The next day.
Although the business deal didn’t go through, Liu Haochuan heard it was because Luo Zhizhou had an accident, so the invitation to dinner went ahead as planned.
“You’re saying you actually ran into an Extradimensional Beast?”
Liu Haochuan found it hard to believe.
“How could that be fake? My car got totaled.”
Luo Zhizhou picked up a piece of meat and popped it into his mouth with a flourish.
“But luckily I had insurance, so I didn’t lose too much money. I’m thinking maybe I’ll get a nicer one in half a year.”
“Brother Luo, surviving such a disaster means good fortune is coming your way. Let me divine it for you — maybe you’ll find a girlfriend soon?”
“Get lost. You already have a girlfriend; don’t mock me.”
Liu Haochuan glanced at the beautiful woman at the next table and whispered, “What about her? Long black hair, wearing a qipao — a real stunner.”
“Creepy,” Luo Zhizhou said, placing several pieces of ham onto the grill.
“This barbecue tastes pretty good. Next time, it’s on me.”
Liu Haochuan quickly declined.
“Brother Luo, no way. Next time, I’ll treat you — and maybe bring your sister along? I want to see the famous S-Class Magical Girl.”
“I’m so jealous you have a sister like that. Can you do me a favor and make my dream come true?”
“Hmm… that depends on whether she agrees. She’s super busy, doesn’t even have time for her poor big brother.” Luo Zhizhou opened a beer bottle and took a sip.
“Been a while since I had a beer. Cheers!”
The two clinked their bottles together.
“Brother Luo, tell me more about your time in the army. You’re basically a hero now. I want to hear how you fought those Extradimensional Beasts.”
“When I was in the army, those were really tough days —”
Riding the buzz of the alcohol, Luo Zhizhou began to reminisce.
“Do you know where Yanling is?”
“Kind of. That mountain range north of the capital?”
“Exactly. About eight years ago, I was just barely in my twenties then. Though young, I spent a year on the front lines, fighting scattered guerrilla groups. But Yanling was the first time I fought a major battle.”
“My battalion was assigned to the Northern Field Army District, stationed around Yanling. I won’t give you the exact unit name.”
“That place saw heavy casualties. Many units weren’t even at full strength; I saw some places where they took out stockpiled Type 59s and used them as fixed artillery.”
“I was stationed on a hilltop. Every so often, a few Qiangwu planes would fly overhead. Sometimes you could even see a Magical Girl Squad providing fire support during battles.”
“Some parts of the mountain were turned into permanent fortifications, an entire underground fortress with dense artillery batteries on the slopes — truly imposing.”
“Our hill was a bit behind the front lines. Looking back, you could probably see the silhouette of the capital.”
“We even had a Radar Vehicle stationed there. Because we were at the rear, our battalion’s survival rate was comparatively higher.”
“That day, March 26th, close to dusk, our commanders told us a big one was approaching from the north. We quickly prepared. The sun was almost down.”
“Before the fighting officially started, we heard booming artillery.”
“I was standing on the lookout post, watching a Rocket Artillery Squad near the town below firing volley after volley, shooting rockets over our heads into the distance — quite a spectacular sight.”
“After a while, several formations of planes flew past from the capital’s direction. They were too high to identify clearly, but we counted eight H-6 bombers. I was scared, thinking they were about to drop nukes.”
“About half an hour later, the first defensive line officially engaged. The commanders told us the enemy was several legions strong — the vanguard legion of the Extradimensional Beasts.”
Liu Haochuan scoffed, “These damn beasts are that smart? They even have organized units?”
“Who knows?” Luo Zhizhou raised his bottle and took a long swig before continuing.
“We fought for about an hour. The sun had already set. The front line was lit up like daylight, the fires illuminating the clouds above.”
“We hadn’t even been called to fight yet. We were pretty nervous, but soon enough, we had no time for nerves —”
“Suddenly, a missile was fired from a neighboring hilltop. It exploded in the sky, blinding us. Then someone shouted, ‘Enemies in the sky!’”
“Our whole company looked up, but saw nothing at first. Then a few guys swung searchlights up, and my god — a swarm of winged Extradimensional Beasts was flying toward us!”
“Gunfire erupted instantly; every gun was firing upward. Luckily, we had a proper Anti-Aircraft Gun on our position. Boom boom boom! It took down several of those beasts, a narrow escape.”
“But then worse news came. The first line was breached, and a large number of beasts poured through. At the same time, the Extradimensional Beasts’ main force appeared.”
“At that point, we could clearly see the battle scene from about four or five kilometers away. On a mountain saddle, a huge group of beasts was crashing desperately against our defenses. Facing such reckless enemies was terrifying.”
“As each line was broken, hills were surrounded and captured one by one. You know what that feels like? Looking down, the entire mountainside was covered with beasts — mostly Knight-class or above. I told you before, light firepower doesn’t suppress Knight-class beasts well.”
“So, you guys were doomed?”
“Not that easy. We still had a last card — Magical Girls. A single laser beam wiped out a whole line of beasts.”
“Those Magical Girls cast spells from the sky, shooting many magic light arrows at the ground, blowing beasts apart more effectively than bombers. Many surrounded units were saved thanks to them.”
“But there were too few Magical Girls. Some slipped through the lines, avoiding the bombardment and coming toward us. Luckily, we were prepared.”
“Each squad had two Six-Seven Model Machine Guns; I was in charge of one. Looking down the hill, around a hundred beasts were climbing up. ‘Open fire,’ I fired bursts downward.”
“During training, they told us beasts all have a Core — destroying the Core kills the beast. So we had to make sure each beast was fully dead before switching targets. But I couldn’t keep up.”
“Those bastards climbed over gunfire, broken legs healing instantly. Often, as soon as one was pinned down, another rushed forward.”
“We couldn’t finish off a single one completely. We took down about two-thirds of them, but a third made it to the top.”
“The consequences were obvious. Close-quarters combat against beasts is a losing battle. I saw a young soldier get swallowed by a beast — terrifying.”
“But I avenged him, firing rockets one after another. Too bad we didn’t have many rocket launchers. About thirty or forty people died before we wiped out the beasts.”
“Back at my position, I grabbed binoculars to look ahead. Finally, I saw the ‘big one’ the commanders told us about. Later, I learned it was a Kingdom-Class Aberrant Beast.”
“That thing was as big as half a mountain, walking on two thin legs that looked out of place on such a huge body.”
“It moved as if it was floating. What stuck in my mind most was its giant eye-like organ — the size of a football field.”
“What happened next I will never forget.”
“It was roaming between the mountains when it came into contact with a key defensive fortification. Countless artillery shells rained down on it, but the small-caliber guns barely scratched it.”
“Then the eye-shaped organ began to glow and heat up, even triggering severe convection weather. When it was ready, the eye shot a red beam at the mountain, melting it completely…”
“Is that for real?” Liu Haochuan was stunned.
“I’m not exaggerating. Lucky it didn’t aim at me.”
“So how did you defeat it?”
“A transport plane flew overhead, and someone got out — I obviously didn’t see this, was told later. That person was China’s strongest Magical Girl at the time, Akaren. You’ve heard of her, right?”
“She did something above that beast’s head. Suddenly, a huge Spell Formation appeared in the sky, gathering countless light points in its center.”
“That move was called the Super Ion Cannon, requiring enormous magical power. Only she could wield it nationwide. That blast was earth-shaking; the shockwave nearly knocked me off my feet.”
“When the light faded, the place where the beast stood was leveled, the ground shattered and torn open. That was the end of it. After that, the remaining beasts, seeing their leader gone, retreated.”
“So powerful. Why didn’t she come out sooner?”
“No idea what the command thought. Maybe they wanted to lure out that beast first. Also, the Super Ion Cannon can only be used once, as a trump card.”
“As for nukes — they kill a thousand enemies but harm eight hundred ourselves. The radioactive contamination of the land would be unbearable.”
“After that battle, I can finally call myself a veteran. The regiment even awarded me a Third-Class Merit. Any more big battles will have to wait until I retire.”
Luo Zhizhou finished his story about his first frontline battle, chewing on some of the meat patties he had placed earlier on the grill.
“The beer’s gone, the story’s told, and the meat’s nearly finished. I’ll pay half the bill.”
“No, no, no. That won’t do. I’ll pay!”
In the end, under Luo Zhizhou’s firm insistence, the two split the bill evenly. Although they saved face, Luo Zhizhou’s wallet took a hit.
Stepping out of the restaurant, Luo Zhizhou remembered he still needed to buy groceries.
“I have to buy groceries later. It’s not too late yet, I’m heading back first.”
“See you, Brother Luo. Come back to the county next time.”
“That depends on me getting a new car first.”
Luo Zhizhou rode off on his bicycle, bidding Liu Haochuan farewell.