Chapter LXXXVIII - The Winter General Returns
The blizzard screamed around them.
Snow erased the horizon.
The camp had become a prison of white and steel.
And at its center—
the stranger stood calmly.
As though surrounded by assassins, guards, and drawn weapons meant nothing at all.
Dangerous.
Very dangerous.
—
Shen Li remained still.
Outwardly calm.
Only outwardly.
Because his words still echoed through her mind.
Seven years ago...
Prince Rui survived something he was never meant to survive.
Not a battle.
Not an accident.
Something planned.
The realization felt cold.
Then softly she asked:
"Who are you?"
The stranger smiled.
Not warmly.
Not cruelly.
Simply like a man amused by inevitability.
Then:
"A witness."
Interesting.
Very interesting.
The answer explained nothing.
Which meant it explained far too much.
—
The Black Sparrow's hand tightened around her blade.
She never looked away from him.
Not once.
Then quietly:
"Don't listen to him."
The stranger laughed softly.
"You always were sentimental."
The assassin's expression darkened immediately.
Because only someone from her past would know that.
Only someone she once trusted.
Or feared.
Then suddenly Shen Li understood.
This wasn't merely an enemy.
This was a ghost.
A survivor from the same buried world as the Black Sparrow.
A world that should have remained dead.
—
The stranger took another step forward.
The guards instantly shifted.
Crossbows tightened.
Swords lifted.
Then he stopped.
And looked directly at Shen Li.
"Princess Rui."
"Do you know why Prince Rui was sent north seven years ago?"
Silence.
Because everyone knew the official answer.
Military necessity.
Border instability.
War.
The stranger smiled faintly.
"That was the excuse."
The wind seemed colder suddenly.
Then:
"The truth is much simpler."
His eyes sharpened.
"Someone feared him."
Absolute silence.
Because suddenly—
that made sense.
Too much sense.
The surveillance order.
The hidden reports.
The years of observation.
Everything fit.
Then quietly he added:
"And now they fear him more."
—
Far away—
hoofbeats shattered the storm.
Relentless.
Violent.
Unstoppable.
Prince Rui rode through the blizzard like a force of nature.
The cavalry escort had fallen behind hours ago.
Only a handful remained.
No one dared suggest stopping.
Because their commander's expression had become terrifying.
Cold.
Focused.
Murderously calm.
The expression soldiers saw before battlefields turned red.
Then suddenly—
a scout emerged from the storm.
One of Prince Rui's own riders.
The man nearly collapsed from exhaustion.
Then shouted:
"Your Highness!"
Prince Rui halted instantly.
The scout handed over a hastily written report.
Prince Rui read.
And froze.
Only for a second.
Enough.
Because the final line stated:
Unknown male contact located near Princess Rui.
Black Sparrow confirms high threat level.
Silence.
Then Prince Rui folded the report.
Carefully.
Far too carefully.
Then quietly:
"I know who it is."
The scout blinked.
Confused.
Then Prince Rui mounted again.
And for the first time since leaving the northern frontier—
genuine fury entered his eyes.
—
Back at the camp—
the stranger finally sighed.
Almost disappointed.
Then looked toward the storm.
Listening.
Waiting.
Interesting.
Very interesting.
Then he smiled.
"He's close."
The Black Sparrow stiffened immediately.
Because she realized it too.
Horse.
Movement.
Riders.
Fast riders.
Very fast riders.
Then the stranger laughed softly.
"Perfect."
Shen Li's chest tightened.
Because suddenly—
she understood something terrifying.
This man wanted Prince Rui here.
Everything.
The poison. The spies. The pursuit.
All of it.
Designed to draw him.
Then softly she asked:
"Why?"
The stranger looked at her.
And for the first time—
the answer came without games.
Without riddles.
Without amusement.
"Because Prince Rui needs to learn the truth."
Silence.
Then:
"Seven years ago..."
"The order to kill him came from inside the imperial family."
The world stopped.
Absolutely stopped.
The guards froze.
The Black Sparrow froze.
Even the storm seemed to vanish.
Because those words were treason.
The highest treason imaginable.
Yet somehow—
everyone believed him.
Then the stranger smiled.
And quietly finished:
"And the person who gave that order is still alive."
—
The next sound came from beyond the blizzard.
A horse.
Then another.
Then many.
Fast.
Closing.
And suddenly—
for the first time all night—
the stranger looked pleased.
Because the final piece had arrived.
Prince Rui.
The Winter General.
The man everyone feared.
The man someone had tried to kill seven years ago.
The man who would burn kingdoms for one woman.
And he was finally here.