Filed To Story: Queen of the Battlefield Her Return to Glory Novel Online Free
He had been so weak and sickly, barely able to walk without help. How could he have escaped that inferno?
As Evelyn reached the main courtyard, there was only one figure she could see-the rest was a blur. Tears kept falling, clouding her vision, and she walked towards that faint, indistinct shape.
Her head tilted slightly, her voice weak and uncertain. “Are you my son?”
Isaac recognized her; deep down, he was angrier at her more than anyone else. Upon seeing the tears streaming down her face, something in his chest twisted with an unfamiliar pain.
He stood still, unable to speak or move.
“Mom, it’s Seraphina!” Caspian cried out beside him, his voice cracking with emotion.
Evelyn’s cry was raw, almost unbearable, as she collapsed into Isaac’s arms. The past surged back like a dark, suffocating wave, and her heart felt as though it had been torn open. All the pain she had buried for so long exploded in one desperate shout: “You didn’t die!”
Her hot tears soaked through Isaac’s shoulder. At first, he remained unmoved, but slowly, his tears began to fall.
But soon enough, he pulled away from Evelyn, his voice flat and cold. “Who are you trying to fool, madam? It was you all who sent me to that hellish place. I should have died there, but my benefactor saved me. I’m no longer Seraphina. My name is Isaac.” “No…” Evelyn reached out, pulling him back into her embrace. “I didn’t know. I didn’t know any of it…”
Overwhelmed by the weight of her grief and joy, Evelyn collapsed, fainting in Isaac’s arms.
–
The soft glow of a few lamps illuminated Evelyn’s room, their light gently filtered through delicate glass shades.
Evelyn only allowed Zoey and Isaac to stay by her side, sending all the servants away. Even Caspian and Luna weren’t allowed inside.
Caspian sat on the cool stone steps, the wind blowing and the lamp casting faint shadows. The night was deep, and the air damp and heavy The lights seemed to be wrapped in mist, making everything feet unreal.
Caspian muttered to Luna, “My dear, am I dreaming?”
Luna took his hand, her voice hoarse as she whispered, “It’s real. It’s not a dream.”
–
After talking for a while with Zoey, Violet told her everything she knew. Then, she made it clear that they needed to sort things out on their own. She was exhausted and needed rest.
Inside Evelyn’s room, she hadn’t released Isaac’s hand since she woke up. Her eyes stayed locked on him, gazing at him with an intensity that deepened with every passing moment, a growing pain in her heart. Her voice cracked as she spoke.
“You really look like your uncle.”
Isaac didn’t resemble Caspian or Oliver much. Instead, he took after Evelyn’s brother, who was long gone.
Isaac still felt uneasy, but looking at Evelyn, he didn’t get the sense that she was about to abandon him. There seemed to be more to the story, and he was willing to listen.
Violet was right—if there were grievances, they needed to be aired. Why should he suffer in silence?
“Mother, what really happened back then? Is it as Ms. Spencer said?” Zoey asked.
“I called you here because I want to tell you the whole truth. Originally, I planned to take this secret to the grave and explain it to Seraphina the afterlife when I passed. But I since he’s still alive, there’s no reason to keep it from you. Once I’ve told you, I can die in peace,” Evelyn replied.
There was a cold, hard glint in Evelyn’s eyes-a look Zoey had never seen before.
Zoey helped Evelyn drink the herbal soup, then sat down with Isaac to listen to what she had to say.
“Back then, I was deceived,” Evelyn began. “I thought the priest, Reverend Lazarus, told David that Seraphina would bring him good luck. At the time, David seemed to care for Seraphina deeply. When Seraphina fell ill, that man was more anxious than anyone and ran around looking for physicians and treatments. But Seraphina’s condition only got worse. By the time he turned five, he could barely get out of bed.”
Evelyn’s voice faltered, the pain of those memories still raw in her chest.
“Reverend Lazarus said that if we didn’t do something, Seraphina wouldn’t last a month. He advised sending him to the temple at Gravelstone Peak and praying for the gods’ blessing, giving him a chance to live past 18. Once Seraphina made it past that age, his life would be smooth sailing from then on.”
“Your grandfather disagreed. He thought it was all nonsense. But then David brought Reverend Lazarus to meet him. I don’t know what they said, but your grandfather agreed after some discussion. He even started paying the priest three thousand silver coins every year, saying it was for some kind of blessing or ritual to protect your life.”
Evelyn suddenly raised her voice, becoming fierce.
“Those were all lies! He lied to me, your grandfather, and everyone! The truth is that the so-called priest told him that Seraphina was the one keeping your grandfather alive. As long as Seraphina didn’t die, David couldn’t inherit the title, and he might even die young. “He plotted against Seraphina and swapped out the medicine the physicians gave him. Some of it had poison, some of it had ingredients that canceled each other out, and some of it weakened Seraphina’s heart and drained his strength. That was why Seraphina’s health got worse.”
Her breath was ragged, her eyes filled with nothing but hatred.
“How did I find out? After the fire, Reverend Lazarus came looking for David. They talked in the study for a long time, but they didn’t realize I was right outside the door, listening to every word. David was wrong to do this to my child, wrong-he should never have done this!”
Evelyn clenched her fists tightly, her chin lifted slightly as her entire body tensed, still as rigid with fury as the day she had learned the truth. Even now, with the man long dead, her hatred hadn’t faded.
Seeing the intensity of Evelyn’s anger, Zoey suddenly thought of something. She stared at Evelyn in disbelief. “Then… Father’s death?”
“It was me,” Evelyn said coldly, her eyes gleaming with an icy resolve. There was no hesitation in her voice.
“He killed my son, so he had to die. I knew the methods he used to harm my child-after that, every bowl of soup he drank was laced with a slow-acting poison. It wasn’t enough to kill him right away. He grew weaker, and his body slowly fell apart. In the end, he was bedridden, and he was never able to inherit the title.”
Zoey and Isaac were both deeply shocked. Murdering one’s husband was a grave crime.
Isaac stared at the fragile woman before him, disbelief clouding his expression. He couldn’t quite accept her words as the truth.
On the other hand, Zoey was more conflicted.
Evelyn had always been unconditionally devoted to her children. To her, they were everything her heart and soul. Even when Viola had caused so much trouble, her heart had never truly given up on her.
Evelyn took a few deep breaths, as though struggling to gather her composure.
“In the end, your grandfather found out what David had done. That was when he confirmed the heir and refused to let David inherit the title. David didn’t get what he wanted. That was his punishment-henever got the title, not even until his death.”
Tears welled in her eyes as she spoke, her voice breaking. She looked at Isaac with an unbearable sorrow in her eyes.
“I watched him die. In the end, I told him I was the one who poisoned him. He wanted to tear me apart, but there was nothing he could do. But my child…he would never come back.”
Evelyn gripped Isaac’s hand tightly, sobbing uncontrollably. “I never thought you were alive… I failed you. I didn’t protect you well enough. I’m sorry. I’m so sorry…”
Zoey watched Evelyn’s anguished tears, her heart aching. When she had first entered the family, her father-in-?aw was still alive, though in poor health. For the longest time, she believed her in-laws had a loving relationship. She had thought her father-in-law to be a good man.
But this… This was worse than she could have imagined! A father who would harm his child? Even a beast would never do such a thing.
Yet, Zoey couldn’t help but wonder-given Evelyn’s character, was it truly possible for her to have killed her husband?
Isaac’s emotions were a tangled mess. He felt sorrow, but not the overwhelming grief he had felt earlier upon learning the truth. After all, he had discovered that there were people who cared for him.