A Week After the Formation of Platoon 30
The battalion, led by Colonel Andres, headed to the northern territories and set up camp in a devastated area that had once been a village, but was now reduced to rubble. Everyone was stunned by the extent of the destruction, and also afraid. The first night passed without encountering any enemy, yet they remained tense the entire time, then continued advancing.
They reached a forest, and everyone gathered in front of the colonel.
Colonel Andres ordered them to set up camp in the area.
Andres said:
"We will camp here, and the squads will take turns on guard—"
Before he could finish, suddenly a hand pierced Colonel Andres's chest from behind, stabbing through his heart. The rest of the lieutenants and soldiers drew their weapons and aimed them at the attacker.
"What are you doing? What is happening here, Joseph?"
It was Lieutenant Joseph who attacked the colonel. Before he died, the colonel grabbed Joseph's hand that had pierced his heart and shouted:
"Fire! Kill him!"
Everyone opened fire intensely until smoke rose into the sky. Mark stood watching, unable to comprehend what was happening.
Suddenly, Joseph emerged from the smoke as if nothing had happened, despite his clothes being torn, pierced, and covered in blood. He vanished suddenly.
What is happening?
He ran at a frenzied speed, and the severed heads of the soldiers flew through the air. The place was filled with blood as if the sky were raining it. Only a few minutes passed, and no one was left standing. Everyone was dead, and the green leaves had turned red.
Then Joseph emerged, drenched in blood to the point that his features were no longer recognizable, and he headed toward Mark, the last person still standing. Throughout, Mark remained still, did not move, did not fire, and did not flee. He was like one of the trees.
Mark raised his weapon with trembling hands and aimed it at Joseph, then said in a broken voice:
"Who are you? What are you? Why did you do all this?"
Joseph laughed:
"I am Lieutenant Joseph. What did you do? I just got rid of some useless people."
Mark, angry:
"You killed our comrades! Didn't you say we would return together?"
Joseph replied:
"Ah, did I say that? It seems I got carried away with the act. And now you are next." He laughed.
"You traitor! Did Country B send you? Are you one of their super spies?" Mark asked angrily.
"Hahaha, Country B? A spy? I really do as I please," Joseph said mockingly.
Mark: "Then who are you?"
Joseph: "I am the ruler. I am the strongest. I control this world. Country B, Country A, all of you are mere entertainment for us. By the way, there is no longer anything called Country B—it was destroyed by us. You are the last remaining, so entertain us."
Mark: "What nonsense is this? Are you insane?"
Mark blinked suddenly, and Joseph appeared before him and stabbed him with his hand in the chest. Mark fell to his knees, looking at the sky, blood gushing from his chest, his eyes watering from the pain.
Joseph: "Since you will die in a few minutes, I will tell you—I will explain reality. You are merely tools for our entertainment. We are the ones who set the system—a system that makes humans strive their entire lives to reach the top of the ranking. After achieving this accomplishment, they believe they are happy in life. But the truth is, they ultimately die a miserable death after falling from the top. Due to the conditions, they are mere humans—they get sick, injured, incapacitated, age—they cannot remain useful their entire lives. Therefore, rankings change every day, and each day misery and pain increase for some, while others experience false happiness due to their ranking progress, even though they may fall the next day or week. Watching them fall is the best part, especially those who started from nothing, gave everything to reach the top, and then fell suddenly, just like you. Your story was really entertaining, but it was nearing its end.
Ah, wait a moment, I have a gift for you."
Joseph disappeared quickly from in front of Mark, then returned after a minute. That minute felt like an hour to Mark. He thought of thousands of escape scenarios but realized it was impossible to succeed due to his injury.
He had accepted death.
Suddenly, Joseph returned holding something in his hand and threw it at Mark.
Mark screamed on the ground from the shock.
Joseph laughed:
"Do you recognize her, Mark?"
"Yes… she's your childhood friend, Amy."
Mark held her head in his hands and began to cry and scream:
"I'll kill you!"
He grabbed his pistol and began shooting until his ammunition ran out, but it was useless. Joseph remained standing, then stepped toward Mark and cut the hand holding the pistol.
Joseph said: "You asked me why? Do I need a reason? I am strong, and the strong do as they wish. I wanted to have fun, so I killed her yesterday. At the same time, I wanted to break you and make you suffer."
Mark: "I'll kill you… I'll kill you! Do you think this is enough to kill me?"
Joseph, sarcastically: "Then these are your last words… farewell, Mark."
He raised his hand to behead Mark.
Suddenly, a fleeting shadow moved behind Mark, barely visible, before something swiftly passed behind him and cut Joseph's hand before it could reach Mark's neck.
Joseph recoiled quickly about ten meters backward, his hand bleeding heavily. He tried to fix it, but it was useless.
Mark, who was ready to die, opened his eyes and saw a tall figure with long black hair and tattered clothes standing before him.