Edgar didn't know why he was always quarreling with Maggie in certain areas. This not only reflected poorly on his intelligence, but also meant that there was something wrong with his abilities as a leader.
Looking at Maggie's strong and unyielding expression, with a heavy sigh, Edgar returned to the command center after saying, "Arrange for her to be placed with the sniper company for a month after the military exercise."
Previously, Maggie had taken a strong interest in joining in the military exercise, but she was denied participation due to reasons which were unclear. As a result she was even being sent to the sniper company now. Even though Maggie had never left the Eagle Special Brigade before, she had still heard about the sniper company. It was the most boring place in the world! The people there lacked character.
'Why would Edgar send me to the sniper company?' Maggie mulled over this question again and again with no answer in sight. Finally, she thought that perhaps Edgar didn't want her to know about Daniel's history in the sniper company. Perhaps he wanted to make her more obedient, so that she would do whatever he asked, instead of doing whatever she liked.
Reports from the battlefield came in to the command center. Jake, for example, had succeeded in shelling the Red Force with high yield rounds, and they had broken through one of the battalions. Edith had returned to the commando. They'd lost track of Garth in the heat of the simulated combat. Maggie sat there sulkily, listening to Edgar calmly relaying orders to the various components of the Blue Force. She wanted to be out in the action with the rest of her friends, and felt slighted at being denied participation on the battlefield.
"Maggie, come on. Let's have dinner." Cathy walked towards Maggie. As she saw Maggie's downtrodden expression, she couldn't help but smile and said, "However angry you are, you still need to eat. There won't be dinner waiting for you later." It was a military exercise. While the people in the command center could have dinner at a regular time, the soldiers on the front lines couldn't.
Maggie cast a plaintive glance at Claire who was studying something on a nearby desk, but almost pressing herself against Edgar at the same time. 'There are so many people here. How can she behave so unashamedly like that?' Maggie thought puzzled at the woman's brazenness.
Cathy noticed Maggie's distraction and followed her gaze. Maggie looked away in disgust, and fretted angrily until Cathy pulled her arm and smiled broadly. Sighing, Maggie rose from her seat and followed Cathy from the command center. She suddenly couldn't stand being in there another second. The moment Maggie stood up, Edgar caught her movement and turned his eyes to follow her departure.
"Maggie! Be honest!" Cathy was two or three years older than Maggie, and so she knew something about what tormented her mind. She asked, "Did you fall in love with Captain Edgar?"
Maggie's face turned red at once, and though she refuted the question, her words lacked conviction. "I... I don't like him. He is so old already, while I'm still young. Besides, as he points out frequently, I am just a girl. How could I like him, much less love him?" They headed into the canteen, which was quiet, with most of the staff being at the battlefront.
Pursing her lips to form a smile, Cathy said, "Take it easy. You don't need to explain that much!"
"..." Maggie thought that she had become stupid and a fool since she had met Edgar. She felt sorry for Hana and William who had taught and trained her so hard, only to have their child turn into a love-struck imbecile.
"Why?" Maggie asked puzzled. In all other aspects, Claire was a good soldier.
Cathy wore a mysterious smile. "Perhaps it's a woman's instinct. But, it's nothing personal. We hardly know each other."
"Me, neither!" Maggie began to giggle. "When I saw her for the first time, I felt like I was seeing Gerd."
The two women laughed mysteriously then, and some of Maggie's tension was relieved. She'd heard a lot about Edgar. Even though these little bits of knowledge were quite insignificant, it allowed her to reach a conclusion about the man's personality. Her conclusion was that... Edgar was not the one who had moral issues, as she had previously thought. It was not that he craved other men's wives or struggled to commit. Rather, he was a hopeless romantic with an overdeveloped sense of honor! Perhaps, if she could just sleep with him, all her problems would get solved!
However, Maggie thought that this idea of hers was so crude that it left her mind in an even greater mess after her talk with Cathy. The thought as to whether or not she should go make love with Edgar was lingering in her mind. Her thinking felt muddled and clouded by even more doubts now. If William and Hana knew her plans, would they be ashamed and angry at her? It might even kill them to think of their daughter considering such wicked thoughts. It was not okay for her to chase after him, not to mention in this way! It was inappropriate and shameful!
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