Her Graceful War Song by Summer's Blaze

Barrett was on duty today, tasked with helping the Capital Guard maintain order.

As the eleven young soldiers rode past him one by one, he carefully studied each of their faces. When his gaze fell on Thomas, he noticed that the once-handsome, striking figure seemed less radiant than before. A mix of nostalgia and complex emotions stirred in his chest, along with a fleeting sense of inferiority.

Heroes.

Barrett had once been a hero too. When he returned from the Victory Pass battle, the citizens had cheered for him the same way.

But now?

Now, he had been reduced to a mere ninth-rank capital guard, stripped of the glory that once surrounded him. No longer the golden boy, no longer entrusted with important duties. Watching the eleven young soldiers, Barrett couldn't shake the sense of being worlds apart, like a speck of dirt beneath their feet.

If he was ever going to rise again, it would have to be through his brother-in-law's support. Or perhaps, another war would break out, giving him the chance to earn military merits once more.

How foolish Barrett had been back then, always imagining things so idealistically. He had once thought military accomplishments were easily won. After all, back at Victory Pass, Wyatt Sullivan had taken a blade for him, losing an arm in the process.

And on the Southern Frontier battlefield, Barrett had witnessed the true horrors of war-the brutal siege, mountains of corpses, and rivers of blood. Only then did he realize that earning glory on the battlefield was not as simple as Aurora had once made it sound. How many brave soldiers had died with their ambitions unfulfilled?

And how many, like the eleven young heroes, had been captured and tortured? To escape and form an intelligence network like they had-they were probably the only ones who could pull off such a feat.

As thoughts of captivity and torture filled his mind, a chill ran down Barrett's spine, freezing him to the core.

didn't know what would ultimately become of the Victory Pass incident. The king hadn't pursued the matter yet, but had sent people to keep a

underwent a shift in power, so too would the Warren family. The new crown prince wouldn't be as concerned with preserving

Barrett could only continue scraping by. Despair settled deep in his bones at that moment, and his mind wandered to something Aurora had once said with such conviction:

looked up at

he were looking up at a past version of himself and Aurora. But in the thick crowd, no one noticed him. Their attention was fully captured by the eleven celebrated heroes

had rescued them,

on the heartwarming scene unfolding before him-Richard's three sons stepping forward to embrace Joshua and

stood tall, his face filled with pride. In a moment like this, he

their voices trembling as they said, "Dad, we haven't been the sons you deserved, but we've

he smiled instead. He helped them to their feet and said, "I have

greet their loved ones, and each tearful embrace was a sight that

today. He wept like a child in his elder brother's arms,

down her cheeks as she realized this joy could never belong to her. She, her dad, and brothers would never see

blood ties, once so close,

returned

to her room.

sharing in everyone else's

she was left