Her Graceful War Song by Summer's Blaze

In the end, Louis and Timothy decided to go together.

After all, their troops were stationed here and hadn't crossed the border nor entered the grassland tribes' territory. Only a hundred soldiers in teams of ten would be going in.

As expected, passing the grassland in small groups didn't draw the attention of the grassland sentries. They reached the top of Crow Mountain, and waited there. Although Crow Mountain was vast, they occupied the high ground and could see any movement from afar. They couldn't just rush down blindly, as Crow Mountain was divided between Sandoria and the grasslands, and a misstep could lead to conflict.

They knew this, so they left some people behind to keep watch and call for help if needed. Then, Louis and Timothy continued on with a dozen or so people.

Meanwhile, Rafael and his group had already reached the base of Crow Mountain. Once they crossed it, they would be on the grassland. They were only a small group of people entering the grassland, which wouldn't attract the attention of the grassland tribes. Also, Victor would surely not dare to follow.

They had been running without a break. Rafael managed to endure, but the others were struggling. They were so tired that their legs were shaking.

Moreover, a few had been injured during the rescue. Thomas could still walk at first, though he was slow and needed some support. But eventually, he had to be carried.

Although Rafael was not injured, he had exhausted much of his inner force during the skirmish with the garrison troops at Sandoria's border city and had yet to recover.

Everett, everyone was exhausted. They needed a brief

a moment, and then said, "They're almost here. That was fast. It must be Victor's elite troops. We must ascend the mountain immediately." Rafael took out a vial of medicine, poured a few pills, and handed

concern was Lawrence. Throughout the escape, Lawrence's condition had worsened. His breathing had weakened, and his wounds showed signs of redness and pus. There was some slight improvement since his rescue, and it was thanks to

must hold on. Your wife is still waiting for you in the capital. You can't leave her

fluttered open slightly. He looked weakly at

he was speaking, Rafael crushed the medicine and

have to...leave me behind." Though his consciousness was fading, he was aware of the danger. If his presence jeopardized the

single person will

mountain away Once we cross this mountain, we'll reach the grasslands, and Simonton City will be right in front of us. Do you want to return to

up in their eyes. "We

"Good! Let's go. Home is within

was high and treacherous. Unlike the mountains they had climbed before, which had dense forests and undergrowth that

Above the halfway point, the cliffs were extremely steep and smooth, with only a few stubborn trees

effectively no path through