After Theodore bid his goodbye, Asa welcomed herself to the barracks.
As she stepped inside, she was greeted by a spacious field, its purpose immediately apparent. Here, she could instruct her troops to train in the morning or practice their skills.
Theodore had informed her that all the members of the Black Pillar had been recruited. However, they were still living under the watchful eyes of the White Pillars.
This information stunned her. "White Pillars?" she exclaimed, her voice filled with confusion.
Understanding her confusion, Theodore nodded and explained.
Although the public only knows about the Main Pillars, it turns out that they do not work alone. Under them, there is another organization called the White Pillars, which consists of the smartest and most trustworthy people in Antara Land.
Intrigued, Asa asked again, "Does the White Pillars also have a leader? Or is it like the Main Pillars, without a leading role?"
"Main Pillars don't have a leader because there are only three of us. We are all leaders in our own way," Theodore said. "As for the White Pillars, there are quite a lot of members, so naturally, there is a leader."
After recalling the conversation she had with Theodore, Asa scanned her surroundings, taking her feet to every corner of the barracks as she imagined how her new home would turn out once the troops completed their basic training.
Her steps seemed to have brought her into a room that resembled a kitchen.
Asa walked in and invited herself to check the cabinets, which turned out to be full of food supplies.
As if it were her nature, she took some supplies and started to process them into a warm meal for her stomach, which had missed the chance to eat bread before.
It took a few hours for Asa to finish all of her cooking and she realized she had made Daniel's favorite meal: congee, sautéed mustard greens, and roasted meat. However, the meat they usually ate was just low-grade, coming from animals they hunted in the forest. The meat in the barracks was of high quality.
"Ah…" Asa let out a satisfied groan as the food entered her mouth. It had been so long since she had eaten this well.
As she chewed and swallowed the food, she couldn't help but imagine how nice it would be to have her little brother with her now.
What kind of person would he grow up to be?
Would he join the Black Pillar with Asa? Or would he choose to become a member of another Pillar?
Without realizing it, her imagination created an illusion of Daniel sitting in front of her.
Daniel stuffed his face with the food, "This tastes so good, big sis! You're better off as a chef rather than a warrior."
Asa laughed, "Eat your meals well. Don't talk while chewing like that."
Daniel nodded and hurriedly swallowed his food before continuing, "Big sis, you should try the meat. It's much better than the deer meat we usually have. Where do they get such high-quality meat? Is this heaven-bred deer meat?"
Asa stared at the illusion her mind had conjured before it dissolved into a wisp of air.
She chuckled at the silence that once again greeted her.
Daniel wasn't here.
The talkative little brother wasn't here, and there was no use in imagining how it would be if he were.
Playing with her own imagination served no purpose; instead, she should think of a way to find Daniel.
Daniel hadn't brought anything with him that could make Asa's mission of looking for him any easier. Hence, Asa had to rely on what she remembered about how he usually acted.
As she washed all the dirty dishes, she tried to recall Daniel's habits. He didn't have many unique habits, so it was easy to remember and list them in her mind.
The day, which had turned out to be quite eventful for her, had finally come to an end. Asa sat on a wooden long chair in front of a room that she had claimed as hers.
The room was quite spacious and strategically positioned, allowing her to monitor the gate and the training field from her window.
The wind that night blew softly, and the moon politely greeted her vision, hanging in the night sky and casting its light upon a lonely woman holding a long sword whose true power she had yet to discover.
Tonight, she didn't plan to go out and slay some Crys. She knew the usual patrol under the Main Pillar is still on duty. There was no need for her to stress over the Crys just yet.
Feeling bored with nothing to do, Asa got to her feet and made her way to the training field.
She unsheathed her sword and began to train under the moonlight, slashing at the air as she imagined Crys standing before her.
Her moves were swift and fierce, yet they carried an elegance in every motion.
In the past, Asa had once slain five Crys simultaneously under the moonlight, using moves similar to the ones she is practicing now.
A kid who had watched the entire combat stood with her mouth wide open from her hiding place, thoroughly impressed by what she had seen.
The next day, she went around the town, telling everyone that she had witnessed a warrior dancing a bloody dance under the moonlight the previous night.
Ever since that night, a legend spread throughout their town, telling of a female warrior who danced a bloody dance under the moonlight, guarding their land.
Asa had once accidentally heard this tale when she visited the Central Region, but she had no idea that the story was about her.
Tonight, Asa performed the dance once again.
To her ignorance, someone watched from his hiding place.
His eyes were glued to her, his face a poker face devoid of any emotions.
A white cloth tied around his neck indicated that he was a member of the White Pillars.