He later found out that the message reached his parents just as they were attending the funeral of the person who stole his armor. The timing was quite ironic.

His parents went from grieving one moment to confused and overjoyed the next. From what he heard from the rumors, his parents shouted the news out loud at the funeral, causing everyone to run out of the cathdral in droves, leaving a very confused priest behind.

There was no chance of hiding his survival from his enemies now. His return created a huge stir among the Terravalen nobles. There were even rumors that he was a fake at first. The news spread like wildfires, and it probably reached every other kingdom by the time it reached back to Tristan again. By then, he was already back in the royal palace of Terravale, happily reunited with his parents and older sister.

“Tristan Ethanova,” his older sister, Princess Rowena, admonished him. “How dare you disappear for weeks without a single word?”

Tristan only shook his head in amusement at her. “Can’t you just be happy that your little brother is back from the dead?”

Rowena sniffed. “I can see that you’re not so little anymore.”

As the firstborn child of the royal couple of Terravale, Rowena Ethanova was a practical and stern woman. She was three years older than him, with hair slightly redder than his, and jeweled green eyes. However, her pragmatic nature was what caused Tristan’s relationship with his sister to be somewhat strained, for despite the fact that she was the firstborn and the officially recognized heir, Tristan’s military accomplishments made him a threat to her position. 

Due to the war, the people of Terravale preferred a monarch who could protect the kingdom. It was a good thing that Rowena also had jeweled eyes, otherwise it would have been another mark against her. People preferred to have someone with a god’s blessing on the throne because they believed that someone with jeweled eyes is more likely to bring prosperity. 

Although, neither of them have blessings that can be considered prosperous. Rowena has the blessing of Elethea and can talk to animals, and Tristan… Well, as he already told Ella, he’s not quite sure what he can do nor whose blessing he held.

Tristan wanted to tell her that he had no desire for the throne, and he didn’t join the war to garner support from the Terravalens. 

But at times at these, Tristan could tell that his sister did truly love him, for she had genuine tears in her eyes when she saw him well and alive. Tristan couldn’t help but wonder how she felt in the weeks where everyone thought he was dead and she became the undisputed heir to the throne. Was she happy that she no longer had to fight for her position with her younger brother? Or did her grief outweigh her joy?

He sensed no resentment from her as they embraced, although he couldn’t tell for certain as he didn’t possess Ella’s ability to read emotions. However, he chose to believe in Rowena’s sincerity.

He also told his family about how he survived and who saved him, making sure not to talk too in-depth about Ella. He wanted to respect her privacy at the end of the day, and he didn’t want to risk the chance that the Etherian might find out what she did and consider her actions a betrayal to the kingdom.

Once he and his family were seated in a private area, he told them about his internal conflict about fighting in the war.

He wanted to talk about Ella. I think I’m in love with the girl who saved my life. But he didn’t, because he felt that it was a hopeless wish, and it was too greedy of him to ask for that. So he brought up something else instead.

“I don’t want this war to continue anymore,” Tristan confessed. “I no longer feel like it’s the right thing to do.”

The king and queen consort of Terravale cast a look of concern at each other before turning back to their son. 

“Do you mean that you no longer want to be the general of the army?” his father, King Estien, asked his son.

“Yes,” Tristan confirmed. “But more than that, I want all this suffering to end.”

His mother, Queen Consort Ophelia, looked more relieved than upset. Tristan was afraid that the monarchs of Terravale were worried about losing their most powerful weapon. He wasn’t called the Sword of Terravale for no reason, being a vital figure in securing the many victories of the Northern army, but his parents appeared more relieved that their son was no longer partaking in something so dangerous. 

Perhaps the feeling of losing him once made them prioritize his life over the kingdom’s benefit. Tristan also wondered whether they also planned to remove him from his position as general for his own safety. It seemed that his three year stint as a general was over one way or another.

King Estien’s expression turned into a look of pity, as if Tristan had made an impossible wish. “Do you think peace is something we haven’t tried before? The Southwest Alliance and the Eastern Alliance refused to make peace with us for years.”

King Estien suddenly paused as he remembered a critical piece of information. For the first time in decades, one of the three armies had surrendered and was out of the war. It dawned on him that after over a century of no changes, something had changed.

“To be truthful, it is hard to garner enough trust for both parties to seriously consider a truce.” Tristan admitted. “But there is an opportunity. I’m sure the Southwest Alliance is also confused about what to do with the Eastern Alliance’s surrender as we are. If we can calmly sit together to discuss the future of Pyralis and Ardustan with them, then surely we can call for a truce as well.”

“What should we do?” Queen Consort Ophelia asked.

Tristan shot a look at Rowena, urging her to take command. She immediately understood his signal and spoke up, “We’ll send a message to the representatives of each kingdom, asking them to come to Elysara with us to discuss the future of Mythina. If it’s Elysara, they are less likely to refuse.”

Tristan shot her a look of pride. She had expressed exactly what he was thinking.

“Besides,” Rowena continued, “Haven’t the oracle been telling everyone to put an end to this pointless war for decades? I’m surprised we haven’t suffered any kind of divine retribution for ignoring her words.”

“Do we know if the Southwest army even wants peace?” King Estien asked.

“Can you think of anyone who doesn’t?” Tristan snorted, then stopped when he realized that there was indeed one kingdom who probably doesn’t want peace.

“Cartia.” Tristan and Rowena said out loud at the same time.

“Cartia has been supplying us with war weapons since the very start of this war.” Rowena realized. “Their entire economy is probably dependent on this war. It will be hard to convince them to end this war.”

“Cartia also doesn’t send many soldiers to the army.” Tristan pointed out. “In fact, only twenty percent of the army is made up of Cartian soldiers, and they aren’t even well-trained! They claimed that their contribution to our alliance is their weapons, and while their weapons are undeniably good, I can’t help but feel like we’ve been on the short end of our alliance.”

“But, we can probably convince Cartia that it is much more profitable for them to trade their metalworks with all of Mythina once the war ends, not just us.” Rowena added. “At the very least, it probably won’t be too much of a loss for them.”

“Problem solved?” Tristan addressed his parents again.

His father couldn’t help but crack a small smile of pride. “Gods, when did my two children become so big?”

“We’re straying from the topic here.” Rowena responded wryly.

“Very well,” King Estien stood up. “I will do as you said. And in addition, I want both of you to come to Elysara with me for this meeting.”

Both of them? Tristan and Rowena stared at each other with excitement. It was the first time any of them have been involved with interrealm diplomacy, and this invitation was a high honor for both of them.

Finally, things were looking up.