Confidential Information

The woods were quiet and peaceful, but that atmosphere was not meant for spirited young men and women. Old people may enjoy this peace and quiet, but the young felt it too boring without any entertainment. What could they do, count ants for fun? Thus, after dinner, Han Jin and the others would sit in a circle and talk about everything. Even Sunier, who rarely talked usually, would join them.

"Tell us about it, Sunier!" Miss Keeley looked at her with sparkling eyes. She had begun to worship Sunier since they knew that she had once served as the commander of a particularly heroic troop in a famous battle.

"There's nothing to talk about," she said in a dispirited tone.

"You're a hero, and everyone is waiting to hear your story," Cessacioun laughed.

"Hero?" Her voice was full of scorn, "It's not easy to be a hero. I served as the ninth commander of the troop, but do you know how I got that position? I got it because all of the commanders before me were dead!"

They were all stunned. They did not know why Sunier became so furious. She bit her lip and sighed, "Forget it. Don't ask me about that again. War is not as interesting and meaningful as you think. It's cruel, ugly and bloody. If you are in a battlefield one day, you will understand this. But, I wish you will never get this opportunity."

"Don't underestimate our mental strength, Sunier," Han Jin said lightly, "well, aside from Miss Keeley, that is."

"What about me?" Miss Keeley rolled her eyes at Han Jin as she was not happy about that jab.

"Yes, I agree." Moxinke patted Han Jin on the shoulder and pleaded to Sunier, "We're so curious about your experience, please tell us more."

"You people..." Sunier said helplessly, "In the past, Elves solely ate fruit, but now, we eat the same food as you, don't you feel that it's strange?"

They all looked at each other. Though no one had thought about that before, they had now realized it was true. 

"It is because the war completely changed our civilization," Sunier said slowly, "Sometimes we have to give up our traditional way of living. We no longer have the right to be critical, especially in wars. Once, we even had to boil our leather armor as food. What else could we not endure?"

Miss Keeley covered her mouth in shock. She couldn't imagine how one could swallow tough leather.

"In fact, I was not a real commander in the final battle. We were going to win, but suddenly, five red dragons attacked. Under such circumstances, we had no choice but to scatter and escape. There were more than one hundred soldiers with me at the beginning. They chose me as their commander, and my task was not to lead them to victory, but to lead them back to Wild Willow City," Sunier's voice went lower, "but, when we finally arrived at Wild Willow City, there were only seven of us still alive, including me."

"So you had seen the red dragons!?" Steelberg exclaimed. In his eyes, dragons were extremely mysterious and powerful beings.

"Not only seen them. We also managed to kill one together," Sunier replied in a cold voice.

"What about the dragon crystal?" Han Jin asked immediately. He could keep calm most of the time, but if anything relating to energy was brought up, he would become a completely different person.

"There were still four other red dragons in the sky, how do you propose we look for the dragon crystals in those circumstances?"

Han Jin exclaimed, "What a waste!" in his mind. But then again, even if they did find the dragon crystal, who knows where it might be now. Regardless, it would have nothing to do with him.

"I'm a little tired." Sunier stood up and walked back.

"Don't go, Sunier," Moxinke immediately called out.

But she didn't turn her head back and she kept walking as if she had not heard Moxinke at all. Soon, her figure disappeared into the woods.

"She must have had a tough time during the war," Cessacioun said in a low-pitched voice, "in fact, it was a tough time for any of the elves that survived the war."

"You know about this?" Moxinke was surprised.

"Only a little. The war happened ten years ago, after all," Cessacioun said slowly, "Lord Zaganide and Lord Kassa allied together and conducted a large-scale attack against the elves, and Wild Willow City..."

"Lord Kassa? Why I have never heard of him?"

"Don't interrupt me, you will find out soon enough," Cessacioun said sternly, "the situation between Wild Willow City and Holy Crown City was tumultuous and dangerous at the time. Wild Willow City decided to send a group of elite shooters and the Silver Pegasus Corps to harass the backline of Lord Kassa. They infiltrated deep into the rear of the Kassa's main forces and conducted a series of ambushes. This infiltration lasted more than a year, during which they destroyed two large-scale teleportation matrixes, annihilated countless smaller groups of enemies, and burned a large number of heavy weapons. Aside from the capital of Lord Kassa's territory, all of the other cities under his rule were, at some time, occupied by them. Some even more than once.

"Lord Kassa's main forces were fighting Lord Dismark at that time and he had no army to protect his rear. Moreover, the Silver Pegasus Corps was known for their speed that was as fast as the blowing winds. There was no chance that Kassa could catch them for a proper fight, as it was difficult to even catch sight of them. At last, Lord Kassa had no choice but to dispatch several red dragons as well as his personal protection troops to outflank the Silver Pegasus Corps," Cessacioun paused, "Lord Dismark had been waiting for an opportunity like that for a long time. He launched an all-out assault immediately and broke through the defensive line of Lord Kassa within three days. Lord Kassa was killed in the ensuing battle."

"The Silver Pegasus Corps also paid a heavy and painful price," Cessacioun sighed, "I heard that only one-tenth or even fewer elves returned to Wild Willow City alive."

"And what happened later?" Han Jin asked.

"Not much. Lord Kassa was dead. His territory was divided by Wild Willow City and Holy Crown City."

Han Jin sunk into silence while Moxinke and the others were all astonished. Now they really understood why Sunnier was so sensitive. The hardships and danger she had experienced during the year's fighting, deep behind enemy lines, was far beyond their imagination. It was no wonder the elves had to resort to eating leather.

"What are you thinking about?" Cessacioun looked at Han Jin and asked curiously.

"What about Zaganide? You did not mention him at all."

"Zaganide? Since Kassa had been killed, do you really think he could still fight against Wild Willow City and Holy Crown City alone? He had already fled back to his own territory."

"Didn't Wild Willow City and Holy Crown City hunt down the troops of Black Raven City?"

"No."

"Why?"

"That... I don't know." Cessacioun shook his head. He only knew the major incidents within the war. As for the question Han Jin had asked, that was probably confidential information.