On the television screen, the President of the Republic of Yir sat at a desk, with the national flag and emblem of the Republic of Yir displayed behind him. He then delivered the following speech:

  "Later on April 21, 2025, our homeland in the Nekraso Archipelago was subjected to a large-scale bombing. It is believed that the attackers used a large number of ballistic missiles and cruise missiles to bomb our territory. Moments ago, the Kingdom of Remus has admitted to launching this attack. The current state of our nation is tense. Once again, I urge all citizens to follow the instructions of fire and police personnel and take shelter, and to prepare for necessary wartime measures. At this time, we must unite to resist foreign enemies and protect our country and our homes. God bless Yir."

  Next, the news described footage of the King of the Kingdom of Remus delivering a speech, with subtitles below stating "Kingdom of Remus: Full-scale Invasion." The screen then switched to the scene of the peace summit being held in the Kingdom of Yir, which was interrupted. Both our country's and the Kingdom of Remus's envoys showed surprised expressions.

  I, along with a large number of evacuees, looked blankly at the televisions set up around the subway platform. At the same time, a series of low rumbles came from above. I believed those were explosion sounds. When the capital's metro system was constructed, the possibility of air raids had been considered, so the metro was built very deep underground and made extremely sturdy. Therefore, it was very safe to take shelter here.

  My mind was in chaos. I didn’t understand why something like this would happen. I had already left the battlefield. I had long since left the battlefield. Why would I still encounter something like this? Why hasn’t the battlefield left me?

  My heart was filled with doubt. All of this felt so unreal, yet it felt familiar. I felt my new life and home were collapsing. Is the battlefield not allowing me to leave? Must the beast bones inside me bear this fate forever? I cried out in my heart.

  A long time passed as I stayed with the other citizens in the subway station. Some people were anxiously making phone calls, but none could get through. Some were sobbing, but more people had confused looks on their faces. No matter what I did, I couldn’t contact Mr. Rice using my functional phone, so I couldn't get more information. I also didn’t know whether Lyka was safe. However, since our family is one of government officials, we should be properly protected. What worried me most now—aside from Lyka, Ms. Rice, and Mr. Mueller—was Mikhail’s safety. I saw some students like me here, but I didn’t see Mikhail. He was with his father in the car. Whether they managed to find a shelter in time made me anxious.

  "You’re Rice’s classmate, right?" someone said behind me.

  I turned around. A short red-haired girl asked, with a long black-haired girl beside her. They were both wearing our school’s uniform. I recognized them—they were my classmates. The black-haired one was named Mary Ivanov, and the red-haired one was named Emma Titov.

  "You two are safe too," I said, hugging each of them.

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  "Where’s Ulyanov? Wasn’t he with you?" Emma asked.

  "No, we had already separated before the attack broke out," I answered, with an anxious look.

  "Don’t worry, he must have made it to safety in time," Emma said.

  I fell silent. I also hoped that was true, but at this point, I couldn’t be sure whether things were really as Emma said.

  We fell into silence, sitting on the floor, waiting for the air raid to end. The television repeatedly replayed the President’s earlier speech.

  After a long time, we heard the sound of a siren—it was the all-clear signal.

  Some people stayed in the station, while I and others followed the police and subway staff’s instructions, climbing the stairs to the surface. But upon reaching the lobby, we were stopped by the police and staff. The station lobby had already been bombed. Though the beautiful classical decoration still remained, the roof now had holes, and burn marks were everywhere. The glass windows were almost all shattered.

  Apparently, the police and staff thought it was still unsafe to go out, so they started directing people back to the platform.

  But I couldn’t feel at ease. When the police and staff weren’t paying attention, I used my backpack to shield my head, ran out of the stairwell, and dashed across the lobby. I heard the shouting of police behind me as I rushed to the exit.

  I saw the trees in the park burning and froze. I quickly ran out of the park to the street. There was no one in sight. The buildings were all affected by the bombs, and fragments of various structures littered the ground. I ran, seeing many cars parked on the road with doors left open—people must have evacuated in a hurry. When I reached the public bicycle station, I went to the vending machine, inserted a coin, got on a public bike, and quickly rode home. Along the way, I saw scenes just like what I had seen on the peninsula before—roof tiles scattered on the ground, some buildings starting to burn, the fire department already deployed, and some people injured and bleeding. An ambulance drove by.

  I really wanted to stop, crouch on the ground, hold my head, and cry, but I had to hold back. I had to quickly find my family.

  Then, I saw a familiar gray sedan, a crowd of people, and injured people lying on the ground—possibly even corpses—and a familiar red-brown-haired boy helplessly holding a man in a service uniform who seemed injured.

  It was Mikhail and his father!

  I quickly stopped the bike and ran over to Mikhail, shouting. Mikhail, with tears in his eyes, saw me and became extremely emotional.

  "Ash, please help my dad!"

  I looked at his father. His body had been pierced by a steel bar and he was unconscious on the ground. Others were busy rescuing people trapped in the collapsed building. No one could tend to the father and son.

  I rushed over and used battlefield first-aid techniques to quickly stop the bleeding from Mikhail’s father. Then I tried to call an ambulance, but the line was completely busy. Fortunately, several military HMMWVs and ambulances arrived. Medics and soldiers quickly transported the injured, including Mikhail’s father. I kept comforting the emotionally broken and crying Mikhail and got on the HMMWV with him to head to the hospital.

  The HMMWV drove through the ruined streets. I held the sobbing Mikhail in my arms. But I felt a slight trembling—not from Mikhail, but from myself. The brutal memories that had flashed through my mind during the day, and the nightmares at night—I kept telling myself they were already in the past, that I had nothing to do with them anymore. But now they were vividly reflected in my eyes. Even if I closed my eyes, the sounds of fire and shouting people still echoed in my ears. I could only look up at the sky, trying to escape all these scenes from the clear evening sky.

  But what I saw were transport planes and multiple parachutes. On the parachutes was printed a wolfkin standing with a sword. This was not the emblem of the Yir Republic Army—the Republic of Yir’s national emblem is an eagle.

  That was the emblem of the Kingdom of Remus.