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墨書 Inktalez
Strange incidents related to Vampire Creatures have been occurring all over the world. Some livestock animals have been killed without being eaten. Their eyes, lips, and genitals have vanished, their tongues cut out, their skins torn off, and their blood drained... What exactly is happening? Let me share an experience first, and you can judge for yourselves.
After the "Disappearance" incident, the entire unit's drill time was compressed from a month to half a month, and the location was moved again, this time to another mountainous area. However, this time it was in a flat area between several mountains. To me, it all looked the same: the same terrain, the same sea of trees, the same air—nothing seemed to change.
The soldiers felt little different; during evening training, they would return to their tents and collapse into sleep, snoring echoing throughout. I often found myself being the last one to fall asleep amidst the snoring. However, there was a silver lining to this outing: we could always catch some wild game during training. Almost every unit had meat to eat at night. Some bolder squad leaders would even sneak out at noon to dig a pit and start a fire to roast meat. Thanks to everyone’s efforts, I—a city kid—finally got to see what a wild chicken looked like, what a Bamboo Rat was, and how to roast a Whole Rabbit.
I must commend Garfield; as an old Cantonese man, aside from his habit of sipping afternoon tea at the base during thunderstorms—which I find annoying—he is truly excellent in other aspects, especially his cooking! One morning after training, he caught a rabbit on his way back and quietly roasted it for lunch. Several squad leaders gathered around to eat; if I hadn't passed by and caught a whiff of the aroma, I might have missed out entirely. Honestly, I'm not a foodie, but that golden-brown crispy rabbit leg was tender on the inside and bursting with flavor—it was perfectly seasoned! I believe it was the best barbecue I've ever had—without exception!
After that, I issued a Secret Order within my squad: any wild game caught during drills must be turned in for cooking by Squad Leader Liang. The person who caught it could choose their preferred cuts first; I would handle the distribution afterward. It became an extra meal for everyone in the squad! If anything went wrong, I would take responsibility!
Later on, our battalion exhibited a strange phenomenon: while other units tried to avoid work whenever possible, our squad—especially mine—would eagerly volunteer for any Duty Assignments. A bunch of us would rush to finish our tasks so we could send some soldiers who grew up in the mountains into the woods to catch wild game.
After all, whoever caught more would get more shares; if there was only one animal caught, then that person would pick their preferred cuts first. This way, our squad enjoyed roasted meat every lunch and dinner. Everyone was well-fed and satisfied as we approached the end of drills; some were even left wanting more. He Baisha was particularly vocal about wanting to catch wild boar! Not just us; even Company Headquarters and Battalion staff occasionally received some treats from us for their enjoyment. Thus, higher-ups turned a blind eye to our activities.
A saying circulated among our troops: "Guangxi Soldiers, Guangdong Squad Leaders, Hunan Cadres." This meant that not only did these three regions have significant representation among our ranks but also implied that Guangxi soldiers were honest, Guangdong squad leaders were effective, and Hunan cadres were formidable.
To be honest, I was quite satisfied with the Guangxi soldiers—they could endure hardship and were obedient. More importantly, rural kids had strong practical skills. Each of those Guangxi soldiers grew up in the mountains; they would return with rabbits, Bamboo Rats, and wild chickens as if performing magic tricks. Sometimes they even brought back skinned snakes! By later stages of our stay there were so many catches that we couldn't finish them all; live animals were sent over to my tent and Garfield's for us to keep!
One evening after dinner, while picking my teeth and returning to my tent, I noticed in one corner—where no one else was staying—two rabbits and three wild chickens tied up. That should be enough food until we leave! I sat down on my bunk pondering whether we should stop sending people out hunting; perhaps all the local game had been caught already? It seemed like those soldiers took forever to return from their trips; I worried they might get into trouble if they wandered too far.
Just then there was a commotion outside; it sounded like it was moving toward me. As I sat up to check it out, someone flung open the tent flap and a group of people rushed in! To my surprise, Xuanhua led them in with a big grin on his face and something slung over his shoulder—a wild boar!?
I quickly stood up for a closer look—it really was a wild boar! It had tusks but wasn't very large—about one meter long—and struggled fiercely against its bindings with its mouth gagged shut. Behind Xuanhua followed several Guangxi soldiers while He Baisha darted around excitedly; clearly curious since he came from the city! Garfield brought up the rear without much expression.
Where on earth did you get this? I asked hurriedly.
“Haha! We had good luck today helping Allies break through obstacles; just as we were finishing up this guy charged out unexpectedly! Probably startled us—I just went up with an Engineer shovel and knocked it down! It even tried to act tough with me; I could have crushed it!” Xuanhua buzzed excitedly.
“You guys are incredible! Did Allies really let you drag it away like this?” I asked incredulously.
“Ha ha ha, Squad Leader, I'm not stupid. I'm from the Special Operations Unit. Our Commander just wants to taste wild boar and bring it back for a feast at the headquarters!”
“Damn…” I almost fainted.
“Garfield, what do you think?” I looked over the crowd to Garfield. He was mature and steady, so I thought it would be good to ask for his opinion. I could manage carrying a roasted rabbit, but roasting a wild boar at the Base? Honestly, I had my doubts.
“It’s going to be troublesome, not easy to handle,” Garfield said with a worried expression, rubbing his hands together.
Great, my heart sank again.
“That big? We’ll need a huge fire, and it’s not easy to roast! Hmm, I’ve never roasted one before; it’s really not easy!”
I felt like I was about to faint again.
Roast, roast—these guys only knew how to roast. It was all my fault for indulging them. I felt like I had lifted a rock only to drop it on my own foot. Helplessly, I glanced at everyone. Xuanhua was chattering away; soon the entire Entire Camp would know. I told him to put the wild boar in the corner while I took two rabbits to the Company Headquarters to gauge the situation.
“Wang Pai! You’ve brought us some glory!” As soon as I entered the Company Headquarters, Instructor came at me. I never liked him much; he was too theoretical and dogmatic, lacking common ground with me. I stayed silent and looked at the Company Commander sitting inside. He turned around when he saw me and said, “Wang, come here! Just in time! What’s this about bringing back a wild boar?”
“Well, it’s like this.” I quickly recounted the whole story and added, “Actually, my idea was to hand it over to the Culinary Team. Everyone is about to leave; let’s improve our meals. Company Commander, Instructor, look! I brought two rabbits for you to try; wild boar is much tastier than this!”
“Sounds good! You guys are quite capable; you must have roasted quite a bit!” The Company Commander smiled. “You’re just a Local University Student Squad Leader, but you’re doing well—bolder than when I was a Squad Leader!”
I shot a glance at Instructor. “It’s still thanks to the good squad you assigned me, with high-quality soldiers and good obedience.” Some insincere flattery was necessary.
“Alright, don’t be too fake. Here’s the deal: we won’t take advantage of you. After you kill and roast the wild boar, send a leg over to the Company Headquarters and each squad. I’ll cover for you in the camp.”
“Sure thing!” I was overjoyed. The Drill was almost over, and I really didn’t want any complications. I turned around to leave.
“Stop!” The voice of Instructor. I knew another lecture was coming.
"You all come to the military for drills, and instead of training properly, you just eat. Eating is one thing, but can't you just go to the Culinary Team? Why do you have to roast it yourself? What if you start a wildfire?" I hung my head and endured at least half an hour of scolding before I was finally let go.
By the time I returned to the tent, it was already past seven. The pig was still rolling around in the corner, struggling. Garfield, Xuanhua, and He Baisha were gathered around discussing how to kill and roast it. I shooed them away. "Squad Leader, it's your turn. According to the rules, I'll take a hind leg to eat!" Xuanhua was still shouting.
"Enough already," I said impatiently. "Maybe we should just send it to the Culinary Team at noon; having it here is a hassle," I thought to myself.
That night, our squad was not on guard duty. It was raining, and after the duty Squad Leader finished checking on us, everyone turned off their lights and went to sleep. Listening to the rain accompanied by the rustling sound of wind through the trees, everyone fell into a deep slumber.
"Squad Leader! Wake up, wake up!" A thunderous voice rang in my ear; it was Xuanhua! "What's going on?" I turned over and sat up.
"The pig, the pig is gone!"
"Damn it, someone stole the pig?!" That was my first thought. I glanced at the clock; it was not even five yet. "Wake a few brothers up and bring a flashlight! Let's go take a look."
After getting dressed, I grabbed a flashlight and headed to the corner of the tent. This area was relatively large; it had originally been used for equipment storage but had been cleared out later for packing and loading. As the flashlight beam swept across the ground, my heart sank—there were large patches of blood!
(To be continued; more exciting content tomorrow!)
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