Chapter 64: Chapter 63: The Only Battle With the Back
Against the Water
Translator: 549690339
Every few minutes, Daniel Thompson couldn’t help but throw a glance towards the new recruit who was huffing and puffing as he circled the training ground.
Previously, Daniel held no particular impression of Harrison Clark, only remembering him as someone with a weak presence.
If it weren’t for Harrison zoning out today during Daniel’s speech, he would have forever remained a faceless passerby in Daniel’s world.
But just like that, Harrison suddenly became deeply ingrained in his memory.
Daniel had no idea where this seemingly mediocre new recruit found the courage to challenge the physical fitness standards of the armored soldiers upon arrival.
He grinned, finding the situation somewhat absurd but commending the young man’s spirit.
To become a good soldier, one needs this kind of unyielding determination.
Even if it seems utterly hopeless and only results in falling on the path ahead, it’s better than kneeling and submitting at the starting point.
Finding someone like Harrison was becoming increasingly difficult in this era.
And they really needed people like him right now.
There were things Daniel could not reveal to the trainees until they left for their battleships.
He glanced back at the other trainee eggs, thinking, they must work harder wishing that there would be more of them who would be allowed aboard battleships.
Once that day comes, he will make sure they all get a taste of the real Lion!
He guarantees they each won’t die before him!
Underneath all the chaos, being a civilian or a soldier would be almost the same in terms of survival chances.
Both were zero!
A bitter expression crossed Daniel’s face as he recalled the commander’s core speech last year.
Only eleven words were spoken:
“Humans have no choice but to fight with their backs to the wall.”
Daniel continued to smile bitterly.
He has prepared for death but still doesn’t know who the enemy is or what they look like or even what form their attack will take.
If the enemy is like the Singer civilization described in the science fiction novel “The Three-Body Problem” from a thousand years ago, sending a Two-Dimensional Foil over, the entire galaxy will be wiped out in the blink of an eye. What’s the use of fighting then?
And what’s the point of this kind of training?
As this thought arose in his mind, he violently slapped himself.
He scolded himself inwardly:
“Daniel Thompson! What are you thinking about! You are the instructor for these new recruits! You can’t waver! Even if the enemy truly possesses weapons like the Two-Dimensional Foil, even if we are all wiped out in an instant, even if our actions seem meaningless to the enemy, they still hold great significance for us!”
“The universe has memory; it will remember that humans fought until the very end, never stopping their pursuit of progress—even if that struggle is futile!”
Two new recruits who had been eavesdropping walked up curiously and asked, “Instructor, what are you doing?”
The trainee eggs were startled by Daniel’s sudden self-inflicted slap.
Giving them a sharp look, Daniel snapped, “Stand in your military stance! Why are you asking so many questions? If I see even a slight shake in your footwork, I’ll make you run laps with Harrison! Who knows what the 17th rule of the world’s military is? Whoever answers correctly will receive an extra portion of the nutrition meal this week!”
Someone raised their hand.
“Speak.”
“Never question the motives behind a superior’s decisions.”
“Very good,” Daniel nodded, “Now go run laps with Harrison.”
The person was dumbfounded. “Why?!”
“Repeat your last sentence.”
“Never question the motives behind a superior’s decisions.”
Daniel shrugged, “Understand now?”
The person cursed inwardly but didn’t argue, instead dutifully following orders and joining Harrison, who happened to be at the starting point of the track.
Watching the two of them run side by side, Daniel looked on with an expectant smile.
The volunteer he’d just chosen was his favorite among his squad of fresh recruits: tough, determined, hardworking, and excellent at learning.
About both physical gifts and intellect, he was truly among the best.
The only drawback was his by-the-book personality: He followed every piece of Daniel’s advice religiously, never adapting or flexing in his approach. Daniel intentionally pranked him, hoping he’d learn a lesson and become a little sawier later on.
In the midst of giving his all to break his record yet again, Harrison suddenly found someone running alongside him.
He slightly turned his head and was surprised to see Marthus.
Harrison remembered the man well, mostly for his name: It matched the famous Wei general of the Three Kingdoms era who died under the blade of the mighty Guan Yu.
In Harrison’s time, knowledge of the Three Kingdoms had faded, but he remembered it all quite well.
About the same height as Harrison, Marthus was much sturdier in build.
In Harrison’s opinion, Marthus was a vastly uninteresting person: extremely rigid and taking every word Daniel said as an unbreakable rule.
But he wasn’t sucking up to Daniel. Whatever education he’d received had surely made him entirely devoted to becoming an excellent soldier and sacrificing for humanity.
Last time Harrison had had a dream of leaving the military base, of all the trainees besides himself, Marthus had shown the most promise in hand-to-hand combat and all aspects of military prowess.
Harrison’s own rise was only possible because he had a cheat—he’d done this three times before, allowing him to predict what was coming and receive more training than the truly new recruit, Marthus.
But the gap between Marthus and Harrison wasn’t huge and could easily be closed—a terrifying thought.
Marthus was the genuine prodigy king of soldiers; Harrison couldn’t compete in terms of talent.
There were others with Marthus’s aptitude across the global military’s training bases.
In the legendary monster training camp, any random tailender there would be a top performer if they were to join a regular training camp.
“Marthus, what’d you do this time?”
Harrison couldn’t help but ask.
Marthus replied, “Shut up! Focus on running; don’t lose your breath.”
Harrison secretly curled his lip.
Fine, let me just stay focused then.
He resumed concentrating on his run.
Three laps…
Four laps…
Ten laps…
As Harrison Clark completed his tenth lap, Marthus was just finishing his seventh.
On the sidelines, Daniel Thompson, who had allowed the other rookies a brief rest, was astonished.
How was it that half the distance had gone by and Harrison still hadn’t slowed down?
Marthus started after him, but why were they still running side by side?
Had Marthus run too fast, lapping Harrison in the process?
No, surely not.
Daniel Thompson glanced at his watch.
Unbelievable- only 16 minutes had passed!
What was that cheeky little brat Harrison up to?
Had he taken some kind of drug?
There was no reason he would have known that he’d be required to run laps that day – nor did he have any reason to do so!
Daniel became even more amazed to discover that Marthus’ running form had already started to change slightly, showing signs of fatigue, while Harrison’s steps remained steady, his breathing even.
Harrison’s running form was very standard, his movements hadn’t changed at all, and he was still employing a professional gravity running technique, with a consistent stride and pace.
Fast, steady, showcasing excellent endurance.
Daniel was slightly dazed – how could he have previously overlooked Harrison’s tremendous talent?
Not just Daniel, even Harrison himself was quite bewildered at this point.
He could tell something was off, feeling that his physical abilities were slightly better than when he was dreaming.
Unable to make sense of it initially, he glanced at the spindle-shaped flying vehicle in the sky and the Azure Dragon Single Soldier Armor, which provided him with a small bit of understanding.
Since there had been such significant advancements in material science, it was only natural that there would also be changes in biology and sports medicine.
Perhaps his body had adapted to the progress of technology during this era, and he had already been given some gene-enhancing drugs to boost his physical abilities.
But it might not be like that; who knows, and who cares anyway?
Gradually, Marthus’ breathing became more desperate, his steps heavier.
He could feel it clearly; he might not be able to keep up soon.
He desperately wanted to slow down, but the steady breathing and footfall from Harrison at his side seemed like a sharp knife stabbing into his self-esteem.
He knew he had run three laps less than Harrison, but why on earth was he the one getting tired first?
This was utterly disgraceful for someone as unyielding and competitive as Marthus.
He gritted his teeth fiercely.
I cannot lose!
No way!
But shouting couldn’t create miracles. If Marthus couldn’t keep up, he just couldn’t.
Gradually, Harrison advanced past him.
Marthus could only watch as Harrison’s back disappeared into the distance.
However, this did provide some relief for Marthus.
Harrison became the pace-setter, breaking the wind for Marthus, who followed behind. The air resistance he faced became slightly less, allowing him to return to the limits of his endurance.
He caught up again.
A long time passed.
Having halted his own training, Daniel waited for Harrison and Marthus at the finish line.
The other rookie soldiers acted as the audience, secretly cheering the pair on in their hearts.
As true rookies, Daniel’s squad was rather humble within the base.
There wasn’t a single one of those half-distinguished armored soldiers that interacted with these rookies without looking down at them, their noses in the air.
Whenever they had the chance, the armored soldiers always enjoyed flaunting and praised themselves to the high heavens.
They’d heard from Daniel that Harrison was attempting to break through the minimum standards set for the armor soldiers, so their hopes were high.
We’re all rookies, and on our very first training session, our comrade could catch up with you arrogant armored soldiers.
You guys have nothing to be proud of!
And so, unconsciously, Harrison, who was dashing down the track, came to represent the will of this group of rookies in the base.
If he could succeed, that would prove that the gap between everyone else and the armored soldiers was actually not that big!
Harrison, still sprinting forward in a steady pace from 100 meters away, prompted Daniel to check his watch continuously.
Click.
As Harrison crossed the finish line, the artificial intelligence terminal on Daniel’s watch displayed the time.
“Thirty-seven minutes, eight seconds.”
A whole 52 seconds ahead of the minimum standard!
Harrison stopped running, standing in place, asking, “Coach, how did I do? Can I wear that Azure Dragon Armor now?”
Splat.
Before Daniel had a chance to answer, Marthus fell flat on his face right behind Harrison.
Before passing out, the poor tough guy mumbled incoherently.
“Three more laps, I still have three more laps.”
Daniel yelled, “We’ll talk about you later, Harrison! Medics, hurry up and save him! This is just your first official boot camp training session, for god’s sake!”
Contrary to Daniel Thompson’s expectations, Harrison didn’t collapse on the way to the finish line.
This left Daniel both astonished and relieved.
Yes, his ignorance had led him to believe that Harrison’s efforts were futile, but against all odds, the young man had effortlessly reached the finish line.
In some sense, this was a miracle.
So if the commander’s speech could be completed, it would probably go like this:
“With no other choice, humanity must fight with its back to the river; miracles will inevitably happen!”