Chapter 47: She Shot Straight Through the Heart

Chapter 47: Chapter 47: She Shot Straight Through the Heart

Zara Chapman turned with stiff movements, glancing back at Renee Morgan. She really wanted to retort, "As long as you don’t mind, nobody else will care if she’s working or not."

But Zara knew perfectly well in her heart, Renee isn’t the magnanimous type. If she decided to latch onto her, she’d definitely blow this up and drive her out of the team. Right now, without a survival skillset outside the group, Zara could only swallow her pride.

Wendy Aldridge wanted to show off her hardworking, tough persona on camera, so she chimed in, "Is there an easier task we could give Ms. Chapman? I’ll go gather branches with Renee."

Renee Morgan thought for a moment before speaking, "There actually is a lighter job. We need firewood to keep a flame going all night, so we have to collect dry wood."

Wendy’s eyes lit up and she quickly said, "I just saw lots of dried branches scattered over that side of the hillside, perfect for burning. I’ll take Ms. Chapman to collect firewood."

Collecting firewood was much easier than hauling wet branches. Wendy wanted none of that pain—she’d just got her neck scratched earlier from carrying tree limbs.

Renee smiled slightly, "Alright, the firewood job is yours."

Wendy flashed an OK gesture, "No problem."

Wendy and Zara headed off toward the forest.

Renee shifted her gaze as Lynn Miller came back, hauling branches. Since it was the last trip, she’d loaded up both shoulders—her head drowned in green leaves and she could barely see the path, walking slow.

Renee hurried over to help unload half the weight from her shoulders.

Lynn dropped the branches, rubbing her sore shoulders, sweat drenched her, "Damn, I’m exhausted. Workers really have it tough."

Renee pulled out her water bottle, twisted the cap open, and handed it over, "Have some water first."

Lynn didn’t hesitate, grabbed the bottle, and chugged it messily, pursing her lips and gulping down big mouthfuls.

Renee wore a gentle smile, took out her own bottle, and though thirsty, still took careful, small sips.

Lynn noticed and clicked her tongue, "Morgan, you’re acting ladylike now!"

Renee burst out laughing, easy and carefree, explaining, "Drinking water too quickly isn’t good for your health."

Lynn laughed, "Last time you reminded me, I thought you were kidding—so you were serious?"

Renee saw her earnest face and grinned, "To be honest, I often can’t help gulping water, too. But drinking too fast is actually bad for you."

The sky was still bright—fiery sunset on one side, clear blue sky and clouds on the other. In the shot, Lynn’s honest smile contrasted sharply with Renee’s, who was a celebrity: striking looks, flawless skin, dazzling smile—all eyes drawn to her.

On the HD livestream, even the tiny peach fuzz on her cheeks was visible. Under the sunlight, she smiled wide, fresh and bright, her features smooth with a touch of youthful innocence.

Viewers clutched their chests and toppled sideways.

Their friends scrambled to help them up, flustered, "What’s going on? Why’d you suddenly faint, do we need to call an ambulance?"

The viewer pointed at the computer, both hands to their chest, forming a heart and declared passionately, "Her arrow struck my heart."

Others: "..." Is this some kind of psychotic episode?

Fans everywhere felt hit by Renee’s looks, clutching their chests, saying they just couldn’t take it.

Even Shadow watching this camera fell silent. Seriously, Renee’s beauty was simply out of their league—even trolls couldn’t shade her. They’re keyboard warriors, sure, can lie with straight faces, but they weren’t actually blind.

Foreign viewers exaggerated, eyes wide as saucers, screaming in surprise:

[Guys, this is the most beautiful Z-country actress I’ve ever seen—no, in Y continent, in the whole world. If she appeared with Everstar’s top female stars, I’d only cheer for her.]

[Guys, did you catch that? She’s The Mercenary Brotherhood’s goddess—our goddess. We all love her.]

[She’s a celebrity—we get to see her a lot, that’s amazing.]

[Bro, how is she appearing with Everstar’s actresses? She’s gotta be a very important person, deserves the highest treatment.]

[...]

Renee and Lynn rested for a bit, then headed to the riverbank to wash up. After hauling branches, they were covered in bark and leaves, sweat sticking everywhere—feeling gross.

Miles Yates and the others were in charge of chopping branches—their palms were blistered. They’d come to the river to wash and rest, and when they saw the girls approach, they greeted them.

Kyle Beckett moved over from Miles’ side, scooted closer to Renee, kept a bit of distance, and grinned, "Morgan, is it okay to call you that?"

Renee was washing her hands—no towel, so she splashed water to wash her face, mumbling a response.

"Heh, Morgan, where do you think we can find wild food around here?" Kyle kept thinking about food.

Renee washed her face and neck, wiped the drops off, finally looked at Kyle, "Are you hungry right now?"

Kyle shook his head. The compressed biscuits were filling—even half a bar kept him satisfied, but with no food stash in hand, he felt insecure.

Renee understood, glanced up at the sky, and said, "We’ll figure something out tomorrow."

Kyle didn’t expect Renee to be so cool—his eyes sparkled, "Cool, Morgan! I’ll treat you to a big meal back home."

He probably remembered how Renee gave him a toolkit earlier and he’d said something similar before. He grinned, "Don’t know how else to thank you—food’s all I got."

Renee smiled, "Don’t mention it. We’re teammates—we stick together."

All this time, Miles was quietly listening. With a handsome face and a soft smile, he raised his voice, "That’s right. We’re all teammates—we stick together."

Lynn joined in, and Gael Prescott and Lionel Lincoln—who were further away—couldn’t catch the words, but heard Lynn and hurriedly rushed over, yelling not to leave them out.

Everyone’s faces shone with bright smiles, and the livestream commenters sighed—how did the forest expedition feel so much like ordinary outdoor adventure? It seemed way too relaxed.

Just as viewers were feeling mellow, the camera cut—suddenly, three towering, rugged foreigners emerged at the creek’s edge, big and burly, bearded like fighters. Their build screamed danger, and even their deep blue eyes radiated a threatening light.

The group, joking seconds ago, jumped off the rocks, hurried up the shore—almost fleeing in panic.

Viewers: [...] The tension just evaporated again.