It's so hard being a hero!

After turning left and right, we soon saw the camp of the Chen Knights.

Chapter 123 Reunion

Sofia spotted a familiar flag in the distance.

It was a silver flag with gold patterns, embroidered with a rising sun, and below the sun were two unsheathed holy swords crossed.

This is the flag of the Knights of Dawn.

Those two swords belong to Su Lan and Victor.

Decades have passed, and this flag has not changed at all.

Sofia stood a few feet away from the camp entrance, looking at the flag fluttering in the wind, and a surge of indescribable emotions welled up inside her.

In the beginning, the Knights of Dawn were actually just an elite knightly order created by the empire and the church.

He designed the flag concept.

Back then, Vic even mocked her, saying, "Why are you acting like a woman, doing all this fancy stuff?"

She retorted, "You don't know anything, this is called team spirit."

Unexpectedly, this thing has been used for decades.

"Hey!"

Sofia couldn't help but sigh at the doctor, then suppressed the surging memories and walked towards the camp gate.

Two knights in silver armor stood at the camp gate. They looked to be young men in their early twenties, probably the new generation of the Dawn Knights.

One of the young knights, with short hair, raised his hand and politely but warily blocked her path.

"Please wait, this is the headquarters of the Knights of Dawn. Who are you looking for?"

Sophia stopped, took out her Adventurers' Guild identification from her pocket, and handed it over.

“My name is Sophia. I am a supporter of Tianxing Academy. Lady Frey asked me to come and find Miss Leila.”

The short-haired knight took the certificate, glanced at it, then looked up at Sophia's face, which was noticeably younger than her peers, and showed a surprised expression.

"You're here to see Miss Lyra?"

The slightly older knight next to him also came over to take a look at the certificate, and then looked at Sophia with a somewhat subtle expression.

"Are you a student at Tianxing Academy?"

"Yes, second grade."

The short-haired knight was quite agreeable; he didn't press further, returned the certificate to her, and stepped aside to let her pass.

“Miss Leila is resting in the camp. Just follow this road to the end, turn left and it’s the second tent. But she’s exhausted these past few days and is probably still sleeping.”

"It's alright, I can go in and find her myself, no need to announce it."

The short-haired knight thought for a moment and nodded.

"Okay, then you can go in by yourself."

Sofia thanked them and stepped into the camp.

The scene inside the camp was pretty much as she had imagined, with soldiers and knights hurrying about everywhere.

Some people were repairing damaged armor, others were counting the number of arrows and magic scrolls, and several medics were squatting in a corner bandaging the wounded.

Sofia walked along the road, her gaze sweeping over every blade of grass and tree in the camp, and the emotions that had been suppressed in her heart quietly resurfaced.

She walked to the end of the road, turned left, and saw the second tent.

The tent flaps were hanging down, and it was very quiet inside; no sound could be heard from the outside.

Sophia stood at the door for a few seconds, then gently lifted a corner of the curtain and stepped inside.

The tent was small, containing only a simple bed, a small table, and a shelf for armor.

Leila was lying on the bed.

The way she looks when she's asleep is completely different from how she looks when she's fighting.

He didn't take off his silver armor, but loosened a few straps, and his chest rose and fell slightly with his breathing.

Her long, golden hair was scattered on the pillow, with a few strands clinging to her cheeks and some stuck together with sweat and blood, making it look somewhat messy.

Sophia noticed that there were several bandages wrapped around her arm, and the edge of the gauze in one place was faintly dark red.

She walked silently to the bedside and sat down quietly.

The tent was quiet, so quiet that you could hear Leila's even, long breaths.

She sat very close without disturbing the other person.

Leila was sleeping soundly.

Sofia looked down at Leila's tired and haggard face, and felt a sharp pang in her heart.

She had never seen Lyra sleeping so closely before; it was a truly magical feeling.

How did this girl grow up?

When did you take your first steps?

When was the first time you called someone "Mommy"?

When was the first time you picked up a sword?

She knew none of this.

She missed far too many important moments in Leila's life.

Sofia reached out, wanting to brush away the strand of hair on her face that was stuck together with sweat and blood, but stopped halfway through, afraid of waking her.

"Hey! You're sleeping so soundly, you must be really tired."

She withdrew her hand and sat quietly, looking at Leila's face as if she were looking at a lost treasure that had been found again.

After an unknown amount of time, footsteps and voices suddenly came from outside.

"Laila, are you awake? The commander wants you to go to the central command tent."

A young man's voice came from outside the tent, not too loud, but loud enough to wake the person inside.

Leila's eyelids twitched, then she suddenly opened her eyes.

Those blue eyes still held the bewilderment of someone who had just woken up, but it was quickly replaced by an instinctive alertness.

Her gaze first swept across the entire tent, then landed on Sofia, who was sitting on the edge of the bed.

Then she froze.

Those blue eyes were wide open, and their mouths were slightly agape, as if they had seen something unbelievable.

She blinked, then blinked again, to make sure she wasn't dreaming.

"S...Sophia?"

Her voice was hoarse from just waking up, and her tone was full of disbelief.

Sophia smiled when she saw that she was awake.

"Sister Laila, it's been a long time."

Laila suddenly sat up in bed, the movement aggravating the injury on his arm, causing him to hiss in pain.

But she didn't care about any of that. She stared at Sophia for several seconds, then let out an exaggerated scream.

"Sofia, what brings you here?"

This voice was many times louder than the young man's voice from before.

The footsteps outside the tent stopped for a moment, followed by a slightly puzzled voice.

"Laila? Who are you talking to?"

"None of your business."

Laila yelled without turning her head, then continued to stare at Sophia, her eyes filled with shock, surprise, and an indescribable complexity.

"What are you doing here? Aren't you studying at Tianxing Academy? What are you doing at Zhenmo Pass? Did you come alone?"

She asked a string of questions in one breath, without even taking a breath.

Sophia was a little dizzy from her barrage of questions and quickly raised her hand to signal her to slow down.

"Take your time asking questions, one at a time."

Leila then took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down.

Her blue eyes were fixed on Sophia.

"Answer me first: Did you come to the front lines? Are you alone?"

Sophia thought for a moment and then nodded.

"Yes, I just arrived not long ago. I went to see your mother first, and she asked me to come and see you."

Leila opened her mouth, wanting to say something, but found herself unsure of where to begin.

She stared at Sophia for a while, then suddenly reached out and pulled her into her arms.

Caught off guard, Sofia crashed into Lyra's chest, her face pressed against the silver armor still stained with blood and sweat.

"You little brat, how dare you be so bold?"

Lyra's muffled voice came from above, tinged with hoarseness and lingering fear.

"Do you even know where you are? You just came here? Do you think you're playing house in a school?"

Sophia was a little breathless from being hugged so tightly, but she didn't struggle. She just mumbled something.

"I know, I'm here to help."

Leila released her, placed her hands on her shoulders, and looked her up and down.

Her gaze swept over Sofia's sharp outfit and then settled on the badge on her chest.

The silver badge, edged with a gold line, is the symbol of the Adventurers' Guild's Gold-level team.