"No—" A faint cry drifted from the open doors of the conference hall.
"Sigh..."
At this moment, William's brow was furrowed, his eyes slightly closed as he let out a heavy sigh.
He thought he would no longer feel sympathy, but he was still human after all.
When categorizing murderers and felons as D-Class Personnel, William felt a sense of extracting residual value from scum.
But these were children.
Putting himself in their shoes...
In the end, he couldn't quite bear it.
"Alright now, I'm here. Don't feel bad~ be a good boy."
?
William, whose heart was suffering, suddenly felt something soft against his front.
He opened his eyes and looked down.
He found that Halsey had somehow come up to him, her arms wrapped tightly around him in an embrace.
Halsey looked up to meet his gaze, blinked, and suggested in a low voice:
"Boss, instead of regretting kidnapping them, why not think about how to compensate them?
For example, after training ends, you can give them comics, models, and things like that as rewards.
You could also hold some activities, like weekend movie nights or a trip around Africa.
Right?"
"Yeah."
Hearing what Halsey said, William's heavy mood vanished into thin air.
She was right.
This woman...
"Alright." William gently patted the top of Halsey's head and smiled, saying:
"Since when does an employee take the initiative to comfort the boss? Let go of me, there's still work to be done."
"Heehee~ Okay~"
———————
...
Because the fourteen children had not yet adjusted to the time difference and were not acclimated to the environment, the training plan was temporarily put on hold.
During the waiting period, they were arranged to study indoors, taught by senior teachers in various subjects.
William led the team back to the military Base in Kenya, and under the protection of Hank and the Alphas, he headed to South Africa for a massive shopping spree.
As for Halsey, she did not follow; she chose to stay on Minos Island to carefully look after the children.
She explained to them what anomalous phenomena were, and at night, she told them Greek myths and legends.
Such as the Twelve Labors of Heracles and his deeds of ascending to Mount Olympus to become the God of Strength after death.
And the Spartans, descendants of Heracles, led by King Leonidas with three hundred warriors in 480 BC, who performed the feat of resistance against hundreds of thousands of Persian troops at Thermopylae.
She instilled in them the concept that they were Spartans and let the children understand what responsibility meant.
With Halsey's patient companionship and communication, these little Spartans slowly began to open up, no longer as terrified as when they first arrived on Minos Island.
However, after the group of children fell asleep, Halsey would personally inject the modified t-virus into their bodies.
When morning came, she would inject them with the vaccine.
This process was repeated to gradually enhance the little Spartans' physical fitness and improve the success rate of future modification surgeries.
The Hive technical team arrived on Minos Island on February 26, 2007, responsible for the virus and vaccine injections, as well as recording the various changes in the Spartans.
The first training session also began on the same day. Major Kent assigned a number to each child and forbade them from using their real names.
The number assigned to John was 7.
...
The initial Spartan training plan and daily schedule were roughly as follows:
1. Wake up at 05:30 in the morning.
2. Run 5 laps around the training ground without weight (1000m/lap).
3. Eat after a fifteen-minute rest.
4. 07:30 Obstacle training, such as crawling through 30 meters of barbed wire 100 times, etc.
5. 10:00 Strength training, such as bench press, curls, etc. (differs daily).
6. 11:30—13:00 Rest and lunch.
7. 13:30 Sun exposure posture training, holding firearms level on the beach without moving.
8. 15:00 Target practice instruction and training, or teaching martial arts, etc. (differs daily).
9. 17:00 Training ends, rest and eat.
10. 18:00—20:00 Normal subject studies.
11. 21:00—22:00 Free time.
12. 22:00—05:30 Sleep.
Seven days a week, Monday through Thursday followed the above content.
On Friday, with a ten-kilogram load, they performed cross-country hiking training around Minos Island until five in the evening.
Saturday was for swimming and diving training.
On Sunday, in the conference hall, Major Kent explained tactical knowledge.
High-intensity weighted endurance training was conducted every seven days.
Low-altitude sea-surface parachute training was conducted every fifteen days.
Forest wilderness survival training was conducted every thirty days.
———————
Sunday, March 11, 2007, 18:30.
Inside the conference hall of the Minos Island Base building complex;
Fourteen Spartans sat in the front row in order; their skin had darkened, and much of the childishness on their faces had faded.
They sat perfectly upright, their demeanor carrying a hint of military discipline.
The Spartans had been trained by Kent and other USS and UBCS members for two full weeks, and they were no longer the 'little kids' who had just arrived.
On the podium in front of them were several large silver metal boxes and a few Alphas dressed in suits.
Standing behind the lectern was William, whose skin had also darkened considerably.
William scanned every child present, and when he saw John in the center, his gaze lingered for a moment.
Finally, he said with a smile:
"Spartans, I presume you have all adapted to this training life.
Dr. Halsey has also explained to you the true meaning of the Spartan unit and the enemies you will face in the future.
I know.
No matter how grandly we speak, you will still resent me.
After all, I am the culprit who deprived you of your right to a free life and denied you a happy childhood, aren't I?"
The Spartans replied loudly, "No, Boss, it is only right to sacrifice for humanity."
William naturally knew this was thanks to Kent's instruction, which was why the Spartans were so respectful to him.
"Haha."
He chuckled and waved his hand to the side, saying, "Alright, I know those words were spoken against your true feelings.
I don't expect your forgiveness; that's unrealistic.
But... (he snapped his fingers)."
The Alphas received the signal and neatly opened the boxes placed on the podium.
Inside were various toys, models, comics, and other items children loved most—even a set of outdoor movie projection equipment.
The moment the boxes opened, the Spartans' eyes were instantly drawn to them.
But military discipline had already been deeply etched into their minds.
They suppressed their thoughts of 'wanting, playing, and watching,' remaining motionless.
William gestured to the side and explained with a smile:
"I also grew up from your age, and I really disliked being forced to study and train.
You are Spartans, but you are also children.
So...
Pick whatever you want from these. You can play with them freely during your free time. I'll bring you new things every once in a while."
!
Children were children after all.
Upon hearing that there were finally toys and comics to pass the time, they all showed joy, squared their shoulders, and shouted even more vigorously:
"Yes! Boss!"
-------------------------------
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