Chapter 103
The moment Lorne finished speaking, a heavy silence swept through the crowd. Every pair of eyes turned to him, each filled with disbelief and confusion.
What did he just say? Does that mean this woman has some kind of incredible background? That thought echoed in nearly everyone’s mind.
Isla suddenly felt panic rise in her chest. Right then, it hit her. Raven might actually be stronger than she was. And Raven was
younger.
Worst of all, something in Lorne’s words triggered a sense of dread deep inside her.
Doyle glanced at Isla, who looked too shocked to speak, then turned cautiously to Lorne. “General, who is she, exactly?”
But Lorne did not answer him directly. Instead, he turned his gaze to Raven. The moment he met her eyes, something unspoken passed between them.
Lome immediately understood. He turned back to the crowd and spoke in a calm but steady voice. “Everyone knows why I hosted this party today.
“Unlike the three of us who’ve stepped back from the front lines, the newly appointed general won’t be staying in the background. After a brief rest, she’ll be returning to the Outer Battlefield.
If she were to show her face in public right now, it wouldn’t just cause a headache for her here at home. The moment she returns to the frontlines, she will become a target for forces from across the border.”
That’s why she couldn’t attend in person today. Instead, she sent someone very close to her to express her thanks to all of you for coming.
The second Lorne finished, the atmosphere shifted. Every look directed at Raven changed instantly.
Although Lorne had not said her name, anyone with half a brain could put it together. Raven was that trusted person.
Isla stood frozen in place, her usually icy, flawless features now overwhelmed by disbelief. She stared at Raven, whispering to herself. “That can’t be.”
If Raven was really the new general’s confidante, then everything she said before must have been true, Isla realized and wondered.
The phone call she received earlier that day, from Lorne himself, had been real. Her entrance without a physical invitation had also been legitimate. Even the medal Raven claimed to have received directly from a general, which was true, too.
Suddenly, Isla felt more humiliated than she ever had in her life. A moment ago, she had thought nothing could top being exposed for faking an invitation to trap Raven. But now she just wanted the ground to open up and swallow her whole.
“What the hell was 1 thinking? I literally stood up in front of everyone, played her voice recording out loud, and demanded she be punished for every word. Now I must look like a complete idiot, Isla wondered.
She was sure everyone w
was laughing their heads off
If Raven truly had the backing of the new general, then, of course, she had been awarded a medal by Lorne. It was perfectly
reasonable.
And Isla had tried to get Raven thrown in prison for it. Even she found it ridiculous.
The worst part? Just now, she had told Lorne to his face that Raven would never belong in high society.
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Chapter 103
At that moment. Isla fully realized she was about to become a laughingstock not only in Regalhold, and throughout the entire Vyrdenian upper circle for a long, long time.
Not far from her, Pierce stood stiffly, his face pale. Lorne’s words had shaken him to his core.
“H–how is this even possible?” he muttered, almost to himself.
The Raven had just been cozying up to Cassian. Wasn’t she just a woman from a second–rate family, desperate to climb the social ladder? Pierce’s thoughts spun wildly. How could she possibly be a confidante of the new general?”
And Isla, who had just publicly confessed to liking him, had turned into a complete clown.
Most crushing of all, everything Pierce had been hoping for was gone in an
instant.
‘Cassian has always been more capable than I. And now, he’s got a woman like Raven by his side, someone the new general actually trusts. I’ll never have a chance to lead the Lysander family now, Pierce wondered.
The weight of it hit him
him all at once.
There was nothing more devastating than feeling like one’s dreams were within reach, only to watch them vanish into thin air. That brutal contrast left Pierce completely shattered.
A dark wave of despair washed over him, and for a moment, he even found himself wanting to give up entirely.
Meanwhile, Carl, the head of the Thornton family, had also sunk into stunned silence.
As Carl recalled the things Isla had said to Raven that afternoon, a deep, sickening sense of foreboding settled in his chest. Nearby, Merle frowned as he looked at Raven. “The new general’s right hand?” he echoed under his breath.
Jonah is a brigadier general. So between him and this woman, whose rank is higher? Merle couldn’t help but wonder.
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