Chapter 1 Father and Son

Year 350 of the Anping Calendar.

Great Xia Prefecture, Nanyuan City.

The The Sutton Family.

As soon as Ethan Sutton entered the house, he smelled the aroma of food. He dropped his backpack, walked to the dining table, and casually picked up a piece of braised pork, tossing it into his mouth.

While chewing, Ethan Sutton looked toward the kitchen and mumbled, “Dad, can we have a different soup tomorrow? Eating meat every day isn’t getting old for you?”

“Be glad you have food to eat, and you’re still being picky!”

A complaining voice came from the kitchen—it was Logan Sutton. “Look at you, you’re already eighteen this year. When are you going to learn to take care of yourself? I’ve been both your father and your mother for so many years. Finally, I’m about to be free.”

Ethan Sutton chewed on the braised pork, grinning. “Dad, your cooking is so good, you’re practically a chef. I’d cook for myself, but the problem is, I can’t make anything edible!”

“Heh!”

Logan Sutton snorted. All talk and no action—why don’t you actually get in the kitchen?

Soon, Logan Sutton came out wearing an apron, carrying the dishes.

He was nearly 1.9 meters tall, with a sturdy, muscular build, but the small apron looked especially comical on him.

Every time, Ethan Sutton would comment, and this time was no exception. He shook his head and said, “Dad, can’t you get a bigger apron? It’s not like we can’t afford one!”

“What do you know!”

Logan Sutton couldn’t be bothered to argue. He set the dishes on the table, didn’t even take off the apron, and sat down, saying, “Eat! Save where you can. Besides, this apron is new…”

“You’ve been saying that for three years!”

Ethan Sutton rolled his eyes. Three years ago, you said it was new, and now you’re still saying it. My old man really dares to say anything.

Logan Sutton didn’t care, just sat down and started eating, wolfing down his food at lightning speed.

Ethan Sutton was long used to it and didn’t mind. He sat down and, while eating, sighed, “Dad, is there another war at the front? I just got back and saw the recruitment truck downstairs. Are they conscripting in our neighborhood? I wonder which family…”

Logan Sutton’s eating paused slightly. He quickly put down his chopsticks and bowl, his expression serious. “It’s everyone’s duty to defend the country! From your tone, are you saying being a soldier is bad?”

“No!”

Ethan Sutton hurriedly clarified. His old man was a retired soldier—he couldn’t say anything careless, or his dad’s iron fist would not be a joke.

Logan Sutton snorted softly, then picked up his bowl and chopsticks again to continue eating.

As they ate, Logan Sutton’s tone changed, becoming a bit somber. “A Yu, the front lines are in turmoil. The major war corps have issued conscription orders again and again! Recruiting new soldiers, calling veterans back…”

Ethan Sutton’s chopsticks paused slightly. He looked up at his father, no longer as carefree as before, frowning, “Dad, this doesn’t have much to do with us, right? You’ve been retired for 18 years, and I just became an adult. Plus, I’m about to take the entrance exam for higher education. They wouldn’t conscript from our family…”

“Eighteen years…”

Logan Sutton let out a breath. Yes, eighteen years.

“Eighteen years since I retired. The Demon Suppression Army has issued five recall orders for veterans, including this one! After fifty, you’re no longer in the recall range.”

“The first four times, because you were still young, I was worried about you, worried you couldn’t take care of yourself, so I didn’t answer the call.”

Ethan Sutton’s expression shifted. “Dad, our family doesn’t have to go. That’s allowed by policy!”

“Yes, it’s allowed by policy!”

Logan Sutton grinned, looking up at his son. “So I didn’t go. Eighteen years, four recalls, I didn’t go! But today, my son is an adult! Eighteen years old!”

“Dad!”

Ethan Sutton’s face changed completely. “What are you trying to say?”

“You know what I’m trying to say.”

Logan Sutton looked at his son, a bit gratified, a bit cheerful, and said with a smile, “Eighteen years ago, your dad may not have been much, but at least I was a squad leader in the Demon Suppression Army, in charge of thirty men.”

“At that time, your mom was about to give birth to you. I took leave to come back, but who would have thought… your mom passed away, and you were just born. There were no elders at home to help, and I really couldn’t leave…”

“I had no choice but to retire!”

Logan Sutton bared his teeth, his smile bitter. “When I left the Demon Suppression Army, not a single brother from my squad came to see me off! Not because they wanted me gone, but because they were afraid I’d run back if I couldn’t help myself!”

“Eighteen years, no one’s contacted me, afraid I’d want to go back. I even dream of them yelling at me, telling me to go home and take care of my baby…”

“Of the thirty men, in the first year after I left, nine died in battle…”

“Not a single one retired and went home. Of the remaining twenty-one… do you know how many are left?”

“They’re still on the battlefield!”

Logan Sutton’s eyes reddened. “I was selfish, so I didn’t dare ask, didn’t dare find out! The first four recalls, I didn’t answer, but this time… A Yu, your dad thinks that even if I die, I should die on the battlefield, wrapped in my horse’s hide. Your old man… doesn’t want to die in the rear!”

Ethan Sutton fell silent.

He had long known that his father always thought about the front lines, always thought about those old brothers. If not for his mother dying in childbirth, his father would never have retired from the Demon Suppression Army.

But he thought, after eighteen years, his father should have forgotten, should have let go.

Today, his father told him—he hadn’t!

He couldn’t let go!

“Dad…”