A robust figure sat squarely in a spacious and simple office, where countless screens appeared layered in the void before him. Each screen displayed a battle scene, different yet strikingly consistent, all depicting the fierce combat between beasts and Beast Tamers.
If these screens were to be pieced together, a battle line stretching dozens of miles would easily materialize before one’s eyes, with every detail under the watchful gaze of the burly man seated in the chair.
At a certain moment, his gaze shifted slightly, and with a casual swipe of his hand, the numerous screens silently vanished, and a lifelike figure projected in front of the man.
“This is the command center for the Second Operational Sequence. What do you need?” the man frowned, noticeably displeased to be disturbed by the person on the screen at this moment.
“This is from the Safety and Security Department of the Beast Tamer Association.” The person on the screen nodded slightly in greeting, “Commander Nan, it’s a pleasure to meet you.”
“Get to the point,” Commander Nan had no intention of exchanging pleasantries, “Quickly.”
“Very well.” The person on the screen wasn’t surprised by Commander Nan’s attitude and got straight to the point, “This year, a freshman at Mountain City University appears on the protection list in the Joint Preparatory Camp. Due to the camp’s uniqueness, we haven’t sent a Protector to follow, and we hope Commander Nan will pay extra attention and ensure his safety.”
“Even if my son were in the battlefield, he would be treated the same as everyone else!” Commander Nan’s brows furrowed, “The candidates in the Joint Preparatory Camp are all top talents from various Beast Tamer Universities. We will protect every member of the camp with the highest level of security. However, singling out someone for special treatment—sorry, but in my Second Operational Sequence, there has never been such a precedent!”
“Furthermore,” Commander Nan’s expression turned sour, “This is just my personal opinion, but I do not recommend putting the descendants of heroes on the protection list. The situation of the Alliance isn’t peaceful enough to afford such privileges to the descendants of heroes! It would be more pragmatic to increase the compensation benefits.”
The projection’s expression faltered slightly, “Commander Nan misunderstands. Nowadays, we have heightened the criteria for adding descendants of heroes to the protection list, and matters like military casualty compensation benefits have nothing to do with us…”
His voice trailed off slightly, realizing he had digressed, and his expression turned serious again, “We’ll discuss this later. The member on the protection list is named Lin Su. He’s not what you might think as a descendant of a hero; he is a young man who has truly made outstanding contributions to the Alliance, and he’s only eighteen…” freewebnσvel.cѳm
“Are you talking about Lin Su?” Commander Nan waved dismissively, cutting off the projection’s words, seemingly familiar with Lin Su.
“…Yes,” the figure in the projection replied, “Just now, we received news from the Beast Sect that the bounty on Lin Su has increased to 160,000 Immortal Points, and it was claimed not long ago.”
“Then why didn’t you stop him!” Commander Nan pressed his temples and leaned back in his chair with a dark expression, “Why not stay safely in the secured area at such a critical moment? The Joint Preparatory Camp is not the only time he could join. Couldn’t you have conducted some ideological work and convinced him to delay his participation for a few months? What are you even doing?”
“…By the time we received the news, he was already on the transport vehicle,” the man shook his head.
“Alright, understood,” Commander Nan waved his hand, “I will assign him to a relatively safe area, under the supervision of the strongest instructor in this batch of the camp, and personally check on the situation daily.”
“But, let me be clear!” Commander Nan glanced at the projection, “This is all I can do; this is the biggest compromise I can make. I cannot sacrifice the security assigned to thousands of camp members just to protect one person!”
“Since its inception, the Joint Preparatory Camp has held twenty-five sessions!” Commander Nan’s tone intensified, “In my Second Operational Sequence’s camp, except for the one eleven years ago, all twenty-four other sessions had zero casualties!”
“You are well aware of what this so-called 5% death rate means!” Commander Nan glanced at the other, “Some precedents just can’t be broken!”
“We understand,” the voice on the other side of the projection deepened slightly, “We appreciate your concern; that’s sufficient. We will also continue to activate our undercover forces within the Beast Sect to clarify their movements as much as possible and coordinate with your efforts.”
“Thank you, Commander Nan, for your cooperation,” the figure nodded slightly, and the next moment the projection vanished, and the communication was cut off.
As the projection disappeared, Commander Nan leaned heavily back in his chair and pulled out a pocket watch from his chest, looking at the somewhat antique photo inside it.
In the photo, a much younger version of him—nearly twenty years younger without many changes in his facial features—held a little girl about four or five years old wearing a princess dress, his face bearing a hearty smile.
Gazing at the photo lost in thought for a moment, Commander Nan slowly closed the pocket watch and put it back in his chest, exhaling softly.
“Enough.”
His gaze passed through the open window, looking towards the distant horizon enveloped like a narrow slice of sky, constantly stirring with dark forces and soaring blood lights of the battlefield, his eyes gaining a sharp glint.
With a gentle swipe in the void, the numerous screens appeared once again.