Gearing for Battle

In a high-stakes meeting between the President and top military officers, they deliberated on a strategy to rescue the hostages within the broadcast agency. Dialla, fueled by a desire for vengeance against the assassin who cost him an eye, stepped forward willingly to spearhead the operation.

"Mr. President and General! Please entrust me with this operation! I will track down and capture this culprit!" Dialla fervently requested.

"Captain Dialla, are you certain you can lead this operation? You've just returned from a war…" The concerned President voiced his reservations.

"Rest assured! I'll bring back positive results, just as I did in the Nisaeria war!" 

"Alright! I place my trust in you! General, what's your opinion?" The President inquired.

"Yeah… I suppose he can handle it," reluctantly agreed the General, who consistently looked down on Dialla.

"Excellent! Captain, remember one thing! My granddaughter…" 

"I will ensure her safety and return her to you unharmed!"

"Good!"

"Hold on!" The General interjected.

"Yes, General?"

"I recall assigning a military talent to oversee affairs in Luthernza. Second Lieutenant Winton, if I remember correctly… I believe we should let her handle this!" suggested the General.

"General, I must respectfully disagree!" Dialla opposed.

"Why?!"

"I encountered her during the last assault incident in the Luthernza military camp. In my opinion, she is incompetent and lacks leadership skills. I have more experience dealing with these kinds of maniacs!" Dialla explained.

"General, Captain Dialla has a point. We've discussed Lieutenant Winton's capabilities, and while she's intelligent, Captain Dialla's experience could prove invaluable in this situation!"

"Alright, President… I understand. Captain Dialla, take charge immediately and ensure the safe retrieval of every hostage!"

"Yes, General! Thanks, President. I'll demonstrate my capabilities!" 

"I'm relying on you to bring my granddaughter back safely!"

Dialla nodded and left the meeting.

After being appointed as the lead officer for the operation, Dialla swiftly gathered his team in Luthernza and surrounded the broadcast agency. Simultaneously, he raced from the Capital city to Luthernza. Meanwhile, the assassin and his followers completed the initial phase of their plan and prepared for their next move.

"Leader! Team 4 has confirmed that our target has lost its power supply! We can proceed with the takedown!" reported one of the followers to the assassin.

"Hahahahaha!! Everything went smoothly, just as I thought!" The assassin cheered.

"These people here… What should we do? Keep them as hostages?"

"Not necessarily all of them. We just need some random winners to continue being our hostages!"

"Hey Youuu!!! Over there! Yes, you!" A young lady suddenly voiced out loudly, pointing her finger at the assassin.

"Yes, lady! Are you calling me?" The assassin exchanged glances with the lady.

"Yes, you! Skinny man! You just ruined all my plans! How are you going to compensate me!?"

"Compensate? Plan?? Hahahahaha!! Sounds interesting!" The assassin approached the lady with a curious expression.

Everyone looked at the lady shockingly and admired her courage for talking to the assassin, considering they were already freaked out. The assassin stood in front of the lady, scanning her from head to toe.

"Skinny man! What are you looking at!? Are you a pervert!?" The lady showed no fear and continued insulting the assassin.

"Hahaha!! Lady, I can sense that you are a very extraordinary person compared to the others here! Who are you!?"

"Oh! Seriously?! You can tell that just by looking at my appearance?! Impressive! You're right! I'm the granddaughter of the President of Kothern! But…"

"Granddaughter of the President?!! Oh dear, oh dear! You are automatically qualified to be the winner!" The Assassin exclaimed.

"Winner? What winner!?"

"You have just won the prize for becoming our hostage! Everyone! Just take her with us, and we will leave here at once!"

"Got it!" The followers caught the lady and left the building together with the assassin.

"Hey! Skinny man! Just let me go! Where are you intending to bring me!? You will regret what you've done!"

"To the slum! We are not afraid of the soldiers of your grandfather! We are going to take them down! Once we're done, we will release you for sure! All of you, just bring her back to the slum and wait for me to return! I'm heading to the police headquarters!"

"Yes, leader!"

"I say… LET ME GO!" The lady kept struggling to free herself.

"Shut up! Read the room! Will you!?" Those followers said angrily.

The assassin and his followers reached the entrance and saw the soldiers had surrounded the entrance. The assassin stretched his body and did some warm-up. He took out his katana and walked out the door alone and confronted those soldiers.

"Just give me thirty seconds! I will forge a path!"

"Yee-Hah! We can enjoy a free show!"

"Free show? What do they mean?" The lady muttered.

The assassin moved casually, his face full of confidence. All the soldiers at the scene immediately pointed their weapons at him, demanding him to release the hostage and surrender.

"Ready? Here I – go!" The assassin muttered, starting to attack the soldiers.

"Soldiers! Fire!"

The lady watched the assassin fight against the soldiers without blinking her eyes. In her eyes, there were bodies flying around. In her ears, the screaming sound of the soldiers started to replace the sounds of those firing weapons.

The whole fight only took twenty-one seconds, and all the soldiers had been defeated. A path for them was easily created by the assassin, although it was covered with blood.

"Hey, skinny man… I never thought you were such a formidable fighter!" The lady exclaimed.

"Are you impressed with my skill?"

"Yes!"

"Hahahahaha!! You are truly an interesting one! Hey! Remember to treat this lady nicely as our most important guest!"

"Hmm… Leader? Isn't she supposed to be our hostage only?"

"From now on, she will be our hostage and guest at the same time!"

"Huh? Sounds confusing…"

"Once you all return, remember to get yourself ready at any time! We don't know when those pesky soldiers will launch an attack on us!"

"Got it!"

His followers took the lady, stole a car, and disembarked to the slum. Meanwhile, the assassin stole a bike and rode all the way to the police headquarters, where the other followers were hiding and waiting for him to arrive.

After the assassin arrived at the police headquarters, it started to rain. The power supply of the police headquarters hadn't been restored yet, and inside the building had become darker. All the personnel in the building had no idea they were the target of the assassin.

"As I promise… I will assist you all to get rid of the soldiers and return this city to everyone! So, to have the power to fight against them… We need some weapons! And this place! Is the best place to get ourselves armed!"

"Yeahh!!"

"Attack and snatch their weapons!" The assassin ordered.

Thousands of his followers began their assault on the headquarters. Many of the police had been sent to different districts to track down the other assassin's followers who were causing trouble in the city.

Everything went according to the assassin's intentions, as the police forces in the headquarters were outnumbered against him and his followers. The crucial factor for their success was the darkness. Having lived in a dark slum and fought in a place devoid of light, they had the upper hand.

The police forces, despite being equipped with weapons, were no match for them. The disabled security system left some of the police unaware they were under attack until the backup generator finally kicked in. The alarm blared, and the police chief realized the dire situation. She immediately joined her men to fight against the assassin and his followers.

"The lights…! We must hurry up!" The assassin ordered.

"Yes!"

As the chief engaged with them, she noticed the unusually skinny man, the assassin, displaying inhuman movements in the narrow office pathways, swiftly wiping out her men.

"Unit three and four! Get down to assist us! We are outnumbered!" The chief ordered through the walkie-talkie.

"Ma'am, we are also engaging them! Please hang on!"

"Everyone! Please keep holding them until the rest of our men come back!"

"Yes, Ma'am."

"Who is that guy…?! He seems like a war machine or something! I must eliminate him right here!"

The assassin's combat skills fully adapted to and utilized the environment. Anything within reach became a fatal weapon, even a small stationary object, like an eraser. He grabbed a policeman's face and rubbed the skin off just using the eraser.

Continuing his assault, a fallen policeman saw an opportunity. He immediately handcuffed the assassin's leg to his wrist to restrict his movement. The police chief acted swiftly and fired at the assassin with her pistol.

"Did I get him!?" The chief muttered.

"Hmm… HmmHmm… Hahahahaha!! You almost got me! Woman!" The assassin turned his head and stared at the chief.

"How come?! I never miss my shot before!"

"Then you missed it this time! HWAAA!"

The assassin roared and used all his strength to break free from the handcuff on his leg. His tremendous power ripped apart the whole arm of the fallen policeman, and he started approaching the chief. The chief panicked and triggered her gun, but it was out of bullets.

"You just lost your best chance to kill me, woman!" The assassin hit her on the head.

"You…! Wurghh…" The chief passed out.

All the police forces were taken down, and the whole building floor had turned into a disaster. The assassin and his followers accessed the armory, taking away all the firearms inside.

"Leader, these weapons look old… And there is no rifle at all! Only pistols and shotguns in here… How are we going to fight the soldiers?!"

"Don't complain about free stuff! It's still a lethal weapon as long as you trigger it at the right time!"

"You are right… Better than nothing."

"Shotgun… Lovely! Exactly what we need! Hahahahaha!!"

"But it can't excel well at long distances, though…"

"We are going to lure all of them into those dark alleys… We can surely kill them with our eyes closed from there!"

"I see!"

"Leader! Team 4 has seized those police trucks!"

"Load all these weapons up and head back to the slum! A war is coming soon!"

"Got it!"

Dialla's men finally reached the police headquarters, paying no heed to the casualties strewn across the area. They hastily searched the vicinity, only to discover that all the weapons had been stolen. A soldier, spotting a conscious but injured policeman, rudely seized him by the hair.

"Hey! Useless force! Where are they?" demanded the soldier.

"Urghh... Gone... Don't grab my... Hair!" grunted the policeman.

"Huh?! Making demands, are you? You should kneel down and beg! Tell us, what did you see or hear?"

"Slum... They said they are going back to the slum!"

"Slum! At least you provide some info, useless!" The soldier insulted and finally released his grip.

"Hey, quickly report to Captain on the situation!" ordered the soldier.

"Yes, Sir!"

"Hello? Captain Dialla, they have seized all the weapons!" reported one of the soldiers via wireless phone.

"Weapons? Are they planning to have a war with us?"

"Probably, they stole the weapons and headed back to the slum! What shall we do now?"

"We are still not clear what they are hiding up their sleeves... Just gather all the rest of the soldiers in Luthernza and wait for my arrival! I will take the lead myself!"

"Yes, Sir! But do we really need so many comrades to fight those unworthy trashes in the slum?"

"Don't forget we are dealing with a madman who has attacked our headquarters before!"

"Understood, Sir! We will gather the rest at once and wait for you! WOOWAAH!"

"What's wrong? Soldier?! Hello?!"

"Beep Beep Beep!" mimicked the assassin's voice.

"Who are you?!"

"Good evening, Lieutenant Dialla!"

"It's Captain! Who are you?!"

"This is the madman speaking! You have an important meeting with me! The location is the slum!"

"Damn you! You son of the...!" Hello?!" The line got cut off.

"Hahahahaha!! Everyone, let's head back to the slum and prepare to welcome our guests!"

"Sure!"

The assassin and his followers promptly returned to the slum. Meanwhile, all the soldiers in Luthernza gathered immediately at the headquarters of the Defence Ministry. Sergeant Whitlock was also among them, attempting to contact Rosseaulyn for a long time but still unable to reach her.

'Oh Ma'am... Where the hell are you?! We are in a crisis!' Whitlock muttered anxiously.

"Who gave the damn order to gather all of you?!" a loud voice called out from behind.

"Hmm? Lieutenant Winton!"