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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter One Hundred Thirteen: Werewolf (Part Six)
However, their squad leaders were clearly not satisfied. "Although we have met the scheduled goals for this period, they are still in the process of transformation." Even Xuanhua, a squad leader with little experience, remarked during discussions with the other leaders, "They still have a long way to go."
This was Xuanhua speaking at the weekly backbone meeting. This third-year soldier from Honest had already taken on the role of a leader. Whenever doubts or conflicts arose, he would bring me up, saying, "I'm just following what our Squad Leader and the current Company Commander taught me. Is there a problem?" His tactic of showcasing his connection to authority often worked, and coupled with his decent military qualities and warm demeanor towards both new recruits and colleagues, he gradually earned the unspoken recognition of his peers.
As a science fiction fan and being born in the Year of the Monkey, I once watched a great sci-fi movie called "Monkey," which led me to jokingly refer to this backbone as "Monkey." This week's backbone meeting primarily focused on outlining next week's training plan, gathering feedback on this week's training and living conditions, and identifying any individuals or key personnel who needed attention.
After routine analysis, I announced the meeting's conclusion and sat down in the conference room to organize my notes. I analyzed the problems and shortcomings I had discovered. Managing so many people—especially new recruits—was indeed challenging; it was always tough at the beginning, and I suddenly felt a headache coming on.
At this point, Xuanhua and Zhang Sheng were the last to leave. I had long noticed their intentions; they always lingered until everyone else had left the meeting room, seemingly to flaunt that I would speak with them privately afterward, as if I valued them more than others. I saw through their little schemes but chose not to expose them. Glancing at them, I asked, "Do you have something else?"
"No, no!" They quickly turned to leave while chatting among themselves. "Who should stand guard tonight?" "Let Sheng Xiong do it; if he stands guard, everyone else can fall asleep first." "What about when he comes back?" "..."
I couldn't be bothered with their chatter and focused on my own tasks. I worked late into the night before finally sorting out some matters. Upon returning to Company Headquarters, Communicator Hou—who was not part of Monkey but borrowed from Battalion by Company Commander—was waiting for me inside. As soon as I walked in, he informed me that Instructor had already gone to sleep. Before sleeping, he asked whether I would check during the first half or second half of the night. Looking at the clock, it was nearly 1 AM. Since I had already been busy until this late hour, I decided to check during the first half of the night; at least I could get some sleep afterward.
I instructed Hou to remember to wake up Instructor during the second half of the night and hurried him off to bed. Then I grabbed my Flashlight from my room and stepped out of Company Headquarters, ready to begin tonight's patrol.
Just three meters outside Company Headquarters was the stairwell where the soldiers on night duty were stationed behind a table—a two-person post with one sitting fixedly while the other patrolled back and forth in front of the building. As I approached the table, a new recruit sprang up from behind it. "Good evening, Leader!" he exclaimed while saluting nervously.
I felt both amused and exasperated as I quietly reminded him, "Remember! You are on guard duty. According to regulations, when you encounter someone, you should first ask for identification rather than greet them as 'Leader. Got it?'"
"Yes! Got it!" His response was firm; it seemed he was quite clever. Satisfied with his answer, I nodded and walked a few steps forward toward A Row of Barracks.
In wintertime in Hunan, it was always gloomy with occasional drizzles. However, once night fell, temperatures dropped significantly. As soon as I opened my door, a wave of unpleasant odors—a mix of sweat and foot odor—hit me.
Sighing, I shook my head; that's just how it was in the New Recruits Company. Training was intense without hot water for showers; sometimes even clean clothes were hard to come by. Many recruits either went to bed without showering or wore unwashed clothes. With dozens of people in one Barracks, winter necessitated keeping windows closed for warmth; thus air circulation was poor and conditions were far from ideal.
After standing at the door for a moment to acclimate myself to the smell, I slowly walked inside and shone my Flashlight around to check for any soldiers still awake or those who had kicked off their blankets. As a Unit Commander, sometimes I felt more like a parent; you had to patiently teach these kids while tolerating their growth and taking care of their daily lives. Lost in thought, I turned from the back door toward the front.
The open-bay Barracks had its advantages; with just one flash of my light, everything became clear. At that moment, all soldiers in the room were sound asleep. The atmosphere wasn't quiet—some snored loudly while others mumbled in their dreams or smacked their lips... Various sounds filled the air; that's how collective living was. Even if you were picky about your sleeping environment, after just one week in New Recruits Company, you'd sleep like a log.
I smiled silently as I prepared to step out again when suddenly amidst all those sounds came one that caught my attention—it resembled a low growl from an agitated dog preparing to bark. Among all those noises, this particular sound stood out distinctly. Curiously, I took a few steps toward its source in the open-bay area to figure out where it was coming from.
Finding a single voice among a cacophony of sounds was no easy task. After searching through several stalls, I finally located the source of the sound in a stall below.
The person sleeping in that stall was curled up on the bed, taking up the entire space, with their coat tossed aside. I shone my flashlight and, oh, it turned out to be Sheng Xiong! No wonder; the bed was indeed a bit short for him, and the blanket couldn’t cover his feet. This was quite a troublesome situation. Just as I thought this, Sheng Xiong emitted a series of muffled whimpers. The sound wasn’t loud but had a peculiar quality to it, resembling the threatening growl of a dog facing danger.
I initially thought it was just an unusual snore and chuckled to myself. Sheng Xiong was certainly unique; even his snoring was distinctive. I reached out to pull his coat over him, but suddenly noticed that Sheng Xiong had thick, coarse facial hair that had grown into a full beard. His metabolism must be quite vigorous, I mused.
Thus, I moved from the first floor to the third and back down again without discovering anything unusual. I turned off my flashlight and returned to my room at Company Headquarters, skipping my evening routine and falling asleep immediately.
The next day was another regular training day. After finishing the morning session and having dinner, I stood outside watching the soldiers come and go while doing some light post-meal exercises. It had been a while since I practiced my staff techniques; I realized that during this period, my energy had been solely focused on work. I hadn’t even checked in with Old Bi for a month. I wondered how they were doing; with the year coming to an end, everyone probably had their hands full.
“Company Commander, I have a situation report,” Zhang Sheng approached me, munching on something.
“What is it?” I asked.
Zhang Sheng was the only Urban Soldier squad leader I valued for two reasons: he was hardworking and obedient, unlike many of the pampered Urban Soldiers born in the '90s who were self-righteous. Secondly, he was quick-witted and had more exposure than typical Rural Soldiers; he had his own ideas.
“Company Commander, it’s about Sheng Xiong.”
“Oh? What about him?”
“Company Commander, you know he’s in our squad and has outstanding personal qualities. I've been keeping an eye on him. However, I've noticed something strange about Sheng Xiong.”
“What’s strange?”
Zhang Sheng hesitated as if unsure how to begin. “ Sheng Xiong makes some odd noises while sleeping during the latter part of the night. They’re not loud, but they always seem rather terrifying to me. Also, I've noticed that he has a lot of hair on him, including on his chest, and it grows very quickly. The strangest thing is that sometimes Sheng Xiong sleepwalks at night!”
I was taken aback and asked, “Sleepwalking? Is it frequent?”
Zhang Sheng shook his head. “I’ve only seen it once. Last month one night, I got up to use the restroom and when I returned to my room, I found Sheng Xiong climbing out of bed wearing only his workout gear. He moved quickly and dashed out the front door. The fixed sentry was at the back gate; I thought he might be trying to avoid them at night for some reason, so I followed him to see what he was up to. I found him on the third-floor stage; at first, I thought he was up to something else but then realized he was staring at the moon. It didn’t seem like normal behavior for a person; I didn’t dare shout because I heard that sleepwalkers shouldn’t be awakened abruptly. But then I got worried; just as I hesitated, I heard Sheng Xiong let out a low howl!”
“A howl? What do you mean?”
“It’s like Sheng Xiong was howling softly at the moon—kind of like a wolf!”
"Are you sure?" I asked, feeling a bit thrilled, as if I were listening to a story.
"Absolutely, Company Commander! I stayed there for a while, not daring to approach him, not daring to call out, and not daring to leave. I just kept watching him. After some time, he finally turned around. I was afraid he would notice me, so I hid in the restroom on the third floor. Later, I saw him return to his bed by himself. Then I tried to probe him, but he didn't even know what he had done that night. Company Commander, there's something else I'm not sure whether to mention."
"What is it that you shouldn't say?!"
"Company Commander! Do you think Sheng Xiong could be a werewolf?!"
In the past, I would have responded in Stephen Chow's tone, saying, "Do you think I would believe such nonsense?" However, after everything I've experienced, I couldn't easily dismiss certain things.
Zhang Sheng looked at me and slowly said, "Company Commander, a month ago was the full moon, and tonight is also a full moon."
A month ago, was it when the New Recruits Company started? I seemed to recall hearing wolf howls in a dream; could it be related? I had nothing to say but nodded silently to indicate that I understood and waved him back to the Barracks.
Tonight is the full moon; I decided to investigate this matter personally!
(To be continued; more exciting content tomorrow!)
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