In the inner-city private residence of General Fatis of Water City, compared to the howling wind and snow outside and the grim chill atop the walls, this underground secret chamber, deep within the residence, with its thick walls and concealed entrance, was exceptionally quiet.
Only a solitary oil lamp cast a dim, swaying halo over the stone table, barely illuminating this small space. The air was steeped in the stale smell of parchment, ink, dust, and a faint, almost imperceptible trace of mildew.
Fatis, an important general under Governor Elmer who commanded the defenses of Water City's western sector, sat alone within that dim halo of light.
He was around forty, with a lean face and a carefully trimmed short beard. His eye sockets were deep-set and his cheekbones prominent, while his eyes gleamed in the darkness with a hawk-like sharpness and coolness utterly at odds with his refined appearance.
He wore no armor, only dark everyday clothes, yet his back was straight and his posture immaculate, carrying the bone-deep vigilance unique to a man forged in the ranks.
He had once served alongside Luo Yao in the Northern Territory. They had crawled together through the mud and blood of the Southwest Peninsula, fought shoulder to shoulder amid the ruins of Tyrol Fortress, and narrowly escaped together from a desperate rout.
Only, he was "smarter" than Luo Yao, more "aware of the times," and better at maneuvering through the rigid hierarchy and tangled connections of the kingdom's army.
In Field Territory, through his own skill and adaptability, along with just the right amount of "loyalty," he had successfully won Governor Elmer's trust. Though he was not one of Elmer's inner circle, he had at least gained a foothold, commanded a fairly formidable City Defense Army, and was even responsible for