Alien world

Chapter 1652, page 285. Script
Three hours later, near noon, Soren and another trainee political commissar arrived near the forest. But as far as the eye could see, it was still a desolate wilderness, without a trace of trees.

Soren compared the locations repeatedly and confirmed that the location was correct, so the problem must be with the provided map.

At least I have more information than others. Since the forest doesn't exist, could the other locations marked on the map also be incorrect...?
Soren turned and scanned the sweat-drenched soldiers.

It's seven or eight degrees warmer now than when we set off, and standing in the sun is already making people uncomfortable.

The most urgent task is to cool down the team.

The map shows a stream a few miles away... Should we trust the map, or change our plans?
"So hot……"

The soldiers behind him were getting restless, so Soren decided to continue off course and go find the stream.

This open field is densely vegetated, so there must be a water source. Even if the map is not accurate, the location of the stream is probably not too far off.

Another trainee political commissar encountered the same problem. "It's so hot..." Hearing the complaints from the team, he made the same decision as Soren.

After another hour of travel, the two teams, parched and exhausted from the sun, arrived at the stream marked on the map.

Before me stretched an endless expanse of lush green fields.

Is an incorrect map part of the assessment?
Sauron passed down the flawed map, indicating that it was faulty and telling the soldiers to remain calm. Just then, a scout who had been sent ahead ran over and reported that several hundred ratmen had been spotted ahead.

Soren perked up and turned around, saying, "We've spotted a small swarm of rats ahead. Stay alert, let's go capture a few to interrogate!"

As an outstanding graduate of Liberty City University, he naturally knew some Ratman language.

On the other side, the trainee political commissar, who had once again come up empty-handed, also "coincidentally" encountered a small group of rats.

However, he finally made a different decision from Sauron: he shoveled the turf and covered his helmet to block the sun and avoid the rats.

……

When Soren and the trainee commissars encountered difficulties, the two trainee commissars, who were heading straight for their destination, were unaware that there was a problem with the map, and the complaints that had been made about Soren and the others also came to them.

"So hot……"

"Hang in there a little longer, we'll rest when it cools down in the afternoon!" the trainee political commissar encouraged loudly.

"So hot……"

The trainee political commissar, who had said "the shortest distance between two points is a straight line," looked at the complaining soldier and asked, "Can you still hold on?"

"Traveling in this heat, the plate armor is practically scalding my skin..." the soldier couldn't help but say.

The trainee political commissar observed the other soldiers' expressions; some seemed stiff, and he guessed they were embarrassed to show it, so he asked, "What's your name?"

"Why are you asking my name? Do you want me to write it down and tell my superior?" the soldier asked warily.

"No, I just want to say my name after you say yours..."

The trainee political commissar said helplessly, "I know you don't trust me because I'm just a new recruit who just came out of the military academy and has never even been to a military camp... But we have the same goal, which is to complete the mission."

“I have always admired the Hellfire Legion and dreamed of joining them. Now I finally have the opportunity to join you... You could say that I am both the temporary political commissar who commands you and a citizen protected by the Hellfire.”

"Whether you're an idol or a subordinate, as a Hellfire soldier, you should lead by example and be a role model!"

The trainee political commissar's words of reason and emotion persuaded most of the Hellfire soldiers, but not the complaining ones.

He yelled like a thug, "Anyone can talk a good game, try wearing a suit of plate armor yourself!"

The trainee political commissar was somewhat disappointed; it seems that corrupt elements can be found everywhere.

However, the surrounding Hellfire soldiers were also frowning. Fortunately, most of the Hellfire soldiers were as expected; only a small group had problems. "Alright, take off your plate armor, I'll put it on."

"This……"

"What, as the most elite soldiers in Liberty City, you don't even have the courage to take off your armor?"

"Who said there isn't!"

The soldier muttered complaints as he removed his plate armor in front of everyone. He was mainly afraid of overacting and making these real Hellfire soldiers unable to bear it and beat him up.

"Comrade, do me a favor."

The trainee political commissar then asked a soldier nearby to help him put on his armor.

As soon as he put it on, the trainee political commissar deliberately made a painful face, grimacing from the heat: "It really is hot. I take back my boast."

The surrounding soldiers smiled, with the complaining soldier laughing the loudest: "Now you know? Give it back to me."

"No need, I'll wear it from now on, that's fair."

After donning the plate armor, the trainee political commissar jumped up and down, finding it to be a decent fit. Once he had gotten used to the weight and heat of the armor, he ordered the troops to continue advancing.

"So now can you tell me your name?" the trainee political commissar asked.

“Dern…” the complaining soldier mumbled.

“My name is Frank,” he said.

The journey resumed peacefully, and no more troublemakers emerged.

As long as Frank was still wearing plate armor, the soldiers could no longer complain to him—if a student who had never been to a military camp could do it, what couldn't they do?

"So hot……"

A familiar scene also occurred in Adam's troops.

That's right, the plot was all pre-arranged. Except for the Hellfire soldiers who served as background characters, who were real, the soldiers with lines were all brought in from New World and New World Pictures. The rat swarm was also driven over there. There was also "director" Lokeren's adjutant coordinating from the sidelines.

Since it's a real combat assessment, we need to start from the same starting line. We can't just throw them out into the wild to fend for themselves. It's not that the political commissar's ability to lead troops isn't important, but the more musketeers we have, the stronger we are. If we really throw a hundred-man squad into the wild, it's just a waste of our strength.

The trainee political commissars who have passed the first two rounds of tests should have a better understanding of the role of a "political commissar" and be able to bring it to fruition in actual combat assessments.

So Soren was right. On the surface, the practical assessment was to see their "command ability" and whether they could reach the pass as quickly as possible. But at a deeper level, it was to consider their reactions to the various encounters they faced on the way.

However, reaching the northern pass within three days to deliver the message was more important than he had imagined.

After all, soldiers are duty-bound to obey orders.

Even the best officer, if he fails in his mission, it's a flaw that's hard to erase...

As the future soul of the Hellfire Legion, the selection process is destined to be brutal, and perhaps in the end, no one will be qualified to serve as political commissar.

"Bear with it, we're almost there," Adam said, his forehead covered in sweat.

The map error had little impact on Adam. Lokeren, the adjutant who was preparing the "script" for the first time, never expected anyone to go in the opposite direction; the outer map was actually correct. Moreover, finding the dirt road meant finding the town.

For example, right now, they can see the dirt road ahead and the outline of a town in the distance.

(End of this chapter)