?

  When we got to the side lines, that head soldier appeared in front of us again. I frowned as she took off her mask—the damn bitch right in front of my eyes.

  Wretched mutt, the kind of trash that's not even recycble. King's soldiers… how the hell do they even present themselves? Nothing but hatred filled my heart seeing her there—hatred and powerlessness. Now her face is burned into my mind. I smirked scornfully as she straightened up, looking at us with pure pretension in her eyes. Vile creature.

  "Her Majesty welcomes you. Bow for the arrival of the King." Her voice carried barely hidden mockery, those snake-like eyes watching us. She's not even human anymore. I bent my knees, feeling those tiny, sharp rocks dig into my skin.

  Is the damn King really gonna show his ugly face here? I squeezed my eyes shut, a shiver running through my body as I watched rebels get electrocuted. Now I understand the colr's purpose… funny. What the hell do they want from us that they need this much control over mere insects? Definitely nothing good.

  A huge ship nded a few meters from the wooden stage, red fgs and painted eagles on its sides. He stepped out. This worm must've been King for thousands of years. Just proves how inhuman he's become. How many years has this bastard accumuted? How many lives has he stolen to stand there with that despicable smile?

  "Welcome to your new home. I imagine no one wants to waste time with formalities, so I'll get straight to the point. You've been brought here so we may find rare jewels among the mud. Prove yourselves now—a unique opportunity for all. Congratutions." Great. Exactly what we need. So we've really become such a nuisance that they're desperate to get rid of us? Keep the few who stand out? Funny. They don't even consider our bare minimum resistance… impressive, so full of themselves.

  "You'll train together and represent our country in a battle of utmost importance. All of you will be remembered, so don't worry. The elders in your families will receive aid if something happens… Now, good luck to all." Battle. War. More likely they just want to get rid of us—dead weight, right? After shoving us into the slums, we're still messing up their metropolis? Hirious.

  I didn't even notice when he left. Honestly, I don't care at this point. After everything that's happened, I sighed, rubbing my head hard—my forehead throbbing. I didn't even hear what that hag said after. The soldiers started moving.

  I have no energy left today. I want to disappear from this shitshow. What did I do to deserve this? Soren grabbed my hand and pulled me along to follow wherever the hell we're going.

  When we reached a huge field under the scorching sun, they barely expined.

  "Physical conditioning. Run ps around the field."

  They made us run faster and faster across those massive fields. The st one of us—a guy with a limp who couldn't run well—got electrocuted by the soldiers. Their eyes seemed to delight in his suffering.

  I kept running. Not my problem. I clenched my eyes shut, my breathing speeding up.

  As minutes passed, the exercise got harder. My breath grew ragged, my back felt like it was glued to my chest, my face drenched in sweat. I kept pushing, biting my lip and ignoring the heat.

  My initial stamina faded until I could barely breathe. I tripped and fell, coughing violently before I could gulp air—then a shockwave ripped through me. I screamed, trembling, clutching the grass and dirt. The burning felt like it reached beyond my veins.

  I need to get up. Run. Get up. Get up, damn it.

  I managed to breathe during the shock's pause before another hit came. I dragged myself up, pushing past my limit. It hurts so much I could die. But it's better than the shock.

  — Damn. Your hair's burned.

  Soren muttered, holding my arm to keep me up. He didn't look much better.

  — Go to hell…

  I swallowed hard.

  The torture only ended three hours ter. This is just inhumane. We dragged ourselves to the "mess hall." That couldn't even be called food—slightly better than garbage. I bent down, gulping the water like it was the rarest thing in the world. I took a deep breath, stabbing the questionable food with a fork and forcing it down. Almost puked, but swallowed the mixed grains and mushy protein.

  — This tastes like shit.

  Soren cursed, scarfing down the whole tray and sighing. Didn't even know he could eat that much at once. Looked like hell.

  — Really? You ate it like it was a feast.

  I ughed weakly—no energy left, but I could muster the strength to mock him.

  — Yeah… horse shit.

  — How specific…

  "Get up." A soldier appeared, killing what little amusement I had left. He waved coldly.

  I muttered a curse under my breath and stood. We were herded into a huge hall—men and women together, like animals. They threw cold water on us like we were wild beasts. I sighed, rubbing myself slowly. My muscles are so sore they might snap any second.

  Walking out slowly, they tossed me a rough gray towel. I dried off and put on the clothes they gave me… After all that suffering, there's no room for disobedience. I dressed and dragged myself to thin, finger-width mattresses, then colpsed and passed out.