Filed To Story: Queen of the Battlefield Her Return to Glory Novel Online Free
Catherine had known Mildred for many years. Though they weren’t the closest of friends, they had always shared a respectful bond. When Rosalind took the position at the academy, Catherine had assured Mildred that she would look after her granddaughter. Never did she imagine such a calamity would unfold.
Given Mildred’s frail state, this news was likely to worsen her condition.
Everyone gathered around to offer their comfort. Athena, though resolute in her decision never to marry, couldn’t help but feel for Rosalind. She was young, beautiful, with a sharp mind and an excellent family background-surely she could have found a worthy match. Athena believed marriage could bring happiness. All her life, she had only one wish to marry the man she loved. Sadly, that chance was gone. Her young love had gone to the battlefield and never returned.
Seeing the concern in everyone’s eyes, Rosalind quickly smiled, trying to ease their worries. “Really, it’s nothing. Life is full of challenges-this is just a small thing.”
Deep down, they all knew Rosalind wasn’t as calm as she made herself appear. It was clear that she was only comforting them, hiding the hurt beneath her calm facade. She must be struggling inside, all while feeling the need to try to console everyone else.
Catherine fell silent and led the others out to attend to the academy’s affairs, leaving Sophie and the Garrison Unit to handle the rest of the matter.
Once they were alone, Sophie gently took Rosalind’s hand and guided her into a quieter room. She carefully adjusted the young woman’s disheveled hair, speaking softnet
“I’m sorry was late. You shouldn’t have had to endure this.”
Now that it was just the two of them, Rosalind’s tears finally fell. She had been terrified. The courage she had shown when swinging the stick was born from the need to protect her students. But in the aftermath, as she thought of the men rushing toward her, the fear set in. Her heart raced as she recalled their threatening advances.
“I’m sorry for showing you such an embarrassing sight,” Rosalind said. “Just a little chaos is enough to shake me those who go to war must be truly fearless.”
She managed a weak laugh, but the tears still clung to her fair, clean face.
“You were very brave,” Sophie said gently. “Claire told me you protected Ms. Xavier-if you hadn’t, she would have been the one they assaulted.”
She reached into her pocket for a handkerchief and dabbed at Rosalind’s tears. “I truly admire you. Despite everything Ms. Xavier and Ms. Quinton said about you, you forgave them and moved on.”
“Ah, they’re just children, easily swayed into doing foolish things. I wouldn’t hold it against them. Besides, as their teacher, it’s my duty to protect them.”
Her words were calm and selfless, though she seemed to forget she was only a few years older than them.
Sophie felt an overwhelming sense of guilt deep in her heart. For the past few days, with everything going on at the gentlemen’s retreats, she had been out late at night, barely giving any thought to the matters at Gracewood Women’s Academy. Kyle had warned her earlier to be extra cautious with the academy. Had she sent even just one more person, none of this would have happened.
The Royal Citadel had been swift to respond. Anthony himself led the investigation, which showed just how seriously the Royal Citadel took this matter.
Six men were captured, all tightly bound. After a few hard slaps, everyone was awake except for the one who had assaulted Rosalind.
After revealing their identities, it turned out that all six were laborers from the docks. They worked long hours unloading cargo and carrying heavy sacks of copper coins, barely earning enough to survive each month.
The night before, their foreman had gathered them for a meeting. Nine men sat down to eat and drink, and the foreman told them about a job that would pay fifty silver coins once completed. The task itself seemed simple-sneak into Gracewood Women’s Academy, cause a little commotion, and then slip out through the back door.
The men, accustomed to tough work at the docks, were no strangers to trouble. However, they knew something didn’t sit right with this “easy” job. Still, the promise of fifty silver coins was hard to resist. It would take them over two years of hard labor to earn that much. Who wouldn’t be tempted by such an offer?
Everyone was tempted, but two of the men declined. The foreman himself naturally opted out. He was only in charge of passing on the message. The remaining six, after some hesitation, accepted the offer.
Before they set off this morning, the foreman gave them a glass of wine to steady their nerves. After all, none of them had ever done anything this wrong before, and they were all nervous about what was to come.
One man, named Hank Carter, drank the entire glass. Normally timid, he had a sick dad at home and a wife who had just given birth to their third child. He desperately needed the money, so he gulped down the drink to gather the courage to go through with it. The others sipped at their drinks lightly, but none of them seemed as affected as Hank.
Hank was the one who had assaulted Rosalind and had both his legs broken by Claire.
By the time Ivy arrived, all the interrogations had been completed, and a thorough examination revealed something even more troubling-all six men had been poisoned by aphrodisiacs of varying degrees.
It seemed the foreman’s instructions had not simply been to cause a disturbance he had intended for the men to assault the students, even go so far as to violate them.
Anthony immediately dispatched men to apprehend the foreman.
When they reached the dock, however they only found his body. It was said that he had drunk too much and fallen into the sea. When someone managed to fish him out, he was already dead.
The officers questioned the dock workers about anyone the foreman might have been in contact with recently or if any unusual visitors had come looking for him. But no one knew anything, and the workers didn’t know of anyone the foreman had made dealings with.
Re
As for the cause of his fall, the dock workers explained that the foreman often drank, and falling into the sea wasn’t a first. The only difference this time was that no one had noticed him in time. Everyone had been busy, and by the time someone saw him in the water and tried to help, it was already too late.
It seemed like a tragic accident.
With everyone so busy, if someone had come to pick up their goods and accidentally knocked him into the water, no one would have noticed.
When the officers returned with the news, the six men, already shaken from the events, trembled even more at hearing that their employer was dead. They were also chilly from the earlier splash of cold water.
Anthony was experienced in handling cases. He immediately suspected that there was someone else pulling the strings-someone with a clear motive against the academy.
But identifying the mastermind wasn’t going to be easy. The man who had been responsible for making contact was dead, leaving the trail cold.
Anthony took Sophie aside and explained the situation, asking if she had any suspicions about who might be behind the plot.
At first, Sophie thought it could be someone from the Quinton family’s fourth branch seeking revenge for what had happened to Jocelyn. But with the matter escalating to the point of silencing people, she began to doubt this theory. For now, she had no solid answers. She had suspicions, but the pieces didn’t yet fit together.
Anthony sighed.
“For now, the only thing we can do is take these men back and let the law decide their fate. Since the trail’s gone cold, there’s nothing more we can do on our end. If you suspect someone, you might want to look into it yourself.”
The remaining men were trembling with fear, scrambling in panic. Especially Hank, the one who had harassed Rosalind he was sobbing uncontrollably. Dragging his broken legs, he knelt on the ground as if he didn’t even feel the pain, repeatedly pleading with Sophie “I was wrong! I was greedy, but I won’t ever do it again! Please spare me, my lord! I have an elderly parent who’s ill and a newborn daughter at home. If I’m locked up, what will happen to my family?”
and
Anthony.
His cries were piercing and filled with despair.
However, Anthony didn’t waver and firmly ordered, “Take them away!”
People who did bad things might have tragic backstories, but that was no excuse for breaking the law.
Those who worked in law enforcement saw this kind of thing all the time, but in the end, the law was the law.
As the culprits were dragged away, the academy fell into a heavy silence. The oppressive stillness blanketed the room as the women gathered in the hall, each caught in her own thoughts.
Claire added more coal to the brazier to warm up the room, as Rosalind’s trembling shoulders showed no signs of easing.
Present in the room were Catherine, Harriet, Athena, Rosalind, and Sophie, who held the honorary position of headmistress. Claire, serving as a temporary guard, stood near the door. A few older maids, servants, and the cook-who had all been in the rear courtyard during the commotion-remained away from the central gathering.
At Sophie’s instruction, Claire went to speak to the staff, firmly instructing them to keep their lips sealed about the incident. While i I was impossible to contain the news entirely, Sophie wanted to ensure it didn’t spread unnecessarily from within the academy walls.