064. Player Volunteer Army
"Assemble!"
In the capital city of Granat, Spayer City Hospital, a curious scene unfolded. Doctors and patients crowded the windows, watching a group of people gathered in the courtyard below.
Police officers, patients, doctors, ordinary passersby, engineers, and construction workers—a total of 50 individuals, varying in height, weight, and appearance, some even from the Frost-Plated Republic, yet they all exuded a disciplined, resolute air.
"At ease, attention, stand at ease!"
A doctor, hands behind his back and wearing a white coat, still carried himself with the unmistakable air of an officer. He scanned the neat ranks and called one person forward:
"Private First Class Liu Zhiguang, step forward."
"Yes, sir!"
A short-haired patient in green surgical scrubs stood tall and marched forward, saluting the doctor with sharp precision:
"Reporting! Experimental Tactical Unit of the Frost-Plated Republic—50 personnel expected, 50 personnel present. Assembly complete, awaiting orders!"
"Return to formation."
The leading officer nodded, surveying the fifty Flame Summer military players. Despite their varied appearances, they had all received quick-start guides from the Qiqiao Network Corporation, activated their game systems, personal panels, and identities as soon as they logged in.
"Comrades, according to orders from the Operations Command, the newly established government of Granat is being brutally suppressed and invaded as they resist colonial rule. Many civilians have been injured in airstrikes. Our mission is to quickly engage on the battlefield, directly confronting one of Blue Star's four major nations—the Frost-Plated Republic. This is also to test the military strength of Blue Star for a comprehensive assessment and to assist the people of Granat in resisting the Frost-Plated military's invasion."
The officer spoke in a solemn tone:
"We are not ordinary entertainment players. In the game, we must maintain strict military discipline: no harassment of civilians, no indiscriminate killing, no abuse of prisoners. We must uphold the high standards of Flame Summer soldiers. Is that clear?"
"Yes, sir! Understood!" The soldiers shouted in unison.
"Good. Our weapons and equipment have already been purchased and prepared by the Qiqiao Network's testers. We will now retrieve our gear and immediately head to the battlefield."
The military players moved with great efficiency. Though they had no vehicles prepared, they found various ways to leave the city, riding bicycles, hitching rides—doing whatever it took to integrate into local society with the help of friendly civilians. They soon reached an abandoned factory on the northern outskirts.
Two Qiqiao Network staff members had been waiting for them. They led the gathered soldiers into the factory and pulled several crates of weapons from underground storage.
"Time is tight, and with Granat under sanctions, we could only get basic weapons."
The game's official testers spoke apologetically to the soldiers, who had digital IDs:
"For game balance, this is the best we can do."
The Flame Summer officer nodded. "Understood. Leave the rest to us."
Opening the crates, they found only automatic weapons and pistols—no body armor—but there was plenty of ammunition. The soldiers wasted no time equipping themselves before boarding civilian cars and trucks to head directly to the frontlines.
"The Frost-Plated forces have deployed Law IV agency female operatives—around 20,000 of them. They are formidable, having captured six cities in Granat in just two hours. Our objective is to recapture the small town of Domat, eliminate the five Law IV operatives stationed there, along with 25 riot police and 130 remnants of the Duke's armed forces."
"The enemy has three armored personnel carriers and one armed hovercraft. The good news is that the riot police aren't equipped with exoskeletons, so the firepower disparity isn't huge. Therefore, stealth and infiltration are the key objectives in this mission..."
The military players carefully reviewed the tactical plans and enemy intel. They were still low-level, weak, without military implants, only equipped with basic firearms.
But they had one advantage the enemy could never anticipate.
Qiqiao Network, for the sake of game balance, only provided basic starter gear to military players from various servers, but when it came to mission intel, they gave as much as possible.
Additionally, every soldier had been trained in advance and knew how to adapt to the game's death mechanics immediately.
Native Blue Star citizens feared death, but military players did not. They would drag the fight into complex urban combat and CQB (close quarters battle), areas where they held an absolute edge in courage and skill.
After a two-hour drive, they arrived at the high ground overlooking Domat. Leaving four soldiers to guard the vehicles, two sniper teams set up for observation and shooting. The rest disembarked and advanced on foot.
The soldiers charged into the icy winds and sandstorm of the outer zones. The darkened skies and harsh environment, apocalyptic for Blue Star inhabitants, became the soldiers' camouflage. Using the game's internal voice chat system, they maintained radio silence. The vast snowstorm and wind made it impossible for sentries in the distant town to spot them.
The soldiers crawled through the snow, allowing themselves to be buried by it. Using the cover of nature and their mechanical, unyielding discipline, they successfully bypassed the Frost-Plated Republic's technological reconnaissance advantages, silently infiltrating Domat.
The system notified them that they had entered a danger zone, but the soldiers ignored it. They huddled beneath the high walls, following sniper observations and instructions, and immediately found a breach in the wall. Two soldiers knelt down, forming a bridge for their comrades to climb over. The climbing soldier, rifle in hand, carefully scaled the wall, scanned the area, then quietly dropped down.
Lacking night vision goggles, the soldiers came up with a solution—raising the brightness settings in the game, allowing them to barely make out figures in the darkness.
"Two o'clock, a sentry with a guard dog—avoid them."
"Understood, moving."
"Four o'clock, fifty yards, balcony of the second-floor house—there's a sharpshooter with a precision rifle."
Thud—
The sniper pulled the bolt, ejecting a hot cartridge that fell into the snow, cooling instantly.
"Target eliminated."
"Infiltration team, be advised—two patrols will cross your path ahead. Take them out."
Moving through the shadows between the buildings of Domat, the Frost-Plated suppression troops patrolling the streets were yawning, holding their rifles in boredom. With no interest in the dull mission, they reminisced about home, where cream biscuits awaited them. However, thoughts of their wives scolding them for not earning enough money and the mounting mortgages dampened their spirits.
Just as one soldier looked down in depression, two Flame Summer soldiers emerged from the shadows. One clamped an arm around his neck, cutting off his carotid artery and rendering him unconscious. The other soldier, concealed behind a fence, quickly garroted another soldier, dragging both targets into the darkness without a sound.
Nearby, guard dogs were on patrol. The scent of blood would have drawn attention, so incapacitation was the best option. After disarming their captives, the soldiers donned the riot squad's uniforms and boldly walked out of the alley, scouting the terrain before slipping into the Frost-Plated encampment.
Creak—
The door opened, cold frost and sand blowing in, catching the attention of the remnants of the Duke's party. Seeing familiar faces and equipment, they didn't raise the alarm, continuing to drink and chat.
"Those damn bandits from Bermudes took our land. They stole everything from us."
One of the Duke's soldiers grumbled as he sipped his drink.
His companion snorted. "Hey, it's not just your land. My father was a duke in the Grand Duchy, and now we're refugees because of these rebellious peasants."
"They could've just lived peacefully. I don't get why they had to rebel. Those Bermudes bastards care only about national pride without thinking about the consequences of resistance. If they don't have the means to migrate to Frost-Plated, why drag the whole country down with them? What's the point of resisting? They could be living like us—drinking and freeloading with the Frost-Plated Republic."
The remnants of the Duke's party were mostly Granat's elite—landlords and aristocrats who held the Republic in contempt: common folk should be content working for the Frost-Plated people, enjoying the protection of a powerful nation, using their oil and energy. What's wrong with being a serf?
The two infiltrating soldiers remained silent as they entered the basement, carrying explosives under the pretext of turning in their weapons. They stealthily located the armory, hearing one arrogant aristocrat declare:
"These peasants are shortsighted. This is obviously funded by Tianhuan, Red Arrow, and Zhengxu. Do they really think independence is a good thing? The Frost-Plated people bring civilization and wealth. Who would buy Granat's grain without them?"
"I don't care about politics. I just want my old life back—24,000 acres of farmland, reading poetry under my grapevines, hunting in the Grand Duchy's estate on Sundays with my custom-made Hebron bolt-action rifle. Lining up the crosshairs on my target, a gentle squeeze of the trigger—bang! A beautiful spray of blood blossoms from that peasant's back as they stumble and fall onto the grass. It was truly a beautiful scene."
"Ah, such poetic elegance. I'm a simpler man—I just love speeding down the highway in my Balman sports car, a girl beside me holding my gun. If anyone dared to overtake me, I'd shoot out their trunk. One time, a woman demanded compensation after a stray bullet killed her husband—so I tossed her 30,000 Debby. She cried all night. Serves those peasants right for overtaking a nobleman's car."
They drank their warm beer, reminiscing about the golden years lost with the death of the Duke. None of them noticed the two Flame Summer soldiers slipping away with a flash of anger in their eyes.
Moments later, the two soldiers returned from the basement. One of the Duke's soldiers called out, "Don't be in such a rush—come drink with us."
The two infiltrators exchanged glances and activated their [Camouflage Mode]. Adopting a casual tone, they smiled and said:
"Patrolling was exhausting. We'll head back to sleep. You guys enjoy."
"Nothing beats good booze." The Duke's soldier shrugged, unconcerned, returning to his drinking and gambling.
The disguised soldiers calmly exited the building, quietly shutting the door behind them. Moments later, a massive explosion shook the ground, blowing the entire roof skyward as roaring flames consumed the entire encampment.
The Law IV agents, who had been resting, jolted awake. Hastily pulling on their bras and coats, they grabbed their rifles, ready to rush out—only for grenades, filled with marbles and stones, to be thrown through the windows.