The bustling noise of the soldiers was audible as they conversed with each other in the enlightenment program's lecture hall. They had this breathing room for social interaction due to the Altius's absence.

While her friends socialized, Amber spoke with Kreuger, who sat behind her.

"Wow! I'm surprised you came to the lecture today!" Amber said. "This is a first!"

"Well, it's not like I have anything better to do," Kreuger responded.

"Even so, it's good to see you! You'll make friends this way!"

"I told you already, I'm not here to make friends," Kreuger said as he leaned back in his chair. "I came here for one thing, and you all know what it is."

"Well, closing off yourself can be unhealthy," Amber remarked.

As they conversed, Ariel and Sariel couldn't help but eavesdrop on them.

"Wow, it seems that Amber has befriended that guy," Ariel whispered. "I never thought it would have been possible with his antisocial personality."

"Yeah, it makes you wonder how she did it," Sariel responded. "Considering he made it clear that he only joined this program to kill Jack the Ripper. Well, I guess Amber has that bright personality that everyone's attracted to."

BANG!

Suddenly, the lecture room door swung open, slamming on the wall and silencing the students. Altius walked in and was met by the gazes of the soldiers.

"It's class time so I'd appreciate it if you guys would shut the hell up," With an annoyed expression, Altius ordered. The students were understandably receptive, as they kept their mouths shut and eyes fixed on him.

"Sigh, I'll make this quick," Altius said as he leaned against the podium at the front of the class. "Three times a week, you will patrol specific communities to deal with potential criminal activity."

The soldiers collectively dropped their jaws in response to Altius's words. Some apprehensive whispers were audible as well.

"What!?" Baran exclaimed. "Isn't this just the second wee--"

"Shut your traps!" Altius yelled. "This isn't a regular school! It's one to train special soldiers like you guys. The key word is soldiers. You guys are still soldiers despite training!"

Tsk, you didn't have to yell. Baran thought.

"As you know, with Jack being a potential threat, law enforcement has been occupied with locating the bastard. He's not the only problem though. Criminals have become more brazen with their damn illegal activities because of him, so this would be the best training for you guys now." Altius explained while periodically rolling his eyes and sighing out loud. "You have been through a lot of physical training since you joined, and most of you have prior training too. With your blessings, defeating common criminals won't be too problematic for you lot."

"Um, when do we start?" Amber asked.

"When the hell do you think?" Altius sarcastically asked, surprising Amber. "Today!"

So mean... Amber thought with a frown.

"You soldiers won't have to worry. If you somehow perform worse than we thought, your instructors will be there to assist you so you don't end up dying," Altius said. "And due to his extensive power and skill, Leo Kreuger won't be participating. Instead, he'll work with us to assist you."

"Oh?" Kreuger uttered. Due to him being referred to, the students gazed at him.

What? Is he actually strong? Aiden thought. Huh, I guess it makes sense.

"Anyways, hurry up and get out of the room. Military vehicles are waiting outside to carry you to your respective areas," Altius remarked.

"Good luck guys!" Amber excitedly said as everyone stood up.

"Yup! Good luck Amby!" Ariel responded.

"Good luck," Sariel said.

* * *

Each student occupied a military vehicle manned by soldiers and was brought to their target residence to patrol.

Slums, parks, school communities; there was a multitude of areas presented to each student in the enlightenment program. The reports of heightened crime rates were true, as it took a short time for criminal activity to show.

* * *

"AAAHHHHH!!!! SOMEONE STOP HIM!" The desperate pleas of a woman were audible as she pointed at a man running away. "HE HAS MY PURSE!!!"

"Haha! There's no way you'll ever catch me!" The man said as he ran past onlookers at high speed. "My blessing is too--"

BAM!

Cutting his escape short, the man suddenly slipped and fell flat on his face. The civilians were surprised by this, but the sight of Aiden in his combat gear quickly made them feel at ease.

"Heh, too easy!" Aiden said as brave civilians quickly surrounded the criminal while he tried to get up. While pushing himself off the ground, the robber immediately slipped and fell on his face again.

"Who's next!" Aiden asked with a triumphant look.

"Good thing a soldier was nearby!" A civilian said.

This story has been unlawfully obtained without the author's consent. Report any appearances on Amazon.

* * *

The other soldiers performed well in suppressing the criminals that they encountered. Another one that effortlessly defeated them was Sariel.

As an individual ran through the streets with what seemed to be a large duffle bag of cash, Sariel quickly chased him.

"Tsk, a soldier of all people!?" The thief said. "I thought law enforcement wasn't around this area!"

"I will only say this once," Sariel said as she quickly closed the distance between herself and the criminal. "Surrender, and I won't hurt you."

"Never!!!"

"I see," Sariel said before reaching into her combat vest. Suddenly, she pulled a metallic-looking Rubik's cube. Immediately, the shape of the cube grew and morphed into the form of a rifle.

With the shroud of holographic energy around it and holographic components of the gun such as its scope and magazine, the rifle seemed futuristic. Without wasting any time, Sariel aimed.

BANG!

A blue holographic beam was fired, hitting the thief in the back.

"AH!!!" The thief yelled as he fell to the ground. His body began to sporadically move around on the ground like he was being electrocuted.

"Don't worry, it was set to stun," Sariel assured. "You won't die, but it will hurt a lot. I will take you in now."

* * *

Every student was given a chance to showcase their skills in these areas of criminal activities; all except for Amber, who was recommended to monitor a rather peaceful community.

"Sigh, nothing's happening now," Amber said as she sat on a bench on the sidewalk. She decided to check her phone in her free time.

Looking at her messages, Amber could tell her friends had better luck than her with protecting the peace of their recommended communities.

"Just took down the third robber," Ariel, who messaged Amber, wrote. "There are so many brazen guys!"

"Heh, these criminals think they could get away with their crimes if they're so weak?" A message from Aiden wrote. "How about you? How much have you taken down yet?"

Sigh, I should be glad that people can go about their daily lives without any disturbances from criminals, but I feel useless now.

Amber then gazed over to a building. With the large 'CASINO' on the building walls, Amber immediately identified it as a casino.

"Sigh...just a casino," Amber said with a disheartened look. "Revelrous, but not illegal."

It would be a stretch to think something illegal may happen there.

* * *

Inside the casino, the loud, bustling sounds of excited people filled the room as they gambled. They took part in a wide range of casino games; roulette, poker, and slots, those were but a few of the games seen.

However, unlike the excited-filled room, there was one table that radiated a somber mood: the blackjack table. Sitting around the table were Theodore Dexter and a timid-looking middle-aged man.

Standing around them were a multitude of men in black colored suits.

"What's wrong, Dave? Getting cold feet?" Theodore mockingly asked. "Well, it makes sense, considering you've lost so much so far."

"It...doesn't matter," The timid individual, Dave said. "I'll win now."

"Wait, you're going to do it?" Theodore asked with a surprised look. "You know you'll go into debt if you lose this, right?"

"...I'll win," Dave once again declared. Even though I've lost all this time and this is my last chance...I have to win. So I can pay off my daughter's cancer treatment.

Seeing his determined face, Theodore couldn't help but smirk.

* * *

The match was now finished, and so was Dave's remaining hopes. As the goal of blackjack is to win by getting as close as possible to 21 without going over, this was a game purely by chance...and chance was not on Dave's side.

Theodore's cards totaled twenty and Dave's totaled twenty-four. Therefore, Theodore won, and Dave had a bust.

"Well, Dave, it's unfortunate, but ya lost mate," Theodore said as he stood up. Dave meanwhile gazed at the cards in despair. "So, about the payment."

"...ave...ney..." Dave muttered.

"Huh, what was that?" Theodore asked.

"I don't...have the...money..." Dave muttered more clearly. In response, the men in black suits began to snicker.

"I see, then that's unfortunate, huh?" Theodore said before resting his arm on Dave's shoulder. "Well, I'm sure one of your kidneys will cover the payment, right?"

Upon hearing that, Theodore snapped Dave out of his depression and induced a feeling of pure panic, causing Dave to make a run for it.

"Where the hell do--"

"It's fine," Theodore said as he interrupted a man in black. "Did you guys forget that no one can run from me?"

Immediately, Dave rushed through the exit.

I-I have to get out of here! Dave said. I have to get away from a monster like Theo--

BAM!

Theodore appeared in front of Dave and struck him at the top of his head, spiking him into the road.

"AAAHHHHH!!!!" Dave yelled in agony as he clenched his head.

"What!?" Amber exclaimed with a surprised expression as she noticed.

"Ha, I was going to be nice ya know," Theodore said. "I was just gonna take your kidney and we would have parted ways, but you dared to run away, huh."

"Ahh...it...hurts..." Dave uttered as he bled from the head. "...Stop...please..."

"I became the owner of this newly built casino and of course, I'd have to experience something like this," Theodore said as he stood over Dave's body. "As punishment for trying to run, I'm going to beat the shit out of you, mate. Then I'll take your liver."

As he prepared to strike Dave once more, Theodore lifted his clenched fist in the air. Dave could only watch in fear as he waited for the strike.

Theodore thrust his arm to punch, but it was suddenly stopped. Amber had rushed over and grabbed his arm in time.

"...What are you doing to this poor individual, sir...?" Amber asked with a serious expression.

A soldier? Theodore wondered as he noticed the combat uniform she wore.

"What kind of soldier are you...it doesn't matter. What am I doing? Shouldn't you be asking what he's doing?" Theodore asked.

"Huh?"

"I'm the owner of this legal casino. This individual has lost all his money on gambling and now he can't pay off his debts, so he's running now!" Theodore explained. "No one could have guessed why he would be so confident...thinking he'd win after losing so many times."

"...It's because...I have to pay...for my daughter's...cancer treatment..." Dave explained as he began to tear up.

"...What?" Amber uttered with shock.

"That's good and all, but you lost fair and square," Theodore said. "So, if you're going to assume who's the criminal, woman, it's him for trying to defraud a casino."

"...I--" Amber uttered as she could not find the words to say.

"If you understand, let me continue my work," Theodore said as he violently yanked his arm from Amber's grip. He then focused his gaze on the fearful Dave.

"You ruined your life for trying to steal from me, bastard," Theodore said as he raised his arm once more in preparation to strike him. "Now you will suffer the consequences...and you'll watch as your daughter succumb to her illness--"

With her fist shrouded in a yellow glow, Amber delivered a powerful strike to Theodore's jaw before he could finish his sentence. The strike sent him across the street and several meters away after that.

Her eyes and body were enshrouded in the yellow radiance of her blessing.

"...Sure, this poor man might be in the wrong based on laws, but I don't accept that!" Amber exclaimed with an angered expression. "What you did to him, what you said to him...you were the one committing the injustice. I will side with whatever I deem justice as in my eyes!"

That is good my daughter. The feminine voice said in her head. You are growing nicely.

"You wanted to know what type of soldier I was?" Amber added. "I am from the Enlightenment Program...I'm not just an ordinary soldier."

Simultaneously, Theodore stood back up staggering a bit. In annoyance, he rubbed the side of his cheek that Amber struck.

"...I see. You must...not know who I am, woman," Theodore said. "For doing something as stupid as striking me, I will make you pay...with your life."