52 The Second Day

24th September, Raccoon City.

How long I've been sleeping? An hour? Two? I don't know. When I opened my eyes, everything was dark. I was sleeping on an abandoned table in a restaurant. It was the one where I had lunch with Chris and Claire, and also John Wick.

The ticking of the clock was my only company in this cold building. The hour needle was at 5 AM. I still felt sleepy, but I forced myself to stay awake and started recollecting my thought.

'Ah... that's right, that happened.'

When I turned my head to the side, I saw a pile of bodies. The owner, the chef, the waitress, and the customers took shelter inside this restaurant. However, they didn't know that one of them was bitten. He then turned and infected all of them. When I arrived, the pretty waitress was the only one that was still alive, but she too couldn't escape her fate as she was being eaten by the others. Resignation was her only choice.

She was the first one I shot my handgun on, saving her from After the rest was put down, I sat on the table. Back then, when I glanced at the clock, it was still 2 AM. The ticking clock was the only sound that soothes my heart from the guilt I felt. I laid down and slowly close my eyes.

I was still staring at the corpses when I decided to manually open the notification tab. I told Regina to turn it off when I couldn't bear to see them whenever I killed the zombies.

<+200 EXP>

...

I laughed at myself. Funny, isn't it? The life of others was now just a bunch of numbers for me to get stronger. What a shitty world I lived in.

"Yo... One Above All..." I said. But there was no reply, only the occasional grunts and how long of dogs or crows somewhere nearby.

"Why did you reincarnate me in this world? Can't you just put me in some fantasy world? Where I hunt monsters or the Harry Potter world where I could learn magic?"

There was still no answer. If I keep complaining, there would be no end to it. I just sighed and raised my body. First, I assigned the 5 stat points, one to each attribute, and another one on intelligence. And then I made a call on the intercom.

"Nick, how's the situation?" I asked.

The answer came immediately, "Ed? Where have you been?"

"I took a nap, just tell me what to do next."

"Are you sure? Well, okay then. First, take a look at the barricades we made to isolate the Northern District. See if there's any blind spot or damage. The Government agreed to send the armies and SWAT teams to help us. We need to hold off until they come." said Nick Fury.

"How long?"

"In three hours, more or less," replied Nick. He already leaked the documents containing proof of the real outbreak and Umbrella's involvement. Although they still denied it, the Government was forced to choose. Going downhill with the corporation or do everything they need to mend the crack.

"How's my family? Are they safe?" I asked. Our apartment was pretty close to the Northern District. Nick already handle it for me through Natasha. She reassured Claire for me, saying that I was sheltered in the police station along with the other kids that went to the Zoo. But I was still worried about her.

Chris was pretty much too capable for me to worry about. He pretty much took control of the Police Forces because of his experience in fighting these walking dead.

"Once you're done, come to the base. We need to make another plan to evacuate the citizens," said Nick Fury.

I ended the call and jumped off the table. The Northern District was pretty much empty by now. I keep wondering about the other Districts, but it was just too much. Handling one part of the city was already this tiring. What would happen if there was another outbreak in other Districts?

I tossed the thought behind my back and started circling the makeshift barricades. For now, everything was still in good condition. There were a few stragglers along the way, but I just need one or two shots on the head to put them down. Once I almost complete the round, I saw three zombies on the fence. I took out a handgun and shot them in the head.

Bang!

<+200 EXP>

Bang!

<+200 EXP>

Bang!

The last one didn't fell.

'Huh?'

Bang!

It still didn't fell, and then it ran toward me.

Bang! Bang! Bang! Bang!

<+1000 EXP>

With the last shot, its head burst and the zombie fell on the ground. I checked the body and compared it to the other one. Although physically it was still human, the skin was turning red. A sign that the zombie would mutate into a Licker type monster.

'Shit! They already mutate this early?' I thought.

The outbreak hadn't lasted a full day yet, and there was already a sign of mutation. Thankfully, a human that had good compatibility with the virus was rare so they wouldn't be much of a problem yet.

Any human that was infected by the virus would start having several symptoms, regulating from high fever up to extreme necrosis of the body. But that would only appear on those that have no compatibility with the virus. And the one in front of me, clearly had a bit of compatibility to it, making him evolve a bit further.

"This is troublesome. I need to warn Nick and Chris about it." I said, reminding myself. One fully mutated Licker would be doom for normal people.

Once everything was done, I went back to the cellar in the bar that Nick used as a base. They were packing, it seemed that they need to change location to a much more comfortable place.

"Yo, Nick. Everything's fine?" I greeted. He observed me for a bit, looking for any trace of wounds. Knowing what he was doing, I reassured him by saying that I was fine without any single bite marks. Hawkeye was also there. He went back much earlier than me, that was why Nick Fury was worried after I went out of touch.

"If you call a citywide outbreak of zombies and crazy shit fine, then yes, we had a very good day." answered, Nick sarcastically.

"Fair enough," I replied while nodding my head.

"Everyone, attention," ordered Nick Fury with a clap. "Listen, we need to prepare for evacuation. We couldn't risk any more life than this."

"Oh... now you're taking my advice," I said, snorting.

"I don't have much power before, the final decision lies on the upper management. But now that I have cards to use, at least I can flaunt a bit," said Nick Fury, defending himself.

Hawkeye raised his hand and asked, "when do we start evacuating the citizens?"

"The earliest we can do is at 9 AM, today. Several choppers would come picking the citizens and bring them to the nearest city, Springfield." answered, Nick Fury.

"Isn't that taking too long?" said Natasha Romanoff, coming down from the stairs. "How many people lived in this city? A hundred thousand? Unless we have a gigantic aircraft, it would be impossible to evacuate them through the sky."

"I'm not done yet. The army would cooperate with us, they have vehicles for that. There's also a railway that connected Raccoon City and Springfield, but we have to clean them first." explained, Nick Fury.

It wasn't the most effective measure, but that was the only thing that Nick could think of. He keeps thinking about Natasha's word. If only they have a gigantic aircraft that could be used to evacuate them.

"Everyone clear?" asked Nick Fury.

"" Yes, Sir!""

Everyone returned to their work, packing up. Nick Fury wanted to use the City College's building in the Eastside. It was practically abandoned now, and it was big enough for them to use freely.

"Killswitch, you go and get some rest. Let us handle the matter, for now. I'll call you when there's another emergency." ordered Nick Fury. With the end of his word, a notification appeared.

<+40.000 EXP>

<+20.000 MCP (Mercenary Points)>

Wooa, that's more than I expected. I opened my character status.

<Mental Power (MP) - 350/350

If I got two more missions from Nick, I could have leveled up once again. I ignored it for now and bid him a farewell. I wanted to return to the Apartment. I couldn't leave Claire for too long. I was worried about her, so I asked Natasha to bring me home.

======

2 hours later. 7 AM.

A row of military vehicles, varying from trucks to humvees, was making its way through the city's entrance. It was the U.S. Armies and the SWAT teams, they arrived right on time. Raccoon City's citizens were overwhelmed by their arrival. They were glad that help came up for them in this hard time, but deep down they were worried because whatever the problem is, it must be too dangerous if the military had to be involved.

I just watched the entourage going straight to the northside. They also would make a base somewhere, over there. Suddenly, my eyes focused on one of the SWAT teams. I saw a man with long hair on the front seat. He wore a hood, so I couldn't really see his face from this direction, but his left arm seemed to be a bit stiff and... shiny?

"What are you watching so intensely?" said Claire suddenly, startling me.

"Gahh! Aunty... you scared me."

"Uhut! Is this how you're behaving after leaving me all alone?" grumbled, Claire.

An hour ago, when I arrived home, Claire was both delighted and afraid. She had been following the news since I left, so she had the general information of what was happening in the city. She wanted to go to the Police Station, but Chris assured her of my safety and just told her to stay at home. She would have gone on her way if not for my arrival.

When she saw me in front of the door, she hugged me for a full minute before releasing her embrace. I just rhythmically tapped her back to comfort her. Somehow the role got swapped, but I didn't mind at all.

What happened next was a barrage of questions thrown off onto my face. I was glad Natasha was there to help me calm her. A pregnant teacher disguise proved to be more of a use than I expected.

Now back to the current time, I need Claire's help with the next task. I could have done it without her, but I wanted to stay by her side.

"Aunt Claire," I said, calling her.

"Hmm? What is it?"

"Can you check on Sherry? I'm a bit worried about her. She lives alone at her home with a Butler." Sherry's safety also must become a priority. I don't know if William Birkin already escaped the NEST facility or not, but if he did, Sherry would be his target. The current him was already becoming a monster with the sole purpose of breeding the next generation, and what he needed was someone who shares the same DNA as him, making Sherry his only target.

"Mmm... I also worried about her, but I don't know where she lives," she said, thinking deeply.

"I know where it is, we can go together," I said.

And just with that, we went off to pick her up. Claire already built I always followed her home after we met to watch over her, so I knew where she lived like the back of my hand.

Her home was on the Southside of the city, near the University. It was a big old mansion. We take Chris's car to go there. It didn't take that long, only 10 minutes on the road. The road was almost clear of cars. I think people started to take the matter seriously by now.

When we arrived, we were greeted by huge iron gates. Claire pressed the bell several times, but there was no answer from the other side. Minutes passed, Claire and I started to feel anxious. She finally gave up and decided to climb the fences. She told me to wait inside the car, and stay hiding until she came back. I just nodded innocently and asked her to be careful but I already thought of following her inside. No way I would leave her alone there. Something was wrong, and I hope it was just my imagination.

Once Claire climbed to the other side, I used Stealth and turned into smokes. It only took me one leap to pass across the high wall of the fence. I stood nearby Claire and observed my surrounding. Everything was quiet, too quiet even. The mansion was surrounded by high trees, behind it was the Arklay Mountain range. I keep wondering how Sherry has been living all her life in this house.

It has a big garden in front of the house, but that was it. When we arrived in front of the double doors, Claire opened it easily. It wasn't locked at all. Left with no choice, Claire took out a handgun from behind her back. Inside the house, the wall was embroidered with luxurious ornaments, books, and old paintings. It was like a museum or art center. But the house was dimmed by the curtains, Claire tried to switch the lights on, but there's no electricity.

"Sherry!" Claire suddenly shouted, which startled me. It's not that it was bad or anything, but we know nothing of the condition inside the house. It might be dangerous and gained unintended attention. I perked my ears and tracked for any sounds. I need to stay on guard to protect her.

Claire then started to scour through one room to another. The whole first floor was empty, which left us only on the second floor now. There was a wide stair in the center hall that we could use to get to the second floor. When we went inside a door on our left, we were greeted by rows of bookshelves. It must have been the study room.

'Blood...'

I sniffed a smell of blood somewhere around here. By now I was familiar with this smell. As I looked around, I found a body on the floor, bloods were flowing around it. A man was ripped in half. I was relieved to find that it wasn't Sherry, but the damage to the body was what terrified me.

'No way. William Birkin escaped already? This fast!!? No one or thing would attack this mansion except for him and also Regina already expected it to escape after a day, so it must be him. Shit. We must find Sherry as soon as possible.'

While I was deep in thought Claire also found the body. She checked it to make sure that it wasn't who we were searching for. The library didn't have a window so it was pretty much dark. We had to wait until our eyes adapted to the light. It didn't affect me as the helmet had a Night Vision ability after I use reinforcement on it.

'Wait a minute! There's no window! And both the wall and the door was undamaged. Moreover, the door was closed when we went in.'

Groooowwll...

There was a low growl reminding me of a crocodile from the ceilings. Both Claire and I looked up. There was a huge humanoid body hanging on the huge chandelier.

'He's still here!'

The huge eyeballs suddenly opened wide, sweeping at his surrounding before focusing on Claire. The yellow eyeball was glowing in the dark, giving a small source of light, something that we never asked for. It crushed the steel chain that held the chandeliers and fell on top of Claire.

Boom!!

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