Debt

Inside the underground river cave, damp and cold, only the dim light of the emergency lights illuminated the lingering solemnity on everyone's faces. The air seemed to freeze, and Kruger's words, "He owes me one," clung to the silence like the saliva of a venomous snake.

Elaine wrapped herself tightly in the musty-smelling military blanket, curling up on a relatively dry rock beside the fire. The flames flickered, but couldn't dispel the chill in her heart. She repeatedly pondered Kruger's words, those eerie green eyes, full of mockery and malice, lingering in her mind. Finally, she couldn't hold back any longer and turned to Keegan, who was silently wiping his rifle across from her. Her voice trembled slightly with confusion: "Keegan... why did he say that? 'Owe me one more time'... because he let me go? That doesn't make sense. Shouldn't mercenaries eliminate threats directly? Unless... this 'one more time' is a bargaining chip he's set up for future gains? Or, he wants to sow seeds of suspicion, to make us think you two have some kind of deal?" She tried to dispel her fear with rational analysis, her eyes fixed on Keegan, hoping to glean a clue from him.

Keegan's movements as he wiped the gun barrel paused almost imperceptibly for a moment. His head was lowered, his mask obscuring most of his face, but his knuckles tightened abruptly, his Adam's apple bobbed, and he interrupted her with an almost rude tone, his voice hoarse and suppressed: "His thoughts don't matter." He abruptly raised his head, his gaze fixed on Elaine, a complex look that made her heart clench. "What matters is that he will use you to restrain me…we, that. You need to protect yourself, be more vigilant." His words trailed off, and he lowered his head again, wiping the already gleaming gun with even more force.

Elaine was stunned, startled by the fleeting pain and anger in his eyes: "I'm sorry..."

“No, I’m the one who should apologize,” Keegan closed his eyes and sighed. “His goal was to defeat me, to crush me. You’re the innocent one who got dragged into this.”

Just then, Ghost, who had been guarding the makeshift communications station, turned around, breaking the deadlock. His voice, hidden behind the skull mask, remained cold, but carried a hint of decisiveness: "Price has confirmed it. The regular communication chain has been severely compromised; 'Vulture' was the bait. But in the enemy's secondary communications intercepted by Konig, a coordinate-related term appeared frequently—'Water Purification Project'."

He walked to the tactics board and circled an area deep in the rainforest with a red pen. "Based on the viral aerosol transmission model, if the 'Tree of Life' is to conduct large-scale testing, controlling the water source is the most covert method. This 'water purification project' is very likely the field testing front of the 'purification protocol.'" This news was like a bolt of lightning, instantly illuminating the fog.

Everyone's attention was drawn to this. Elaine frowned, looking at Ghost and Keegan: "If Kruger is a scavenger hired by Makarov, he will do everything in his power to prevent us from getting close to their target water station. We not only have to deal with the guards inside the station, but also be constantly on guard against his attacks from the shadows. Could we... find a breakthrough by dealing with him personally?"

Her gaze finally settled on Keegan, filled with inquiry and anticipation. "You know him, don't you? What kind of person is he? Besides money, what else could move him, or... enrage him?" Silence fell once more in the cave, broken only by the murmuring of the underground river.

Keegan remained silent for a long time, so long that Elaine thought he wouldn't answer. He finally raised his head, his gaze not on anyone, but directed at the void of darkness deep within the cave, as if staring at a painful memory.

His voice was low and calm, as if he were narrating a story unrelated to himself: "Kruger... he was once the top sniper in the South African National Defence Force." He paused, as if choosing the right words, "Talented, but also arrogant to the point of... looking down on everyone. The only things he cared about, besides money, were his ridiculous, 'undefeated legend' pride."

His tone carried a hint of cold sarcasm. "He was framed by his own people and accused of massacring civilians... That incident is the deepest thorn in his side. He hates people like Makarov, but he has no choice but to work for them. As for me..." Keegan's eyes flashed with a complex emotion, "...it's a twisted obsession. He believes there has to be a winner and a loser between us."

“He is your mirror image,” Ghost rarely spoke, but his words were incisive. “Similar people often have drastically different circumstances, and become increasingly stubborn. Therefore, what we need to fight is not a defensive battle, but a psychological one.” After listening to Keegan’s analysis of Kruger, Ghost’s gaze beneath his skull mask remained calm. He paused for a moment, then his icy voice echoed in the cave: “A top sniper driven by resentment and arrogance is more dangerous than an army. We are in the open, he is in the shadows; engaging him head-on now is unlikely to succeed.” He pointed to the coordinates of the water station on the tactical board. “The most urgent task is to obtain evidence of the ‘Purification Protocol’ before he tries to obstruct us with all his might. The operation must be swift, accurate, and covert.”

Keegan stepped forward, his gaze resolute: "I'll bring Konig in. Kruger's attention will be on me, which will create opportunities for Konig."

Ghost scrutinized Keegan, knowing this was both the best and riskiest option at the moment. He finally nodded and gave the instructions: "Agreed. Keegan, your mission is to distract Kruger and create an opening for Konig, but remember, the objective is not to kill Kruger, but to obtain the sample. Hesh, you establish a sniper position on the high ground outside the water station, providing long-range support and covering fire if necessary. I will stay at the camp, maintain contact with Price, and ensure Elaine's safety. Maintain radio silence during the operation and contact us at the designated time windows." He looked at Elaine: "Your mission is to use our limited resources to continue digging deeper into the Makarov network and find other possible breakthroughs."

Before setting off, Keegan meticulously performed a final equipment check, as was his habit. Elaine walked over and handed him a terminal containing data on the geological structure, hydrological data, and potential dive sites around the water source station, which she had analyzed overnight.

Her fingertips trembled slightly as they brushed against his palm. "Be careful," she said, looking at him with undisguised worry in her eyes.

Keegan took the terminal; the cold metallic touch made his fingertips pause slightly. His gaze fell heavily on her face, and he nodded very slightly, his voice low but carrying a reassuring strength: "Take care of yourself."

"You're back safe and sound," Elaine said softly.

Keegan gave her one last, profound look, a gaze so complex it sent shivers down her spine. Then, he turned away resolutely, lowered his body, and together with the silent, shadow-like Konig, slipped silently into the rainforest outside the cave, swallowed by the torrential rain and darkness, instantly disappearing into the dense vegetation.

Elaine stood there, gazing at the direction they had disappeared in for a long time, her hands still feeling the warmth of their presence.

Inside the underground river cave camp, time flowed slowly in the oppressive silence. The light from the emergency lights cast flickering shadows on the damp rock walls. Elaine sat in front of the terminal, the screen's dim light illuminating her slightly pale face.

She tried to follow Ghost's instructions to track the Makarov network's activities in South Africa and other vulnerable regions, but the signal was extremely limited and the information fragmented. She found some fringe reports: unexplained riots in a mining town, a critical bridge being "accidentally" blown up, delaying the arrival of UN supplies, and the suspicious origin of weapons in an armed conflict in a certain region... These fragments, like spots of plague, vaguely outlined a huge and malicious plan—systematically destabilizing vulnerable regions to pave the way for something darker.

This discovery sent chills down her spine, but what unsettled her even more was that the agreed-upon communication window had passed, yet Keegan and Konig remained completely silent. Each silent beep of the communicator felt like a hammer blow to her heart.

Deep in the rainforest, the torrential rain provided excellent cover, but also made every step muddy and dangerous. Keegan and Konig, like two ghostly figures blending into the night, precisely bypassed the motion sensors and loose patrol netting around the water station, guided by Konig's almost instinctive understanding of nature.

They stealthily infiltrated the edge of the facility's core area along a long-abandoned drainage network, half-submerged in silt and weeds. This unusually smooth progress heightened Keegan's vigilance.

He gestured, and the two disappeared into the shadows of an abandoned pumping station. Through the broken windows, they could see the brightly lit core factory building not far away, the outline of huge bioreactors vaguely visible, and the air filled with a strong smell of gunpowder and a faint, unsettlingly sweet chemical odor.

Just then, a sharp, piercing chill ran down Keegan's spine—the instinct honed through countless brushes with death, the instinct to lock onto a sniper scope. He abruptly raised his hand, signaling Konig to stay absolutely still. He slowly shifted his gaze, like the most cautious predator, peering through the rain and gaps in the rusted steel frame at the top of the towering water level monitoring tower in the distance.

There, in the green field of vision of the night vision goggles, a blurry figure almost blended into the darkness, but a faint, chilling reflection from the high-powered lenses flashed by like the forked tongue of a viper. Kruger.

He was there, just as expected. Like a spider lurking in the center of its web, he had already seen through everything, patiently waiting and savoring the moment his prey walked right into his trap. Keegan understood instantly. For Kruger, Makarov's mission might be important, but it paled in comparison to the unfinished, fateful duel between them, a duel entangled in jealousy and resentment. The water station itself had become the perfect stage to force him to reveal himself.

“Konig,” Keegan’s voice was low, almost drowned out by the rain, “His target is me. I’m going to the old factory area to the southeast to distract him. You only have ten minutes. Get the sample, then immediately retreat along Route Three and rendezvous with Hesh. Understand?” His tone was a pure command, leaving no room for argument.

A deep, resolute reply came from beneath Konig's heavy breathing mask: "Understood."

Without hesitation, Keegan took a deep breath of the damp, cold air and suddenly emerged from behind cover! He deliberately left rapid footprints in the puddles in several blind spots of the surveillance cameras, even kicking over a loose piece of sheet metal to make a clear sound. Then, he zigzaggled swiftly and silently toward the area opposite the core factory, filled with dilapidated buildings and rusted pipes. He had to convince Kruger that he, Keegan, was the prey worth pursuing with all his might.

At the top of the water tower, Kruger, through the high-powered PSG1 sniper scope, clearly saw that familiar figure, etched into his very bones, leaping and disappearing among the ruins. His green eyes narrowed excitedly in the darkness, a twisted thrill flashing across them.

He gently adjusted the muzzle, the crosshairs steadily catching Keegan around the next corner, savoring the feeling of having his nemesis's life at his fingertips. He almost forgot Makarov's orders, completely immersed in this private hunt.

Inside the cave, a blurry, encrypted signal source alarm suddenly popped up on the screen in front of Elaine, but vanished instantly, untraceable. Almost simultaneously, on the screen monitoring Keegan's vital signs and location signal, the dot representing him began moving rapidly southeast, while the dot representing Konig paused for a moment before silently penetrating deeper into the core area.

"Keegan is moving! He's distracting something... Konig's gone in!" Elaine reported urgently to Ghost, her heart pounding.

Ghost's gaze, sharp as an eagle's, pierced beneath his skull mask: "Remain silent. Trust them." In the old factory district, the death game begins.

Kruger was no longer content with simply observing. A 7.62mm sniper bullet whistled through the air, striking precisely the metal support Keegan had just left a second earlier, sending up a blinding spark and a deafening roar that echoed through the factory. Then came the second, the third, bullets like persistent leeches, always narrowly missing Keegan's body, blocking his path and forcing him to reveal his position.

Kruger was toying with him, writing provocations with bullets, trying to provoke him and force him to retaliate.

Keegan's breathing was rapid and even beneath his mask, his mind as calm as ice. He used every ledge, every change of direction, perfectly portraying the vulnerability of being hunted, yet he never fired a shot in return. His eyes constantly scanned the surroundings, calculating the time, sensing Kruger's location.

His goal wasn't to fight, but to delay and wear down Kruger's attention. When the moment he estimated Konig was about to succeed arrived, Keegan used a complex area interwoven with massive reactors and pipes to create a perfect illusion.

He deliberately kicked a pebble into the water, then quickly submerged into a half-full sedimentation tank, using the underwater pipe system to silently escape Kruger's sight.

After confirming that it was temporarily safe, he slid into a drainage ditch that connected to a raging river outside the factory without hesitation. The cold and rapid river water swallowed him up instantly, and the powerful current carried him downstream into the unknown. All electronic signals were completely cut off the moment he entered the water.

On the water tower, Kruger waited for several minutes, but the anticipated standoff didn't occur. Realizing something was wrong, he quickly changed positions and searched the entire area, but couldn't find that familiar figure again. Keegan seemed to have vanished into thin air.

A surge of furious rage, fueled by the perceived mockery, instantly overwhelmed Kruger's reason. A terrifying flame ignited in his green eyes as he slammed his fist against the cold iron bars, the impact echoing with a dull thud. "Coward!!" he roared into the empty, rainy night, the double blow of failure in both his mission and personal grudge causing veins to bulge on his forehead.

Almost simultaneously, inside the cave, the monitoring screen in front of Elaine emitted a piercing alarm—the signal representing Keegan's vital signs and location, after moving violently, suddenly disappeared at a river marker! It turned into a shocking red lost status! Meanwhile, Konig's signal showed that he was moving rapidly towards the designated rendezvous point.

"Keegan's signal... has disappeared! In the river!" Elaine stood up abruptly, her voice trembling with extreme fear, her face ashen.

Ghost immediately connected to Hesh's encrypted channel, his voice eerily calm: "Hesh, report the situation!" A few seconds later, Hesh's heavy voice came through: "Konig succeeded, the sample is safe. But he said... Keegan jumped into the underground river outside the factory to distract Kruger, and his whereabouts are unknown."

The moment the message was confirmed, Elaine felt all the strength drain from her body. She slumped back into her chair, covering her mouth with her hands, her eyes burning. She stared intently at the flashing red area on the screen, representing the river, overwhelmed by immense fear and the torment of the unknown, as if drowning her in icy water.