"Under attack! Requesting backup!"
At the headquarters, the One-Eyed Little Treasure was suddenly deployed.
Even the Ruin Guard's system didn't react immediately, not until the heavy Soldiers attacked it with machine guns.
Only then did it raise both hands, preparing to smash the two Soldiers to death.
Just then, a gray figure transformed into a cannonball, smashing directly onto the One-Eyed Little Treasure's head.
The immense impact knocked the One-Eyed Little Treasure over, and a pair of iron fists slammed against its armor; with just one blow, the One-Eyed Little Treasure's armor was dented.
A Brute!
This was one of the prime examples of anti-tank infantry.
It dealt 100% DMG to heavy armor.
"Smash his head!" Cinder ordered the Brute through the device on the Brute's head.
Upon receiving the order, the Brute changed his target, fiercely hammering the One-Eyed Little Treasure's head repeatedly with his fists.
Within fifteen seconds, the Brute had smashed the One-Eyed Little Treasure's head into scrap metal.
Another Ruin Guard was destroyed.
Only then did Cinder use the walkie-talkie to order the high-ground positions: "You can begin deployment! Keep the men there!"
"Understood!"
At five high-ground positions, five wooden crates opened simultaneously.
The structures inside began to transform and unfold.
Two thick Gatling cannons gleamed in the sunlight.
These were the Soviet Army's most basic defensive structures—sentry turrets!
They could fire 2000 rounds of 12.6mm cannon shells per minute, causing significant DMG to infantry units!
Having anticipated that the Abyss Order would launch an attack, Cinder didn't hesitate.
He immediately spent 5000 funds and 500 Blueprint Energy to construct 10 sentry turrets.
Unlike in the game, the base's construction rules did not require deploying one unit before building another.
Once built, the structures would be stored in wooden crates, and could be deployed by taking the crate to the destination.
In just two short seconds, huge sentry turrets, about two meters tall, had unfolded on all five high grounds.
Tat-tat-tat.
The unique firing sound of the sentry turret was so reassuring.
Soon, good news came from the positions via radio.
"Position Four has eliminated the target."
"Position Five has eliminated the target."
The most troublesome aspect of the Abyss Mage was their element shields.
The shields did not defend against physical attacks.
When 12.6mm bullets poured onto their shields, these shields couldn't protect them for long.
But Cinder couldn't be happy just yet.
Even more troublesome than the Abyss Mage were the Abyss Heralds.
Cinder wasn't sure if he had attracted the attention of the Heralds.
He had no trump cards left now.
If such powerful monsters attacked, he would only be able to be buried here with his Soldiers.
But fortunately, Cinder's current strength was not enough to attract the attention of those powerhouses.
The enemies were only a few Abyss Mages and twenty Ruin Guards.
Facing the Ruin Guards that charged into the base, Cinder would deploy sentry turrets behind them, trapping their heads, and then, with the Conscripts swaying left and right and distant tank fire support, the battle would turn.
Finally.
The battle ended with Cinder's victory.
Winning this battle was truly not easy; victory was built upon the sacrifice of the Soldiers.
After the battle, Cinder personally tallied the remaining forces and personally carried the bodies of the deceased.
Looking at the Soldiers blown into fragments by missiles and crushed into pulp, Cinder, with a heavy heart, collected their bodies and brought them back.
He even found all the bodies of the Military Dogs.
During this time, he didn't know how many times he had vomited; Sophia and the Soldiers tried to persuade him, as the Commander, not to do these things.
But Cinder still persevered, even after he had nothing left to vomit, he still insisted on completing this task.
These people died because of his orders; he needed to be responsible for these deceased.
At night, Cinder finally finished tallying all the deceased.
In total.
32 Soldiers and 5 Police Dogs perished in this battle.
Looking at the 37 neatly arranged black body bags before him, the steel name tags in Cinder's hand felt incredibly heavy.
"Soldier Gianvito Camara; Soldier Dedalo Cristin; Soldier Duhen Abbas"
"Police Dog Henry, Police Dog Cotton, Police Dog Carbine, Police Dog Yuran, Police Dog Josie."
They all died because of his orders.
For his slogan—for the Red Spirit.
The next day, Cinder, dressed in military uniform, organized a grand farewell ceremony to honor the Soldiers who lost their lives in battle.
Cinder also erected a huge stone monument for them, with the names of the Soldiers carved upon it.
Looking at the stone monument, Cinder's eyes were filled with confusion.
He was wondering if all of this was truly worth it, what their sacrifices were for.
That evening, Cinder temporarily handed over the base's repair work to Sophia.
He, however, locked himself in his room, seeing no one.
He remained locked away for a full three days.
At 8 PM on the fourth day, Sophia arrived at Cinder's room door with a stack of documents.
She glanced at the meal tray on the floor; only a little of the food had been eaten.
She sighed softly in her heart.
After a moment of hesitation, she finally knocked on Cinder's room door.
"Commander, there is an urgent document that requires your attention."
Inside the room, there was silence.
Sophia knocked lightly on the door again and said, "Commander, if you are still alive, please answer me."
Sophia waited for a moment, seeing that Cinder had no intention of answering.
Only then did she take out the headquarters' spare key and say, "I'm coming in, Commander."
With that, she directly swiped open Cinder's room door.
As the highest-ranking Commander, Cinder's room was not large; it was a single room, as small as could be.
One bed, one desk, and a shower room only big enough for one person.
The moment the door opened, Cinder's single bed was directly visible.
At this moment, Cinder was wrapped up like a zongzi.
Sophia saw the spherical shape move slightly, and she said, "Commander, since you are still alive, please answer me. As your adjutant, I believe it's necessary for me to know your status."
The sphere tightened a bit more.
Sophia knew that Cinder had no intention of speaking to anyone.
Sophia placed the documents on the table and said, "These are urgent documents sent by Kevin. I hope Commander you can make a decision as soon as possible."
Cinder did not answer.
Sophia took two steps back, saluted Cinder, and then excused herself.
But as she reached the door, Sophia suddenly stopped again.
She stood there, silent for a long time.
After four or five seconds, she turned around and sincerely said to Cinder, "Commander, I know what I'm about to say might be presumptuous. But I truly thank you for leading us to victory. It's been a long time since we fought such a beautiful battle."
"The Soldiers are all praising your command. If our previous Commander had been like you, our country wouldn't have perished."
Cinder's body trembled.
He turned around, looking at Sophia in shock.
She was looking down at the moment, her military cap obscuring her face, preventing anyone from seeing her expression.
She continued, "That was a long time ago. Even if we fought to the death, we ultimately couldn't change our fate of defeat. We lost our homeland, lost in the cracks of time and space."
"I have assisted many Commanders; some were exceptionally talented, some were known as 'Ever-Victorious Generals,' but in the end, they all failed in their first battle. Yet, your battle was fought perfectly, with casualties 50% lower than I predicted."
"We truly hope you can lead us in battle again."
Sophia bowed very sincerely to Cinder.
When Sophia looked up, Cinder actually saw a hint of loneliness in the eyes of this cool-headed secretary.