Chapter 540

Ava Quarles felt like she had been asleep forever. Her mind was hazy, like it was wrapped in a dense fog. It was strange—she hadn't let herself sink into such deep sleep for at least a decade. She dreamed a dream so long, it felt endless. And she knew it was a dream, not reality, because in it, she was so young. It must’ve been when she was around fifteen. Back when the old commander, the man who supported her financially, visited the orphanage. Actually, it wasn’t just her; he also visited the other kids he sponsored. The old commander was kind-hearted and approachable. Every time he came to the orphanage, the kids would swarm around him, their laughter filling the seemingly bleak space. He’d share stories—tales from his time in the military, even about the campaigns during the nation's founding wars. She? She always stood on the outside of the group. There, in the shadows where sunlight couldn’t reach, she would silently listen. Among all the kids here, she was the oldest. By the tim