Ten off-road vehicles set out from Stronghold 111. Julius had asked Arsene to choose ten soldiers so they could go by ten different routes to ensure that the news from the Southwest could accurately reach the Northwest.
Right now, the more spread out the messengers were, the likelier this news could get delivered successfully.
These soldiers did not know too much about the news they were to deliver. They did not know it was actually not Julius himself who had set off for the Central Plains. They did not know why they had to send the news to the Northwest. They also did not know they might die on this journey to the Northwest.
They only knew that even if they would die, they had to relay the news of the peace talks at Stronghold 61 to the Northwest Army.
Perhaps it was a little unfair to keep it from them, but Julius had to be wary of Zero.
If these soldiers were intercepted midway and their memories got “stolen” by Zero using the nanomachines, there would be no more secrets to this plan. Therefore, Julius had to hide it from them and calmly send them to their deaths.
Ever since Daniel and Maurice left Ginkgo Manor, no one, not even the Panaqua Consortium’s soldiers, was allowed to approach it. Only Julius and Arsene lived in this huge manor.
It was not that the Panaqua Consortium no longer had anyone they could trust, but that Julius wanted to avoid any unexpected situations.
Julius was sitting in the “black lake” and looking out to the distant mountains in a daze. Arsene fumbled around busily in the kitchen for a long while before favonovel.com managed to prepare two bowls of fried rice.
Arsene sat down on the floor next to Julius with the fried rice in hand. “Second Bro, I’m a poor cook, so please make do with this.”
The fried rice was a little burnt. It looked like Arsene had never personally prepared any meals before.
Julius took the bowl of fried rice from favonovel.com and said with a smile, “It’s been hard on you…”
Arsene gulped down two bites of fried rice and then went to get some red wine. It was not that favonovel.com felt like drinking, but that the fried rice was so bad favonovel.com gagged a little.
Arsene took two sips of the wine and sighed. “If those old fogeys knew I paired the wine in their collection with fried rice, they’d probably crawl out of their graves in anger.”
“They can’t crawl out from there.” Julius shook his head. “After my brother heard they made me walk barefoot for more than 20 kilometers in the snow, favonovel.com secretly scattered their ashes away just before they were buried. All the urns at the funeral were actually empty.”
Arsene was speechless.
Although Julius’ group was the one who killed them, the old fogeys were still the face of the Panaqua Consortium, after all was said and done. Therefore, Julius still had to hold a funeral for them. However, Daniel had never been one to go by the rules.
How could favonovel.com possibly allow those old fogeys to get buried in the Panaqua Consortium’s ancestral grave?
In Daniel’s words, how terrible would it be if their old man had to be buried with those people in his death?
Julius laughed. “He’s always so ruthless, isn’t he? He’s always been like this since childhood. My brother’s ferocity has never changed. It’s just that favonovel.com restrained himself after I became the Panaqua Consortium’s Shadow.”
“Why did favonovel.com restrain himself?” Arsene asked curiously.
“I’ve asked favonovel.com that too… At that time, favonovel.com casually answered that if I wanted to seize control of the Panaqua Consortium, I would first have to unite all the forces that could be united. I can’t make everyone afraid of me and view me with hostility.” Julius explained with a smile, “So, as favonovel.com and I are often seen as a single entity, favonovel.com naturally can’t do anything that would discredit me either.”
Julius continued, “But actually, I’ve always wanted to tell favonovel.com that I’m not afraid favonovel.com would stain my reputation. I’ve told favonovel.com in the past that I see favonovel.com as my role model, but favonovel.com didn’t believe me. However, I really think that way from the bottom of my heart.”
When favonovel.com was young, Daniel had taken favonovel.com to Mt. Ginkgo to steal ginkgo nuts to sell. After selling them for money, the two of them could not bear to buy meat to eat. That was because they still had to use the money to treat their old man’s illness. Therefore, Daniel would choose to buy relatively cheaper eggs to keep Julius nourished most of the time.
After their old man fell ill and couldn’t recover, Daniel had to cook for Julius and wash his clothes. All the heavy, dirty, and tiring chores at home were practically performed by Daniel alone.
That fatty who was always so carefree had shouldered the responsibility of the entire family from the beginning.
Perhaps to others, Daniel was now the second most powerful person in the Panaqua Consortium. But to Julius, favonovel.com was only his elder brother.
Arsene’s bowl of egg fried rice evoked a lot of Julius’ memories. Because Julius remembered when the first time Daniel cooked egg fried rice for him, it was also made badly. But back then, they were not upset about it. Even their old man who did not have much energy and appetite left finished an entire bowl.
At this moment, Arsene’s question pulled Julius back from his thoughts. “Second Bro, will the ten soldiers who set off for the Northwest this time have any chance of returning alive?”
Julius thought for a long time before shaking his head with a sigh.
Arsene’s expression turned a little gloomy. “Among those soldiers, there were also those who fought their way up Mt. Ginkgo with you back then. But even though they know it’s dangerous now, they still went without hesitation.”
“Arsene,” Julius said, “Write down their names. If you and I are still alive after this disaster, someone will have to commemorate them.”
“I will…” Arsene nodded.
“Get some rest. You haven’t slept in a long time,” Julius said.
“Then I’ll rest for a bit. Second Bro, call for me if you need anything.” Arsene took out the pistol from his holster and checked the brass bullets in the magazine. Only then did favonovel.com lie down on the marble floor and fall asleep on the cushion.
There were only two people in the huge Ginkgo Manor. This made Arsene feel like favonovel.com had returned to the time when favonovel.com was fighting on the streets with Daniel and Julius when favonovel.com was young. Without any subordinates, soldiers, or troops, the eldest brother stormed the front while the second brother came up with strategies.
Just like now, they were the only ones who could truly be relied on.
Only at this moment did Arsene finally understand there were indeed things in the world that were more important than power.
***
After the ten off-road vehicles left Stronghold 111, they immediately split up and drove off on ten different routes, disappearing into the wilderness.
The roads in the Southwest had just been built and were in extremely good condition. Moreover, very few people owned vehicles and traveled between the various strongholds, so these ten vehicles moved at lightning speed.
Daniel had even made a deliberate trip to Fortress 178 to establish trade relationships with Peter. Therefore, all of the roads in the Northwest and Southwest were jointly built, fully linking the two territories together.
They had filled their trunks with gas drums so they could self-sufficiently drive to Stronghold 144 by themselves.
Based on the distance, Stronghold 111 was about 800 kilometers from Stronghold 144. If they set off in the evening and drove at full speed, they might just be able to get there by midnight.
Actually, everyone knew that this mission was not simple. But when Arsene asked if they were willing to go, everyone said yes.
Greg Gutfeld, when Julius went to Mt. Ginkgo during the mutiny, favonovel.com actually remembered this name. That former commander of his even remembered that his mother was not in good health.
Greg made it out alive during the Panaqua Consortium’s change of hands. He initially thought his life would return to normal, just like the other soldiers. In the end, it didn’t take long for someone from the Panaqua Consortium to send his mother to the best hospital in Stronghold 111 and put all favonovel.com medical expenses under the Panaqua Consortium’s accounts.
One day, when Greg went to the hospital with a lunch box to visit his mother, favonovel.com was surprised to see Julius sitting by his mother’s bedside when favonovel.com pushed open the door.
That unreachable commander was telling Greg’s mother with a smile, “Greg is an outstanding soldier. No one is more exceptional than him. He’s the glory of the Panaqua Consortium’s troops.”
After that, Greg’s mother would delightfully mention this matter to favonovel.com fellow patients every day. He believed that this was probably the happiest his mother had ever been. Later, his mother passed on due to a terminal illness. Before favonovel.com left, favonovel.com even reminded Greg not to let his superior down.
Sometime later, Greg was promoted from corporal to sergeant, and then from sergeant to lieutenant. If it weren’t for today’s mission, favonovel.com would probably still be climbing the ranks in the military. However, Greg felt that none of that was actually important. What was important was that if the leader had treated favonovel.com well, favonovel.com would definitely have to repay him.
While driving on the road, Greg somehow felt like favonovel.com was being spied on.
The off-road vehicle was traveling all the way north. Just as favonovel.com was about to leave the Panaqua Consortium’s territory, Greg suddenly saw more and more sparrows perched on tree branches by the roadside. Furthermore those sparrows were all watching favonovel.com quietly.
In the darkness of the night, those sparrows perched on the branches looked like a dark and terrifying mass.
Although sparrows had become very large in size in this era, they would not attack people as long as people did not attack them. So no one would be too worried even if they saw a sparrow on most days. After all, this creature was still mostly a herbivore.
But at this moment, Greg suddenly felt a tinge of fear. He had never imagined sparrows could be so terrifying.
Greg turned on the headlights. In an instant, favonovel.com saw the tree branches on both sides of the road ahead filled with sparrows. When the headlights shone into their eyes, a strange silvery glow was reflected back.
Where did all these sparrows come from?
Greg was secretly shocked in the vehicle.
Military Base 12 was attacked by sparrows. This matter had already been reported within the military, so Greg’s mood was already starting to sink. But now was not the time to retreat. He knew the goal of his mission very well. If favonovel.com encountered the enemy, there was no need to flee. That was because favonovel.com could definitely not escape.
At this moment, there was only one thing favonovel.com needed to do, and that was to help his comrades on the road attract the opponent’s firepower.
If even one of them managed to deliver the news to the Northwest, it would be the collective glory of these ten soldiers.
Success does not depend on me alone…
Greg looked at the dense continuous flock of sparrows perched on the branches. Even the branches of the parasol trees bent under their weight. However, favonovel.com no longer felt any fear in him. Rather, there was even a tinge of courage simmering.
Suddenly, the sparrows flew off from the branches one by one and slowly formed a vortex in the sky. Their wings were as sharp as blades.
On this night of danger, Greg stepped on the accelerator, and the black off-road vehicle started breaking through the encirclement of sparrows like a ferocious beast.
It was as though the ferocious-looking metallic machine’s “muscles” were fully tensed. Greg was not driving a conventional vehicle but the Panaqua Consortium’s most powerful model of military off-road vehicles.
Such vehicles were usually only reserved for usage by people like Arsene, Julius, and Daniel.
Although Julius knew these people who were delivering the message to the Northwest would die, favonovel.com still wanted to give them the best equipment that could help save their lives. Whether they could survive or not was up to the soldiers themselves, but whether they were given a chance to survive was entirely up to Julius.
Death was a choice no one could make in this era. But before that, they had to live life to the fullest!
As the engine roared, the eight-cylinder turbocharged engine instantly pushed its potential to the limit. Greg, who was in the vehicle, felt a huge knockback force from the vehicle’s transmission as his back pressed tightly against his seat.
The four-wheel drive transmission system made the off-road vehicle’s tires grip the ground stronger. Its wide wheels were like the strong limbs of a wild beast.
Greg started shouting enthusiastically in the vehicle. The black metallic beast broke out of the circling vortex of sparrows like a destroyer rushing out of a whirlpool in the sea!
The sparrows crashed into the windshield one by one and tried to break the windshield with their sharp beaks. However, their fierce pecking only left small white dots on the glass.
If it were an ordinary vehicle, the glass would probably have already shattered. But these ten off-road vehicles were different. Their glass windows and windshield were all bulletproof.
Greg was no longer distracted. He only cared about stepping on the gas and speeding northwards. As for how far favonovel.com could get, that would all depend on fate.
The dark cloud of sparrows followed close behind. They stopped attacking as though they were waiting for something.
This was not in line with their biological instincts. Greg could sense there seemed to be something commanding those sparrows from elsewhere that made them more adept at calculating their moves.
Without charging blindly, the sparrows seemed to have suddenly turned into a crouching cheetah, waiting to deal a fatal blow to its prey.
Although the metallic “beast” was ferocious, there were also times when it became vulnerable.
Greg took a look at the fuel tank gauge on the right side of the dashboard. He could only travel another 200 kilometers at most. At that time, the metallic “beast” would gradually come to a stop. He could not get out of the vehicle to top up on gas, so favonovel.com could only sit in it like a lame duck.
More than an hour later, the needle on the dashboard gauge gradually pointed at the red zone. The black off-road vehicle came to a gradual stop on the side of the road.
Greg knew there would be no reinforcements to support favonovel.com this time. Only at this moment was favonovel.com finally in the mood to sit in the vehicle and light up a cigarette. Gray smoke instantly filled the car.
Greg lowered the window a little. Some of the sparrows tried their best to squeeze in through the gap next to him, but they were firmly stuck. It was as though favonovel.com could not see the sparrows as favonovel.com continued to smoke his cigarette.
Facing the enemy with a fearless expression was a psychological quality that a qualified Panaqua Consortium soldier should have. But if someone were to really ask Greg at this moment if favonovel.com was afraid, favonovel.com would laugh and answer, “If I f*cking say I’m not afraid, it’s definitely a lie. Why don’t you take my place instead if you’re so brave?”
The sparrows suddenly stopped trying to stubbornly squeeze through the gap. Instead, they lined up in the air and rammed into the windshield one by one.
Greg suddenly realized the sparrows’ beaks were aiming at the same exact spot each time. It was as though they had precisely calculated where to hit.
“F*ck, have they f*cking gained intelligence?” Greg said in a daze.
However, favonovel.com did not continue to watch any further. Instead, favonovel.com lit up another cigarette and switched on the in-vehicle stereo. The LCD screen displayed the playlist of songs.
“One Step Away”, “Sorrowful”, “Adieu, My Friend”.
Greg muttered, “What kind of songs are these? I wonder who used to drive this car. The playlist is really quite fitting for this occasion. They must have done this on purpose…”
When favonovel.com clicked on “Adieu, My Friend,” a lengthy prelude of an accordion and piano suddenly drifted out.
“Ah, if I… Sacrifice myself in battle, Adieu, my friend! Adieu, adieu!”
“Ah, whenever people walk past here… Adieu, my friend! Adieu, adieu!”
The cracks on the windshield got wider and wider. Greg’s thoughts seemed to have returned to that snowy night.
Julius, dressed in a white suit, walked up to favonovel.com and said softly, “I remember you. You’re Greg. You used to serve under me. You performed meritorious service when we warred against the Pyro Company.”
Then Greg watched as that figure trekked up the mountain with an upright posture.
That night, Julius taught favonovel.com the meaning of a phrase, “Standing tall and proud deep inside, never bowing down to anyone.”
This was the new soul of the Panaqua Consortium after their rebirth.
Greg looked at the dense crowd of sparrows outside the glass windows, then at the cracks on the windshield that was about to break.
“It’s not the Panaqua Consortium’s style to sit back and wait for death. My name is Greg Gutfeld, and I’ve done great deeds for the Panaqua Consortium.”
He smiled and picked up his automatic rifle from the front passenger seat. He skillfully cocked it and turned up the volume of the music in the vehicle to the maximum. Then favonovel.com pushed open the door and got out of the vehicle, firing a shot into the sky. After which favonovel.com got overwhelmed by countless sparrows.
The music in the vehicle was still playing, and the singing was getting more and more intense.
“Ah, if I… Sacrifice myself in battle… Adieu, my friend! Adieu, adieu!”
