Bill glared at him in shock. "General Cleve, what are you doing?" Bill looked around him and now the royal troops were staring at them with looks of surprise and shock. "I ... it's me, Eland Cleve. The boy you saved ten years ago. General Mackenzie, have you forgotten me?" Eland asked with a questioning look. Bill stepped back, his expression full of shock. "You know who I am?" Eland nodded with certainty, not looking the least bit hesitant. "How'd you know about me?" Bill asked in confusion. As far as he could remember, few people actually knew their identity. And certainly the person who recognized him was certainly someone from his own kingdom, not from another kingdom. However, this person who served as the highest troop leader in the Mondega Kingdom could recognize him and even claimed to have been saved. How could that be possible? He himself had just set foot into the land of the greatest weapon maker in the European region for the first time. Then, how did that ma
"See you next time, young man," Bill said. "But, sir. Your hand-" "Uh, this little wound? It's not a problem. It's nothing for a man to have a wound on his body, young man," Bill said. Teenage Eland stared questioningly. Bill smiled gently and then declared, "A wound can be likened to a sign of effort or struggle. So, isn't it cool that a man has this kind of mark?" Eland was stunned. He was very amazed with those words. He never expected to hear such a thing. "A man without a wound is a man who never fought, young man," Bill said. The gallant soldier then flashed Eland a warm smile just before he left him alone there. When he was only a few metres away, he turned around and waved his hand once more, "Be a strong soldier, young man!" "Yes, sir," Eland replied with a shout. "I will be a strong man, I promise," Eland added. Bill then turned around and continued walking. Eland stared at the sturdy back of his saviour who was walking away until he was no longer visible to his e
"Of course, General. You may do everything," Eland replied. The great general smiled. "General Cleve, you know ... I might misinterpret your kindness. Do you not mind?" "Not at all, General. My life belongs to you," Eland said. William Mackenzie suddenly said, "Your life is your own. I did not ask for it." "General," Eland said, startled. "Oh, let's put it this way. I ask only one thing of you," Bill said. Eland immediately got ready to receive orders. "Make peace with my kingdom and become an ally of my kingdom. Can you do that?" Bill asked. Eland Cleve was speechless with disbelief. He was lost for words for a moment and only regained his speech. "Is that all, General?" "Yes." Eland didn't understand, "Are you sure this is all, General?" "Yes. I just need that," Bill said. Eland looked down. With his head slightly bowed, the young man said, "Yes, General. I will convey this to the king." Bill nodded happily, "Will your king listen to you?" "I will do my best, General,"
Keannu instantly threw an astonished look with both thick eyebrows drawn together. Jody Gardner immediately realised the small mistake he had made and hurriedly corrected, "Uh, I mean. It feels impossible. I don't believe in the kingdom. They must have done something." The look on the king's face returned to normal. "We don't know for sure yet, General." "But, Your Majesty. The Mondega Kingdom clearly seems to be pulling this trick to try and lure us out," Jody said, still trying to keep his king's mind off the matter. "They wouldn't dare face ... our War Advisor." Keannu almost said the word "General" again. However, he quickly controlled his usually sharp tongue. "You seem so confident in Bill Stewart's abilities. But, I believe the Mondega Kingdom is using Bill Stewart. Prisoner of war. That's for sure," Jody said. Keannu shook his head in disbelief, "He won't be easy to defeat, General Gardner." "What if the kingdom attacks us suddenly?" Jody said. "As you said, although
Eland Cleve replied casually, "I just spoke to him and he said that you are one of the people who know his true face." Andrew Reece was stunned, his eyes widened to perfection. The glass he was carrying almost slipped out of his hand if he wasn't careful. He immediately glanced to his right and left, scrutinising warily, fearing that someone might be listening in on their conversation. He took a deep gulp of saliva, calmed himself down and tried to return to normal behaviour. Eland Cleve was watching closely and could easily tell that Andrew Reece was both surprised and nervous. "He told you, General?" Andrew asked at last. He even had trouble closing his mouth again and began to think more broadly. He now understood the reason why Eland Cleve seemed to get along so well with the major general. That man apparently already knew the general. But how could that be? Had William Mackenzie revealed his own identity in front of this man who was their enemy before finally choosing to m
Oh, now Eland understood it immediately. Jody Gardner clearly disliked his saviour god. That much was very clear when he saw the look of dislike in Jody Gardner's eyes when they discussed about Bill Jody Gardner looked like he did not try to hide it at all, he just show it without any doubts. "He's great. And, that greatness sometimes doesn't depend on whether or not one has been in the field for a long time. I'm sure you would agree with that, General Gardner," Eland said, adding a friendly smile to the end of his sentence. Jody Gardner no longer bothered about it afterwards and chose to keep his emotions in check. He went home with a mind filled with extreme annoyance because again he had lost face. This time, unmitigatedly, his name was not mentioned in the Ans De Lou Kingdom when they returned. Only Bill was honoured by everyone, including the king, so he didn't participate in the big celebration at the palace. However, when the celebration had only been going on for two hou
"Cassie, listen. You ... can tell me anything!" Bill said, trying to get his wife to reveal what she was going through. At first, Cassandra looked very reluctant and seemed uncomfortable. However, after Bill patiently waited for her and tried to calm her down, Cassandra finally began to slowly open up to her husband. "I ... got fired, Bill. Imagine that! You know how much I love that job," Cassandra sobbed again. "What was the reason?" Bill's brow furrowed, he knew Cassandra was such a disciplined worker, it was impossible for his wife to make a mistake. "I don't want to discuss. It's useless," Cassandra said, looking so lazy. Bill let out a long sigh. He knew very well how Cassandra Wood loved her work and was always proud of it endlessly. Losing something she loved so much must have been very hard for Cassandra. "I'm unemployed now, Bill." "That's no problem," Bill replied calmly. "How can you be so calm, Bill? How can we afford this much rent? You-" "Wait a minute, why are
"Just say what you have to say!" Cassandra said, already impatient. Bill took his wife's hand and said, "Before I met you, I was a soldier, Cassie. I worked in the palace, but ...." "But what?" Cassandra asked with bated breath. "I resigned over 3 years ago and on my way home I was attacked until I almost died," Bill said. Cassandra stared in shock, "Attacked how, Bill? Who attacked you?" The beautiful woman's lips seemed to tremble as she said it and it made Bill become more careful. "I don't know, Cassie. That's when I was rescued by Grandma Minerva and ended up marrying you," Bill explained. Cassandra was still a little confused, "How did she save you?" Bill couldn't possibly say he was dumped in the suburbs because that would complicate things even more. So, he chose to say, "Grandma found me dying on the road. She healed me." Cassandra was silent for a moment, "So, you're really marrying me because of that? As a favour to Grandma?" Bill nodded without hesitation. Cassa