Filed To Story: Queen of the Battlefield Her Return to Glory Novel Online Free
Taking advantage of the fact that Tamara hadn’t noticed, Darin quickly wiped her cheeks. But inside, it felt as if her heart was being pricked by a thousand needles, each sharp sting of pain slowly building up.
Violet watched her, then reached out to reclaim the rabbit figurine. Darin instinctively clutched it close, her voice thick with emotion as she protested, “It’s mine.”
Darin stood and moved toward the window, which faced the southern river port. The wind was fierce, sending waves crashing against the boats in the harbor. Taking a deep breath memories flooded back to her like the tide. The rabbit figurine and Violet’s words had torn open a wound, releasing buried memories deep within her heart.
She didn’t recall much, but she remembered the day the performance troupe leader, Lucas, found her. She had been on the brink of death, and had been abandoned on a small hill outside Stonebridge County. Even though it was pouring rain, her body felt as if it were being consumed by fire.
The only clear memory she had was of Lucas’ voice, telling her that as long as she still had breath, it was up to her whether she would survive. In the end, Darin did survive, but a high fever caused her to forget much. She only vaguely remembered being tossed off a cart when she fell ill.
She had thought it was her family who had abandoned her, so she never considered looking for them. Anyway, she also forgot everything.
Now, she recalled being taken from the alley where she had been playing. Her memories of being snatched away and tossed onto a cart came back to her. There had been another child with her-she couldn’t remember their name, but she distinctly remembered being slapped twice upon getting on the cart.
The pain had been excruciating. But beyond that, everything was a blur.
However, there were some hazy memories before her abduction that she could grasp, flickering just out of reach.
Darin had been abducted. But before that, she had parents and a brother. They had all doted on her. She had been mischievous, but her family had always indulged her. This rabbit figurine hadn’t been made by Violet’s brother. It had been made by Darin’s own brother.
Yet, so many things had slipped from her memory. She couldn’t remember what her parents or brother looked like. Yes, she had grandparents too-both of whom loved her dearly. She could almost hear the gentle, loving voice from her memories. “Oh, my little darling, when will you grow up? When will you learn to be more sensible?”
Violet quietly stood beside her, gazing at the beautiful scenery of the southern river port, and remarked softly, “What a lovely river view.”
The mention of the river felt like lightning striking Darin’s mind.
“River York! You spoil her so much that she thinks she can get away with anything. What will people say in the future?”
“River, come here quickly! Jaina has fallen and hurt her leg!”
Darin’s chest heaved with agitation. It was a cold day, yet she was drenched in sweat, the moisture trickling down her forehead. “I…”
She struggled to speak, her voice barely above a whisper. “My father’s name is River York. My brother made this little rabbit figurine. The things you just said happened to me. You know where my brother and my parents are, don’t you? They didn’t abandon me. I was kidnapped…”
Tears slipped down her fair cheeks, but she quickly wiped them away and took several deep breaths. She could only stare out the window. She didn’t dare look at Violet or turn back, afraid her tears would spill over again.
“Your brother’s name is Jacob York. He currently works at Hell Monarch Estate as the head archivist. He entered the Hell Monarch’s service in hopes of using his powers and connections to find you. After you went missing, your father resigned from his post to search for you for a full decade. He only stopped when your grandmother passed away. After that, the task of finding you fell to your brother.
“To this day, your father is still waiting for you in Cloud County. He can no longer move easily or search for you. He simply waits at home just in case you return, so that you would still have someone waiting for you there.
“As for your mother and grandfather, Jacob brought them to the capital because of their poor health. I wasn’t sure you were Jaina York before I came here, but now I’m certain. You’re not Darin or Lisette Sanford. You are Jaina York, River’s daughter, and Jacob’s sister.” Tears streamed down Jaina’s face.
Lucas had given her the name
“Darin”. He said it was a miracle she had survived, and that she was a precious child that was a gift from the heavens. He said she should cherish herself, and that was why he gave her a name that meant “precious gift”.
“Ms. Spencer, could you do me a favor? I have so many questions to ask you. Can we find a place to talk privately?”
Violet nodded, understanding her concern about Tamara, who was sitting outside the door.
Violet loudly said, “There’s another floor up here where we can see even further. Would you like to go up and take a look, Ms. Sanford?” Though Jaina’s voice was choked with emotion, she still managed to ask. “We can still go up? How do we get there? Are there stairs?”
Violet smiled brightly. “If you trust me, I’ll take you up-we’ll just fly!”
“What?” Jaina gasped in shock. “Doesn’t that sound a little dangerous?”
Violet raised her chin, exuding a haughty air reminiscent of a little sister being particularly sharp-tongued. “You’re going to marry my godbrother. He’s a warrior. How could his wife lack courage? If you don’t want to go, then fine. We’ll just stay here.”
Tamara peeked inside, and felt anxious. It was obvious that Violet was testing Darin’s bravery.
Why was she hesitating? Just go already!
From the doorway, Tamara urged, “Ms. Sanford, why not follow Ms. Spencer up to see? The view up there must be much better than from this little window.”
Jaina had her back to Tamara, and she hesitated for a moment. Then, she turned to Violet and extended her hand. “Since you’d like to show me the view, it would be rude of me to refuse.”
Violet grinned, and took Jaina’s arm. With a powerful push, Violet leaped onto the windowsill and soared upward with Jaina.
The floor on the rooftop was actually a platform beneath a spire. It stood about ten feet above the private room they had just left. Even while carrying someone, that distance was easy for Violet to manage. Typically, hardly anyone came up to the rooftop platform because the owner of the tower hadn’t installed stairs. The only way up was to fly like Violet.
However, the two levels were only ten feet apart, and the lower level had four large platforms that offered views of the city from all the different directions. There was simply no need to go up to the platform beneath the spire.
The rooftop platform felt entirely unnecessary.
Even though hardly anyone came up here, the place was kept remarkably clean. There was even a swing set on the small platform, large enough for two or three people to sit on together. However, there were no guardrails, and the entire platform lacked any kind of barrier. If the swing swung out too far and the person on it couldn’t hold on tight, they could easily fall off. Violet invited Jaina to sit on the swing and began to gently rock it back and forth, facing the river view.
Jaina felt a flutter of fear in her heart. Her martial arts skills weren’t very good, and her Lightfoot Skill was mediocre at best. She clutched the rope next to her in a death grip.
“When I met you at Grovehill Estate, you didn’t know my identity. How could you be so sure afterward?” Jaina was puzzled. Everything felt too coincidental, as if it had been carefully orchestrated.
Violet replied, “That day, you seemed somewhat familiar to me because of the mole on your lip. The Hell Monarch’s princess consort’s mother also had a mole at the corner of her mouth. Plus, you bear a resemblance to the Hell Monarch’s wife, and there were some familiar mannerisms about you. I felt I knew you, but I couldn’t quite place who you reminded me of. Now I realize it was Jacob.”
“Jacob?” Jaina repeated the name, feeling a strange sense of unfamiliarity. She vaguely recalled a boy who once brought her pound cakes under an apple tree. The sunlight shone on his face, and his smile was broad and bright.
Yet, she couldn’t recall what he looked like. And now, that boy had grown up and became the head archivist at Hell Monarch Estate.
“You still haven’t told me how you knew I was Jaina,” Jaina said again.
Violet continued, “Actually, we already knew that Eleanor intended to betroth someone to Thomas, who happens to be my godbrother. They want to place their people within the military. I imagine she didn’t keep that from you. If she wanted you to carry out a task, she’d naturally need to inform you.”
Jaina nodded. “Yes, you’re right about that.”
“From the moment I laid eyes on you, something felt off. You’ve lived in Harmony Palace for so long, right? Have you seen any women there who bear a resemblance to you? Those concubines of Henry’s?”
Jaina frowned and shook her head. “I’ve never seen them.”
“When Eleanor was younger, she was infatuated with the Duke of Northwatch. You would know him as Hector Devin, the grand general who lost his life on the battlefield. He was a marquis back then. However, the duke married Melanie, a lady from the Sullivan family.
“That made Eleanor hate anyone who resembled Melanie. She went to great lengths to gather those who looked similar to Melanie and made them Henry’s concubines, forcing them to bear children only to mistreat them later. You also bear some resemblance, especially with that beauty mark on your lip.
“When we discovered that she had rescued you in Stonebridge County, we suspected there might be more to the story. So, I thought about having Kyle paint your portrait and send someone to Stonebridge County to investigate. But then…” Violet paused for a moment, and Jaina felt a rush of anxiety. She quickly pressed, “But then what?”
“But then I saw many portraits in the study when I went to see Kyle. In his search for you, Jacob had Kyle infer what you might look like now. This calculation was made based on your childhood appearance and your parent’s looks.