Regret

"Sister Aili, can I... can I go see Zofia?" Aili, carrying a basin of water, turned around and saw Gabi standing behind her with a conflicted expression.

Seemingly remembering something, Aili's face showed a hint of regret. She sighed softly and said, "Let's forget it, Gabi. Sophia only recently woke up; you shouldn't disturb her."

There was one more thing that Aili didn't say: the awakened Sophia didn't want to see Gabi at all, and Aili was too embarrassed to upset Gabi, so she could only make this subtle refusal.

Of course, Gabi could easily see through this subtle meaning, but knowing she was in the wrong, she couldn't say anything. She could only force a smile and turn away dejectedly.

Looking at Gabi's retreating figure, Aili also felt a sense of regret and sorrow for these Warrior Candidate.

Gabi has forgotten her Eldia identity; for the sake of Honorary Marleyan are even willing to abandon their Comrade. Aili felt a chill run down her spine at this thought. She's only a child under ten; what will she be like when she grows up?

In contrast, Zofia, who shielded her teammate from a fatal gunshot wound, greatly impressed Aili. She hadn't expected this seemingly quiet girl to be so brave. Even more remarkably, after several days of testing her, Aili discovered that this girl didn't seem to have been completely brainwashed by Marley. Could it be...?

Gabi walked down the road with her head down, feeling dejected. Just then, Falco and Udo came towards her carrying a small basket filled with fruit they had painstakingly saved up by trading canned goods for. They were specifically taking it to visit the injured Zofia.

As the two drew closer, Gabi nervously prepared to greet them.

However, Falco and Udo also noticed Gabi. Falco's expression changed, and a struggle appeared on his face, as if he was torn about something. But in the end, it all vanished. He chose to ignore Gabi and walked past Gabi without saying a word with Udo.

Udo's attitude was even more obvious; he even let out a heavy snort as he passed by Gabi, his voice filled with indignation and disdain.

The two men's attitudes dealt a heavy blow to Gabi, and the words of greeting were swallowed back down Gabi throat before she could even utter them.

Gabi turned around and stared blankly as the two walked toward the tent where Zofia was. She vaguely saw Falco and Udo walk straight inside.

Gabi's taut heartstrings suddenly snapped, her body went limp and she collapsed to the ground, waves of grievance surging into her heart.

A strong, aching sensation filled my nose, and my eyes instantly welled up with tears.

"Why! What did I do wrong?! I... I just wanted to prove myself, what did I do wrong? Falco! Udo! Zofia! Why don't you understand me? We all wanted to become Marley Warriors, what did I do wrong?"

Devastated, Gabi bit her lip and growled in a low voice, her fingers digging deep into the mud.

The alienation from her Comrade was like a heavy blow to Gabi. On the battlefield, she disregarded the safety of her Comrade and acted recklessly, causing Comrade to be seriously injured or even lose their lives. Such behavior quickly spread throughout the entire Third Regiment.

The Eldia Soldiers of the Third Regiment looked at Gabi with a completely different expression. They hadn't expected such a young child to be so cold and impulsive, and many were secretly alarmed by the Marleyan' brainwashing of these Eldia children.

In a short period of time, Gabi was almost simultaneously isolated by everyone, and Falco and the others were completely disillusioned with Gabi. Falco would never forget the cold look Gabi gave him when he held the injured Zofia and called out Gabi's name.

The alienation from her Comrade and the scorn of her own people were not the final straw that broke Gabi's back; it was the attitude of the Marleyan that did.

Remember that Middle East Officer who escaped back? According to military regulations, he should have been executed, but he brought back important information—information that convinced the Middle Easterners leadership to spare his life and even retain his Officer status.

The following day, Middle East newspapers widely condemned the Marleyan for their brutality and inhumanity, accusing the Marley leadership of sending young children to the battlefield to draw fire for the sake of war.

The Middle Easterners even used this as an excuse to attribute the victory in the capture of the Grayle Fortress Fortress, which was originally touted by the Marleyan, entirely to the children. The gist of it was that the Marleyan were despicable and shameless for using children to draw fire, while our Middle East Soldiers were kind-hearted and could not bear to shoot children.

But the shameless Marleyan took advantage of the kindness of Middle East Soldiers to launch an attack and won the war in a despicable way. However, we Middle Easterners will not acknowledge the shameless victory of you Marleyan.

There is even "evidence" in Middle East newspapers that the Marleyan send children to fight, with Photograph showing Gabi carrying Grenade and charging toward the Fortress.

The propaganda from the Middle Easterners infuriated the Marley leadership. Previously, Marley had the upper hand in public opinion because the Middle Easterners had started the war, but now the situation had been reversed in an instant.

The key issue is that the Marleyan can't refute it because the other side has physical evidence. The Marley are also in a difficult position, never expecting that these Warrior Candidate would actually rush to the battlefield.

So, while the Marley stubbornly denied the allegations in the newspapers, the Marley high command relentlessly berated their subordinates for their incompetence, all the way up to the Warrior Unit' captain, Magath. This is why Magath was so furious on the Train that day.

Instead of receiving praise and commendation from Gabi, Marley was met with endless insults and belittling. The adjutant sent by the Command Headquarters even pointed at Gabi's nose in front of the Eldia Soldiers of the Third Regiment and called her trash, lowly garbage, damned demon bloodline, and so on.

These words chilled Gabi to the bone. She had risked her life, even abandoning her Comrade, only to be called a piece of trash by the Marleyan?

The reasons he had been using to deceive himself shattered completely in front of Gabi.

So, what was her motivation? A feeling of regret overwhelmed Gabi, but is there really a medicine for regret in this world? Some things, once done, are done, and you can never pretend they never happened.

Leaving aside Gabi's side...

Yago frowned as he looked at the intelligence report in his hand. It was intelligence he had just obtained from Paradis Island, and it was a letter that Commander Erwin had personally written to Yago. However, the contents of the letter greatly surprised Yago.