Chapter 207
Chapter 207 Episode 028 Are You Afraid of Death? (3)
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"Eh, should we be taking notes?"
"What for? It’s embarrassing enough as it is!"
The initially empty-handed officers who had come to listen in on the lecture had gradually become drawn in by Glenn Hutchinson’s speech, starting to whisper to one another and carry on hushed discussions. Yet all these comments only served as proof of Glenn Hutchinson’s success with this lecture.
The murmurs of the officers nearby gradually quieted down. Flossie Wright lazily squinted her eyes, carefully sizing up the man standing on the podium.
He was good-looking, his face alone could do a lot. The classroom light showered down upon him, casting a somewhat fuzzy silhouette upon him and adding an aura of mystery to him, making him look all the more cold and attractive.
Whilst lecturing, he never manipulated the atmosphere with his tone or expressions. His words were always plain, but they felt like they were digging into one’s heart, every sentence striking at the soul.
From the beginning of his lecture, he had never laughed, even corners of his eyes and the brow were tinged with heaviness. His deep eyes seemed to sink even deeper, as if they had fallen into a cold pool - undisturbed, tranquil, and steadfast.
Flossie could almost guess that the bloody reality and examples he described were all from his own experiences.
Neither death nor the battlefield brought happiness, they only cast shadows on one’s heart.
No one liked war. Despite being a war profiteer, Flossie had never been fond of scenes filled with the smoke and fire of battle. Poverty, war, fleeing - those scenes were all heart-wrenching and then numbing. They would one day turn one cold-blooded and ever vigilant, as if everything in the world harboured malintent. They could even make one forget the feeling of comfort and peace.
It was torment to the soul.
Who wouldn’t wish for a world filled with peace, for every gun barrel to be stuffed with flowers, and for peace doves to populate every dark corner?
Only those who have truly experienced it would empathise.
With just that single, curt word, the thoughts of the new soldiers who had been attentively listening to the lecture were immediately drawn back. Following Glenn Hutchinson’s gaze, their attention fell upon a soldier sitting towards the front rows.
Calvin Ramos.
He seemed to be listening carefully to the class, a pen and paper lying on his table. They could vaguely see his notes but he remained calm throughout, even when singled out by Glenn Hutchinson. He stood up naturally and calmly.
Glenn Hutchinson stepped down from the podium and made his way to Calvin Ramos, moving at a seemingly slow pace. However, in the blink of an eye, he had taken position beside Calvin Ramos.
His fingers tapped lightly on the wooden table, Glenn Hutchinson standing shoulder to shoulder with Calvin Ramos, facing the opposite direction. But as he leaned slightly towards Calvin Ramos, an unnamed pressure radiated from him, as if brushing over the scalp to induce a sense of tension.
He didn’t look at Calvin Ramos but slowly spoke, "If there is a war, the nation and its people need a win, but you need to sacrifice many comrades," he paused for a moment, and glanced sideways, his voice deep and forceful, "Would you, fight?"
The words fell and everyone in the room was on edge.
In the face of an actual war, when you’re left with no choice, who would you choose - the country or your comrades?
To them, the answer to such a question was almost self-evident.
As soldiers, protecting the country and its people is their duty. If the sacrifice of their comrades could secure the safety of the nation, most people present would choose the former, because that is righteousness.
— End of Chapter 207 —