"Are you opening a restaurant?" Xenia asked the same question, repeating Wendy's curiosity.
Jake nodded and replied, "Yes, it's opening in a few days."
"Where is it located? I'll come to support you when it opens," Xenia said directly.
"Across from Kailomen," Jake replied.
"Ah, there? That's a good location, but most of the business there is taken by Kailomen. Teacher, you must be very confident in your restaurant to open it there. Or are you planning to cater to a middle to lower-end market?"
"My target customer base is the same as Kailomen's," Jake said with a smile. "I have confidence in my restaurant."
"Oh, I almost forgot how skilled you are in cooking, Teacher. I definitely want to taste your food when it opens," Xenia said.
Before leaving, Xenia reminded Jake not to forget about her birthday party.
After leaving school, Jake went straight to the restaurant and took on the role of a supervisor. After all, he had invested over two million dollars in it, and he couldn't afford to be complacent. He spent the whole day at the restaurant, watching it gradually take shape.
In the game world, when Jake had just entered, he was surprised by the loud noises outside.
The sky outside the tents should have just brightened, but the shouts of the people, the sound of horse hooves, and the footsteps were numerous and chaotic. Something was wrong! Jake realized that something significant might have happened and hurriedly walked out of his tent.
Indeed, outside the tents, people were moving about everywhere, and the entire Skylark Camp seemed to be boiling like freshly boiled water, bubbling with activity.
"What's going on?" Jake stopped someone who looked somewhat panicked and asked.
"Captain Eli ordered everyone to assemble," the person replied, recognizing Jake as one of the camp's formidable individuals. "The forces up front are attacking the city built by beings from the otherworld."
"What does that have to do with us?" Jake asked.
"We're not sure," the person said.
Jake released the person and quickly headed forward to find his squad members.
"Captain, you're here? I just went to your tent and couldn't find you. Captain Eli ordered us to assemble urgently," Brenton said when he saw Jake approaching.
"Do you know what's going on?" Jake asked.
"It seems like things didn't go well in the battle up front. Captain Eli ordered us to assemble immediately and be prepared to withdraw," Adrian said.
Originally, they were planning to leave this morning, but not in such a hurried and panicked manner. Something had definitely happened.
Jake nodded, and at that moment, Eli, in full military gear, walked over, wearing a stern expression. When he saw Jake, he immediately called Jake over.
"Jake, the situation is getting grim. We need to evacuate immediately," Eli said to Jake.
"What's going on? Everything was fine yesterday," Jake asked.
"General Hank and his forces launched an attack on the city built by beings from the otherworld early this morning. However, the enemy was well-prepared and ambushed them, resulting in heavy losses. Now, they are retreating, and according to the frontline reports, the beings from the otherworld didn't stay in their city but came out to pursue us. So, this place is no longer safe, and we need to retreat immediately," Eli explained.
Jake nodded and said, "I understand."
However, Jake couldn't help but feel puzzled. He didn't understand why Hank's forces had launched an attack so early in the morning when everything seemed fine yesterday. Moreover, the two sides had been in a stalemate, with the beings from the otherworld seemingly at a disadvantage. How had the situation suddenly reversed?
But Jake knew that these were not questions he could answer at the moment. He needed to help Eli organize Skylark Camp and evacuate as soon as possible.
Skylark Camp had temporary conscripts, and their training had not been a priority. Besides the third battalion, the discipline among the other battalions was lacking. It took some time to gather everyone together.
Eli and Jake had initially believed that despite the defeat of the regular army on the frontlines, they would have enough time to organize the troops and resist the beings from the otherworld. After all, the regular army was still formidable, and Hank was a capable leader. However, they didn't anticipate the danger the frontlines were facing.
Before they could fully organize the troops, they heard the commotion from the frontlines. In the distance, they could already see numerous figures approaching rapidly.
"Everyone, evacuate immediately!" Eli ordered, not waiting for the troops to be fully organized.
If the regular army couldn't withstand the attack from the beings of the otherworld, there was no chance for the conscripts. Once the retreating regular army and the pursuing enemy collided, the conscripts would likely be caught in the crossfire.
Seeing the situation up ahead, the troops of Skylark Camp, even without Eli's order, began running away from the danger. These conscripts were mostly farmers, and while fighting might be difficult for them, fleeing was a skill they had no trouble with.
Jake followed his squad members, repeatedly reminding them not to get separated to avoid any danger. Although the evacuation had started, he couldn't help but feel pessimistic.
Most of the conscripts were running on foot, as there were only a few skilled horse riders among them. Even the horse-drawn carts used for transporting supplies were mostly left behind. Based on the speed at which the enemy was pursuing them, it was evident that those at the front had mounts, which meant that they would eventually catch up to the fleeing conscripts. The retreat had come too late.
However, it wasn't Eli's fault. No one had expected the regular army on the frontlines to collapse so quickly and catastrophically, and even the main commander, Hank, hadn't anticipated this situation.