Sword of Dawnbreaker

Chapter 955 - 954: Each Finds Their Own Peace

Andresha shook her head, casting the bold thought that suddenly popped into her mind out of her head.

She herself is not a believer (this is very rare in this world), yet even as a non-believer, she never truly thought about what it would be like to completely remove the power of priests and the church from the Empire’s military, officials, and the aristocratic hierarchy above them. This was too bold an idea, and as a border general, she wasn’t on the level to ponder such matters.

”We’ve been outside long enough,” she exhaled, speaking to the attendant beside her, ”it’s time to return to the fortress.”

As she spoke, she raised her head and saw the north wind stirring the Empire’s Flag atop the distant towers. Three gryphon knights and two combat Mages patrolling at low altitude swept through the sky, and farther away, pale blue magic eyes floated in the clouds—those were the Mage Sentinels of Winterwolf Fortress monitoring movements in the plains.

After most of the War God Priests were reassigned, the defensive strength of Winterwolf Fortress not only did not weaken in the slightest but instead became more rigorous due to proactive redeployment and increased patrol shifts. However, this temporary reinforcement came at the cost of extra consumption, and even a strong Empire could not afford such waste for long.

Hopefully Aldernon can come up with a solution soon.

With this thought, Andresha, accompanied by two attendants, left the market and returned to Winterwolf Fortress among the town.

She stepped into the castle, passing through corridors and staircases, reaching the second floor of the castle. Just as she stepped off the stairs, she saw one of her personal guards waiting for her at the study door.

”General,” seeing Andresha appear, the guard immediately stepped forward and saluted, ”there’s a letter for you—from Aldernon, with the violet irises mark.”

”Matilda’s letter then,” Andresha’s face showed a slight smile, quickly returning to calm. She took the wax-sealed envelope handed by the guard and nodded slightly, ”Thank you, you may go.”

”Yes, General.”

The guard left, and Andresha turned into the study. She casually broke the wax seal on the letter, her gaze skimming the violet irises in the paper’s corner. She unfolded the snowy white stationery and familiar handwriting came into view.

The beginning was the customary greetings.

Andresha slightly relaxed, one hand took off the brown cloak draped outside her coat, the other held the letter. She read it slowly while pacing in the study.

The letter mentioned recent changes in Aldernon, noting that the Royal Mage Association and ”Typhon Communications Company” would jointly reform the Empire-wide communication Tower—a decision already discussed in the council and commanded by the royal family, inevitably implemented, just as Matilda prophesied in the previous correspondence.

Andresha stood by the window; the twilight light was not too bright, yet the slanted sunlight on the letter brought a texture of comfort, neither glaring nor dim. Her gaze shifted over those elegant script lines, a smile emerging on her often stern face before her subordinates.

”...I went to watch the ’Magic Shadow Drama,’ quite popular among young aristocrats lately. Surprisingly, it was rather entertaining—though indeed rough and a bit frivolous, quite different from traditional theater, I must privately admit it was more appealing than other dramas I’ve seen...

”But I’m somewhat concerned that the Shadows produced by the Cecil Clan are designed based on Cecil itself, and many young nobles are now learning to drink Cecil’s Carna Wine and mocktail teas—yet just a few years ago, most ’Anzu’ traditions were targets of their scorn...”

Andresha gently flipped the letter, the paper making a faint pleasant rustle in motion.

This was indeed merely a personal letter describing daily life; Matilda seemingly wrote whatever came to mind, discussing recent changes in the imperial capital, then her insights while researching Magic Guide Technology and mathematical knowledge—Andresha had to admit reading such things was quite challenging but fortunately the section was brief—then sharing other novel items brought by Cecil Clan merchants.

Eventually, as the sunset gradually tinged slightly red, her gaze settled on the letter’s end, where Matilda’s elegant handwriting extended, forming line after line of words: