Unpaid Debts

"Why is every single one of you here again?! Sergeant Whitlock?!" Rosseaulyn asked, sounding a little annoyed.

"Not me, Ma'am! Not me! Not this time!" Whitlock explained.

"It really bothers me when each of you goes your own way! Who will be held responsible if something happens?! Why didn't anyone inform me beforehand?"

"I tried! But—"

"It's so disorganized!"

Only a few soldiers who had served under Rosseaulyn felt remorseful for their actions. The others, who were loyal to Dialla, glared angrily at Rosseaulyn. Some even muttered curses under their breath.

"What an arrogant fool... I wonder how many days she has left before she gets expelled from the military..." a soldier muttered.

"Did you see how arrogant she was? She came late and yet barks at us like a mad dog!" Another soldier whispered.

"Yes, I did! I only tolerate this mad Lieutenant because she's beautiful, and that's it!" added another.

"Does she think she's special? Everyone's uniform is black, and she's the only one in white."

"We have no future if we continue to follow her. Captain Dialla is our only hope for promotion!"

"Shhh! She might hear us!"

Rosseaulyn's face, initially displaying a hint of anger, turned expressionless after hearing those words. She whispered to Whitlock, asking him to come to her office for a private conversation.

Rosseaulyn sighed.

"Ma'am, I'm sorry for those soldiers' childish words! I admit that I am totally unqualified and can't even control their mouths! I—"

"Sergeant Whitlock, I'm not frustrated about that. Just tell me... Is it Dialla who gave the order?"

"Yes... You have a sharp instinct, Ma'am."

"It has nothing to do with my instinct; the situation just now made it very obvious."

"Also, I have bad news for you…"

"He's on his way down here, isn't he?"

"Yes..."

"And he took over the command role from me already, am I right?"

Whitlock nodded lightly.

"Alright, thank you! You may leave now!"

"Ma'am!?"

"What's wrong?"

"You have nothing else to comment on this?! Or do you need my help to stop him…"

"No! Just nothing more to say. What are you still waiting for? You should regroup with them right now!"

"Ma'am! I…"

"I'm not your commander anymore! I can only advise you as your superior. To avoid getting into more trouble, you should regroup with the others already! Your new commander will be here anytime soon."

Whitlock looked confused and couldn't find any words to express his feelings. He quietly left the room, bowing and saluting Rosseaulyn before departing. Rosseaulyn took a deep breath and sighed, and the room fell into a deep silence for few minutes until a sudden phone rang, breaking the quietude.

Rosseaulyn picked up and answered, "Lieutenant Winton here, who is it?"

"I'm Vermilion!"

"Oh, Ms. Yeleona…"

"Are you alright? Why do you sound not feeling well…"

Rosseaulyn took another deep breath, adjusted her tone and mood, and replied, "Yeah, I'm fine! I just thought of something."

"I see… Rosseaulyn, I know it's a military secret, but I'm really curious about what you're going to do with those kidnappers in the slum?"

"They are murderers, Ms. Yeleona. By the way, I can't tell you what we are going to do with them as well."

"I see…"

"Don't get me wrong! The reason I can't tell you is that I was excluded from this operation. So, I have no idea what they are going to do."

"Ehh?! How come?!"

"Listen! No matter what happens, you and Carmella just stay at my unit until I return! Got it?!"

"Yes. Right now, I worry about…"

"Ms. Ayukawa and the little kitty, right? Well, I can tell she is the one who needs to worry the least. I'm more concerned about those unlucky guys who encounter her."

"Sounds make sense, though…"

"Listen, I still have a lot of things to do… Keep yourself updated from the news to know the latest situation. Alright then, bye-bye." Rosseaulyn quickly hung up.

"Okay! Bye-bye… Weird..."

"What happened? What did she tell you?" Carmella asked Vermilion.

"She said she was excluded from this operation…"

"Excluded?"

"Yeah… And asked us to stay here until she comes back."

"I guess she's right... Just look at it... I got a bad feeling about this…" Carmella said while staring at the horrifying scene from the news.

Just after a while Rosseaulyn hung up the phone, it rang again. She picked up without saying anything, but there was an anxious voice on the other end.

"Ma'am! Ma'am! Are you there!?"

"Sergeant Whitlock… what's the matter…"

"Please save them! Those innocent ones! Please! They need you, and this city needs you right now! Only you can do this! Please!"

"Calm down, Sergeant! You always lose your calmness when something happens."

"Dialla… No, I mean 'they'! They are going to wipe out every single individual in the slum! We have received the order to advance to the slum outskirts and wait for Dialla!"

"ARE THEY OUT OF THEIR MINDS!!?!? There are many residents in there, and they are not criminals!!"

"I knew! That's why I informed you immediately! I heard the President and General have also agreed to do so!"

"This is crazy… Crazy People… Crazy People…!"

"Ma'am! I believe in you! You can surely save them! Please! I know it is a selfish request but... Those people in there and the slum… They are important to me too!"

"But how am I going to save them? And what am I supposed to do?!"

"Ma'am, you always criticized me for losing my calmness… Right now, you are just the same as me."

"Sergeant! There's no way I could stop the entire troop in Luthernza right now! Even if I am still in charge, it won't have any changes since most of our men are Dialla's men!"

"I know! But I trust you! Your intelligence..."

"You are just simply putting more stress on me, Sergeant…"

"Ma'am! I will keep in touch with you! We need to head to the slum now!" Whitlock ended the call.

"Oh gosh! My head is so dizzy right now… A maniac assassin and a despicable officer are going to initiate an unnecessary war that will only make the innocent suffer…" Rosseaulyn muttered while holding her head.

When Rosseaulyn was pondering a way to save the people in the slum, a wave of sirens from police vehicles could be heard outside. An idea suddenly struck her upon hearing those sirens. She left her jacket and those honor badges in her office and immediately rushed to the police headquarters again.

Upon arrival, she saw everyone busy saving and helping casualties, except the soldiers lying at the entrance. The soldiers saw her and asked for her help, but she simply ignored them and went to look for the chief, until a soldier grabbed her leg and stopped her.

"Help us, Ma'am! My leg is broken and keep bleeding… The police... They are not helping us at all!" One of the soldiers said.

"None of my business. Let go of your hand..." Rosseaulyn replied coldly without even looking at them and walked away.

"Ma'am? Where are you going? We are dying! Ma'am!? Ma'am!" The soldier kept calling, but Rosseaulyn never turned back and disappeared from his sight.

The chief, who was also assisting casualties, saw Rosseaulyn came to look for her. She was reluctant to speak to her and asked her to leave at once. Rosseaulyn had no choice and shocked everyone by kneeling down on one knee in front of the chief.

"Lieutenant Winton, what the hell are you doing!? What's the meaning of doing this in front of me?! Are you out…"

"I have no time to explain already… I just hope you could accept my sincere request!"

"Wait, what?! What is it?"

"I need all your police forces who are still able to move and fight!"

"Why is it?! Where are your men?"

"The slum… Every single innocent person is going to die soon… I need your help to stop them! Stop all the soldiers!"

"Lieutenant, this is confusing! I believe your primary objective should be hunting down the attackers who attacked us! Why are you asking me to stop your men?!"

"The soldiers will handle them well… But they will not only wipe them out… Also, the residents there."

"Ehh!? Then you are the one who can stop them! Aren't you the commander of Luthernza?!"

"I don't know… I don't know what my role is right now… I don't even know if I'm still a Second Lieutenant… All I know is that the President and General have appointed Captain Dialla for this cruel operation, and all I want to do is to stop them."

"But Lieutenant, it means that you want to initiate a civil war between the police forces and the military if I accept your request! Moreover, most of our weapons and ammunition have been seized by those attackers!"

"But there is no other way to stop them… And I'm not requesting to fight against the military, just to 'stop' them will do."

"What do you mean? How?"

"We won't need any bullets or firearms to stop them; we just need to disrupt their operations. There is no reason for them to fire at the police. We need to buy some time to evacuate the residents."

"But if this is the order of the President, we will become traitors to the authority if I do so…"

"I can bear all the consequences! I will be the only one who held responsible! Just tell them all of you were threatened by me."

"This is madness… Lieutenant, get yourself up first. Let me consider…"

"Thanks… Please think of those innocent lives! There are thousands of them!"

"Sorry to disturb both of you! Chief, I must say Lieutenant has really shown her sincerity, and I believe she really needs your help this time," the security officer interrupted and said.

"Hmm? Security officer?!" Rosseaulyn was a little shocked when the security officer came to voice for her.

"But Sir, this will risk the lives of our policemen! I must think carefully!" The chief explained to the security officer.

"What are you still trying to think about? Isn't it our duty to help the people regardless of who they are?! I think you should learn from the Lieutenant here… She only cares about the thousands of lives in the slum right now."

"I… Just give me a second thought…" The chief was taking the security's words seriously.

"Hmm? What's wrong, Lieutenant Winton? Never seen a security criticize a chief before?"

"Yes… Kind of surprising… You are not just a security, are you?"

"No, I am indeed an ordinary security right now. But I was a Lieutenant Colonel and the Head Chief of Kothern Police Force."

"Oh! You are my senior! Sorry for using an impolite tone on that day…"

"Never mind about it. Come on chief! Still considering!?"

"I..."

"Please!" Rosseaulyn begged.

"Hmm....."

"Chief! Please! The honorable chief of Luthernza, Hildegard Engel! Please lend me your hand!" Rosseaulyn called out.

"That is my real name! I have changed my name already! How did you still able to find out?!"

"It's my desire to show you my sincerity! I will not let you feel regret on this! I'm not asking for your help for free! I will also show my gratitude!"

"What gratitude?"

"A cup of coffee. The finest one."

"Coffee?! Hoho! Interesting! You are truly someone admirable! I can accept your request, but just one condition!"

"What is it?"

"You must tell me how you are going to ensure our safety! The military may just like what you said; they have no reason to kill us. But how about those attackers? If they spot us, they would kill us for sure! We are just police! Not soldiers after all!"

"I fully understand your concern! This operation needs precise timing to carry out. I am confident in this! I am also very familiar with the slum already, so we can avoid any of them!"

"Sounds reliable… But there are thousands of ordinary residents there… It's not a simple task to evacuate all of them in such a short time…"

"I'm not asking to save everyone but at least as many as we can."

"Well then, Lieutenant Winton. Let me gather the rest of my forces. Just curious… Not even a single one of your soldiers is willing to help you?"

"No… I'm all alone… I don't want to force them… They will be in trouble or even get expelled from the military if they help me."

"I see…"

"Ma'am! All of us are here and we are ready! Please provide the instruction to us!" The senior police officer said.

"From now on, please follow exactly the command from Lieutenant Winton! We are going to save the innocent lives from the slum. Our primary target would be children and people with disability! Got it?!"

"Yes, Ma'am!"

Rosseaulyn, together with the Chief and the policemen, rushed their way to the slum under her guide. The poor residents in the slum still have no idea that the soldiers are on their way to annihilate each of them, and they just continued their daily activities as usual.

Meanwhile, Dialla has taken the bullet train and finally arrived at the outskirts of the slum. He reunited with his men and the rest of the soldiers. Victor passed a megaphone to Dialla, and Dialla demanded the assassin and his followers surrender before them.

"Ahem!! Terrorists! I know you can hear me! Just surrender yourself and release the hostage right now! There is no chance you can win against us!" Dialla demanded.

"Sir… No response at all..." Victor replied.

"Never mind. Expected. It's just a standard process we must go through! Just like the police always ask the criminal to stop running."

"Haha, you are right, Sir."

The assassin, who was lying on the rooftop and waiting for Dialla's arrival, started to get excited after hearing the demand from Dialla. He asked his followers to get themselves prepared and ready to engage them at any time soon.

"Hahahahaha!! Finally, here they are!" The assassin expressed excitedly.

"Leader! Everyone has been in their positions!" One of his followers informed.

"The time for that man to pay his debt has come… Hahahahaha!!"

The number of soldiers joining the operation under Dialla was around three thousand. However, for the assassin and his followers, there were only around a thousand of them. As for Rosseaulyn and the policemen, there were only around a hundred of them.

"All of you! Listen well… This cursed area has been bringing chaos to the people in the city! This place is a total disgrace to Kothern! So, today… We are not just going to fight those punks and save the 'princess' but to 'clean' this whole slum up!! No survivors…" Dialla ordered.

"YES SIR!!!" The whole troop replied in unison.

"He blinded my eye… Now, it is time for him to pay for it!! Soldiers! CHARGE!!!"