Chapter 39

Chapter 39
Team B was moving toward the base of Team A when a signal flare went up from their own camp before they had traveled very far. They hurried back immediately and discovered Haydam standing by himself while guarding the flag.

The banner remained secure, but the surrounding quiet felt deeply unnatural.

“Haydam? Are you here by yourself?”

For a brief second, their stomachs dropped with the realization that two members of their group were missing. Then the cadets from Team B noticed that Haydam was stained with the orange paint of Team A.

One of them rushed forward in concern.

“Haydam! What happened?”

“Well…”

Haydam let go of the flagpole and began to speak.

“Our teammates suddenly appeared and tried to capture the flag.”

“They ambushed you?!”

“The other two tried to hold them off, but they were overpowered. As soon as the flare went up, they grabbed Harry and Cohen and disappeared…”

They had nearly been stripped of everything. The cadets stared at one another in dismay while Haydam gave a small, awkward shrug.

“I… still managed to hold onto the flag, though. Friendly fire does not count as an elimination, so when I threw my body over it, they just left.”

“Haydam…”

A few of the cadets felt a tightness rising in their throats until someone interrupted them.

“That is complete garbage.”

Bones. He had felt suspicious ever since they first spotted Haydam.

“What on earth are you talking about? Look at him, he is not even scratched while defending our flag!”

However, Bones was not the only one who considered the situation bizarre.

“No, I thought it was strange too. We wasted time bringing Haydam back inside, remember? Thinking about it now, that was more than enough time for them to hide near our base.”

“Are you people out of your minds? You are doubting Haydam right now?”

“Just eliminate him right this second. Then the drill ends.”

“You shoot Haydam and I will snatch that flag and shove it into his hand before your bullet hits him.”

“Who is the crazy one here?”

“Stop.”

It was Lucas who brought the argument to a halt.

“Is this really the moment to fight among ourselves? Our base got attacked and Harry and Cohen are gone.”

“So what should we do?”

“We stop doubting Haydam. If he had been tricking us, grabbing the flag would have been much simpler.”

“Well… yeah, but…”

Bones still could not completely shake his skepticism, shooting a sideways glare at Haydam.

“More importantly, they are probably still close by, so we need to search the perimeter. This time I am staying behind with Haydam.”

“You are staying alone?”

Bones started to protest again, but Lucas chambered a round and aimed his rifle straight at Haydam’s head.

“Like this. I will keep the barrel trained on him. If they try another ambush, I shoot and finish the exercise.”

“If that is how it has to be…”

“Lucas. We are counting on you.”

The rest of the squad vanished beyond the perimeter. Left alone with Haydam, Lucas saw the boy’s shoulders shivering slightly beneath the weapon’s muzzle. After all, he was only a ten-year-old child who had watched his trusted teammates get captured and faced a group beating—naturally, he would be terrified. On top of protecting the banner, he was now being treated with suspicion…

Lucas opened his mouth to offer some reassurance.

“Haydam.”

“Yes…?”

“There is no reason for you to blame yourself so heavily. Everyone makes mistakes.”

“Lucas…”

Haydam replied, his shoulders still shaking.

“You are right… everyone makes mistakes.”

“Yes, so—”

“So you do not need to blame yourself too much either, Lucas.”

For a moment, Lucas experienced a brief flash of confusion and responded half a second too late.

“…What?”

And the very next second—

Thwack!

An orange paint projectile from Team A slammed squarely into Lucas’s shoulder blade.

—

What greeted Team B when they dashed back at the sound of the second signal flare was a solitary upright flag—and nothing else.

“What the hell?”

“This time Senior Lucas is gone too… and Haydam is missing as well?”

“The flag is still untouched.”

“Did Team A ambush them again? Why is the banner still safe this time?”

“Hmm… perhaps while we were away they struck us again and Lucas went after them?”

“Leaving the flag completely unprotected?”

“Then where did Haydam go?”

“He went after Lucas… or maybe Team A captured him again.”

“Are you guys absolute morons?”

Bones, who had mistrusted Haydam from the very beginning, finally reached his breaking point, his voice dripping with frustration.

“We got played!! By that little jerk! I knew he was far too polite to be genuine. General Max said the kid’s attitude is absolute trash!”

“Why do you keep suspecting Haydam? Is it because your foster father supports the pro-Daphne faction?”

“Then what the hell, does this look fine to you? Three of us are already eliminated!”

“Senior Lucas might still be hanging on.”

“Oh, for heaven’s sake, look at that blind optimism!”

“No—if Haydam really did trick us, that is a problem in itself. It means eight of us got danced around by a ten-year-old.”

Silence descended upon them. The most senior cadet in the group tried to repair the ruined mood.

“All right, settle down. Either way, we only need a single elimination to win. We are still ahead.”

“Ahead my foot! We are down to five people. No Lucas. They still have eight.”

“T-then for now, two can guard the flag and three can search the area again…”

“Did you not hear me say they have eight? You want to fight a two-against-eight or a three-against-eight battle?”

“Then what, do we just sit here babysitting the flag forever?”

“That seems like the best choice for now. Until we come up with a better strategy, we hold the flag.”

“Rather than that…”

“No, it is better to…”

When no clear choice could be reached, Bones released a long sigh, picked up his gear, and started walking.

“I am going to catch that little bastard Haydam.”

“What? You know where he is?”

“No. But I cannot just sit here and take this. I am at least taking that kid down with me.”

“Bones. No solo operations. We are already shorthanded—what on earth are you doing?”

“This is completely ridiculous!”

Bones spun around, his eyes blazing, and pointed an accusing finger at the cadet who tried to stop him.

“If you idiots had not kept covering for that kid, we would never be in this mess!”

“Look, this is not the time to turn on each other. Bones, I understand how you feel, but could you please stay?”

Bones narrowed his eyes at his companions, then spat out his words.

“If you want me to stay, make me a promise.”

“Promise what?”

“The moment you spot even a single hair of that bastard Haydam, you shoot him.”

“What? We do not even know for certain if Haydam tricked us… F-fine. I will shoot. If his hair shows up, I shoot. Me.”

Even after that concession, Bones shook his head, turned his back, and marched straight out of the camp.

“Hey! Where are you headed? I said I would shoot! I made a promise!”

Desperate voices called out to stop him, but he never slowed his pace.

“Judging by the way you talk, you would never pull the trigger. In that case, I will eliminate him myself.”

“Hey!”

The cadet yelled after him frantically. The only response was a middle finger raised over a retreating shoulder.

“Dammit!”

—

Bones, who had been combing the surroundings for Haydam like someone hunting for lice, was soon forced to turn back toward the base amid a stream of curses. The camp had suddenly erupted into noise.

I thought they would target the smaller group—was I wrong?!

Four people remained at the base; he was the only one moving independently. If Team A had been watching, they should have pursued him.

Bones’s sprint toward the camp gradually slowed down. The base that had been so loud just moments prior had grown entirely silent.

No way…

Had all four people left at the camp been taken out in that brief span of time? The hopeful possibility—that the four of them had overpowered the ambushing Team A—did not even cross his mind.

Bones crept as close as he dared, took cover behind a barrier, and peered toward the flag. The instant he spotted the person he had been hunting sitting casually beside it, he burst out into the open.

“Haydam.”

“Welcome back.”

Haydam grinned, flashing his teeth, and leveled his weapon straight at Bones.

Bones flinched on instinct as the barrel pointed at him, then forced himself to remain calm and stepped closer with caution.

Paint guns have a short range. Just stay out of the effective distance.

He adopted a deliberately casual tone.

“Where did my idiot teammates go?”

“Who knows. One thing is certain, though…”

The polite demeanor from earlier had vanished entirely. Haydam now spoke with open, calculated condescension.

“You are the only one left, Bones.”

“You are out of your mind…”

Bones swept his gaze across the camp. No teammates—and no Team A members either. Not a single trace. It was hard to believe a firefight had just taken place here.

“Where did your squad go?”

Bones kept scanning the environment as he questioned him.

“I do not know what dirty trick you pulled, but… one-on-one, I win, right?”

“You are waiting for me to call my team. Truth is, if you tag anyone at all, you still have a chance to win.”

Hit right on target, Bones said nothing. Haydam tilted his head slightly.

“You were so eager to have me shot… but when it is your own finger on the trigger, you do not actually want to do it. Even now, you still dislike the idea of winning by shooting a kid like me.”

He hated to admit it, but the boy was right. Even after coddling Haydam had cost him every single teammate and left him entirely on his own, Bones’s initial instinct had still been to target a Team A member who might rush out to protect the boy—rather than simply eliminating Haydam to secure the victory.

“I have never encountered a more disgusting little brat than you.”

“I have met people just like you before.”

“What?”

“I know someone identical to you—a foul-mouthed jerk who complains about everything.”

“You little piece of…”

Bones bristled for a second—then realized Haydam was intentionally provoking him and forced himself to stay level-headed.

“That long tongue of yours means you are terrified, does it not? If you are not calling your teammates, then fight me one-on-one.”

“Oh, I am not calling them.”

Not calling Team A? What was he thinking?

I might have no choice but to eliminate the little jerk after all.

By the time that thought formed in his mind, it was already too late. Haydam had not finished speaking.

“Because they are already here.”

“…What?”

By the time Bones sensed that something was wrong, the members of Team A who had been lying underneath white blankets disguised as snowdrifts stood up simultaneously and trained their weapons directly on him.

“Oh, you son of a—”

Multiple gunshots echoed through the air, signaling the conclusion of the exercise.

—

The day following the end of the training simulation.

“There was a lot of discussion even before this drill began. People said your team winning was completely impossible, Haydam.”

“There was, yes.”

“Then explain it to me.”

The commander’s voice carried heavy curiosity.

“How did you manage to turn the impossible into reality?”