Chapter 15 : Discussion

In a large room resembling a senior officer's office, James was on the floor surrounded by books, documents and maps.

He held a book entitled Alchemical Amplification in his hands while taking notes from time to time.

All his concentration was on this book, but then the office door was opened by a young woman with long black hair and amber eyes wearing a white doctor's coat. and a black scarf attached to her arm holding several documents in her hands.

She remained silent and did not speak until James placed the book in her hands on the ground.

"Hi Kanwal, what good news do you bring me?"

She lowered her head and read one of the papers she was holding.

"Good morning Boss, after the secret negotiations Ravi started with Aerugo, here is the list of weapons we received: 345 Ak type machine guns, 178 handguns, 81 crate of fragmentation grenade, 23 crate of dynamite, 15 crate of anti-tank ammunition, 5 military transport vehicles, added to the weapons and vehicle we got when we captured the city, we now have almost double what I just described."

(By the way, the title "BOSS" was chosen by James Nt* he's a Metal Gear fan!)

James nodded his head in satisfaction before saying:

"You've done a good job, thank Ravi for me and what's the news on the Amestris side?"

"It's very bad for us, the army finally wiped out the rebels in the south, the repression was instantaneous with the support of their alchemists, they ignored us for almost a month but it won't last, they'll surely attack us in the next few days."

James thought for a moment in silence then finally sighed as he got up off the floor and walked to the door, then came to Kanwal and took the documents in her hands."

"Kanwal thank you for your efforts." Said James with a smile before reading the documents.

Hearing this she looked away from James with a slightly embarrassed face, but like suddenly remembering something, she looked at James and said.

"Boss, Maha told me to tell you that the prisoners you requested are ready for questioning."

James, who had just finished reading, nodded his head and took a jacket from the coat rack, which he quickly wore before attaching a black scarf to his arm.

"Kanwal, you may go." Said James as he left the office and walked through the old command center.

"Good morning, Boss!"

"Hi Ruldu"

"Good day, Boss!"

"Good day to you, Akshey."

Every soldier James passed by gave him a military salute with respect, to which he replied with a smile.

James who possessed with his "sense" stats a memory that could hardly forget anything, James had remembered the name of each member of the militia, It is a human resources technique that is difficult to apply and improves leadership and employee favorability, each time he responded to a soldier's salute by pronouncing his name, the eyes of that soldier became lit up. This further increased their level of respect and trust in James.

He continued walking through the buildings and arrived at a gate guarded by about ten men who greeted him.

.

James answered them before entering the building.

Inside there were about ten men chained to the wall, one of whom was Philip, who was completely tied up with iron chains and the rest were different alchemist scientists.

James slowly approached Philip, who looked at him inflexibly and fearlessly, and then he loosened the rag that was blocking his mouth, he asked a militiaman to bring him a chair and sat facing Philip.

"I'm sorry, Mr. Armstrong to treat you like this, I'd really like to talk to you under different circumstances and in a more suitable manner."

But Philip didn't answer him, he remained silent without saying a word.

James looked him straight in the eye and then his gaze changed, becoming cold and unfeeling.

"Mr. Armstrong, I couldn't have defeated you as easily as I did if you were 20 years younger, so I sincerely admire your strength, in fact it's one of the reasons you're alive, so I'll get right to the point."

"Where are the army labs for the creation of the Philosopher's Stone?"

Hearing this Philip and all the scientists were surprised and looked at James in amazement.

"You're probably wondering how I got this information since all your experimental documents are encrypted and only trusted members of the military have access to his information?"

"It's very simple because I'm also an alchemist, it took me some time but I immediately understood the role of the transmutation circles in the 5 buildings, on top of that I've been spying on you for the last 2 years." Said James before clenching his fists.

James then looked at the faces of the scientists who didn't dare look at him and then looked at Philip who had lowered his eyes.

"You may not know this but I have overdeveloped hearing, I can hear screams from miles away." Said James, closing his eyes.

"For the last two years every day, every night before I went to sleep I could faintly hear the cries of the men, women and children in its buildings. Sometimes when I wasn't tired enough from my training, I woke up in the middle of the night because their cries echoed in my ears."

"Haha I think after this war I really need to see a psychologist." James laughed but no one answered him, because the whole room was filled with a strange atmosphere.

One of the researchers a thin, pale man wearing glasses started sobbing.

The other researchers next to him clenched their teeth as if they wanted to say something, but they held back.

""You know that what you did was unforgivable, you must feel a thousand remorse, right?"

"Yes, I do!" Says Philip before he raises his head.

"What we have is unforgivable, I'll have remorse all my life and even after my death, but what I did, I did for my country, I followed orders given to me without question because such is my duty, I'm not a vigilante or a man of righteousness, I'm just a soldier, a bullet that can't decide where or what he's going to hit, I did my duty nothing more nothing less."

James fell silent and got up and walked to the door but before he went out he stopped.

"The second reason why you are alive Armstrong is because, after I captured you, I found a philosopher's stone in your pocket."

"Why didn't you use it against me?"

But Philip remained silent, saying nothing, because there was nothing to say.

James then smiled and left the room.

Once out James went back to his office before calling Kanwal.

"What is it, Boss?"

He showed Kanwal two pieces of paper on which were drawn a circle of transmutation.

"Bring out five of the imprisoned alchemists, ask them to improve the efficiency of this circle of transmutation and to record in a notebook every step of their progress, if he refuses, kill one of their colleagues, then ask them again, watch them closely, at the slightest suspicious movement on their part, kill them, also improve their meals and standard of living."

"Understood, boss." She said before she left the office, leaving James alone with a pensive look on his face.