Filed To Story: Queen of the Battlefield Her Return to Glory Novel Online Free
Blake, noticing that the group had stopped advancing, approached Sophie.
“Freya’s missing! We can’t stop here. We must continue forward!”
Sophie and her friends were huddled around a small fire, their cracked lips dry and chapped.
“Is there any evidence that she was among the troops withdrawing from Sandoria?” Sophie asked.
“No, but she chased a group of Westhaven soldiers when the battle started, and she hasn’t returned since,” Blake said.
Then we should thoroughly inspect the city for her among the corpses,” Violet sneered icily.
“She’s not dead!” Blake’s eyes flashed with anger. “Don’t curse her! As members of the same army. how can you curse a fellow soldier?”
Violet rolled her eyes, and snorted. “The war is over, and I’m done with being a soldier. Don’t drag me into being her comrade. She doesn’t deserve it!”
Blake was infuriated by her words. He tumed to Sophie, and said seriously, “I’m the one who disappointed you, not Freya. If it were another soldier captured, would you save them?”
Sophie countered, “If another soldier was captured, would you risk the lives of twenty thousand troops to chase after the enemy’s main force?”
Blake was momentarily speechless. “Well…”
Sophie continued, “I trust you understand the value of a soldier’s life, General Jaffe. You have no proof that General Ernst is among the retreating troops. Even if you did, you couldn’t be sure she was with the main force. Pursuing them through the border mountains would be risking the lives of the troops.”
Naturally, the others, particularly Travis, who always supported Sophie, were unsatisfied with Blake.
“Exactly! Besides, there are many nomadic tribes in the area. They don’t belong to the Southern Frontier. Intruding on their territory could easily spark another conflict.”
Although Travis wasn’t well-versed in nomadic tribes, he understood that anyone intruding on their territory would face their wrath.
Blake was visibly frustrated. “So you’re just standing by? Freya wasn’t the only one captured-her soldiers were, too!”
“How can you be so certain she was captured?” Sophie retorted.
“When the battle started, I saw her chasing after a group of enemies. As soon as the battle began, there was a retreat, which was clearly a trap. She fell for it.”
“General Ernst isn’t new to the battlefield. If she was fooled by such an obvious trap, it shows poor judgment. Do you want us to risk the lives of so many soldiers for her mistake?” Sophie replied calmly. She looked at him sternly, and continued, “Also, why didn’t you stop her if you noticed it?”
Blake had no answer for the criticism of Freya’s poor judgment. It was indeed a lapse in judgment.
As for why he didn’t stop her, he explained, “When I realized what was happening, I called out to her, but she didn’t listen. I was leading my troops in combat. If I had pursued her urgently, my soldiers would have followed me without knowing the situation. I couldn’t jeopardize the larger operation because of her.”
During the intense fighting in the city, with the chaos and confusion, it was possible for friend and foe to be indistinguishable. If he pursued Freya amidst the intense battle, his soldiers might mistakenly think it was part of a tactic and follow him. That would have endangered the Hell Monarch Army troops, who were advancing behind them.
As the leader of the second siege unit, Blake absolutely couldn’t afford such a mistake.
Sophie knew Blake’s account was accurate. After Freya was lured away, Rafael had judged that the enemy would soon retreat from the battlefield, so he had returned to the command camp.
As for why Sandoria didn’t immediately retreat after the battle was clearly lost, it was because there were stilLformalities to observe. They couldn’t just flee at the start of the battle; they needed to engage in a prolonged fight to show their king and people that they had done their best.
Victor had long been aware of Liam’s intentions to use the Southern Frontier battlefield to his advantage, which was one of the reasons for their lack of unity from the start. Even though they had later discussed unity, it was too little, too late.
The Sandoria troops were destined to lose.
Seeing that Blake still maintained the awareness of a military general, Sophie said, “Blake, it’s true that Freya has been captured. However, we can’t rescue her and can only wait here.”
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Blake’s face turned red with frustration. He grabbed Sophie’s hand, and pulled her to one side.
“Sophie! You know she’s been captured, and you won’t rescue her? What do you mean by that? Do you know where she is?” he yelled.
Violet snapped a whip in their direction, forcing him to release Sophie’s hand and take a step back.
“If you have something to say, keep your distance. Don’t get too close to Carl,” spat Violet coldly.
Blake’s anger towards Violet was obvious, but he grudgingly restrained himself. She was too skilled and not under his command, making her difficult to manage.
He turned back to Sophie, his voice still sharp. “You know where she is, don’t you?”
Sophie shook her head. “I don’t know. She could be in the desert, on the plains, or hiding in the mountains. But no matter where she is, we can’t send the entire Mystic Army to find her. It’s too risky.”
“Then what are we waiting for?” Blake demanded, pacing with frustration. “Are we just waiting for them to bring her back?”
Sophie’s gaze remained calm and steady. “Exactly. We’re waiting for them to bring her back.”
Blake stared at her in disbelief. “Are you out of your mind? If they’ve captured Freya, why would they ever let her go?”
Sophie’s expression remained impassive. “They wouldn’t release her easily. Nothing is ever that simple-just like how the treaty with Victory Pass wasn’t achieved without effort.”
Blake was stunned. “What do you mean?”
Sophie looked at him with a steady gaze. “You don’t really believe that Liam withdrew his army from Victory Pass to Fawnrun just because Freya spread the news about the marshal heading to the Southern Frontier as reinforcements, do you? If you believe that, you’re unfit to be a general, alone a soldier. It’s impossible.”
Blake had indeed doubted it before.
Even at the last moment, he questioned Freya. Ultimately, he chose not to pursue it further, as the treaty was signed and the matter had passed.
His voice trembled slightly. “So, why did Liam do this? Please, tell me.”
“There’s no need for me to tell you. Just wait here-someone will inform you,” Sophie said.
With that, she took Violet’s hand and walked away, leaving everyone else to continue tending the fire.
The field was littered with piles of dry firewood, brought by Westhaven. These were stacked outside the city and to be fetched as needed, to prevent the townsfolk from stealing them.
Westhaven had come fully prepared for their campaign in the Southern Frontier.
Everyone was hungry, but they couldn’t return to the city. They had no idea how many of Westhaven’s troops remained, or where they might be hiding-whether in the mountains or on the plains.
Blake paced restlessly, his anxiety evident. He wanted to question Sophie, but noticed she was surrounded by four formidable figures-two men and two women. Even Michael stood watch nearby. So, Blake reluctantly returned to his own men.
Unable to wait idly, he ordered his troops to take torches and follow him into the desert.