Creak, creak——
The rocking chair and the floor emitted an aged sound together, and the room, deficient in light and ventilation, was filled with suffocating tobacco smoke. The smell of tar and the dampness in the air made it exceptionally dull.
Creak, creak, creak——
The man reclining in the rocking chair glanced outside at the gathering cumulonimbus clouds, forcefully stubbed out his cigarette, and turned to stare at the uniform hanging on the rack in the room.
The corners of the royal blue uniform had frayed, and the colour had faded to a light blue, but the entire row of badges on the left chest were conspicuous and impressive. The badges recognized his battle wounds, assaults, ambushes, first-class merits, national knighthood, and national honorary medals and commanded respect.
