Nihitan had been feeling a sense of camaraderie with Rigata, the man he was with. It was just after they had successfully infiltrated the heart of the Allied Forces.

The area was quiet, and they had passed many soldiers on their way to the center. Now, only one last barrier remained. They were about to enter the barracks, where some members from the Nervana forest and a few Aquilea warriors loyal to Tarhan were imprisoned.

Suddenly, Nihitan asked a question.

“I heard you have many children. Aren’t you worried about them?”

Rigata, a high-ranking warrior from the Nervana forest, looked at him a bit longer than usual with his expressionless face. His look seemed to question the timing of such a question, but eventually, he responded.

“…Aquilea ultimately follows the maternal lineage. I am worried, of course, but there’s nothing I can do about it.”

Rigata hesitated but seemed to decide to be honest.

He probably thought that someone from the Nervana forest couldn’t understand the typical thought processes of someone from Aquilea and added,

“Ha. My tribe is doomed, so I end up saying all sorts of things to you.”

Rigata laughed self-deprecatingly as sweat dripped from his forehead. Despite the desert’s heat, sweat pooled and trickled down the shoulders of the two tense men.

Having started the conversation, he openly shared his thoughts.

“This whole situation, who knows how it will turn out. Even if Enya becomes the Daughter of the Forest and overcomes Argon, Aquilea is already wrong. At least for those who followed Tarhan.”

That was the truth.

Rigata was thoroughly Aquilean, though the plains without Tarhan as a leader meant nothing to him anymore.

“That’s quite the loyalty.”

Nihitan commented, and Rigata responded without any embarrassment,

“It’s the same principle as how you think about the members of the Nervana forest. That man… I’ve followed him since I was young. Wherever Tarhan is, he will always be my leader.”

Silence fell again.

This time, it was Rigata who asked Nihitan,

“Don’t you also have children? And that little woman moving on her own, you don’t seem worried.”

Nihitan narrowed his eyes as he considered Rigata’s question about his children before responding.

“The little woman? Ah, you mean Yaru.”

Rigata was aware that Yaru had borne a child for the man in front of him. Despite the little woman having returned alone to Aquilea, where the army was conscripting, Nihitan seemed unconcerned.

“Yasmin will be fine. She’s with Kiyan. And…”

Nihitan’s expression turned incredulous, as if it was absurd to worry about Yaru.

“Yaru, I know her. She’s a woman you don’t need to worry about.”

Rigata looked at Nihitan, who seemed proud while thinking of Yaru, with an equally incredulous expression.

* * *

‘Surely that’s Tarhan’s right-hand man, Rigata. How could he be here…’

Having witnessed the two men sneaking into the barracks where prisoners were held, Avisak quickly followed suit. The place was at the heart of where the army was concentrated, and surprisingly, the security was lax.

The only soldiers around were guards, who appeared to be knocked out, lying behind the barracks.

‘Damn… If only I could assign an escort.’

Regretting the lack of time, Avisak quietly followed the two men. Inside the large barracks, which was divided into several sections, she trod softly.

“Venta.”

Reaching the section where Aquilea soldiers were imprisoned, Rigata broke the silence. Seeing him inside the simple prison, Venta was surprised. He was one of the warriors who had long served under him in Tarhan’s hunting party.

“Rigata…!”

Following Venta, his underlings stood up.

“Lord Rigata…!”

Soon, Nihitan and members of the Nervana forest were also reunited.

They were mixed in two adjoining cells.

Ikachi, also a member of Tarhan’s group, was there as well. The group, centered around Venta and Ikachi, explained their plans to reclaim the internal control of the Allied Forces that Tarhan had left.

Ikachi confided in Rigata.

“Honestly, none of us expected Tarhan to leave like that. We were all a bit shocked, but that doesn’t mean we’ve lost faith in him. Everyone here has watched that man for a long time.”

All of them knew what Enya meant to Tarhan and that Tarhan was not originally from Aquilea.

Venta explained.

“Honestly, I’m not even angry.”

Another warrior spoke up.

“We didn’t stay out of loyalty to Tarhan. It was just that we couldn’t stand idly by and watch Servia’s incompetent second son mess everything up.”

“Right. We’ve always taken care of our own lives, even when Tarhan was around.”

“Tarhan will find his way back. He’s not one to betray his followers easily.”

“But I’m worried about that woman. If she really is dead…”

As they imagined the possibility of Enya having died despite Tarhan’s efforts to find her, most of the group’s faces darkened.

Nihitan scoffed internally.

‘To still receive such loyalty after such irresponsible actions. He’s truly no ordinary man.’

It was also surprising to him that no one seemed concerned about Tarhan’s safety. They acted as if Tarhan was invincible. They did not worry about his well being as he crossed the desert alone after leaving the Allied Forces.

‘They must really think highly of his abilities.’

Nihitan thought.

Venta laid out their situation.

“Gernan keeps threatening to throw us to the desert monsters that had been threatening the Allied Forces if we continue to resist his leadership.”

The group began to discuss their escape plans centered around Rigata and Nihitan.

Just then, a strange voice came from the adjacent section.

“Aren’t you going to include me?”

As soon as Avisak heard the voice, she quickly turned towards the sound.

There stood a man.

“It’s been a while, Rigata.”

As the man spoke, it seemed as if the atmosphere changed.

He was a large man with sandy-colored hair.

Avisak remembered the true reason she had come this far, and recognizing the sandy-haired man, a chill ran down her spine.

It was Kasar.

‘That man…’

It wasn’t difficult to recognize. Enormous stature, his cocky posture, and the unusual aura of authority. He far exceeded the rumors of a warrior who had ‘conquered the desert moon.’

Avisak observed him discreetly, feeling as if all her pores were opening up in awe.

‘Kasar and Rigata know each other? What is really going on here…’

As she hid and eavesdropped on their conversation, Avisak swallowed her anxiety. Rigata’s face also looked surprised as he recognized Kasar. He growled towards him.

“Why is he here now…?!”

The group of Allied Forces began to calm Rigata down.

“Wait, Rigata. It’s not what you think. Just listen to us first.”

Rigata looked at them with disbelief. He made eye contact with Kasar. His expression was confused. Here was the man who had inflicted the biggest scar across Tarhan’s chest, he was proudly entering this prison.

Kasar, pointing to the scar on his own neck, responded.

“Remember, just as Tarhan nearly died then, I nearly lost my head as well.”

Rigata looked at Kasar with uncomfortable eyes.

Though it was known that Tarhan and Kasar had clashed and inflicted similar wounds on each other, the truth was different.

Rigata, who had been Tarhan’s long-standing aide, knew this better than anyone.

The scar on Tarhan was acquired during a mission to save a young girl in the slave pits of Garganta, which involved helping Kasar, who was then a mercenary leader in the desert. That incident had occurred when Tarhan’s hunting party got stranded in Argon, leading to an unlikely alliance with Kasar’s mercenaries.

From that incident, Kasar ended up with a scar on his neck, and Tarhan with a large, unhealable wound on his chest.

Venta quickly intervened to clarify.

“Don’t misunderstand, Rigata. We also never imagined that he would be here.”

Rigata looked skeptically at Kasar, who sat with a sly smile. At the same time, he noticed a boy asleep against Kasar’s knee.

Instinctively, he realized he had seen that boy somewhere before. Kasar wasn’t alone. Three other Argon warriors surrounded him. Rigata had the distinct impression that they were all there to protect the boy with short hair who slept leaning on Kasar.

Meanwhile, Avisak was analyzing the situation in her own way.

She was furious with Gernan.

‘This is the result of ignoring my advice not to lock the Nervana and Tarhan’s followers together in the same cell.’

Planning together to take back the Allied Forces was something to be expected.

‘But the connection with this man Kasar is unexpected.’

Avisak decided to keep watching as she swallowed dryly, feeling the cold sweat trickle down her temples. Even in the dark, Kasar’s chiseled features were unmistakable. His face was full of mischief, though the intimidating aura made even watching him daunting for her.

Kasar, with his characteristic rough tone, twisted the corner of his lips as he spoke.

“From what I see, it seems Tarhan has already abandoned Aquilea. Well, considering what he has been through there, it’s understandable.”

Kasar smirked as he continued.

“So, those who remain here are the ones who have decided to follow Tarhan even at the cost of abandoning their homeland. Am I wrong?”

Ikachi responded.

“You’re not wrong. Most are from the plains or have families who were driven to the plains. And there are the warriors from Nervana who have decided to join forces with us.”

The Aquileans locked up with the Nervanas looked at their de facto leader, Nihitan, and nodded in agreement.

Kasar continued.

“Then, it seems we all have a common interest here. Argon is not your enemy. The common enemy would be the Aquilea. I mean that greenhorn kid and the woman with black hair who looks like a lioness.”

‘He’s talking about Gernan and Servia.’

Avisak thought to herself.

‘So, an alliance is forming here. If they attack, the current Allied Forces might not be able to withstand it.’

Shocked, Avisak decided to keep observing the situation a bit longer.

A critical question came into her mind.

‘Why would Argon go to such extreme lengths to annihilate the Allied Forces? Just for the plains? As far as I know, Kasar is a free-spirited and warlike person. He doesn’t seem like the type to covet the plains in this manner…’

Just then, a faint voice reached Avisak’s ears.

“Kasar…”

The small boy, who had been resting his head on Kasar’s knees, had woken up. People noticed that Kasar’s demeanor changed instantly as the boy woke.

“Rio.”

At Kasar’s call, the boy murmured. Everyone focused on that faint voice.

“Kasar… I feel so weak. I’m so hungry I could eat the desert sand.”

“Rio.”

“Really, I feel like I might die before we even get to call that snake out here. The sand won’t even move for me…”

As the boy gestured towards the floor, the sand made a small dance in the air. While the boy shook his head, the hood he had been wearing slipped off, revealing the other side of his face, which was completely mangled, contrasting with his otherwise handsome features.

Avisak’s eyes widened.

‘It’s a girl.’

The child wasn’t a boy but a girl.

Kasar, addressing the girl who was called Rio, spoke in a serious tone, very different from his earlier playful voice.

“Don’t exaggerate.”

Rio complained and rubbed her head against Kasar’s knee. Then, surprisingly, Kasar gently stroked the girl’s short hair with his large palm.

Shocked, Avisak watched the scene unfold.

Rigata and Nihitan were similarly astonished.

‘This can’t be…’

The daughter of the desert, which had been thought to be cut off. Everyone’s heart raced as they watched Kasar and the girl resting on his knee.

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