[COD] Newbie's Rise to Power

"Of course, I was saying that to that Englishman."

He added a sentence to justify himself.

Upon hearing this, Keegan instantly understood what had happened between them.

Keegan's voice was low, tinged with helplessness and a hint of dissatisfaction:

“Merrick, as I told you yesterday, I have someone important coming over.”

I don't know if it's just your imagination, but although it's a sentence with the same tone, the last sentence seems to be deliberately emphasized.

Merrick was somewhat surprised by Keegan's attitude, since Keegan rarely showed his emotions except in the tense situation of battle, let alone his dissatisfaction.

His eyes immediately shifted to you, with a hint of scrutiny.

"That's right, but how the hell was I supposed to know that the important person you're talking about would be the British and..."

"A child?"

How can you blame him? This girl looks like she's underage!

How could he possibly imagine a minor girl and his teammate, who was over thirty, as lovers?

This time, his gaze toward Keegan was scrutinizing.

"Keigo, I never knew you had a preference for young girls..."

"I'm an adult, sir!"

You interrupted him in time; otherwise, Keegan's image would be ruined.

Merrick looked at you, his eyes full of distrust.

"Kid, are you serious? You look like a high school student."

You distanced yourself from Keegan, gave Merrick a military salute, and then introduced yourself.

"Sir, Corporal YN from the International Counterterrorism Task Force salutes you."

Although I don't know the other person, being teammates with Keegan means their rank must be higher than yours. And Keegan just mentioned reporting to him, proving that the other person's rank is at least sergeant or higher.

When you state your rank, it is a sign of respect for him and also proof that you are an adult. After all, one must be an adult to join the army, and it would take two or three years for a corporal to be promoted without military merit.

Merrick nodded at your attitude, the stern look in his eyes softening slightly.

"Corporal YN, thank you for bringing the supplies."

After exchanging a few polite words with you, he left.

You glance around at the still barely perceptible gazes and ask Keegan in a low voice.

"Keigo, is there a convenient place to talk?"

Keegan nodded, then took your hand and led you in one direction.

Behind you, the ghost who had watched you being intimate and leaving hand in hand gripped the sleeve of your shirt tightly with her arms crossed.

The sleeves made a slight tearing sound under this violent grabbing.

"Hey Brit, what the hell is that look in your eyes?"

Merrick's voice came from beside the ghost.

"Um..."

Deep in the dense, secluded jungle, you tilt your head back, emitting soft breaths and low murmurs.

You grab the hand that's around your lower back and is about to pull you down, then push against his chest to force you apart.

"Kegan, you can't go any further."

Once you're away from the crowd, he starts to seduce you, forcing you into intimate contact before you've even had a chance to say a few words.

"I'm sorry, kid."

"But your concern for me pleases me. And you are very attractive today, making me want to touch you."

You scoffed, "Charm? Merrick just said I was like a child."

Keegan caressed your cheek, his large hand moving around to gently rub the back of your neck.

"I'm so glad he can't see your beauty."

You stop fooling around with him and grab the hem of his shirt.

"Let me see your wound."

Although it was just a bullet graze, there was no gunshot wound.

However, the wound was deep and the damaged area was large. The removal of skin and flesh made suturing impossible, and the damp environment made the wound healing conditions very unfavorable.

"It's already scabbed over, don't worry."

He stated it in a calm tone, but his hand did not stop you from doing so.

So you simply grabbed the hem of your shirt and lifted it up, revealing a wound covered in light brown scabs on the side of your firm, defined waist and abdomen.

But two gaps broke between the scabs, revealing the deep red flesh inside.

You frowned: "The wound hasn't even fully scabbed over yet, and you're already moving supplies."

The already fragile scabs cracked due to excessive exercise.

Keegan, however, didn't care: "It's a minor injury. My teammates are more seriously injured, so it's the most reasonable thing for me to go."

You sighed softly and ultimately said nothing more.

Above the hem of her clothes was a low-set chest, next to a slanted scar on her chest, where a small flame tattoo had been added.

Although the wound was short, the crack at the top disrupted some of the shape of the small flame.

You lightly stroke it with your fingers, sighing with a displeased expression.

"What a pity..."

Keegan's hand covered yours, his voice low and firm.

"It's no pity, I can have your name engraved on it."

You buried your head and bit the back of his hand!

She then glared at him and said, "Did you break your brain? You actually want to hurt yourself."

Despite being scolded, Keegan showed no displeasure; instead, a faint smile appeared on his thin lips.

"Kid, don't glare at me like that, it's really..."

He lowers his head and moves closer to you.

"So cute."

He stated things in a serious tone, but his actions were so forceful that they once again took your breath away.

A dozen minutes later, he casually sat on a boulder, and you were placed on his lap, his hands tightly holding you in his arms.

"Kid, when are you leaving?"

You idly fidget with the collar of his coat, then look up and meet his gaze up close.

"Are you in such a hurry to get rid of me?"

Keegan: "It's not safe here, and the environment isn't good either."

You chuckled: "Instructor Keegan, what did you say when you made me lie in the mud for six hours?"

Then, you imitated his soft yet indifferent voice from that time:

"Soldiers, if you can't even overcome this little difficulty, then just wait for the enemy to feed you bullets."

When you brought up your past actions, Keegan wasn't embarrassed. Instead, he retaliated by using your past responses against you now.

"But the enemy won't stay in one quagmire for hours. We can find a better environment."

You continue playing the role, tilting your head back as you reply, "Soldier, a sniper's first lesson is perseverance."

Keegan pursed his lips and smiled faintly:

"That's right, a studious soldier."

ch.279: Spider

As the sunset faded, urged on by the ghost's phone call, you and Keegan finally got up and went back.

Keegan turned on the flashlight on his combat wristband, casting a small beam of light into the dim jungle.

He shielded you behind him, pointing out potholes or stones as you walked.

Back at the base, the others were already having a simple dinner, either under a awning or sitting on the ground, or on stones and folding stools.

Someone invited you to sit down, and after looking around, you found that there was only one seat left next to the ghost, so you simply walked over to the ghost.

Perhaps out of consideration for your skirt, one of the male soldiers immediately offered his folding stool.

Meanwhile, Keegan, who was sitting on your other side, took off his coat and gave it to you to cover the hem of your skirt.

As soon as you sat down, the ghost used a dagger to stab two holes in the cap of a can of energy drink, then handed it to you.

Military rations are typically stored with thickened lids and no pull rings for easy transport, so they are usually opened with a dagger or bayonet.

The reason for piercing two holes is that the opening area of ​​the knife is small. If an additional air inlet is not made to balance the air pressure, the air pressure inside the can will not be equal to the air pressure, making it difficult to pour out.

"Thank you."

After thanking the ghost, you reached out and took the drink.

It was only then that you noticed that Ghost had rolled up his sleeves to his wrists, revealing his muscular forearms covered in tattoos, which added to the powerful look of his outfit.

Merrick, standing beside the ghost, watched your actions with a look of doubt in his eyes, but seeing that Keegan had no reaction, he didn't ask any further questions.

"Ghost, please reconsider what I just mentioned to you."

It's unclear what the two of them talked about in the past hour or so, but Merrick has changed his name for Ghost from "the Englishman" to a code name.

Merrick's words just now clearly indicated that he needed to ask the ghost for something.

"reject."