Chapter 105 - 104: A Little Late-Night Snack
"DAMN IT!!!!!!!"
"What the hell is this midnight whistle of death?!?"
"Get your asses up! Everyone, up!!!"
"Stop sleeping, stop sleeping! The instructors are gonna punish us!!!"
"My god, it’s not even 3:30. Did they really mean ’see you tomorrow’ *this* early? Couldn’t even wait two and a half hours?"
"Number Five, get that blanket of yours squared away!"
"Let’s go, let’s go! Our squad is already heading down!!"
Startled from their sleep, everyone shot upright. They quickly sorted out their personal effects, got dressed, and ran toward the training grounds.
That wasn’t a whistle! That was a goddamn summons from The Underworld!!
’As a humble soldier, my resentment is starting to rival that of an eight-hundred-year-old vengeful ghost~’
The training ground was brightly lit, as if it were day, drawing everyone forward.
It was as if by walking over there, one could see the stairway to heaven (not).
Looking from a distance, they could see their number one instructor standing in the same spot as yesterday, her back to them.
Next to her stood yesterday’s brawny, bearded guy, along with an unidentified life form with two pigtails sticking out of its head.
As they passed them, the group subconsciously called out, "Good morning, Instructors," before hurrying to fall into formation.
Yvonne Lowell glanced at Zachary Jacobs. He understood, checked the stopwatch, and announced, "4 minutes, 42 seconds."
Yvonne Lowell’s eyes narrowed as she looked down at the four neat squads. "All units, as squads, you’ll start with a 20-lap weighted run to wake yourselves up and warm up."
"Yes, ma’am!"
The group quickly strapped on the sandbags placed at their feet and filed onto the track in an orderly fashion.
Nina Jennings stroked her chin, watching the runners. "Tsk, not bad. Not a single troublemaker. I thought for sure that since it’s only the first day, hauling them out of bed in the middle of the night would make at least a few of them lose their tempers."
Zachary Jacobs agreed. "I thought so too, at first. But Finn just messaged me. Said they left their quarters in perfect order. They grumbled a bit on the way here, but they never stopped moving, and not a single item failed inspection."
"Now I get why you don’t like training rookies," Nina Jennings remarked with a sigh. "It’s so much easier to handle these self-disciplined good kids. Their rough edges have already been smoothed out."
"It has nothing to do with them being rookies or veterans, troublemakers or not," Yvonne Lowell said with a silent smile. "It’s simply because this is Aurelia."
Nina Jennings and Zachary Jacobs froze for a second, then smiled as it dawned on them.
Right. It was simply because this was Aurelia.
And any one of the 40 people here could be pulled out and become the sharpest blade for defending the nation, both from foreign threats and domestic turmoil.
How could people so full of fire and spirit not have sharp edges?
It’s just that their sacred duty is to obey orders. Plus, the strong are naturally drawn to respect those who are even stronger.
That’s why they yearn to catch up to her, to become like her, and even to surpass her.
People often say the journey is more important than the destination.
But for people like them, the hardship and exhaustion, the injuries and pain, the blood and sweat they shed on the path to success... none of that seemed to matter as much.
What they truly valued was who they ultimately became, and how many people they could protect with their abilities.
Their dream is small: to protect this home.
Their dream is vast: to protect this home.
...
When he saw Glenn Rhodes walking over with a tray of food, Zachary Jacobs quickly called out, "Alright, enough chatting. Let’s get some of this late-night snack. I’m starving after getting up in the middle of the night."
Yvonne Lowell raised an eyebrow and looked back. "What did you prepare?"
"Conditions are a bit rough, so I could only manage a few self-heating hot pots. After that, I had them grill some skewers."
Yvonne Lowell looked at him suspiciously. "You brought a grill?"
Zachary Jacobs rubbed his nose awkwardly and waved for them to sit. "Hey, we just used what was on hand! I had them find a few scrap metal plates. C’mon, sit, sit."
’If I told her I dismantled the wire fence from around the tree at the canteen entrance to grill these skewers, Yvonne Lowell would kill me, right?!’
Yvonne Lowell shot him a glance but didn’t say anything else, simply sitting down and starting to eat.
Nina Jennings slurped some broth. "Ahh, that hits the spot. It feels a little sinful, though."
"It’s not like you haven’t done plenty of sinful things before," Yvonne Lowell said, holding a skewer and casually watching the people on the track.
"How is that the same? Back then, I didn’t feel any psychological pressure. This time is different. I feel guilty."
Zachary Jacobs scoffed. "What’s different? Then you should stop eating. But from here, it looks like your bowl is almost empty."
"Angus, are you trying to die?!" Nina Jennings’s composure shattered, and she kicked him irritably.
The late-night autumn wind brought a chill to those sitting there.
It also carried the tantalizing aroma of meat to the squad members on the track.
"Damn! What’s that smell?! It’s so good! Who the hell would be having a cookout in the middle of nowhere at this hour?"
"Why do I smell a butter-based hot pot? And the smell of barbecue skewers from my homeland!!"
"Look. The instructors are over there having a late-night snack."
"Unbelievable. Absolutely unbelievable! I seriously suspect they woke us up just so we could keep them company while they eat."
"They really are something else. I could just cry. It’s one thing to eat a late-night snack, but they’re even kind enough to let us smell it."
"Alright, cut the chatter. Conserve your energy, regulate your breathing."
"What lap are we on?"
"Lap eight. Almost there."
...
「An hour and a half later, everyone had finished their run and returned.」
Aside from some heavy breathing, they seemed to be in no other discomfort.
Nina Jennings and Zachary Jacobs exchanged a glance, their eyes filled with admiration.
Yvonne Lowell swallowed a bite of her skewer and said, "Rest in place for ten minutes. Don’t take off the sandbags yet."
"Yes, ma’am!"
After catching their breath, the group sat down where they were, but their gazes kept drifting involuntarily toward Yvonne Lowell and the other instructors.
It smelled so, so good.
’They wanted to ask, wanted to eat, but they didn’t dare...’
In the middle of the night, right after such a strenuous workout, what could possibly be more comforting to the soul than hot pot and barbecue?
No wonder so many people choose late-night jogging routes that pass by food streets.
’And could this all be the work of the canteen chefs?! Does that mean we can eat this well too?!’
Zachary Jacobs: It *was* made by the chefs, but you can’t have any. Hehe. ;)
The 40 Trainees: Not hehe. >:(
Just as everyone was lost in their delicious fantasies, the stopwatch Yvonne Lowell was using began to vibrate.
Yvonne Lowell looked up at them and uttered a few merciless words: "Everyone, on your feet."
The group scrambled to their feet and fell into formation.
"Five hundred squats in place. Count your own reps. Begin now."