Pleasantly Surprising

"You look very mature for your age, Commander Eloria," Empress Aleida pointed out after a long silence. With a little smile, she asked, "Is there a secret behind it?"

The thought of how the Empress was just like her son was quite amusing to Eloria Camer but she did not show it. Instead, she responded by saying, "I started spending time in the camp and went to the battlefield when I was 13, Your Majesty. Being trained in the harshest and toughest way possible, I was exposed to such a world when I was very young." She deliberately paused before she said, "I believe that experience is what forced a person to mature, and not age."

The Emerido Empress nodded her head in understanding. "You are right. In that case... you are quite similar to my son."

Eloria Camer hated the instant curiosity she felt when she heard the Empress remark.