Elven Rebirth

Chapter 23. A Life never had

The wind whipped through the campground, sending leaves swirling. Adam Hill's jaw tightened as he gazed out at the familiar faces and landscape. "Time to go," he said, his voice low and firm.

He turned and stepped into the waiting helicopter. Behind him, his team stood at attention, their eyes shining with emotion.

"Farewell, Captain!" shouted the Assault Team leader.

"Farewell, Captain!" echoed the Special Forces commander.

"Safe journey, Captain!" added the Logistics chief.

Adam's gaze swept across their resolute faces. "Remember, our mission isn't over. Keep fighting for what's right."

A gust of wind buffeted the team, but they stood firm, their salute unwavering.

"We won't let you down, Captain!" a voice called out.

"Protect our people!" another shouted.

Adam's eyes locked onto his team, his expression grim. "I'm counting on you."

As he turned to board the helicopter, a lone figure stepped forward – Sergeant Alex, his trusted friend and second-in-command.

"Sir, we'll hold the line," Alex vowed, his voice trembling.

Adam's hand clenched into a fist. "You're in charge now, Alex. Keep them safe."

Alex saluted, his eyes welling up. "We'll make you proud, Captain."

The helicopter's rotors roared to life, and Adam climbed aboard. As it lifted off, he gazed out at his team, their faces etched in his memory.

"We'll meet again," he whispered, the wind whipping his words away.

The helicopter's rotors whirred to life, drowning out the emotional goodbyes. Tom's voice cracked as he shouted, "Captain, can you really leave them?"

Adam's gaze drifted out the window, his eyes locking onto the campground fading into the distance.

"Close the door, Tom," Adam said softly, a hint of a smile on his lips.

Tom hesitated, but still did as requested. "But, sir..."

Adam's voice firm but gentle. "It's time for me to go. Six years is a long time."

As Tom shut the hatch door, the helicopter lifted off, leaving behind the familiar landscape.

"Don't you feel like you're abandoning them?" Tom said.

Adam's eyes never left the view outside. "I'm not abandoning them, Tom. I'm passing the torch."

Below, the Killer-Wolves Elite stood at attention, their faces etched with determination.

"General Adam Hill!" they shouted in unison, their voices carrying on the wind.

Adam's smile faltered for a moment before he regained his composure.

"Remember, men," he said into the comms device, "protect our people, defend our land."

"Aye, sir!" the team responded.

As the helicopter vanished into the horizon, Tom's voice whispered through the radio, "They'll make you proud, Captain."

Adam's eyes softened, his thoughts drifting to the memories of his six-year journey – from rookie to general, from stranger to leader.

Adam Hill became the most powerful God of War in the eyes of the tens of thousands of members of the Killer-Wolves Elite because of his excellent command ability and combat power. No one dared to invade Thorlean anymore, as it was now well fortified.

Having achieved success, he could finally retire, even though he was only twenty-eight years old. The helicopter flew south toward the nearest airport.

Adam took out an antique pocket watch from his chest, in which was a slightly yellowed photo. It was a photo of him and a young woman taken six years ago. Back then, he was still slightly immature.

The woman's face was beautiful, delicate, and exquisite. Her lips were pursed stubbornly, and her slanted, crystalline eyes seemed to be staring straight into Adam's hand through the photo.

The scene that seemed like a farce at that time was still fresh and vivid in his memory.

Adam smiled bitterly as he began to recall the events from six years ago.

At that time, Evelyn Kent, who had just graduated from college, had already established the Oceanic Group with her outstanding bravery and wits, thus making her a gorgeous and famous female CEO.

However, her image was soon ruined.

The young and beautiful CEO with a glamorous appearance actually had a disgraceful private life, as she had had an affair with the company's chauffeur! The media made a big deal out of it and released all sorts of malicious, speculative, and untrue reports.

Evelyn's image was ruined overnight, and she fell to rock bottom together with her Oceanic Group that was thrown into jeopardy. No one bothered to discover that the truth was that they had actually been drugged.

The masses were only interested in gossip, and the Kents just wanted to cover up the scandal.

In the end, the chauffeur married into the Evans and became her husband.

However, the marriage did not save the image of Evelyn and the Kents.

Everyone mocked and criticized the greatest beauty of Starium City, who used to be the envy of everyone, and made remarks about the penniless chauffeur who was lucky enough to marry into a wealthy family. The penniless chauffeur was Adam. Both of them were well aware of the truth of their marriage.

Soon, Adam quietly left for the military camp and vowed to make a name for himself so that he would be worthy of the woman who used to be favored by God. Six years had passed, and he finally returned after achieving success.

Adam looked at the woman in the photo, his emotions mixed with inexplicable remorse and apology. He wondered how she was doing after years of being away from her.

"Finally back!" Tom stretched his back and looked at Adam, who had a look of nostalgia. The two of them passed through the crowded Starium City International Airport and casually ordered some fast food at the mall outside the airport.

"Captain.. No, I mean, Adam, your hometown is in Starium City, isn't it?" Adam casually nodded.

It had been a long time since they left Starium City, and now that they had just returned, there were many things for them to tend to.

"Mommy. I want Mommy.." All of a sudden, soft and crisp crying sounded near them. Adam stopped in his tracks.

For some reason, the tender crying was tugging at his heartstrings. Adam pushed aside the crowd and followed the sound. There was a little girl standing below a billboard near him and weeping, her face stained with tears.

The girl was about four or five years old and was holding a stuffed rabbit in her arms. Her tiny face was as fine as jade, and tears were welling up in her large, dark eyes. Her small and delicate nose was sniffling because of her crying, and she looked particularly adorable and pitiful, making Adam's heart scrunch up. In particular, she seemed bizarrely familiar to Adam.

At this moment, the girl saw Adam as well, and she abruptly stopped crying. Her eyes full of surprise, she suddenly leaped toward Adam and hugged his thigh! "Daddy!"

Adam was stunned speechless and at a complete loss for what to do.

At the side, Tom blinked and exclaimed, "Adam, this kid really looks like you. Since when do you have a daughter? We've never heard you mention anything about it before!"

"Don't spout nonsense." Adam was somewhat at a loss. It was the first time in his life that he had ever had a child hug his thigh trustingly and call him 'Daddy'.

After thinking about it, he squatted down, rubbed the little girl's hair, and said softly, "I'm not your Daddy. You made a mistake. Did you wander off from your parents? I take you to look for them."

Hearing this, the little girl looked at Adam in shock and suddenly began wailing loudly. "Daddy, you're a bad guy. You don't want me anymore!"

Adam was dumbfounded and at a loss. After some painstaking effort, he finally managed to cajole her and convince her to go to the service counter of the mall.

Adam informed the service staff about the little girl being lost and gave a thorough explanation before leaving the mall.

When he left, the little girl was bawling her eyes out, almost causing Adam to cave in. Unfortunately, he still had important things to deal with. Otherwise, he would have kept her company until her parents arrived.

Soon after they left, a woman hurried to the service counter of the mall and hugged the weeping little girl, extremely heartbroken.

"Excel, I'm sorry I'm late.."

There was still some lingering fear within her. Earlier, she had intended to just make a quick trip to the bathroom, but she ended up running into a troublesome client who pestered her for a long time before leaving.

Over the years, she had been cherishing her daughter like she was her life. If anything happened to her daughter... She didn't dare to think about it any longer. This woman was Evelyn Kent.

At the airport security office, Evelyn Kent was anxiously looking for Excel. She recalled that years ago, her mother said Adam demanded $500,000 from her father before abandoning her abruptly. Despite opposition from the Kent family and her parents, she gave birth to Excel. Because of this, not only did Evelyn lost control of Sterling Group, she almost got expelled from the Kent family.

"Mommy, I saw Daddy just now. But he said that I had mistaken him for someone else... How could I be mistaken? He was Daddy!" the girl exclaimed, her lips pursed and on the verge of tears.

"What!?" The woman's body suddenly stiffened.