Standing behind the barbecue stand were the seventeen women who survived the Red Leaf Village massacre.
They were wearing aprons, working beside a five to six-meter-long grill, each busy with their own tasks.
Some were adding charcoal to the stove, some were fanning the fire, some were greeting customers, and others were responsible for collecting money and giving change.
The work was clearly divided, and they were all busy with joy.
Rorschach stood stunned, watching the smiles on their faces.
They were truly heartfelt smiles.
"Come, young John, try your aunt's cooking."
An aunt handed him a skewer of grilled meat.
The smell of cumin-seasoned meat wafted directly into his nose.
"Thank you, Aunt Pelo."
Rorschach took the grilled meat.
He recognized the woman speaking in front of him.
It was Pelo, the wife of the fisherman Laurel from Red Leaf Village. She must be around forty years old now.
Pelo was a very kind woman.
Rorschach remembered that over the years, Pelo gave him the most black bread in exchange for the shell necklaces and bracelets he made.
Pelo's family wasn't wealthy, but they didn't have children, so they could save some food.
And some of that food went to Rorschach.
Pelo always told him she lost the shell bracelet she took from him before and wanted another one.
"How does it taste?" Pelo asked with a smile.
Rorschach nodded vigorously, "Very delicious! Absolutely wonderful!"
"Good," Pelo said as she busily grilled the meat, adding chili powder, "I always wanted to sell grilled fish at Meruz Port, but Laurel couldn't catch enough fish, and the money we made after paying taxes wasn't enough to support our trip to Meruz Port."
"Aunt Pelo, how did you open this barbecue stand so quickly?"
Rorschach asked in confusion while eating the grilled meat.
Pelo smiled, "We set up the barbecue stand yesterday afternoon, with the help of some kind navy soldiers. The house behind us was rented to us in advance. The first three months are rent-free, and after that, we'll pay the rent from our profits."
"Is the rent expensive?"
"Not at all, the money we make in a few days is enough for a month's rent. I calculated that if this stand continues, we can buy our own house in this town within two years."
"And the money for the barbecue?"
"The navy fronted us, saying we can pay them back when we make money, without any interest. Ah, these navy officers are truly kind. If they had been there when the pirates attacked the village, my clumsy husband wouldn't have been killed trying to protect me."
Rorschach didn't know how he made it back to the branch base.
After wandering around Flameheart City with Skye, he felt much better and became full of energy and enthusiasm.
Thinking about Pelo and her companions' situation, Rorschach gained a deeper understanding of the justice he now upheld.
Training hard to become stronger was not for power or to trample on others' lives.
It was to protect ordinary people, just as he had seen.
Perhaps, this was true justice.
Three days later, at the coastal training ground of Branch 177.
"As officers, you are the main force of justice in the North Sea!"
"During normal times, you are responsible for sweeping the surrounding seas of pirates and criminals."
"Your strength directly affects the casualties your soldiers will face in battles against pirates!"
"Each elite soldier in the branch has been trained with a lot of resources. Losing one is a huge loss to the force of justice and a failure on your part!"
"Therefore, when you are not on a sea patrol mission, you must complete your daily training fully before entertaining, resting, or doing your own things!"
On the undulating beach, there were 32 branch officers, including Rorschach and Richard, standing in lines, listening to Lieutenant Jennifer's serious speech.
Lieutenant Jennifer was a strong woman, taller than Rorschach, with two giant arms thicker than Richard's waist, and her lieutenant uniform stretched tight over her muscles, making her look more manly than most men.
But despite her strong build, she had a very beautiful face and a head of red wavy hair.
She was the wife of Major General Adira and the deputy base commander of Branch 177.
"Now, let's start the first training session, swimming!"
"Swimming?"
Rorschach was surprised.
Before he came, he imagined various training methods.
Running with weights, doing push-ups, frog jumps, inter-officer sparring, and so on.
But swimming training wasn't something he expected.
He looked around and saw the other officers were all shocked as well.
"Oh no, the first training is swimming, it seems today's training will be hellish. Damn, I'd rather go on a sea patrol and fight those stupid pirates."
Said Lieutenant Richard in front of him with a gloomy face.
"Just swimming, is it that scary?"
Jennifer soon explained it.
Far off on the sea, a warship was slowly approaching and stopped 200 meters from the shore, parallel to the coastline.
At the same time, dozens of soldiers holding long flintlock rifles rushed to the beach.
Jennifer pulled a loaded flintlock pistol from her waist and fired a shot into the air.
Bang!
The loud gunshot echoed over the sea.
"Everyone, get into the water! Swim along the coastline and don't stop until I order you to!"
"Don't go near the shallow area, or you'll be shot by the rifle squad on the beach!"
"Every five minutes, the last person will be bombarded by the warship!"
"Bombarded?"
Rorschach's eyes widened.
"I knew the training wouldn't be simple, but what is this bombardment? Is it an elimination system? Will it kill people?"
While his colleagues were rushing into the water, Rorschach grabbed Richard, who was about to jump in.
"They're not real shells, but hard rubber bullets. But," Richard shuddered, recalling some bad memories, "you definitely don't want to experience it, trust me."
"How far do we have to swim before we can stop?" Rorschach asked.
"Didn't you hear Lieutenant Jennifer? Don't stop until she orders, ah, I don't have time to explain more, the training has started, if we don't start now, those soldiers will start shooting, and their rifles are loaded with real bullets!"
Richard broke free from Rorschach's grip and quickly plunged into the water, swimming rapidly towards his colleagues.
Rorschach glanced back and saw dozens of soldiers silently raising their rifles towards them.
"Oh my God, are you serious?"
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