she had with her Dad, and the instinct to defy kicked in as she glared back. That reminded her . . .

"Where's my dad?"

"Dad?" Tusward raised a brow.

"My father, we were caught in an accident back on the road, did you see him?"

Tusward's brow tightened slightly. "Your father? I regret to say this but we only found you there."

Ellie intended to enquire further but Tusward broke her off with a wave of his hand. "Lili, mind if I have a moment with um . . ."

"Ellie."

"Yes, Ellie."

Lilisess bowed. As soon as she left and the door shuts, Tusward continued. "What happened, Ellie?"

"I . . ." Ellie paused for a moment. "We were caught in an accident. That's all I can remember." She wasn't lying, however she intended to leave out the details. It was an instinctive way to protect herself from uncertainty.

"Accident? Were you attacked by a bunch of clothed figures with two needles sown on their shoulder?"

"Clothed figures?"

Tusward rose from his chair and strolled to the window.

Silent.

Certainly they seemed suspicious, but seeing that they did attend to her wounds, Ellie decided they meant no harm.

"No. Even if there is, I wouldn't know. I was. . . Unconscious."

Tusward glanced at her. "Very well, young girl, I'll need to go. Miss Lilisess will take care of you while I'm away, so if there's anything you need or remember, tell her."

"Thank you, uncle."

"Uncle?" Tusward seemed taken aback for a second before cracking out a booming laughter.

"Can't you see these white hairs? I'm old enough to be your grandfather, girl."

Watching Tusward laugh somehow eased the weight on her chest. She'd wonder what happened to her Dad, but deep in her heart, she could guess it.

"Then do you want me call you gramps?"

Tusward stroked his goatee, his brow pulling into a frown. "Surely you meant that as a joke," he said, smiling a bitter smile.

"Perhaps." Ellie returned a smile to affirm Tusward's sentence.

The old man heaved a sigh. "That's great. Then with no time to spare, I will leave you to your rest, little girl."

Ellie watched Tusward strolled, with his hands behind his back, out of the room. Certainly he resembled an aged but noble man. A strange person . . . or actor? But understanding that she herself have no family left, there is no point in kidnapping her. So what's their motive? And what's with this house? As far as she remembered there's no such medieval-like house around the place she lived.

Furthermore, she'd missed the chance to ask the old man questions.

"Whatever . . ." she muttered. She can ask Miss Lilisess later.