… …
Regarding Shen Ye, as a senior police officer, Enrico, although full of doubts and highly suspicious of his identity, had to admit in his heart that Shen Ye might truly harbor no ill will towards them.
Just like now, he actually felt completely at ease exposing his back to them. He could see this level of trust in a complete stranger.
Enrico's eyes flickered a few times, and he suddenly understood why Jill was willing to accompany him; perhaps she had already trusted this stranger long ago.
Meanwhile, Jill was still immersed in the news that Wesker was a mole, even wondering if Barry's unusual behavior was also related to Wesker. It wasn't until Shen Ye nudged her with his elbow that she realized this was not a good place for contemplation.
"We need to go. Perhaps we can find some clues in this Underground Research Institute… However, Deputy Captain Enrico, you…" Jill looked at Enrico, speaking with some hesitation.
Enrico's injuries were not severe. Of course, multiple wounds on his body had caused him to lose a lot of blood, making him look quite frightening, so he nodded and said, "Just a minor injury. I just injected myself with medicine; I should be fine."
With that, he supported himself against the wall and stood up, but the immediate dizziness made him unsteady for a moment, though he still stood up straight with great resilience.
Then, he said to Shen Ye and Jill, "Let's go. Let's uncover the mansion's true secrets."
… …
July 25th, 2 AM.
Underground Research Institute corridor in the mansion.
Dense gunfire shattered the quiet of the corridor. The flames spewing from gun muzzles and the sparks formed by bullets colliding with steel-reinforced walls seemed like a unique fireworks display.
But Shen Ye and Jill had no mind to appreciate it, or rather, they had no time.
"Jill, are you done yet?"
Shen Ye fiercely pulled the trigger, knocking down a licker that lunged at him, but before he could even catch his breath, two more lickerrs appeared in sight.
"Give me a little more time, Shen. Hold them off a bit longer."
Jill was anxious. Besides the immense frustration of being unexpectedly separated from Deputy Captain Enrico, whom she had just managed to reunite with, there was also the stubbornly unopened door in front of her.
She kept swiping an ID card, picked up from a zombie corpse, on the electronic door's reader, but the indicator light consistently showed a red error.
"Please, please open the door quickly."
Jill's forehead gradually became covered in sweat. She could tell from Shen Ye's anxious voice that the situation was not good.
"Damn it!"
Suddenly, Jill heard Shen Ye's angry curse. Worried about Shen Ye's safety, she immediately turned back, just in time to see a licker pounce on him while he was reloading his magazine.
"Shen!" Jill was startled. Just as she was about to go help him, she heard Shen Ye shout, "Don't worry about me! Keep opening the door!"
Along with his voice, the continuous barks of dogs and roars of monsters echoed from deeper in the corridor. More and more monsters were appearing.
Should she save him or continue opening the door?
Jill decisively chose the latter. She knew the consequences if the door didn't open. She turned around, continued swiping the card on the reader, and silently prayed, "Shen, please be okay!"
In fact, one licker could not pose much of a threat to Shen Ye. He choked the licker with one hand, while with the other, he pulled out his Glock pistol with the extended magazine and fired several shots into the licker's head.
At such close range, even the less penetrative nine-millimeter pistol rounds tore open the licker's skull, splattering him with a large amount of blood and grayish brain tissue.
Then he holstered his pistol and reloaded his rifle.
As soon as the magazine was reloaded, Shen Ye noticed several green monsters appearing on the corridor ceiling.
They were Hunters.
This was one of the BOWs Shen Ye least wanted to encounter. These monsters were not only harder to deal with than lickerrs, but they also operated in groups.
Seeing them, a bitter smile involuntarily appeared on Shen Ye's lips.
"It seems I'm going to fall here. As expected, I was too overconfident."
But just then, he heard the crisp "ding-dong" sound of the electronic door reader.
The door opened.
Hope reignited. Shen Ye turned and ran, and under Jill's anxious shouts, he dashed into the room with her.
After entering the room, Jill frantically pressed the internal close button, while Shen Ye continuously fired at the door, repelling the Hunters trying to enter.
Finally, the door closed, and they had escaped another close call.
The two, having survived the ordeal, exchanged glances and almost simultaneously sat down with their backs against the wall. After running and fighting for most of the night, they were exhausted.
"Want some refreshing sustenance?"
After resting with his eyes closed for a while, Shen Ye suddenly had a craving for a cigarette. He pulled out the unfinished pack from his pants pocket, thought for a moment, and then offered one to her.
"Uh… okay!"
Jill hesitated for a moment but still took it. Although she didn't usually smoke, she didn't mind having one now. Her nerves were too frayed; she needed to relax.
"I wonder how Deputy Captain Enrico is doing." After lighting her cigarette, Jill took only one puff, then frowned, looking at the cigarette between her fingers. She was a bit worried about Enrico, who had been separated from them.
"He should, he should be fine," Shen Ye took a deep drag, exhaled smoke, and said, "His injuries aren't severe. As long as he's careful enough, he should be fine."
Of course, this was just to comfort Jill. For an injured person in a perilous Underground Research Institute, the chances of survival were too slim, especially since Enrico was a character who was supposed to die.
Shen Ye even wondered if the so-called world will was forcefully correcting the plot; otherwise, they wouldn't have encountered swarms of zombies and lickerrs shortly after they started walking.
"I hope so." Jill knew Shen Ye was comforting her. She sighed, tossed the burnt-out cigarette, stood up, and began to examine the room they were in.
"Shen, come here, look what I found."
Before long, she quickly made a discovery: she found a slide projector.
"Do you know how to use it?" Looking at the slide projector, Shen Ye went over and asked Jill. He had never used such an old antique.
"Of course, our police force uses these."
Jill nodded, then inserted the slides next to the projector. After turning on the switch, various images began to appear on the white screen on the opposite wall.
The first few slides contained information about some monsters, including the ones they had just encountered. The data showed their characteristics and attack methods.
Jill frowned, continuously switching slides. When she switched to the last slide, she found that its content was completely different from the previous ones.
It was a group photo of people, all wearing white lab coats. At the bottom of the picture, there was a line of text.
"Bio-Organic Weapon Research Organization. Development Team."
Suddenly, Jill's expression changed drastically, because she noticed a very familiar face in the group photo.
—Albert Wesker.
"It really is him."
Although she had already learned from Enrico that Wesker was a mole, when she actually saw this scene, Jill's eyes finally dimmed.