Chapter 399: Ambiguity and Pirates
Five delicate toes, smooth and well-formed, coupled with a graceful instep, if it weren't for the strangely bent posture, Ron might have even had the urge to play with them.
It's unavoidable; when it comes to the smoothness of skin, before adulthood, the difference between Caucasians and Asians isn't too significant, but after adulthood, Caucasian women age at an extremely rapid pace.
The reason Ron's confidantes are so exquisite is precisely because they don't age as quickly, but this shouldn't be taken as an isolated case and considered a general phenomenon.
"Ah, my foot!!!" Ron's attempt to distract her still failed to block Coco's view; she still noticed the abnormal bend in her foot, and her piercing scream almost ruptured Ron's eardrums.
"Calm down, Coco, calm down!" Ron quickly said while Coco was screaming and catching her breath. "It's just a dislocation, I can fix it in a minute."
"Really? I won't become crippled?"
Coco's eyes were filled with tears. Ron wiped away her tears with his fingers and showed his charming smile. Coco was stunned and for a moment forgot the pain. "How could that be? It's just a small injury, as long as..."
"Crack!" While Coco wasn't paying attention, Ron suddenly twisted her foot hard. Coco screamed "Ah!" When Ron picked her up to look at her foot, she realized that her foot was fine.
However, she also realized that her current position with Ron was very intimate.
Ron half-embraced her from the side, supporting her back with one hand and lifting her small foot in front of her with the other. Although her ankle was swollen like a balloon, it still did not detract from the beauty of the rest of her.
"How are you? Are you alright now?" Ron couldn't help but gently kiss her cheek. "Just a few days of rest, and once the swelling goes down, you'll be able to walk normally again. Don't worry, as a trained field medic, I guarantee there won't be any permanent disability."
"Really?" Coco's eyes welled up with tears. After Ron's kiss, she gently rested her head on his shoulder and started to act coy. "But it still hurts so much, what should I do?"
As she spoke, Coco rubbed her injured little foot against Ron's body, looking at him pitifully. How could Ron resist such a display?
He simply took Coco's little foot and gently massaged it. "You can massage it yourself, like this."
Coco blushed with embarrassment. The Countess watching from the side was seething with anger. They were both grown women, yet she was acting like such a damsel in distress—she had no shame at all!
Just as she was about to react, Jack and his friends arrived, having heard the commotion. Seeing the two's intimate actions, they teased, "Did we come at the wrong time?"
"Ah! Jack, you're here~" Upon seeing them, Coco immediately pulled her little foot back and hurriedly explained, "I just twisted my ankle, and Ron is treating me..."
"Wow~ It's okay, no need to explain, those who know, know," one of Jack's female companions winked at her, leaned close to Coco's ear, and whispered something. Ron only saw Coco's face getting redder and redder.
The Countess snuggled into Ron's arms with a resentful look, about to complain, but Ron first covered her mouth with his finger. "Catherine, look where we are?"
"This looks like a ship... wait, the shape and style," the Countess looked around curiously, then exclaimed with delight, "Could this be the 'Immortal' that my ancestors sailed on?!"
"The wooden deck, and those cannonballs over there, it should be right," Ron looked at Jack. "Looks like you're getting started, Jack."
On the way here, Ron had already revealed everyone's identities. Although Coco still had reservations about Jack and his group of treasure hunters, she accepted them because they cooperated with Ron in returning the artifacts. So now Jack and his group no longer had to hide their treasure hunt.
This also made her greatly admire Ron's noble character, and most of her goodwill towards Ron came from this.
However, before everyone could start exploring the "Immortal," a group of uninvited guests also found the ship.
"Hey! Jack, nice to see you all again," a white man in a floral Hawaiian shirt swaggered out of the bushes, followed by several henchmen dressed similarly, and a group of pirates exuding a chilling aura!
Their ostentatious tattoos and loaded guns spoke volumes about how dangerous they were.
"My friends, I can't believe you found what I wanted so easily. I don't know how to thank you enough."
Ron's eyes narrowed. He didn't remember this scene. When did this villainous Frenchman get involved with pirates?
Although his memory was a bit hazy, Ron was still quite certain that in the original scenario, this group of Frenchmen were just comedic villains.
Besides, back in France, Ron had heard Jack say that this Frenchman was named Pierre, the owner of the manor where they recovered the artifacts, and like Catherine, just an ordinary old French nobleman, seemingly unrelated to pirates.
"Could he have also invested in some shady business and become connected with this pirate gang?" Ron wondered.
"It's alright, don't mention it. Since you've found a ship, congratulations, congratulations!" Jack put on a smiling face and leaned in to congratulate them, secretly gesturing behind his back for the others to leave. "We'll be going now, see you later if we have the chance."
"Wait!" The Frenchman fired a shot into the air, stopping Jack and his men from making their escape, then pressed the gun against Jack's chin. "Give me back everything you stole from me, or else..."
Pierre looked around the island. "This place looks pretty good, and there's no one else around, just us, so even if I kill you, no one will know. What do you think? Now get over here! Line up in a row!"
Pierre bossed Ron and his companions around to line up next to the mast at the back. Ron reached for his waist, but then thought better of it and abandoned the idea of going it alone.
If he were alone, he was confident he could take down even twice as many enemies. But things were different now. Besides Jack and his team of four, he was also accompanied by two women who were completely defenseless.
This was the most critical issue!
The enemies all had guns, and even with his exceptional skills, Ron couldn't possibly protect everyone. Therefore, he had no choice but to work with Jack.
"Can you use a gun?" As they walked back, Ron casually approached Jack and whispered.
"Not really, but my men are pretty good with their fists."
"Then you're in charge of protecting everyone and getting them into the cabin. I'll handle these people." Ron nudged Jack with his elbow, gesturing for him to look at the hole in the deck, from which he could jump directly into the cabin.
"No whispering!" The burly pirate behind him shoved Ron hard.
"Wait, I didn't see you at the boathouse. Who are you?" Pierre called out to Ron. Jack had gotten into a fight with them when he went to the boathouse to get another artifact from Coco, and everyone was taken to the police station. That was when the feud started, but Ron wasn't there, so he didn't recognize him.
"Did you think Jack could steal so much stuff from your manor all by himself? Of course, I was with him! Hey! Don't you have security cameras at your manor? I'm his accomplice. Don't believe me? I'm even carrying things I stole from your house. I'll show you…"
Despite being held at gunpoint, Ron wasn't afraid. Instead, he smiled and moved closer to Pierre, blocking Pierre's view with his body. Behind him, Jack immediately sprang into action, subtly coordinating with his companions. When Ron swung his hand behind his back, they quickly pulled Coco and Catherine to the ground.
In a split second, Ron grabbed the Frenchman's pistol, using Pierre as a shield, and threw a rock at the pirates from behind him. "Watch out for the grenade!"
The pirates instantly dropped to the ground, and Jack and his men took the opportunity to lead the two women into the hole.
"Thump!" The sound of everyone falling into the cabin almost coincided with the sound of Ron's rock hitting the ground. When the pirates looked back, they realized they had been tricked.
"We've been tricked! It's a rock!" The pirate captain was furious and immediately raised his hand to shoot Ron. However, Ron was faster. The moment the rock was thrown, he had already poked his head out from behind Pierre. By the time the pirate captain raised his hand, Ron had already pointed his gun at his head.
"Bang!" The pirate captain fell backward, a bloody hole appearing in his head.
"Damn! This gun is so erratic!" Ron had aimed directly at the center of the pirate captain's forehead, but the bullet missed slightly upward.
Ron was known for his strong grip and steady aim; at about five meters, he was incredibly accurate. Even so, the bullet's deviation meant only one thing: the rifling was faulty.
Ron looked down and realized he'd just snatched an old Tokarev pistol from Pierre. This type of gun was designed back in 1951 and phased out by the Russian military in 2003. The pistol he held, now in pirate hands, was probably from the first batch, older than old George.
The rifling was likely worn down. Ron loosened his grip, shifting from vertical to horizontal, and began firing repeatedly at the pirates who were about to fire at him.
"Bang bang bang..." Each bullet's recoil caused a slight shift in the muzzle of the gun, but Ron turned this shift into an opportunity, allowing the burst of bullets to fan out in a pattern, pinning the pirates down behind their cover.
Pierre panicked. He never imagined that a random treasure-hunting gang could have a gun expert with such masterful skill. He immediately shouted anxiously, "Go grab his companion! Use his companion to threaten him... Ah! Help! I'm going to die! I'll never do it again!"
Pierre's shout was cut short by a scream. Ron, seeing his hesitation, had shot him in the leg, causing him to clutch his wound and scream in agony.
Ron was satisfied, but this also meant he'd emptied his gun of its last bullet. The Tokarev pistol only had an eight-round capacity, which couldn't withstand Ron's onslaught, a fact the pirates were well aware of.
Upon hearing Ron's eighth shot, a daring pirate immediately peeked out from behind a rock, clutching an equally aged AK rifle. Seeing this, Ron, instead of retreating, advanced.
He forcefully shoved Pierre forward, covering a distance of about five meters, and the pirate, seeing this, quickly used his gun to push Pierre away.
But just as he pulled the trigger, Ron followed closely behind, gripping the muzzle of his AK rifle and pulling it towards another pirate behind cover. "Rat-a-tat-tat..."
The bullets in the pirate's gun instantly became his own companions' death warrant.
"FUCK! It's burning me!" Only after the bullets were exhausted and none of the pirates were alive did Ron quickly release the muzzle, painfully shaking his hand.
In just a short while, the barrel of the gun had burned a series of blisters on his palm.
Seeing this, the pirate dropped his gun and prepared to fight Ron to the death. He reached for his waist, pulling out a dagger, taking advantage of Ron's one-handed state, and lunged at Ron's neck. However, he forgot that while Ron only had one hand available, his legs were still intact.
Ron seized the opportunity, ducked, and slipped into the pirate's wide-open stance. With a knee thrust, the pirate's previously confident face turned purple.
Even when Ron snatched the dagger from his hand, there was no resistance. Ron retaliated with a swift stroke, slitting the pirate's throat. Thus, the entire pirate crew that had come to cause trouble was dealt with by Ron alone, leaving only a terrified Pierre staring blankly at Ron.
Where did this killing machine come from?!
"Are you alright?" Jack, seeing that gunshots had ceased for a while, poked his head out from a hole in the ship's hold.
"Of course," Ron said, feigning nonchalance despite the pain in his hand. He hid his injured hand behind his back, grabbed Pierre by the collar, and tossed him to Jack. "This is the only one left alive. What did he say just now?"
"This place looks good. Even if I kill you, no one will know, right?" Ron suddenly leaned close to Pierre, grinning menacingly.
"Please, don't kill me! I have lots and lots of money. I'll give you any ransom you want!" Pierre cried, terrified.
"I don't care anymore. You guys can have this guy. I'm going down to check on Coco." Ron casually handed Pierre to Jack's companion and went down the deck.
Of course, checking on Coco was just an excuse; he was actually going to find the first-aid kit to treat his hand wound.
Unexpectedly, just as Ron opened the first-aid kit, Coco limped up from behind and hugged him. Ron turned around and met Coco's concerned eyes. "Your hand is injured, isn't it?"
"It's nothing serious, it's my job, these kinds of minor injuries happen often." Ron tried to hide his hand behind his back, but Coco pulled it out, tenderly touching it with her finger. Ron hissed softly, but the pain was fleeting, quickly replaced by a ticklish sensation.
Ron looked down, and Coco gently licked his palm like a kitten.
(End of Chapter)
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