Chapter 36: Novice Protection Period?

Chapter 36: Chapter 36: Novice Protection Period?

Evan Keller was in his training gear, standing on the training grounds with his hands behind his back, waiting for them with another man.

"This is Heath Hale. He just retired from the armed police due to an injury. The chief specifically asked him to come be your coach. With someone this capable teaching you, you should be counting your lucky stars!" Evan Keller’s tone was blunt.

He then waved for Sean Hughes and the other team members to fall in and begin the day’s training.

There had been no news for days after the case closed, so Zoe Sawyer had assumed the matter was over. She never expected the main event was waiting for her here.

Looking at the man in front of her, who had a cold expression and was sizing her up, Zoe Sawyer shivered with a bit of fear.

If it were her old self, she would have felt nothing but a sense of security. But now that this man was her instructor, she kind of just wanted to die.

"I heard about what happened recently from Evan Keller. You think you’re pretty amazing now with that ability of yours, don’t you?

If the criminals you ran into had been even a little more professional, you wouldn’t have even had the chance to report back." Heath Hale took a retractable baton from his pocket.

He tapped it idly against his palm. The sound of the baton hitting his flesh made Zoe Sawyer flinch.

"Zero professionalism, reckless, brainless, and poor stamina. I’m afraid if you run into someone competent next time, you’ll just be gone!

Relying on others is useless. Only when you become strong yourself will your ability stop being your death warrant!" Heath Hale scolded, waving the baton. "Go run!"

Hearing this assessment again, Zoe Sawyer’s shoulders slumped, but she still started jogging alongside Heath Hale.

’He’s right. Rely on mountains, they’ll collapse. Rely on people, they’ll flee.’

’In the end, I have to be able to protect myself.’

After comforting herself with this thought, Zoe Sawyer took a deep breath and pulled herself together.

Meanwhile, Sean Hughes and Evan Keller, who had already finished a lap, stood not far away. Watching Zoe Sawyer’s head hang lower and lower with each of Heath Hale’s words, Sean couldn’t help but speak up. "Isn’t this a bit too aggressive? Zoe has no prior experience with this stuff. It’s normal for her to have some shortcomings."

To Sean Hughes, their current methods felt like they were trying to force a sprout to grow too fast.

Evan Keller stood beside him and shook his head. "Don’t you think the things Zoe Sawyer has encountered this past month have been a bit too frequent?

And the difficulty has been increasing bit by bit. The fact that she’s stumbled into these situations several times and come out unscathed... doesn’t it feel like she’s still in a newbie protection period?"

None of them could be sure that they would be able to arrive in time the next time Zoe Sawyer ran into a case.

So, just in case, to increase her safety and survival rate, she had to learn these things as quickly as possible. Ideally, they needed to become instinct.

That was the only way she could truly protect herself.

Sean Hughes opened his mouth, wanting to say that he could protect her.

But thinking of his position, he decided to keep his mouth shut.

"Don’t worry. Heath Hale might seem a little fierce, but he’s a good guy. He knows where to draw the line. He definitely cleared today’s speech with the chief," Evan Keller explained, knowing what Sean Hughes was worried about.

’The process just might not be so easy, though.’

Evan Keller didn’t say this last part out loud. Sean Hughes would find out sooner or later anyway.

’Oh well. In the end, this is all for Zoe Sawyer’s benefit. It’ll be tough at the beginning, but it’ll get better later on.’

After comforting himself with this thought, Sean Hughes threw himself back into his own training.

’I can’t let Zoe Sawyer improve while I fall behind from lack of training!’

Meanwhile, as Zoe Sawyer jogged lap after lap, her legs ached and burned. Every step she took felt weak, as if she were about to collapse.

But out of the corner of her eye, she saw the composed Heath Hale keeping pace beside her, and then the other officers lapping her one after another.

Zoe Sawyer gritted her teeth and pushed on.

’They can all keep going, so I can’t be the one to give up halfway!’

Following behind Zoe Sawyer, Heath Hale saw her grit her teeth and take another determined step, and the corner of his mouth curved into a slight smile.

’Good. She’s not a lost cause yet.’

When the morning training finally ended, Zoe Sawyer hadn’t even had a chance to catch her breath before she heard Heath Hale assign a new learning task.

She shot a pleading look at Sean Hughes, but he just shrugged, indicating there was nothing he could do.

Afraid he would soften and plead on her behalf, Sean Hughes quickly pulled the others and ran off.

Officer Lee had even less say in the matter. He gave Zoe Sawyer an apologetic smile and hurried away.

With no one to turn to for help, Zoe Sawyer hung her head and followed Heath Hale inside to study.

For the next week, Zoe Sawyer’s life fell into a repeating pattern.

She’d wake up in the morning to train with Heath Hale, then study essential knowledge, then get tested on what she’d learned in the previous days. In the evening, she’d review everything again, followed by a few more laps.

After a week of this, Zoe Sawyer felt that while she wasn’t completely reborn, she was like a different person compared to when she started.

"Alright, take tomorrow off to rest properly. We’ll resume training the day after," Heath Hale said after reviewing Zoe Sawyer’s progress, finally deciding to give her a break.

"Yay! Thank you, Coach Hale!"

Zoe Sawyer cheered. After confirming there was no more training for the night, she quickly grabbed her things and went back to her room to crash.

After she left, Evan Keller came in from outside, plopped down next to Heath Hale, and teased, "Since when is our Coach Hale so kind-hearted, giving a little rookie a day off?"

"Pushing too hard is as bad as not pushing hard enough. She’s close to her breaking point. If I don’t ease up, she probably won’t last a few more days," Heath Hale explained while slowly sipping from his thermos.

Besides, Zoe Sawyer had made significant progress these past few days. A small reward was appropriate.

Evan Keller pulled the thermos down, leaned in to sniff it, and then snorted with laughter. "It’s just milk tea. You even put it in a thermos to look all serious."

He then unceremoniously took a big gulp for himself before wiping his mouth and strolling away.

’Robber!’

Heath Hale clutched his thermos, glaring fiercely in the direction Evan Keller had gone.

Waking up naturally for once, with no sudden incidents, Zoe Sawyer felt utterly content.

By now, no one else was in the dorm. Sean Hughes had already left for training and work, just like any other day.

Zoe Sawyer stretched, freshened up, and opened her door, ready to go get some breakfast.

But when she saw what was across the hall, Zoe Sawyer could only let out a bitter laugh.

’I never should have let my guard down!’

Across from her door was a warehouse she had never seen before, filled with stacks of wooden crates.

From outside, the occasional sound of gunshots could be heard.

Zoe Sawyer quickly pulled the door almost shut, leaving only a small crack to observe the situation outside.

"The cop ran toward the back!"