After everyone dispersed, Max – the soldier Kai disciplined the day he came to the barracks – came to him.
"Congratulations, Kai, sorry, Corporal Kai." He extended his hand, shaking Kai's, and smiled.
"Today is your day, but you're needed in Lieutenant Gray's office now. Follow me!" he said, the smiling face turning to seriousness.
'Why does he seem disturbed? Is something wrong…' Kai thought as he followed him.
As soon as he reached and entered Gray's office, Kai noticed the slightly tensed atmosphere; both the glow and vibration he'd been seeing and feeling were more tensed than usual.
Kai stood still in front of the desk, hands crossed at his side, waiting.
"Kai, I called you here because of the monsters," the lieutenant began, scratching his chin.
"Five years ago, they were a nuisance. But now, they're a complete threat to us – not just our city, but also to the neighboring cities and villages."
Kai simply listened without making his mind busy with anything. He knew a little about the monsters, but not much.
"There's a reason I haven't gone after them again. There is another problem, the bandit causing our city to shatter has risen. And their leader is a strong man, not as strong as me, but still strong."
"If the problem were to be one, it would be simple, but the two are impossible to face alone."
"There's no soldier besides me who can hold the bandits while I'm gone, and if they could, the casualty would be many."
Lieutenant Gray said slowly.
"That's simple, isn't it? The two of us can go after the monsters and then to the bandits and beat them, right?" Kai said directly, without seeing what the problem actually was.
"In books, it's easy to say this. But Kai, you've never fought a real battle to the death. Your comrades, the ones you know from the barracks, could die."
"You have to be fully prepared to fight, to leave everything and fight no matter what. You must be determined to eliminate the enemy even if someone you've been close to or have been friends with, and not let the losses affect you during the fight."
"If it affects you, your mind won't be focused on doing what's necessary, and that would lead to your death, including countless mothers and children," Gray said seriously.
"I don't think you need to worry yourself. I know what to do. If I don't go, we won't have peace, and we won't have a sound mind. Mothers won't be able to protect their children, while children won't be able either."
He stood up, walked toward the window, and sighed.
"The city is in your hands while I'm gone. Fight the bandits and make everyone safe." He doubted whether he should involve a child in this chaos.
Even with this strength, Kai was still a child.
"I don't think you need to worry. I know what I have to do. If you don't go, families will be shattered, and if the rest of us don't go after the bandits, our supply of food will be cut, and the city will be in the hands of the unlawful ones, Right?"
Kai said, staring at his small hands, which slowly turned into a clenched fist.
"I will leave in three days."
…
Three days passed in an instant. The meeting hall of the barracks was silent, while the chandeliers above the table illuminated a map showing the city to the east and the land filled with trees. To the west, the Grog's Land.
And at the center of the land, where no trees were, was a route to the next neighboring city.
The shadow of thirty people flickered in the room, fifteen at the right, and fifteen at the left. And at the right, one person stood taller and more intimidating than them all, and on the left, one smaller person stood at the front. They all looked at the map from different angles.
Gray then leaned over the table and with a black pen, traced routes on the flickering screen of the table until he zoomed in and marked a spot by stabbing the tip of the pen on the map.
"The bandits were last seen here three days ago. Max, who was following their trail, found their new hideout. And it's time to act, without me." Gray began to speak.
"Marcus and the bandits attacked the last two vehicles carrying supplies and stole everything. The driers and the merchants are afraid to travel to the road and remain in the city, hiding the little they have and sharing it only with their families."
"Food will no longer reach our mouths if it continues like this. Max and Kai would be in charge of this operation, including the remaining thirteen people. While the remaining fourteen I stand with will go after the monsters."
Everyone in Kai's group became tense, their eyes widened, but they couldn't go against the lieutenant's words.
"Wipe them out while we're out there, sacrificing our lives."
That was the last thing Gray said before exiting the hall with the fourteen men dressed in black military suits.
'We'll be waiting for you.'
That was the thought going on in everyone's mind as the shadow of the lieutenant, who happened to be the last person to exit.
In Kai's gaze, he saw the shadows he'd been learning of, but they waved in the direction of the lieutenant.
…
"You will have to eliminate them before they can scream. And then, find the best path for us to invade their camp. We will eliminate as many as we can before they realize they're under attack." Max spoke calmly.
Kai looked at the pen, now in Max's hand, sighed, and took it without hesitation. What looked small in Max's hands seemed large in Kai's.
He understood that everything would depend on him entirely, and if he acts well, losses could be few or even none.
And if he failed, they would be sending themselves and the entire city into the hands of the bandits.
"I will take the first move and kill them," Kai replied, deciding in his mind.