God of Blackfield

r soldiers who can actually survive situations like the one today, not someone who will protect a conference hall and shoot human-shaped dummy dolls.”

“Please don’t speak as if we have never participated in missions that took place in other countries.
All the soldiers here have experience training with famous teams from foreign nations, and they received high praise as well.
On top of that, they are all veterans who have gone on operations in the Middle East too,” Cha Dong-Gyun defended.

Kang Chan nodded.

“Do you think you can really show me what you’re made of?” Kang Chan asked.

“How should we do that?” Cha Dong-Gyun eagerly asked with glinting eyes.

Kang Chan turned his gaze to Choi Seong-Geon.

“Can I be in charge of the soldiers’ training tomorrow, General?” Kang Chan asked.

“Of course,” Choi Seong-Geon replied after shortly glancing at Kim Tae-Jin for approval.

“Show me what you’re capable of during training tomorrow, then,” Kang Chan said.

“Understood, sir,” Cha Dong-Gyun responded.
His admiration was tinted with a bit of hostility, causing the other soldiers’ eyes to betray the mixed emotions they felt.

When Cha Dong-Gyun returned to his seat, Seok Kang-Ho handed Kang Chan a pair of chopsticks.

“It’s so good that it’s to die for.
Hurry up.
Dig in,” Seok Kang-Ho urged.

Everyone went back to their meal, but the mood had been fully thrown in the dumps.

After eating their fill, Kim Tae-Jin, Kang Chan, Seok Kang-Ho, and Suh Sang-Hyun entered the barrack where Choi Seong-Geon had previously guided them.
When they opened the door next to Choi Seong-Geon’s office, they found a few cots that had already been set up.

Choi Seong-Geon and his aide had erected the temporary beds because he wanted his guests to rest comfortably.

“You’re really serious about doing this, huh?” Kim Tae-Jin asked.

“Yes.
I keep wanting to go easy on them whenever I see the looks in their eyes,” Kang Chan replied.

“Why did you provoke them so much earlier, then?” Kim Tae-Jin wondered curiously.

“Because I’m going to give them the beating of their lives tomorrow,” Kang Chan mischievously answered.

Suh Sang-Hyun stood in place with a numb expression, and Seok Kang-Ho just shook his head in disgust and horror.

“What do you think? Do they have any potential?” Kim Tae-Jin prodded.

“They have the skills, but they lack way too much experience.
I’m not confident I can provide them with that experience by taking them around either,” Kang Chan pondered.

“Hmm, I’m honestly not surprised that you came to that conclusion.
We have always found that to be a shame too.
It can’t be helped, though, since they have never gone to other countries and initiated attacks first.
The senior soldiers at the DMZ can at least pass on their experience, so we do get some capable soldiers out of that, but none of the soldiers ever got the chance to gain experience in strategies like these,” Kim Tae-Jin mused.

“Sir, with my abilities, I can still pull my weight wherever I go,” Suh Sang-Hyun countered with frustration, jumping into the conversation.
It seemed as if he had sympathized with the soldiers’ feelings earlier.

Suh Sang-Hyun is right, but he’s also wrong. 

“The difference between practice and real-life experience is simple.
When you hear the sound of some rustling, will you shoot immediately or wait on standby? Those brief moments are what determine life and death,” Kang Chan stated.

“These men can shoot at the drop of the hat when it comes to it,” Suh Sang-Hyun argued, seemingly upset by Kang Chan’s response.

“Let’s say they have already snuck into an enemy country.
What if they pull the trigger and it was just a wild animal? What happens after that? What if the object they thought was a beast was actually an enemy instead? Instantaneous but correct judgments can only be made with enough experience.”

“The soldiers have already received that kind of training,” Suh Sang-Hyun insisted.

“I suppose we’ll see tomorrow,” Kang Chan replied.

Suh Sang-Hyun didn’t have anything to say to that.

The moonlight traveled in through the window and illuminated the room.

“My, time flies fast.
It feels like just yesterday when I was roaming around the DMZ…” Kim Tae-Jin muttered to himself.
Just then, the sound of Seok Kang-Ho’s snoring echoed throughout the room.

“You should hurry and get some sleep.
You might not be able to fall asleep after a little while,” Kang Chan advised.

“Is his snoring that bad?” Kim Tae-Jin asked.

“It will be hard for you to ignore it,” Kang Chan said.

“Then I really should hurry and sleep,” Kim Tae-Jin remarked.

Kim Tae-Jin pulled the covers over himself and turned over on his side.

***

They woke up at six, washed themselves up, and ate breakfast.

It was so good that it wasn’t an exaggeration to say the food was the best part of their special treatment.
Even Kim Tae-Jin was satisfied.

After they finished their meal, they relaxed with some tea and refreshments for about 30 minutes.

“What’s your plan for the training?” Kim Tae-Jin asked.

“Just some basic running, mountain warfare, and urban warfare,” Kang Chan replied.

“Then I guess I should sit out of this one,” Kim Tae-Jin said as he shook his head with a smile.

When Kang Chan walked outside, the soldiers were already standing in line.