[COD] Newbie's Rise to Power

His face, covered in black greasepaint, had thick, arched eyebrows and a high, straight nose. His eyelashes were thick and dark, and there was a small mole directly below his right eye.

The black scarf and mask that were supposed to cover half of his face had fallen off and were hanging around his neck, revealing his well-defined jawline and lips with distinct lines and small tips.

You originally thought that given Koenig's height and presence, his appearance would be a rugged, tough type, but you didn't expect him to be more of a sunny type.

If you picture Koenig's droopy eyes on this face, it would probably add a touch of softness to his appearance.

Unfortunately, his face was covered by tactical camouflage paint, obscuring his natural skin tone and making it impossible to see his original complexion.

However, when you shift your gaze to the top of his head, that...

"Cough cough!!"

Your subordinate suddenly moved and coughed violently, pulling you back to reality.

"Koenig!"

You call out to him again, and your eyes meet his slowly opening blue eyes.

"YN? Are you alright?"

His usually clear voice became low and hoarse, but when he spoke, it was out of concern for you.

You smiled and shook your head, then reassured him, "I'm fine. You're not missing any limbs, just a small cut on your forehead."

Once he regained consciousness, he understood his current situation and realized that his head was resting on your lap.

I can even feel the softness of your leg muscles at the back of my head.

The softness of the leg flesh...!!!

Koenig suddenly stood up, then raised his hand to touch his head. Unable to feel his familiar helmet, he stared at you with wide eyes.

Then, he suddenly clutched his head, bent over, and pressed his head against his knees, as if trying to hide himself.

Don't look at me!

ch.106: It is beautiful

Koenig's voice was sharp and defiant, and seemed to tremble slightly.

His enormous body, at this moment, seemed to be desperately trying to hide itself, to shrink into something smaller...

You raise your hand, but dare not touch him casually.

You can only soften your voice and gently soothe him: "Kornig, what's wrong? Tell me. We agreed before that we should talk about whatever's going on to avoid conflicts that could cause our relationship to drift apart, remember?"

After you finish speaking, you patiently wait for his response. If he doesn't speak, you don't urge him; you just wait quietly...

About a minute later? Or almost two minutes later?

Koenig spoke softly, his voice tinged with uncertainty.

"You saw it, didn't you..."

You whispered, "You mean...your red hair?"

His first reaction upon waking was not to touch his face, but to touch his head, proving that he cared more about his head, or rather... his hair, than his face.

Koenig: "You really saw it, me...this repulsive color, will you...repel me too?"

His head, which was buried in his knees, suddenly turned towards you. His dark face revealed a pair of striking blue eyes, which were now misty, as if a heavy rain had fallen inside them.

He stares at you intently, pursing his lips as he awaits an answer.

You didn't say anything, but simply hugged him.

When people are vulnerable, a hug is more meaningful than a thousand words.

You feel him tremble slightly in your arms and you sigh.

"Koenig, I've said before that no matter what kind of person you are, we'll always be friends. And..."

"I don't dislike your hair, nor do I think it deserves to be disliked. It's beautiful, like an elegant reddish-brown rose, like the sunset at dusk—such a warm and beautiful color, how could I dislike it..."

Actually, the red hair you're talking about isn't a bright red or deep red color; humans don't naturally have bright red hair.

Koenig's hair was actually brown with a reddish tinge.

However, this dark reddish-brown is already among the darkest natural red hair colors.

Upon hearing your words, Koenig turned around and hugged you.

What was once a big lump held in your arms has now transformed into you being surrounded and enveloped by a big lump.

The air was thick with the astringent smell of dust, the scent of laundry detergent on his shirt, and a faint whiff of sweat.

"I knew it... I knew you were different, that you would always be with me, right?"

Koenig sounded relieved, but spoke very quickly.

You reached out and patted his broad back with difficulty.

"Of course, we will be friends forever."

Behind you, Koenig's blue eyes are half-closed, containing a trace of stubbornness.

He smiled slightly and let out a soft laugh.

"Yes, forever."

Hearing his laughter, you guessed that he had been appeased, so you patted him a few more times.

"Alright, Koenig, our friendly hug should loosen up a bit, it's so hot."

The temperature here was already very hot, and Koenig's body temperature, which was like a small furnace, only made things worse.

After only a short hug, you start to sweat, so you can't help but remind him.

Koenig obediently released you, pursed his lips, and looked at you with open eyes.

You sigh and ask him, "Shall I pick up your mask for you?"

Koenig nodded silently, sitting there helplessly with his fists clenched, as if he was too nervous to move without his mask.

You stand up and walk to where his mask and helmet fell. After picking them up, you find that the side of the helmet is cracked, and the crack just happened to catch the mask.

It appears that the helmet hit something while rolling, causing it to crack and detach from the head, which in turn snagged the face mask.

You carefully pull the mask off from where it's hooked, brush off the dirt, then walk back to Koenig and hand it to him.

Here, take it.

After Koenig reached out and took it, you casually took off your own helmet and handed it to him as well.

"Your helmet is broken, use mine."

Seeing Koenig wearing a mask, revealing only his eyes and the top of his head, you could only lend him your own helmet to cover his still-exposed hair.

Although you don't know what material the Koenig mask is made of, the two tear stains below the two holes are quite similar to his hair color. When he's not wearing a helmet, the similar colors of his hair and tear stains create a different kind of dark style.

Koenig took your helmet, stared at you, and asked, "If you give me your helmet, you won't have it."

Without a helmet, it would be very dangerous if you encountered an enemy ambush, as you could easily get your head blown off.

You shrug, as if you don't care.

"Then I'll have to ask you to protect me."

"I will!"

Koenig answered quickly, then put on his helmet, adjusted the straps, and fastened them by threading them under his visor.

Actually, you had no intention of venturing out; you just wanted Koenig to wear a helmet to ease his tension.

After Koenig finished cleaning up and you picked up all the dropped equipment, you carefully poked your heads out from under the soil.

It was very quiet around, and there wasn't a soul in sight.

But you cannot act rashly; danger may lurk in a corner you cannot see.

You take out the walkie-talkie you just found, put it on quickly, and start the call.

"Talis, Varley, Odson, are you alright? Reply!"

I waited for two minutes, but there was no reply.

I hope nothing bad has happened...

You couldn't help but ask again.

You anxiously counted down the time in your mind.

One minute...

One minute and eleven seconds...

One minute and twenty seconds...

Finally, after a series of hissing sounds, Taliss's voice came through the headphones.

"yn? Where are you?"

A surge of joy welled up inside you, but instead of immediately replying with his location, you inquired about his situation.

"We're safe right now, how about you?"

Talis quickly replied, "We're fine too. We couldn't get in touch with you just now, and we didn't dare to move around too much."

"Stay where you are and wait for us to come and get you."

A ghostly voice suddenly came through the headphones.

You exclaimed with delight, "Lieutenant, you've finally come to save us!"

If you don't come soon, you'll be running out of bullets and might not be able to get out of here.

The ghost didn't answer you, but the ensuing exchange of fire answered you for him.

About ten minutes later, the ghost's voice came through the headphones again.

"Resolve this, then come out and meet up."

At this moment, these words are like heavenly music!

You replied with delight, "Yes, Lieutenant, we're coming!"