Soulless Players

Along with the people's patriotic cheers and chants, a jubilant blare of trumpets and booming drums echoed around the walled city.

It was festive, noisy, and disordered, yet not a single person complained as all were focused on the march heading towards the city gate.

People watched as rows of proud men equipped with their heavy armor halted orderly outside the wall of Naza, waiting for the gatemen to pull the rope.

When the gigantic wooden gate fell and touched the ground, forming a bridge over the moat, regardless of age, gender, or status, howled out loudly.

This is a special day where no one discriminates for their social standing. Whether a slave, a commoner, or of noble blood, all of them celebrate this grand occasion.

The man leading the soldiers shed and kneeled.

"We finally won the war!" he exclaimed.

Upon hearing his outburst, thunderous cheers and applause roared around. Women quickly ran towards their men for hugs and kisses, unbothered by their sweat and smell from their lengthy trip.

Their relief was undisguised. They were delighted upon seeing their loved one survive.

After almost a decade, Britannia has finally emerged victorious from the war.

A new era is coming where citizens are free from worries of territorial battle and conflict, where people would gradually return to their mundane and peaceful lives, leaving only a short chapter in the book called 'The History of Britannia.'

However, amidst this celebration, a hundred miles away from the city, a man was lying in his pool of blood, breathless.

He was Philip. The man who made the country's victory possible.

Unknown to many, this person had significantly contributed to tilting the balance of the war.

He wasn't a soldier or an officer like any other man but someone with an occupation that must remain hidden from the masses.

After using him, he, who must be named a hero, was soon thrown away and forgotten.

Philip accepted his fate and silently died in a dilapidated building.

He has no regrets. Protecting the country is his calling. Everything is bound to happen.

But although he had no regrets, he was still sad.

Even in his death, he was lonely. No one wept for him; there was no one beside him.

With one last breath, he closes his eyes, and whispers silently,

'I hope death doesn't hurt anymore.'

The End - The forgotten past in the history of Britannia

Flip...

Flip...

Flip...

After Philip's death, time stopped and everything became still and motionless. Only the sound of flipping papers resounded all around the world.

Then, along with each flip, time started to move, but backward. Sun rose towards the east, carrying the wind and clouds together.

And in the city of Naza, instead of seeing a joyful celebration, everything was chaotic. The sound of people's cries and cheers was nothing but a painful clangor when played backward.

The military, which should have been inside the city, were all also moving rearwards, and the city's gate, which should have welcomed them, was now raised and closed sturdily.

In a dilapidated building, the pool of blood slowly returned to Philip's body. His wound and scars began to heal and fade; his heart, which should have been unresponsive, started to beat alongside with every flip of book papers.

Philip opened his eyes and happened to witness this marvelous phenomenon. He was baffled upon seeing the bullet extracted from his heart and returned to the gun pointed towards him by a man.

Philip observed the man, who was his superior, talking gibberish. Though he couldn't understand a single word, he somewhat knew what he was talking about.

"Britannia is now safe. You're a dangerous factor for the peace of the country."

"Your use is no longer needed. Die now, Philip."

"This is for the country."

This betrayal. Philip remembered this last moment of his life and watched his superior moving backward, confused.

What is happening? Philip then tried to control his body, but couldn't do so. His consciousness remained trapped inside his body, watching his life unfold as a spectator.

Starting from his death to his secret job in the enemy's encampment, and finally to his whole teenage life dedicated to training. Before his eyes, everything played back like a movie.

However, unlike a movie, he could feel the pain brought by each episode of his life, either physical or mental.

It was then Philip realized how unfulfilling his life was and how he was brainwashed heavily by the superiors he served.

He thought that after listening to their requests and saving the country, he would have no regrets. However, after seeing his life from both first and third perspectives, he now felt remorseful.

If only he had a chance, he would rather not live as a country's protector, but as a normal citizen. How would his life be if he could create a family, love a woman, and raise their children together?

If this happened, would his death be not lonely anymore?

With the sound of the last flip, the world slowly darkened; like a book closing after a reader finished reading a story.

When the world was finally absent of any light, Philip had no time to get frightened as a white glowing ball suddenly appeared across him.

It was shining, like eyes glimmered with hope. Philip had seen it in the faces of the children he had helped in the past. Their eyes were filled with faith for a better future, that everything would be okay, and that the war would soon end.

This strengthened the will that Philip had completely hidden beneath his being. After a long mental torture and brainwashing, he finally remembered the single word he uttered during his childhood.

Escape.

He wanted to be the owner of his own destiny; unbounded by any power that would restrict his freedom; to be a king and not a pawn for others.

He also wanted to be happy for once!

Philip had no inkling why this strange phenomenon was happening to him. Instead of fearing the unknown, he subconsciously relies on it. And without hesitation, he reached for the white ball of light.

He felt it could be dangerous, that acting without meticulous planning and calculation would only jeopardize him.

However, his instinct is screaming, urging him to reach for this little hope.

Thus, he let himself be. He unrestrained himself for once and let his emotion override his rationality.

Upon contact, the ball engulfed Philip with total brightness, and the once pitch-black surrounding was now void of any color other than white.

The brightness blinded him, but Philip welcomed it with his arms raised high as if he were receiving salvation.

And when he felt the light was no longer bright, he slowly opened his eyes and happened to see men looking at him strangely.

Well, to be specific, they were looking at his arms raised in the air.

"..."

Philip felt embarrassed. He quickly lowered his arms and vigilantly retreated from the center.

Luckily, most of them stopped scanning him once he moved away. This made Philip a little bit relieved. He was confused by the sudden change, but he knew that he could not act rashly.

Everything was white, but the whiteness brought nothing but comfort to him. Unlike when the white ball of light swallowed him, the brightness no longer blinded him. It was just like a big white room filled with different kinds of men.

The men were all of different ages, there was a child with a huge backpack and a white-bearded old man holding a short wooden stick.

Their clothes were all also peculiar to him. There was a petite man with eastern clothing he had only seen on books from oriental merchants, a tall man in a fully enclosed helmet with metallic-like silk covering all his body, and a teenager in a white school uniform he dreamt of wearing once in his life.

Some of them also have weird mutations. Wings, fishtail, and antennae-like of an ant were just among them. Philip was curious. It was his first time seeing humans, but at the same time, not humans. He was dying to know if it was some sort of attached equipment or a real biological organ.

While he was mulling over, he was quickly distracted when a figure suddenly materialized at the center, the same place where he was standing earlier.

However, unlike him, the man didn't strike an embarrassing pose or was surprised by his teleportation. He just gave a quick peek around and moved away from the center.

It was like he had already anticipated this to happen to him.

His action made Philip realize something. Although the men were vigilant against each other, none showed the same level of confusion as him.

It's either they hid very well or they were informed before coming here.

What's different with me? Philip wanted to ask someone for information but quickly decided against it. This would only make them figure out that he knew nothing. And in case of an unexpected conflict, he would be situated in a much more tricky position.

Man after man showed up and once the 100th man emerged, all men quickly entered into a battle position.

The quick change of ambiance made Philip scared. This further implied his speculation that all men knew what would transpire to them, and none of these men seemed to be as clueless and normal as him.

Slowly, the surroundings also changed. The four white walls fell down, showing a much more spacious space.

THUD.

The comfort brought by the plain white room disappeared and everyone was uneasy.

Most men prepared their weapons as if expecting a huge battle to occur once the 100th person arrived.

Philip was nervous. He knew nothing about what was going on!

He regretted listening to his instinct and letting his emotions overdid him. What hope? If he dissected the white ball of light earlier, maybe he would not be as ignorant as he is now.

But alas, regretting it was too late for him. All he could do was to minimize his presence and be transparent he can be.