It was noon.
The army set up pots and cooked lunch outside Yufeng Valley.
After gathering the supplies and personnel from the Deep Mountain Village Stronghold and the Yufeng Valley battlefield, there was nothing left here worth staying for.
Now, after a fierce battle, of the 3,200 people Willis and Hill Yu brought, 2,500 remained.
Compared to the losses of the Rebels, it was a great victory.
Before departure, Willis ordered Tapur and a squad of soldiers to escort Mark and Vicks Todd back to Monsell.
What awaited those two would be a hellish fate.
“That dog Dolan~thing died. It’s too good for him.”
Willis laughed.
“Willis! Tapur, you two dog~bastards! You won’t die a good death! You won’t die a good death!”
Mark, locked in the prison cart, cursed in despair, but no matter how he shouted now, it couldn’t change reality.
Willis ignored him and turned to Tapur.
“I’ll leave it to you. If you mess it up, you know the consequences.”
“Rest assured, Your Highness. I know what to do.”
Tapur bowed respectfully and led the convoy towards Monsell.
“Principal Justice, the crisis is over. You should take your people back too. Thank you for your hard work on this journey.”
Willis said to Normankev standing nearby.
He hurriedly replied, “Your Highness is ingenious, manipulating these Rebels with ease!”
“Such a great victory, ridding the Empire of its scourge, truly opened my eyes. I am deeply impressed!”
“Since the crisis is over, I’ll take my people back to report to His Majesty and help Your Highness deal with some minor matters along the way.”
The “minor matters” he referred to naturally meant Mark and the others.
“Then I’ll trouble you, Principal Justice. Until we meet again!”
Willis bowed in return.
Soon after, Normankev led his people in pursuit of Mark’s prison cart.
Another half hour passed.
The City Defense Army in the Lianzhai escorted the captured Elves over.
Seeing this, Willis ordered the march.
***
Sitting in the Royal Princess’s Carriage, the breathtaking Elf bound beside Willis—Winnie Kanasha—remained silent.
Anne Donald, across from her, wore a sullen expression, making Willis quite puzzled.
She wondered if this girl had quarreled with the Imperial Princess.
Only Hill Yu kept making eyes at Willis, signaling her to change her mind.
But that was impossible.
Ofilia huddled in the corner, focused on the scenery outside the window, ignoring the tension inside the carriage.
“Imperial Princess, is the Mage-Swordsman you fought dead?”
Willis broke the silence.
Hill Yu shook her head with a sigh.
“No. He saw the situation turn bad, feinted a strike, and escaped with his men.”
“I didn’t pursue them either. Seeing their retreat, I brought people to Yufeng Valley for support.”
Willis mused, “Escaped… It doesn’t matter. The defeated will have plenty of chances to die in the future.”
She turned to Winnie Kanasha.
“Little girl, lift your head!”
Ofilia’s body trembled beside her, almost thinking Willis was calling her.
Anne Donald’s face darkened even more, completely different from her earlier radiant and pure expression in Yufeng Valley.
“You!”
Called out, Winnie Kanasha was infuriated by Willis’s flippant tone, baring her teeth as if to bite.
“Willis! I told you, I’ll kill you. I will!”
But Willis easily held her chin with one hand, leisurely caressing her smooth skin.
“Yes, you’ve said that. No need to repeat it.”
“I want to ask you, that Mage-Swordsman, do you know his identity and origins?”
Since she had attacked alongside him last time, Winnie should know his identity.
“I don’t know!”
She snorted coldly.
“Kill me. I won’t tell you anything.”
Before Willis could respond, Anne across from her looked slightly pleased.
“You want to die that badly? Your Highness, why not grant her wish? Just say she died at the hands of the Rebels!”
But under Willis’s scrutinizing gaze, Anne panicked and hurried to explain.
“I…I just meant she’s ungrateful…I only feel indignant for Your Highness…I’m not usually like this. I can’t even bring myself to step on an ant…”
The more she spoke, the worse it sounded. In the end, Anne lowered her head, not daring to speak further.
A brief silence filled the carriage.
After a while, Willis suddenly leaned close to Winnie Kanasha and whispered in her ear.
Elves’ ears were delicate and long, and Winnie Kanasha’s were especially exquisite, like works of art.
Willis couldn’t help but inch closer.
Under Anne Donald’s nearly explosive glare…
Winnie Kanasha scooted away, blocking Willis from getting any closer.
When Willis finished whispering, Winnie Kanasha’s face was full of anger and hatred.
Just like Ofilia’s used to be.
“Despicable! Shameless! How are you any different from those Rebels?!”
Winnie Kanasha gritted her teeth.
“No difference.”
Willis shamelessly admitted.
That made Winnie even angrier, her ample chest heaving violently.
Willis couldn’t tear her eyes away, not even noticing Anne’s explosive jealousy across the carriage.
Hers wasn’t small, but Winnie Kanasha’s was even bigger.
Sometimes, Willis wondered if those big balloons would ever burst.
After a while, Winnie Kanasha’s face finally calmed down.
“Fine. I’ll tell you, okay?”
She snorted coldly.
“But my answer is still the same. I don’t know.”
Willis nearly exploded—Woman, don’t think just because you’re mine I won’t hit you!
But then Winnie continued.
“I truly don’t know… When working with the Revolutionary Army and Glorious Restoration Church back then, that guy always kept his face covered.”
“His movements were strange and unpredictable. Even in the Deep Mountain Village Stronghold, I never saw him appear, and I didn’t know where he went.”
“Then how did you refer to him?”
Hill Yu interjected.
“He had a code name. Kuanglei.”
Winnie said.
“I see…”
Even Winnie Kanasha didn’t know his true identity. It would be hard to track him down.
“Willis, that night… you…”
Winnie’s anger mixed with indescribable fury.
“How did you find out my whereabouts!?”
This was something Winnie never understood.
Although the Elven Race could walk openly in the Okam Empire, their arrival should have been unknown to anyone.
Yet Willis succeeded, which made Winnie feel strange.
Willis recalled her memory.
She leaned over and said, “I think it was the day this Imperial Princess was wandering the imperial city. I overheard a passerby mention a group of Elves arriving in Monsell…”
“Vaguely, I remember hearing that among them was an Elf of unrivaled beauty, like a goddess.”
“Later, I asked Victoria to investigate at the Meklay Family and got confirmation.”
“After that, my Nightfall Organization reported your movements… and the rest, you know.”
Winnie nodded.
That day, she’d worn a veil and brought tokens to Monsell’s Elf shops to prepare supplies.
With so many Elves, food and clothing were a serious concern.
After making arrangements, she left Monsell’s east gate, only to be knocked out by Victoria, who’d followed her.
What happened after that…
What happened after that…
Remembering the absurdity under the moonlight that night, Winnie snapped and bit again.
“Why are you biting me? Are you a dog?”
Willis cried.
You’re so annoying!