The Grim Sovereign

The fighting had ended hours ago.

But the land still felt... uneasy. As if it hadn't forgotten what happened here.

Thousands of soldiers row after row stood across the open plain.

Their dark uniforms blended together and looked like a huge shadow spreading across the floor. No one talked. No one shifted in place. The entire army stood still.

Every single one of them was looking at the man standing in front.

He stood a few steps ahead of the formation.

On the long coat hanging from his shoulders. Three silver emblems rested there.

His name was Cassian Vale.

In war zones and military camps, that name had become something people whispered about.

To enemies, he was called the Grim Sovereign.

To the soldiers who served under him, he was something else entirely-the man who always walked into battle first and somehow walked out alive.

Stories about him had spread everywhere. Some said he had crushed entire rebel armies with barely any support. Others claimed he had ended wars that had dragged on for years.

People argued about it all the time.

Some said fate protected him.

Others said fate was slowly destroying him.

Right now though, standing there, Cassian didn't look like a legend.

He just looked... worn out.

Next to him stood another man. Much older, maybe by twenty years or so. His hair had already gone gray.

He was, Marshal Aldric Thorn.

The Supreme Commander of the Eastern War Council. He was the one who had trained Cassian back when he was still a reckless recruit who picked fights with everyone.

Aldric watched him quietly for a while before speaking.

"So it's really happening," he finally said.

"You're leaving."

Cassian was staring at something in his hand.

A photograph.

The corners were bent, and the surface had faded.

Two people stood in the picture.

One of them was Cassian. He looked younger. Smiling too, which was strange to see now.

The other person was a woman.

She has the kind of beauty that drove attention.

For a moment, Cassian's expression changed.

Just slightly.

"I did what I came here to do," he said after a while.

"The Nine Tyrants are dead. Their armies are broken. The frontier won't see another war for a long time."

Aldric let out a slow breath.

"You almost died doing it," he said.

His eyes moved to the thin scars running along Cassian's neck.

"That last fight... even the council believed you were finished."

Cassian shrugged a little.

"But I wasn't."

There was silence between them.

Eventually Aldric spoke again.

"You've done enough for this country. More than enough. No one would blame you for wanting something normal now."

Cassian put the photograph back into his coat.

A normal life? The words sounded strange to him.

"I made a promise," he said.

Aldric already knew who he meant.

The old marshal cleared his throat.

"I assigned someone to travel with you when you head back to the capital."

Cassian frowned slightly.

"That's not necessary."

"Her name is Lyra Quin," Aldric continued. "She'll be your administrative officer."

Cassian slowly looked at him.

"You mean a spy."

"Well... it depends on how you want to see it."

Cassian smiled.

"You were never good at lying."

Aldric chuckled.

"Maybe not. But the council is nervous. You're still the most dangerous commander this country has. If you vanish quietly, people will panic."

"I'd rather know you're still alive somewhere."

Cassian didn't answer.

For a moment, both of them thinking about the same years of war they had survived.

Then Aldric spoke again.

"If you're really leaving... then at least let your soldiers say goodbye properly."

Cassian sighed.

"Aldric-"

But the marshal had already stepped forward.

"ALL UNITS!"

Thousands of soldiers slammed their boots gainst the ground at the same time.

Aldric shouted,"PAY RESPECT TO THE LORD COMMANDER OF THE OBSIDIAN LEGION!"

The soldiers roared. "GLORY TO COMMANDER CASSIAN VALE!"

"GLORY TO THE OBSIDIAN LEGION!"

Again.

"GLORY TO COMMANDER CASSIAN VALE!"

Cassian just stood there while the voices of thousands of soldiers crashed over him like a wave.

The sun was going down slowly.

His battalion stood in rows behind him.

Every soldier was looking at him.

Cassian raised his hand as a gesture to acknowledge them. Still, the soldiers straightened immediately.

He didn't say anything.

They already knew what this meant.

This was the end of his time leading them in the field.

Cassian turned and started walking down toward the skyrunner waiting for him.

Soon the skyrunner carried him away from the desert.

Just like that, he was gone.

Commander Cassian Vale of the Night Talon Corps.

His name alone had ended wars. Tyrants feared him. Rogue warlords had surrendered just hearing he was coming.

And now he was returning to a world far from the battlefield maybe far dangerous.

---

( At the Larkspur Enclave, S. City)

Cassian entered into the Larkspur Estate.

Five years had passed already he still can't forget about the the night his life completely fell apart.

He remembered about the night he woke up in a hospital bed 5 years ago, confused and weak. That was where he met Ardenne Sylver. Things moved too quickly after that. They ended up married in a sudden decision.

But right after the marriage, Cassian left.

At that time, Cassian believed the best way to protect her from the dangerous life he lived was leaving.

Now he was back.

He wasn't the same unsure young man anymore. He had become a commander, someone people listened to without question.

Cassian walked further into the estate courtyard.

Children were playing there. Their laughter filled the air, loud and bright.

But one child caught his attention.

A small girl sat on the ground away from the others. She looked weak and thin. Her clothes looked thorn and there were bruises on her arms, and dirt on the parts of her face.

Just then, a woman in a red dress walked into the courtyard.

Everything about her movements looked confident, almost arrogant, even her dress she wore was expensive and perfectly fitted .

She walked over to one of the richer-looking children, she bent and carried him up.

"Are you okay, darling?"

The child then sniffed and pointed. "She pushed me."

Before anyone could react, the woman slapped the poor girl.

The sound echoed across the courtyard.

The girl cried out and held her cheek. The other children stopped laughing immediately.

The woman looked at the girl coldly.

"You will regret it, If you hurt my son again, Do you understand?"

At that moment, someone rushed forward.

Ardenne Sylver.

She wrapped her arms around the little girl.

"Kids fall all the time. That's normal. She's just a kid and also your niece. Stop it, Marla. This is too much already. You're an adult, you should know better than this." Ardenne said firmly.

Marla gave a small cold laugh. "Oh please. Stop pretending to be some good person. That girl isn't even my real niece anyway. If that dirty little thing hurts my son again, then she deserves whatever happens to her. Even if she dies from it."

Sandra froze for a second.

Then tears started running down her face. Her hands were shaking while holding her daughter. It looked as if she had been holding this anger inside for a very long time.

"She's my daughter. And you... you don't have any right to touch her."

Marla spat on the ground.

"Phtui! Ardenne, You have no right bringing that little bastard here and calling her family. If Emma pushed my son, then she deserves to be punished. Even if she dies."

Ardenne held her small girl tighter in her arms.

"That's enough, Marla! You're going too far. What, your son is made of gold? And my child is just dirt?"

Marla laughed. It was not a nice laugh.

"Shut up! How can that dirty child even be compared to my son? My son is the pride of the Sylver family. Your daughter... she's the child of a madman."

She stepped closer, her eyes full of cruelty.

"Everyone knows it. Six years ago you married some crazy man from a mental hospital. Who knows what kind of bad blood he had? Maybe your daughter will become crazy too. Maybe one day she'll run away and abandon you, just like her father did."

The words hit Cassian hard.

A madman!

Cassian suddenly stopped walking.

Six years ago...

While enemies were were after him , he hid inside a psychiatric hospital. He pretended to be mentally unstable so no one would suspect him.

That "madman" they were talking about...

It was him.

His eyes slowly moved to the little girl in Ardenne's arms.

He noticed the bruises.

Could it be...?

Emma coughed weakly. A little blood was still on her lips.

Cassian crossed the lawn in just a few steps and walked between the two women.

Marla barely reacted before he was already standing in front of her.

He spoke.

"Ardenne. Tell me the truth.Is she... my daughter?"

His eyes moved to the small girl shaking in her arms.

Her eyes met Cassian's face.

And she froze.

"You... you..."

Cassian moved closer. "Yes. It's me."

Cassian looked at the small girl in her arm and back to Ardenne again.

"Tell me the truth. Is she mine?"

Before Ardenne could say anything-

"WHAT?!"

Marla suddenly screamed.

She pointed at Cassian like he was something dirty.

"Who let this beggar into the estate?. Security! Throw him out right now!"

But then she looked at his face more carefully.

"...Wait."

"Cassian...?" She frowned.

Then her eyes suddenly widened.

"Oh! I remember now! Cassian Vale! That crazy man from six years ago!" sgesaid with a sneer.

"Dad! Grandpa! Come look!" she shouted. "Ardenne's mad husband is back!"

Soon people from the Sylver family started walking over.

But Cassian ignored all of them.

His eyes stayed on Ardenne.

"Ardenne,tell me the truth." he said more seriously this time.

He nodded toward the little girl holding onto Ardenne.

"Is Emma... my daughter?"

"Don't avoid the question," he added.Just tell me."

Ardenne held the child tighter and closed her eyes, tears slipped down her face.

She didn't say anything.

But that silence said everything.

Cassian's thoughts felt messy in his head.

Emma...

His daughter?

Before he could even process it,

A young man stood there with his arms crossed, looking at Cassian and started laughing nearby..

"Haha! So it really is that crazy guy, I didn't think he would dare come back after disappearing for six years."

Some people around him laughed too.

"How touching, look at that. The useless family is finally back together."a woman said with a cold smile.

Another young boy pulled the sleeve of an old man with silver hair.

"Grandpa, see? I told you they're all crazy."

He pointed straight at Ardenne and the small girl.

"Letting them come to Amara's birthday party is already embarrassing for the Sylver family, and now the crazy husband shows up too."

"Why couldn't you learn from your parents, Ardenne? They were smart enough to stay away. They knew showing up would just ruin the party."

"Yeah. Haven't you been humiliated enough these six years? Why come here again and make everyone see your shame?"

More voices joined.

Some laughed.

Some pointed fingers.

Ardenne shook all over. Her face went pale. She felt both anger and pain mixing together.

But she couldn't say a word.

Six years.

Six long years of this.

Insults.

Humiliation.

Cold, hateful looks.

Cassian stood frozen.

He would never have believed it f he hadn't seen it himself.

Who would believe that Sylver was supposed to be her family.

And yet... they treated her like garbage.

Just a little while ago, Emma had been slapped.

Ardenne herself had been pushed and humiliated in front of everyone.

What kind of crazy madness was this family hiding?

How could people be this cruel?

For six years...

How much pain had Ardenne and Emma gone through?

Cassian didn't even want to think about it.

People called him the Grim Sovereign.

The Lord Commander of the Obsidian Legion.

A man who had fought in endless battles and protected a whole nation.

And yet...

He couldn't protect his own wife.

Or his own daughter.

What a cruel joke.

He felt guilty.

And then... slowly... he lifted his head.

His eyes had turned cold.

Today...

The Sylver family would pay.

Every single person who insulted his wife and daughter... would regret it.

And these so-called powerful families...

They were about to find out... who the real king of the underworld really was.

Ethan shouted.

"Shut up!"

The courtyard went quiet.

Then Marla smirked. She wasn't scared. This was her ground and to her, Ethan was nothing but a crazy nobody.

"Who does he think he is? Telling us what to do like we're servants? That beggar makes my boy cry, I'll make his whole family disappear. Buried before nightfall. I swear it."

Ethan clenched his hands into knuckles.

He stepped forward.

"For Ardenne... for Emma.... I'll give you one chance."

"Kneel. Apologize. To my wife and daughter."

The courtyard went crazy with laughter.

"Did I hear that right?"

"He wants us to kneel? Apologize? Ha! That lunatic is soft now."

"Crazy guy. Always talking nonsense. Emma pushed our boy-shouldn't they apologize?"

"What if he loses it? Killing's nothing for a madman. Better watch out. Law won't stop him."

Cassian's eyes went cold. Hot anger popped out. Dangerous. Bright.

Sandra's voice shook. Tiny. "Grandpa-" she whispered, looking for the old man.

Lord Julan Sylver didn't care. Twisted his face. Speak to Ardenne? Dirty work. He didn't move. Didn't care. Humiliation had "done its job" already.

From the side, a fat man came forward-Trump Julan, Marla's dad.

He grinned like a predator. Loud enough for everyone.

"Justice? You call that justice? Ardenne tripped my grandson. She needed a lesson. Foolish people must know their place. Letting her and that ragged kid in our house? Mercy enough. Now she wants us to kiss her feet? Kneel, woman. Apologize to my grandson and maybe I'll spare you. Don't? I'll break the legs of everyone in your family today."

Marla went pale. Reached for Lord Julan like he could save her. "Please-" she cried.

Cassian moved. Fast. Shadow fast. One step, and he was in front of Marla and that fat sneering man.

His wife and daughter pressed behind him.

The last tiny thread of his patience snapped.

"Very well," he said. Low voice. Cold. Hard as iron. "So that's your answer. Noted."

He let the words hang.

"I gave you a chance."

He lifted his chin slowly. Like he was saying... yeah, I can stop. But I don't have to.

Then his voice dropped. Low. Quiet. Deadly.

"If you refuse... don't blame me. You said it yourselves-if I kill, it's not a crime. Remember what you said."

The words hit like ice. Laughter froze. Stuck in mid-air.

Before anyone could blink, Cassian closed the distance to Marla. Two fast steps.

She jumped back.

"Bastard!" she spat.

His hand moved faster than anyone could think.

Slap!

The sound cut through the courtyard. Sharp. Clear.

"That was for my daughter."

Marla stumbled. But before she hit the ground, a hard kick sent her flying back across the marble.

"And that... was for my wife."

The courtyard went silent. Dead silent.

People who laughed a second ago now stared. Mouths open. Eyes wide.

Their neat, perfect little world... smashed. One man. One moment.

Trump Julan's face went bright red.

"He wants to die!" he shouted. Panic and rage twisted his voice. "Guards! Grab him! Beat him to death!"

Cassian screamed. Loud. So loud the air felt like it was going to break.

The Sylver guards jumped. Twenty of them. Circling. Teeth bared. Hands ready. Hungry. Fast. Mean. Like wolves.

Cassian didn't move. Not a step. Not a flinch. Stood there like a wall. Solid. Alive. Unstoppable. The courtyard felt small. Tight. Claustrophobic. Like it was his. Twenty men coming at him? They'd hit the ground before they even got close.

He'd fought the Eight Legends five days ago. Won. Brutally. They were the strongest. And these weak, spoiled Sylver? A joke. Toys. Nothing. He could crush them all. Break the whole house in one second.

"Attack!" Lord Julan barked. Voice snapping like a whip.

The guards lunged.

Cassian moved. Faster. Machine-fast. Deadly. Smooth. Every motion perfect. Like a storm smashing over rocks.

Boom! One guard slammed into the wall. Like a ragdoll.

Boom! Another flew into the fountain. Water everywhere. Marble broken. Screams, splashes, chaos.

Boom! More guards fell. Sliding. Arms flailing. Legs twisted. Moans. Panic. Blood. Everywhere blood.

Everywhere he went-broken men. Pain. Fear. Chaos. One thing only-protect his wife. Protect his daughter. Nothing else mattered.

Less than a minute. The courtyard? A battlefield. Guards down. Some bleeding. Some worse. Blood on his hands. His coat. Face? Calm. Cold. Empty. Rage burning underneath.

He drew in a slow breath. Let it out. Voice low, sharp, ice.

"Who else?"

Silence. Thick. Heavy. Pressing down. Crowd stared at the ground. Mouths moved, no sound. Servants froze.

Ardenne's jaw dropped. Body shaking. Could this really be him? The man who vanished five years ago?

The "madman" she cursed? The one who left her? The one coming back like a hurricane? Merciless. Unstoppable. Deadly.

People whispered. Trembled. Ran to the edges. Some froze. Couldn't move. Too scared.

The courtyard smelled like sweat, blood, wet stone, fear. Broken marble. Every step he took made the crowd shrink. Smaller. Weaker.

Lord Julan's face went white. Mouth opened. Nothing came out. His guards-those still standing-shifted. Feet scraping marble. Weapons shaking.

"Stop him!" someone yelled. Guards rushed. Too slow. Cassian moved faster than they could blink. Kick. Splash. Scream. Silence. Grab. Slam. More bodies. Moans. Water dripping. Broken stone.

Ethan didn't flinch. Didn't breathe fast. Calm. Cold. Deadly. One purpose-wife. Daughter. Nothing else.

Ardenne clutched Emma. Tight. Trembling. Tears. She couldn't believe it. This was real. The man she thought lost... Back. Terrifying. Merciless. Unstoppable.

The Lannisters? Weak. Helpless. Pathetic. Laughing one second. Frozen the next. Mouths open. Eyes wide. Blood on marble. Broken men. Chaos. Panic. Everywhere.

Ethan looked around. Cold. Dangerous. Eyes sharp, cutting, slicing. "Who else?"

No one. No one moved. No one answered. Wind moved. Carrying screams. Splashing water. Courtyard was a tomb for the proud. Playground for the furious.

Cassian? Calm. Cold. Unstoppable. Ready. Ready to crush anyone who touched his family.

Seeing the fear on the Sylver' faces... seeing them small... tiny... finally... something hot and wild stirred inside Sandra.

She felt safe. Real safe. Protected. Like Cassian's arms weren't just arms. They were a sky. A wall. A storm shield. Nothing could touch them.

Emma clung to her mother, bruised, shaky, eyes wide like little moons.

"Mummy... is he really my daddy? My daddy's amazing," she whispered.

The courtyard froze. Chatter. Insults. Screaming. Threats. All of it stopped.

Then a new voice cut through. Calm. Deep. Bossy.

"What on earth is going on here?"

Heads turned. At the gate, an old man stepped in. Uniform. Silver star on his shoulder. Four officers flanked him, clean, sharp, scary professional. Walked like he owned the world.

Recognition hit the Sylver like a slap. Faces burned red. Humiliated by some "crazy man" before. Now... now someone real, someone with power, was here.

Trump Julan pushed forward, face pink, stuttering, voice oily with fake respect.

"Mayor Hargreaves! W-what... what brings you here? Surely you see this lunatic-he attacked our people!"

The man in uniform was Sir Malcolm Hargreaves. Mayor of S.City One word from him could ruin anyone.

Marla's face went pale, relief blooming like a flower. Two maids held her up as she whispered prayers, shaking.

Trump jabbed his finger, frantic. "Mayor! This insane beggar-he hit my grandson! Look at the guards! Beaten! Broken! He tried to kill! Arrest him! Make him pay! Make him an example!"

The rest of the Sylver joined in, loud like a nest of snakes.

"If he touches one security officer, he'll rot in prison!"

"Arrest him! The law must punish him!"

"Imagine the scandal! How dare he-"

Every finger pointed at Ethan.