***
Three months later.
Rockvalley Village.
Gideon stood in front of the Baron's residence, walking alone along the road that was slowly returning to normal.
The piles of snow were melting away, no longer seen along the streets. The snowfall had also stopped, a sign that winter had ended.
In a few days, spring would arrive, and the work that had been delayed could continue again. Luke could focus once more on digging the well without Lyra.
Lena was busy with patients coming in to complain about the flu, the result of the season's harsh changes.
As for troop training, Lucas was leading them with other soldiers. Gideon actually wanted Norton's help with this, but since Norton was at war in the north, he could not assist.
Gideon did not know whether Norton would survive the war that was turning against the Moko Kingdom.
Even so, Norton Ashfield had been the Kingdom's infantry commander for years. He understood the battlefield more than Gideon ever could.
