Ratifa Villarreal was busy. Everyone was busy. And being busy was a good thing.
If Tommy was a solitary man, Claude was like a spirited young man in his prime, enjoying a new lease on life.
Claude rode on horseback, expertly directing the logistics and supply train.
The supply train had grown from a dozen or so carriages at the start to a seemingly endless column now, and the transformation was staggering to Claude.
'The Lord's rise has been so fast, it's like a dream spanning just a few months. A local Count who was once an untouchable figure now converses warmly with my Lord.'
'For years, there had been one battle after another. The army almost never stopped; they were either training or on the march.'
'Is this really the same boy I knew? How did he grow up so much in the blink of an eye?'
