[Time: Future. Location: Eastlandia.]
At dawn, the resplendent blue colors blanketed the expansive sky, the endless sea appeared in a spectacular azure scene. Where the heaven met the sea, layers of orange interspersed the horizon line, hinting at something potentially tumultuous bursting forth.
Dark blue shadows dashed across the sandy beach, and sonorous slogans echoed loudly as they filled the open sky, like the sound of a soaring eagle skimming the clouds.
"Beep——"
In the vast base, the shrill whistle for assembling suddenly pierced the air; as if the shrill sound were the tolling bells snatching their lives away. The female soldiers in training uniforms inside the dormitory hurriedly rushed out, their movements filled with pervasive panic and tension.
Outside the dormitory on the parade ground, Drake Easton stood with his hands clasped behind his back. He was tall and burly, with thick black brows and a stern, square face. He was intimidating, seeming like a hard-to-deal-with dark god. Behind him was the morning's sky and earth, the beautiful picturesque scenery was breathtaking. The soft sunlight cast a silhouette of him, making him appear like a statue deeply rooted in this land—the kind that would stand eternally unyielding.
"Is there one more?!"
Seeing the female soldiers arriving in quick succession, Drake sharply swept his gaze over them and barked abruptly.
"Report!" The deputy platoon leader shouted solemnly, "The missing person is Flossie Wright. She's not in the bedroom!"
Drake's facial expression momentarily froze, his face turning black immediately afterwards.
The members of the second squad standing rigidly in three lines all had pitiless expressions on their faces, yet none lacked solemnity.
The most troublesome in the three lines was Flossie Wright. The delicate, spoiled young lady, whose physical prowess couldn't be brought up to par, was not just a drag on the class but also had a proud and annoying character. Probably nobody in the class liked her. And given her character, she might just become a deserter.
In the meantime,
As the first rays of the morning sun shone down, a girl lying in a nearby abandoned haystack abruptly opened her eyes. Her sharp, pitch-black eyes were as sharp as newly sharpened swords. The morning light reflected the brilliant glow in her deep eyes—dazzling like the stars, splendidly radiant.
The sharpness in her eyes was indefensible.
Erina Taylor's field of view took in the clear blue sky and the lush green grass. As the faint sounds echoed in her ears, the new environment filled with unfamiliar sensations, rushed towards her. Instinctively, she raised her hand to block the dazzling rays of light, while mentally, she went over her new identity.
Her fiance joined the army due to an arranged marriage, and she stubbornly followed him into the forces. Even her parents couldn't dissuade her. Unexpectedly, the forces weren't a place she could enter casually. Her poor physical condition and being tormented as soon as she entered the new recruits' unit resulted in her sudden collapse. Nevertheless, being a strong and stubborn individual, she sneaked out at night to improve her physical fitness, and in the end, she unexpectedly died from overwork.
Now, she, Erina Taylor, was Flossie Wright.
"Search! Dig three feet into the ground if you have to, but find her!"
The furious voice shot into her ears directly; the furious platoon leader's face flashed through her mind. Flossie casually picked a strand of grass nearby, rather lacklusterly, and raised it upwards. The grass leaves fluttered in the direction of the breeze.
"I'm here."
The weak voice that emerged from her lips was more than sufficient for the crowd not too far away to hear.
Almost immediately, all the members of the second group found her existence. The foliage of the autumn wild grasses was flourishing, much like a jungle, serving as the best hiding spot. Right now, it was not until Flossie raised the blade of grass that they could faintly make out a figure upon closer observation.
Instantaneously, all the female soldiers rushed to her. They were able to catch a glimpse of Flossie Wright in the grass. The training uniforms on her were soiled and wrinkled, smeared all over with yellow mud and dust. Even her previously delicate and fair face was covered in filth, as though she had rolled around in a mud pit.