Chapter 79: The Mannerheim Line Welcomes You XXI
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Zhang Heng and Simone worked together, swiftly blowing out all the kerosene lamps that were hanging around the base.
With that, the entire camp was now pitch black. It was as dark as a cave, with only the stars to light the way. All they could see was a silhouette from far. Zhang Heng and Simone were about 70 meters away from the forest that was located northwest of them. However, they were only 40 meters away from the west, and there was a storeroom along their path. That made Zhang Heng was keener to first head west before running northwest to enter the forest.
The only thing that he needed to do right now was to eliminate the gunner that was hiding west. Rifle in hand, Zhang Heng tossed away the handgun that he was holding earlier. Then, they both lay on the snow-covered ground on the their left and right.
Just as expected, the enemy that had remained hidden for some time could not bear the boredom anymore. He drew out his gun and started shooting at Weller! The moment he fired, he fatally exposed his current position.
Instantly, Zhang Heng and Simone took the opportunity to land a critical shot on him!
Along with the loud gunshots, one of the enemies fell to the ground lifelessly. Simone did not stop there, using her excellent photographic memory and sharp observation skills to fire at another. Unfortunately, Weller got shot. It seemed like the enemies in the forest had no intention to kill, only shooting him in the leg. Zhang Heng knew that he could not afford to wait any longer. Immediately, he dragged Simone into the storeroom. One of the enemies noticed them and quickly sprayed some bullets their way in an attempt to block them off.
At that very moment, Simone signaled to Zhang Heng that she would draw away the enemies to let Zhang Heng flee from the trapped position. Without thinking twice, Zhang Heng shook his head, rejecting her proposal. He knew that all those people were actually here to kill Simone, and there was no way he was about to leave her here to the wolves and vultures. Rather than being sitting ducks, Zhang Heng decided to return fire.
That was the last resort anyway. The chance of them winning seemed slim. Even if they could both eliminate all the enemies, most guerillas would die in vain. Seeing that the two of them were trapped, Weller mustered up his strength and courage and stood up, battling the pain in his shot leg. He did not retreat to a safe spot but instead, pulled one of the corpses on the ground and used the body to s.h.i.+eld him from the incoming bullets. With one hand, he picked up the submachine gun and started to shoot at the enemies!
Having the covering fire, Zhang Heng and Simone ran into the forest as fast as their legs could carry them. The enemies gave chase, opening fire at the same time! Those three seconds that they experienced were like three centuries to them, as they gouged out every last bit of strength and ran without looking back.
Right before they entered the forest, something unexpected happened. They remembered there were only three people shooting at them from the west side of the forest. n.o.body would have expected that the forth enemy awaited them in the woods. A lot of had happened out there, and his mates had all scattered, but he was determined to stay hidden to wait for Zhang Heng’s and Simone’s arrival.
At such proximity, it was almost impossible for the enemy to miss his shot. The man in the mask lifted the submachine gun in his hand. Not to be outdone, Simone had her rifle held in her hands as well. She had no time to aim, adjust her breath, or stabilize her shooting position. All she could do was run and shoot at the same time.
The shot was fired. Seconds later, the masked man’s pupils contracted. He froze, then collapsed to the ground with a sickening thud! Simone had managed to kill him without aiming. Unfortunately, there was no time to catch a breath. Soon after that, more people started coming after them.
Zhang Heng swiftly picked up the submachine gun and a few boxes of ammunition before he started to run again. If Maji was telling the truth, then northwest should be the most vulnerable spot for the enemies. That did not mean that once they were there, they would be completely safe. There could be an ambush lurking for them in the dark. After what they experienced earlier, they were much more cautious this time.
It was easy for one to hide in the forest, but at the same time, it was also easy to be ambushed. Until now, Simone had no idea what was going on. She was left stunned when she saw that the man who ambushed them was actually one of the guerillas.
Suddenly, Zhang Heng felt that it wasn’t too bad a thing they had this language barrier. He was unable to tell Simone that her own country had betrayed her even if he wanted to do so. The two of them did not stay at the same place for too long, and after collecting some weapons and picked most of the ammunition, they continued to run towards the forest.
While they were running, they encountered a few enemies. Fortunately, these were either alone or walked in pairs. Simone’s had superior hearing ability and vision when compared to most of her counterparts. In most cases, she was able to spot enemies first before they spotted her. That was why most of her battles ended really fast.
The deeper they went, the fewer enemies they encountered. It turned out Maji wasn’t lying to them. Soon, they would be able to break through the defense line.
As they walked on, they suddenly heard someone shouting in the forest. Zhang Heng couldn’t understand what they were talking about but sensed that Simone’s emotions had drastically changed. She just stood there frozen and had stopped moving.
Zhang Heng guessed that they were pulling some dirty tricks to draw her out. They must be telling her that their target was actually Zhang Heng and wanted her to help them to capture him. This situation was the double-cross of crosses. Her country had already betrayed her, but here, they were still lying to her, taking advantage of her loyalty. If he could ever speak in Finnish, Zhang Heng would definitely tell her the whole truth. It seemed that the enemies knew that he could not converse in Finnish.
Alright. Zhang Heng did know how to speak in Finnish if only a couple of words. He could try to squeeze out something to explain himself. However, knowing that his broken Finnish was going to make him seem more suspicious, he decided to stay mum. He had said everything that he needed to say back at the cottage. Right now, it was all up to Simone. The longer they stayed here, the more dangerous the situation was going to be. Still, Zhang Heng did not rush her.
Both of them just stood in the dark until someone approached them. Simone lifted up her head and looked at Zhang Heng, looking as serene as usual. Right now, Zhang Heng was at a ma.s.sive disadvantage. If Simone started to fall for their lies, he would have to drag her away by force. To his surprise, she lifted up her rifle and pulled the trigger! A man standing beside the tree was. .h.i.t.
Simone had just used actions to say what she had to say. Rather than trusting the words of some strangers, she chose to put her faith in those who had genuinely spent time with her.
Sometimes, women trusted their hunches more than theories. And this soon proved to be true.