NOVEL NEXT 66: Breaking the path through the mountains
"Stay close behind me and remain vigilant," Lyon called out as he floated leisurely forward.
To be honest, his current casual attire made flying look a bit odd. It felt like a high schooler squeezing in some world-saving before rushing off to class.
The group was nearing the Umbrella lab hidden beneath the sewers. Along the way, strange mutated creatures continuously emerged from the murky waters and moss-covered tunnel walls to attack them.
There were beings with half their bodies resembling grotesque, giant, decaying corpses, while the other half looked like enormous parasitic leeches feeding off infected humans.
Some were sewer insects, each nearly a meter long, and there was even a massive, twenty-meter-long mutated crocodile lurking in the depths.
One could only wonder how Umbrella had managed to turn a simple sewer system into a place more biologically diverse than a marine reserve.
These creatures weren't just highly dangerous—they were numerous as well. Normally, even an elite squad of special forces would risk complete annihilation in a place like this.
But with Lyon flying ahead of the group, nothing stood in their way. Any creature they encountered was swiftly crushed, and any wall was instantly demolished. And the most fascinating part was that his clothes remained untouched.
Not a single monster could withstand one of his punches, nor could any obstacle delay him for more than a second. The group proceeded smoothly, as though they were on a leisurely hiking trip—if not for the unsettling environment, it could have been enjoyable.
Even Ada Wong, who had been on high alert the entire time, only managed to shoot a single zombie fish that had been playing dead. Aside from that, she hadn't gotten a chance to engage any enemies.
"Our Mr. Lyon certainly knows how to make people feel safe. I'll admit he's quite the gentleman~" Ada remarked with a note of admiration, though she twisted her soaked skirt with clear distaste.
Lyon: "Of course he is~"
The group had finally arrived at a catwalk overlooking a sewage treatment area. The space was filled with waterborne structures and large machinery that hummed loudly as they continued processing waste.
At last, they were free from wading through filthy water.
Marvin scanned the surroundings with his flashlight, revealing rotting corpses lying in the dark corners, adding to the stench permeating the air.
"Look at these people—some are wearing lab coats, others in combat gear. Umbrella really does have a massive research base here," Elliot growled through clenched teeth.
"They've got control of this whole city! These parasites deserve to die!" he added angrily.
Ada Wong, still following Lyon closely, remarked casually, "Capital holding power—that's just a feature of this country. Don't you think so, gentleman?"
Lyon didn't respond right away, continuing to walk a few steps ahead. Suddenly, he called out, "Step back!"
"What?" Ada blinked in confusion.
Before she could process his words, Lyon had already grabbed her arm and pulled her to his side.
Swoosh!
"Ah!"
A split second later, a massive mutated insect flew past where she had just been standing, its mandibles wide open in an attempted ambush. The creature, realizing its failed attack, tried to flee, but Lyon's swift kick sent it crashing into the wall, splattering into bug guts.
Ada leaned against Lyon, still shaken. "Thanks," she said, her hand resting on his arm, noticing the marble-like firmness beneath his skin.
She couldn't help but comment, "Um, Nice build!"
Lyon raised an eyebrow and smirked. "I think so too. But now, you owe me one."
"A conceited man like you won't be popular with the ladies," Ada Wong teased, a smirk tugging at her lips.
"You never know," Lyon replied, continuing to walk forward.
The group pressed on through the wastewater treatment area, finally approaching a control room. Through the glass, they could see a large platform on the other side. On that platform sat a heavily armored cable car.
"We're here," Lyon said. "That cable car will take us to the research facility."
"Thank God, finally, Haah.." muttered Dr. Bard, who was clearly the least fit of the group and was visibly exhausted.
He stepped forward to open the door, but the control room's iron gate was securely locked.
"It's locked," Bard announced.
Everyone turned their eyes toward Lyon.
"Let me handle this, I can pick locks—come on, Lyon, you don't have to smash through everything all the time," Ada Wong stepped forward, pulling out her lockpicking tools.
But before she could finish her sentence, Lyon had already smashed the iron door along with part of the surrounding wall, sending it crashing to the floor.
"..."
The two of them exchanged glances.
Lyon shrugged innocently. "Maybe next time, I'll let you know if I want a lock picked?"
"Forget I said anything," Ada Wong muttered, putting her tools away.
"Alright, let's get on the cable car," Lyon turned to leave but then glanced toward a hidden corner in the control room.
"By the way, if you'd like to join us on this ride, now would be the time to come out," he said casually.
The group was startled—there was someone else here?
In an instant, everyone raised their guns, aiming toward the direction Lyon had indicated.
From the shadows stepped a gaunt, middle-aged woman with hollow eyes. She wore a white lab coat and held a gun, pointing it at the group.
"Police? You shouldn't be here," she warned, her eyes locked on them. "There's nothing left in the research facility but infected subjects. You'd better leave now!"
Ada Wong immediately stepped forward, her hands steady as she aimed her pistol. "Annette Birkin!" she called out.
"You and your husband are the ones who created this virus! You're responsible for this entire disaster!"
Annette glared at them coldly. "Spare me your fake sympathy."
"Hand over the G-virus, now!" Annette Birkin barked, her voice sharp.
At the same time, Ada quickly explained to Lyon, "My mission here is to bring down Umbrella. The G-virus is far more dangerous than the T-virus." It can't stay in her hands.
The group exchanged glances, realizing the situation had just gotten much more complicated. Even Dr. Bard had never heard of the G-virus.
Hearing the mention of the G-virus, Annette's expression darkened, turning vicious. "So, you're after the G-virus too," she sneered. "Forget it."
In the midst of her words, she tossed a grenade, using the distraction to fire her gun at Ada.
"Danger!" Marvin and the other officers instinctively dove toward Lyon, trying to shield him from the explosion.
But Lyon moved swiftly, effortlessly dodging. His left hand caught the grenade mid-air, while his right hand pulled Ada to safety just as the bullet grazed her arm.
After a few seconds, there was a muffled sound as Lyon opened his left hand, shaking off a few specks of ash and fragments. His palm remained perfectly clean and unharmed.
"What... What is this?"
Everyone stood in shock. Catching a live grenade with his bare hand and not sustaining a scratch—what kind of person could do that?
On the other side, Annette Birkin, who had been about to flee the monitoring room, was also frozen in disbelief.
She thought that not even her husband, who had already transformed into a monster, could have pulled off something like that.
Lyon glanced at the stunned Annette, stepped forward, grabbed her by the arm, and tossed her over to Marvin.
"Hold her. We're heading into the research facility."
The group exchanged bewildered glances but followed Lyon toward the platform.
Ada Wong, on the other hand, opened her mouth as if to say something, but remembering how Lyon had casually caught the grenade, she decided against it.
At the platform, as they approached the cable car, they realized that it required a staff ID wristband to operate.
Annette Birkin snapped out of her daze and smirked smugly. "There's no way I'm giving you access to the wristband, so you'd better give up now!"
"Uh, Mr. Lyon?" Marvin and the others instinctively looked toward Lyon. It was almost a habit at this point—they were expecting him to solve the problem with a single punch, as he had done with so many other obstacles.
Ada Wong quickly intervened. "Wait! Hold on! Everyone, stop! And Lyon, calm down! If you smash this with brute force, you could cause it to malfunction!"
"I think... maybe we should interrogate this woman first," she said, pointing to Annette. "She definitely has an access wristband on her!"
After being shocked and having her worldview constantly challenged, Ada Wong's usually cool demeanor was starting to crumble. Before today, she would have never imagined herself speaking in such a tentative tone to anyone.
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