"Happy birthday, Spia!"

With the blessings of many people, Sbia Reginor celebrated her twentieth birthday at the end of winter of that year.

The venue for the birthday party was set at Javier's house, and because of the large number of guests, the liveliness in the hall was somewhat unusual, and the atmosphere was extremely lively.

Among these visitors, in addition to the companions who belong to the same "Falcon" as Spia, the "Hunters" led by Estes are also invited.

It is worth mentioning that Spiya's father, Jolly, left without stopping after arriving to give the gifts.

I think it's because as the new minister, he is indeed busy with official business, and this is also a gathering of young people, and he is not easy to join in the fun as an old man, so it is enough to take a picture.

The situation in the Empire has changed dramatically, as the death of Minister Earnest and the formalization of the relationship between Javier and Estes have put an end to the faction rivalry between the "Falcon" and the "Hunter".

Considering that everyone will work together in the future, there will definitely be no shortage of opportunities to meet each other, so Javier took the opportunity of Spiya's birthday to send out an invitation, in order to revitalize the relationship between the two parties.

For various reasons, there have been more than one conflict between the "falcon" and the "hunter", and there have even been casualties.

Although everyone is a soldier and is accustomed to seeing life and death, and the sacrifice in the mission should not be a reason for resentment, understanding is one thing, and it is impossible to want nothing from each other.

Faced with this situation, Javier has no immediate solution, and can only hope that time will erase the knots in their hearts.

"Thank you, I'm really happy!"

Sibia smiled, with a bright color on her face, she couldn't see the loss and sadness of a few days ago, and she was still holding large and small gift boxes in her arms, all of which were carefully prepared by everyone.

As for the matter of Javier and Estes, Sibia seems to have been relieved, but it is also possible that it is just a dark sea buried deep in the depths of her heart.

Javier actually knows Spiya's thoughts, after all, they grew up together since childhood, and he still sees some changes in girls, but it is precisely because he grew up together since he was a child that in his subconscious, he has always regarded Sbia as a close sister, which does not contain a little bit of affection between men and women.

But Javier wasn't too worried.

It's not strange for a simple-minded girl to have admiration for an excellent person of the opposite sex around her.

But as she grows older and her experience increases, Sibia will probably understand that there are actually many good people in this world to choose from, and there is no need for her to hang herself from this tree.

This is a good girl who deserves a better future.

-

The birthday party has officially begun.

Fabio, the old butler, beckoned the servants to present sumptuous dishes and wines, and on the edge of the large dining table were fine porcelain bowls from the city of Ruyao and crystal goblets from the Western Kingdom, and the large ceiling hanging upside down emitted a bright light, shining on the porcelain discs of the table, reflecting the bright color luster.

The visitors sat down one after another, probably under the influence of the strong atmosphere in the hall, and they all let go of their restraints and gathered together to talk.

Among them, Estes seems to have a good conversation with Arowen and Marika, and the content of the conversation is nothing more than to find a time to discuss this kind of martial arts topic.

For Xavier's two strong generals, Estes has long heard of it.

Arowen was born and died with Javier for many years, and was known for his strong swordsmanship and treacherous and changeable way of marching, and the name of the "Black Fox" was louder than the "Three Beasts" under the command of Estes combined.

If there is no accident, in the past two years, taking advantage of the opportunity of the empire to raise troops to suppress rebellions in various places, Arowen can firmly sit in the position of the general of the empire.

If he was a little more lucky, he was able to make a distinction in the war, and he even had the opportunity to be given a surname by the emperor, and he would get rid of his commoner status and become a hereditary nobleman.

As Arowen's partner, Marika has only recently begun to emerge, and she doesn't like to show her head very much on weekdays, and she is very low-key, and not many people know her.

But Estes had long been interested in this taciturn girl, because Liva, who had been defeated by Marika, spoke highly of her, saying that this girl was the only swordsmanship genius he had ever seen in his life, which aroused Estes' interest.

I remember one time, Estes talked about this girl in a casual conversation with Javier.

Javier also admitted that Marika still has considerable potential to be tapped, and in terms of swordsmanship alone, even Arowen can't compare to her, and given time, she may have the opportunity to step into the level of "the strongest in the empire".

The empire is the strongest, for a martial artist, this is already the highest level of evaluation, and it also makes Estes really look at Marika differently.

After all, as a female warrior, there are very few characters who can reach this level, and now it is rare to have one, which naturally makes her feel pity.

On the other side of the feast, Will and Dajdala were fighting each other for some reason, and they drank the vats of liquor again and again, and drank so boldly, while Porus and Black Hitomi cheered on them.

After a while, Arowen also noticed the situation here, and saw that he was all drunk, and he didn't want to be too lively to join in, and then it didn't take long for him to be drunk, and Marika had to help him back to his room to rest.

Sibia was talking softly to Chelsea and Lan, and she didn't know what she was talking about, but she seemed to be quite happy, and from time to time there was a burst of laughter.

In the corner of the feast, Javier was drinking and talking with Liva, his expression indifferent and undevoid of the obvious hostility and disdain as before.

There may have been unpleasantness and incomprehension, but after all, it is only a thing of the past, and there is no need to cling to it.

Now, more importantly, they are once again on the same front, comrades fighting for a common goal.

Then, what should be let go must be let go, and what should be reconciled must also be reconciled.

"It's been about five years since we've had a drink together, General Liva?" Xavier said with a little emotion, "I didn't expect to have another day at the same table, life is really impermanent." ”

Liva shook his head, and there was a complicated look in his eyes, which looked a little old because they were too deep, and there was nostalgia, shame, and a sigh.

"I'm not a general anymore, and I don't have that qualification, you ...... Just call me by my name. ”

"I see...... Well, Liva. ”

Javier bowed slightly, not pretentious, and continued to speak.

"Maybe you're still minding what happened...... But for me, the past is the past, and I don't want to delve into the reasons for the path you have chosen, and I don't want to discuss whether that path is right or not, because it doesn't matter anymore. ”

"And what's really important is that we now have something we can work towards together, and I think that should be enough for us to reconcile."

Javier looked directly into Liva's eyes, and there was not a flicker in his gaze, indicating that he meant what he said.

Liva was silent for a moment, then smiled.

"You're right, the past is the past, and looking to the future is the most important thing."

Two goblets full of fine wine touched in the air, making a crisp sound, and Javier and Liva both drank it all, with the atmosphere of their Southwest Military Region, this can be regarded as a glass of wine to release their suspicions.

The banquet lasted for quite a long time, and it was not until the bright moon in the sky lifted the dark clouds and climbed to the highest point that it was finally announced, and the guests also took their leave one after another.

-

It was still late at night.

The cold winter wind howls through the long sky, and even the howling of the wind can be heard in the silence of the night.

Standing on the roof of the mansion, the cold wind penetrated into the human body along the gaps in the clothes, but the person standing here did not seem to feel the slightest cold, and he was not even in the mood to shiver, and the whole person remained immovable, like a sculpture made of cold iron.

Javier stood here silently, the soles of his boots resting on the smooth floor of the rooftop, his hands resting on the railing, looking down on the city condescendingly, his view from a good vantage point that allowed him to see almost a quarter of the entire imperial capital.

Under the reflection of the moonlight, his eyes seemed to be shining with wonderful brilliance, quietly staring at the big city called "Imperial Capital" under his feet, while his thoughts drifted into the distance in a trance.

Just a few days ago, the insiders of Havel who had broken into the revolutionary army received news that the revolutionary forces in the southeast were already actively preparing for war, and had also sent envoys to Anning Dao and other ethnic groups in the west.

All this made Havel feel the imminent smell of war.

As a pinnacle-level martial artist and a general who is proficient in strategy, he is not afraid of war, no matter how cruel the battlefield, he is confident that he will survive on his own strength, and even achieve the ultimate victory.

But even then, it was impossible for him to face the coming war with a calm mind.

If there is anything he fears the most in his life, after every war, he looks through the list of the war dead who have been handed in - because each name on it represents a broken family.

So, the thing he hates the most is war.

But the irony is that in the face of war, the only way to fight it is war, and in order to win, he must be better at this thing than the enemy.

If you want to protect it, you have to devote yourself to the war with all your might, which is really a laughable cause and effect.

In a slight silence, Javier suddenly heard the faint sound of footsteps behind him, so he turned his head to look.

The bright moonlight gently poured down, illuminating the surrounding vision, and also let Javier see the tall and beautiful figure clearly, the cool breeze blowing slowly raised her beautiful long ice blue hair, and the beautiful woman reached out to brush the messy hair behind her ears, and the momentary style was so beautiful that it could be suffocating, and then remembered for the rest of her life.