Filed To Story: Queen of the Battlefield Her Return to Glory Novel Online Free
Sophie sighed inwardly. Her guild junior really lacked a sense of romance.
Once they returned to Hell Monarch Estate and escorted Helen to her room, Sophie and Rafael made their way to the study to see how the painting was going.
Kyle had already painted the paintings, which were displayed nearby. Jacob stood beside one of them with reddened eyes.
Rafael and Sophie stepped forward for a closer look. The painting depicted a girl with twin ponytails on her head. She had a round face, big eyes, a small nose, and slightly fuller lips adorned with a red mole on her upper lip.
Next to that painting hung another featuring a couple whose features bore a resemblance to Jacob. It was likely his parents.
Kyle was still at work, but this time he was painting the likeness of an adult woman, presumably using the paintings of the seven-year-old girl and her parents to infer what she might look like when she grew up.
Another painting lay on a nearby chair, and Sophie stepped over to take a look. The girl’s face was still round, though not as plump as before. The contours on her facenet novenet were much more defined. The features hadn’t changed significantly, but the contrast between childhood and adulthood felt completely different.
The painting Kyle was working on was a version of the girl who looked slightly gaunt. Since they didn’t know what she had gone through, her face might change based on her experiences. However, the painting wasn’t done yet. Rafael turned to Jacob and asked, “Does it look like her? Is this how you remember her?”
Jacob opened his mouth, but nothing came out. After a long pause, he choked out, “It does. It looks just like her. Mr. Spencer is truly remarkable.”
“How many paintings are you doing, Kyle?” Sophie asked.
“The more, the better,” Kyle replied without looking up, his brush dancing across the canvas. “Fat, generally fat, very fat… Neither fat nor thin, thin, generally thin, extremely thin… The more I can paint, the better.”
Sophie watched as Kyle deftly painted the eyebrows and eyes with just a few strokes, noting how the brows weren’t as dark as they had been in the girl’s childhood picture. int Growing up often meant grooming one’s features, and a child’s eyebrows could be too bold.
“Jacob, what’s your sister’s name?”
“Jaina,” Jacob replied softly.
After a moment’s pause, Jacob gathered himself and continued, “My name is Jacob, and my sister’s name is Jaina. Our grandfather named us both. When she was born, she was chubby and fair, so our grandfather hoped she would lead a pure life. He had to choose between Jaina and Joanna, but he ultimately settled on Jaina.”
Sophie looked at the portrait of Jaina when she was young. She truly was adorable. Under Kyle’s brushstrokes, Jaina’s eyes sparkled like a gem.
Then, Sophie turned her attention to the painting Kyle was working on, and an odd sense of familiarity washed over her. But when she turned back to the other painting, the feeling vanished, leaving her puzzled.
Kyle looked up and said, “You two should head out for now. We’re not finishing anytime soon. There’s still plenty I need to adjust, and we might end up painting a dozen or more portraits.”
Rafael stared blankly at the completed painting of the adult woman on the chair. He felt the woman in the portrait resembled Sophie’s mom. Not the Melanie he had seen before heading to the Southern Frontier, but the one he remembered from his teenage years. Back then, Melanie had a rounder face, and her smile was soft and gentle.
“Let’s go,” Sophie said as she tugged on his sleeves lightly.
Rafael glanced down at her. “Sophie, don’t you think she resembled someone?”
“Who?” Sophie asked, her gaze drifting back to the painting. There was no sense of familiarity for her.
Seeing that she didn’t share his thoughts, Rafael quickly amended his statement. “Perhaps I was just seeing things. Let’s step out so we don’t disturb them.”
As they walked out, Rafael recalled his younger days of following Salvador to Northwatch Estate. Back then, Melanie was still quite young, and Sophie hadn’t yet been sent to Meadow Ridge. Sophie was an adorable little girl, soft and sweet, with a lively and playful personality. Being the only daughter after six older brothers, she was greatly cherished, and her lively, gentle nature made her all the more endearing.
Yet, the portrait of Jaina as a child didn’t resemble Sophie at all. Sophie had always been much prettier. That painting on the chair truly did remind him of his mother-in-law back then, though she was older than the woman depicted in the portrait.
He didn’t dare mention this to Sophie, as he was afraid it would remind her of her family and sadden her.
Feeling it was still early and with the rain having stopped, he was about to ask Sophie if she wanted to go to Richspire Peak when she instructed Lulu, “I’m heading to the treasury. Have Rod come here. I need to talk to him.”
Rafael swallowed the question he had been about to ask and instead inquired, “What do you need to see Travis for?”
Sophie replied, “It’s about Alana and Leah. They refuse to take any pay for looking after Leona, claiming it’s to atone for their mistakes. But Samuel’s misdeeds shouldn’t be something they bear alone. Their guild is indeed struggling, and we can’t leave them in debt. What’s due should be paid.”
“Okay. I’ll wait for you in the room,” Rafael said with a nod.
The treasury consisted of three separate rooms. Sophie usually managed the accounts in her own private space, so she called Travis to that particular room.
As she entered, she noticed Travis now wore the embroidered tunic that showed he was the commander of the estate’s household army. He looked much more impressive than before, with far less of his former rogue-like demeanor. It was clear that working in such a prestigious household had truly transformed him.
Just as the thought entered her mind, Travis plopped down on her desk, grabbed a quill and bit down on it. Then, he mumbled, “What’s up?” Sophie propped her head on her hand, and silently retracted her earlier thoughts.
No, Travis hadn’t changed at all.
“It’s about Alana and Leah’s wages. They say they don’t want any pay, but they’ve worked so hard. So, I want you to take their wages and et send them back to your mentor Don’t mention it’s their pay, just say it’s a reward for you doing a good job here in the estate,” Sophie said.
“Can’t I tell Alana and Leah?” Travis asked.
“No. Just say it’s your reward.” Sophie reached over and snatched the quill from his mouth, rubbing it against his tunic a couple of times. “Don’t bite it. We shouldn’t waste books or quills.”
Travis stared at her, his eyes wide with surprise. “You’ve changed. You used to say weapons shouldn’t be wasted, but you didn’t mind ruining quills when you used them as little darts Sage Everett even gave you a beating for it, and you limped around for two weeks.”
Sophie felt her face flush in embarrassment. “Let’s not bring that up. That’s all I called you here to discuss, so make sure you get someone to send the money to your master.”
“Got it,” Travis said. He understood that his guild seniors had indeed worked hard, and staying in a place like Gracehold Estate for so many months must have been tough. “But once I accept this, you can’t tell Alana or Leah about it. Otherwise, I won’t let you off.”
“I won’t say a word. Just don’t get drunk and spill the beans in front of Vivi,” Sophie replied as she unlocked the cabinet and pulled out a few banknotes that added up to three hundred silver coins. “Let’s send back three hundred first…”
She counted out the banknotes, then kept one away. “Let’s make it two hundred. Three hundred is a bit much, and your master will suspect something. We can send the rest of it at the end of the year.”
Travis happily accepted the notes. “Actually, even two hundred would raise suspicion. My master thinks I can’t accomplish anything on my own. She thinks you all helped me so much on the battlefield, and that’s how I managed to get the hundred gold coins.” He folded the notes neatly, and added, “By the way, Jacob’s informant at Valor Estate reported that Harvey sent a note to Freya, but they don’t know what it says.”
Sophie was a bit surprised. “Jacob has spies inside Valor Estate?”
“Yep. He has quite a few in all the estates within the capital, though some aren’t as deeply embedded.”
“Then why don’t you tell him directly? Why tell me?”
Travis replied, “Ever since Kyle arrived, Jacob’s been holed up in the study. I figured he was doing something on Prince Rafael’s orders. Wouldn’t it be better if you went back and told Prince Rafael?”
Sophie was even more puzzled. “But why are the spies reporting to you? Are you in charge of this? Does Jacob trust you that much?”
Travis grinned with pride. “Of course! Did you really think I was just a drill instructor? Jacob said I might look rough around the edges, but I’m meticulous when it comes to details. That’s why he put me in charge of the spy network.” After speaking, he did a few midair flips and flipped his way right out of the room.
Sophie was left speechless. She had always thought Travis was like a wild monkey-sure, he could train troops, but how could Jacob have entrusted him with the careful, delicate task of handling the spy network?
If anything went wrong, the whole plan would fall apart!
She returned to the room to find Rafael, and mentioned what Travis had reported. Then, she asked, “Did you and Jacob plant a lot of spies in the big noble families?”