Heroes to Hunted

Furuya glared at me. He raised his hands and prepared for what looked to be a strike.

I raised my guard, readying for a counterattack. But the thoughts of violence were dispelled when he started hysterically laughing.

"I'm only messing with you, buddy!" he wrapped his arms around his belly to his sides, and tears of joy formed in his eyes. "You should've seen the look of horror on your face! It was... It was..." Laughter overtook him, preventing him from finishing his sentence.

'What the hell is happening right now?' I sat dumbfounded, staring at the guy pointing and laughing at me.

When he finally came down from his fit of giggles, Furuya wiped the moisture from his eyes and breathed deeply. "I'm sorry, I'm sorry. It's just your reaction was priceless. Most try to deny it first or panic, but you skipped all that and went straight to fighting me! You're hilarious!"

He started a second fit of laughter, spurring me to finally take verbal action. "What are you talking about? A joke? You weren't serious about that?!"

Through stifled giggles, he managed a response. "Of course not! I told you this was an interview! I just wanted to see how you reacted!"

'All of that...that was just part of his "interview?"' I realized I had no grasp on this man whatsoever. He was more eccentric and unpredictable than I could've imagined.

He quelled his giggles briefly to speak clearly. "You think we'd just let unvetted people into this camp?! Suda would've killed you already if you had bad intentions! She's our local mind reader, after all!"

"Mind reader? Suda can read...minds?" I asked.

Furuya cast a confused look toward me before experiencing a visible "click" in his mind. "Ohhhh, I guess she didn't tell you about it, huh?"

He gulped down the last of the liquor within his glass, then shrugged. "Well, Suda has a power no other seems to have. We don't know why, but she can 'read' people's intentions by asking questions and maintaining eye contact. Isn't that cool?!"

Now that he mentioned it, there was a moment where it felt like Suda was probing my mind. There was also the distinct feeling of her ripping away from it when the wisps appeared.

He said she had to ask a question, which she was in the process of doing but couldn't finish. 'I guess that means I'm not "vetted."'

I had two options. I could maintain silence and allow him to believe I was already scanned by Suda and risk exposure later down the line. Or I could tell the truth and come clean about my status as an unknown variable.

"Sir, I have to tell you something," I chose the latter. Whatever consequence there would be if they knew I wasn't vetted would be small compared to what would happen if I lied.

He shot me a quizzical look, then smiled. "Sure thing! And please, call me Furuya when I'm off duty."

"Okay, Furuya, I have to tell you I don't think Suda completed whatever it is she does. She was interrupted when we were attacked."

He brought a hand to his chin and pondered. I expected him to call for the guards outside and hoist me to some detainment area.

Instead, he filled our glasses, took another swig, and laughed again. "You know, Sato...That's your name, isn't it? Sato? Mizuno informed me of it during the briefing before you and your group arrived."

I nodded my head yes.

"That's great! Sato... It's a fantastic name! Anyway," he swiped a binder from the top of his desk. Upon opening it, he revealed pages containing ink stains from writing. "This is our supply ledger."

He beckoned me to his side and pointed to a column littered with red numbers and check marks. "Look here, you see these red markings? That's our food reserves. Notice they're absolutely fucked right now!"

I was confused. He completely blew off my confession of being untrustworthy. "Furuya, are you sure you want to be showing me this? I told you I haven't been verified yet."

He gave me an easing look. "I heard you; it's fine! We'll just have Suda check you in the morning. Besides, I have faith a man of your profession wouldn't betray his country. You'll still enjoy extra security around your bunk for tonight, though. So look forward to that!"

I let out a half-hearted chuckle. I could no longer determine if this man was a cautious planner or a reckless fool. His "on-duty" and "off-duty" personas were just too different.

"Anyway," he pointed back to the ledger, "so what do you think, Sato? You have war experience, so I'd love your input! How should I solve this little problem of mine? Do you think Mizuno is right to stage a raid?"

I thought back to all of my experiences in this world. Every sight and every piece of knowledge I had was meaningless for strategy. Even so, I knew the town was well fortified. Any attack on it would hold a risk too high for something as small as food.

But, if there was anything else I knew about a village at war, it was the supply chain. Though it would have food stores, those would be safely tucked away in the confines of the town. However...the suppliers wouldn't be.

"Do you have an accurate map?" I asked. Information was half the battle, and I didn't have enough of it.

He looked at me and smirked. "That's a good first move. And yes, we do! Right over here," he motioned behind us toward a large table.

We paced up to the table to see a document of the surrounding area sprawled across it.

"See? Pretty good, isn't it? You have no idea how hard we worked to get all of this."

It really was a work of art by informational standards. From Blackwood to the pine forests outside of it, every landmark was properly cataloged and displayed.

My suspicions were confirmed when I saw patches of housing beyond the walled village surrounded by flattened plains. Those were homesteads and likely undefended suppliers to the town's food reserves.

"Here," I pointed to the closest one, "enemy farms are the best bet. They're open, undefended, have a high yield, and will cripple your enemy's food supply."

His expression changed to that of understanding and excitement. "You know...that's a fantastic idea! Though the farm is a bit of a travel, it's worth consideration. We'll discuss it more tomorrow morning. Leave it to a soldier; you've some great ideas!" he took his glass and gestured for me to join him.

At first, I declined to drink. "No. No, I'm okay, thank you." I had already consumed enough liquor to begin feeling the effects of inhibited judgment and motor skills. Which was something I wanted to avoid as much as possible.

"Please," he motioned to my glass, "I insist." His expression tightened, and his gaze locked me to place. He wasn't asking... He was telling me to drink.

I wanted to refuse, but he was the leader of this place. I had no idea what type of man he was, so even the slightest act of defiance could spell disaster for me. That said, I followed his instruction. I had no other choice.

After I grasped the glass, he made a toast to me, to good health and to Freehaven's success.

"Bottoms up!" he joked, then swallowed his glass liquor in a single gulp.

I followed suit, and my lungs nearly burned out from chugging the alcohol. Soon after, my mind spun, my body temperature heated up, and my face became flushed. For the first time in my life, I was starting to feel drunk.

Furuya noticed it too. "Ahhhh, I guess you're getting a bit tipsy. Well, let's call it for today and pick things up tomorrow! Thanks for your time, Sato."

He called upon an escort who brought me to an empty bed, concluding my first night in Freehaven. As it turned out, despite my multi-day coma, I was exhausted.

Within minutes, I drifted off to the lands of unconsciousness. I had to squeeze in whatever sleep I could. After all, we had a raid to plan.

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