"Is it over?" Rebecca murmured softly, her eyes brimming with tears as she embraced me tightly, never wanting to part from me again.
"Yes, it's over," I reassured her, gently stroking her hair, relieved yet weary.
Jill, however, interrupted our tender moment, reminding us of the injured around us. Her tone, tinged with jealousy, didn't go unnoticed. It seemed that Jill was feeling envious of the bond Rebecca and I had developed overnight.
Heeding her reminder, I quickly attended to our injured teammates. Fortunately, they were all still breathing. Most injuries were superficial, but Kennian, Chris, and Chalid had suffered severe internal trauma. Thankfully, the miraculous pills and herbs I had – a combination of red and green – proved exceptionally effective in treating their wounds.
"These are items from the Deity Game, right? Truly miraculous," Jill remarked as everyone gradually regained consciousness. Her knowledge of the game surprised me – had Chiyodo told her? I made a mental note to inquire more about this later.
Just as everyone was recovering, an automated voice announced the activation of a self-destruct sequence within the mansion. Another self-destruct? We had to evacuate immediately. As we prepared to leave, a familiar sound of a helicopter approached.
It was Barry piloting the chopper. I had thought he had perished, not having seen him earlier. "I thought you had run away," Chris commented half-jokingly as we boarded the helicopter. Barry replied with a bittersweet smile, admitting he had considered fleeing but couldn't abandon his teammates.
During our flight back, Jill explained Team A's early arrival at the mansion, led by Captain Wesker. Their mission was to support Team B, which had lost contact. However, Jill suspected something was amiss – it had only been six hours since Team B's last communication, not the standard twenty-four-hour wait for a rescue operation. Nevertheless, she was concerned about my safety and welcomed the support.
Upon reaching the mansion, Team A was ambushed by zombie dogs and forced inside. Brad, the helicopter pilot, fled, and Forth was killed. Jill and Chiyodo were wounded and would have turned into zombies if not for the pills and spray I had given them.
Later, we discovered Captain Wesker was a spy for Umbrella Corporation and the orchestrator behind releasing the Tyrants. Wesker was seemingly killed by a Tyrant, but I doubted his death – knowing his involvement with the T-virus and his knack for deception, it seemed more likely he was playing dead.
Understanding the situation, I nodded thoughtfully. Wesker's demise was questionable, and the mansion's self-destruct sequence was probably his doing. For now, I kept these suspicions to myself. Though the outcome wasn't entirely satisfactory, I was relieved that all my comrades had survived.
Back at the Raccoon City Police Station, Captain Enrique took charge of the official report. We all needed a good rest to recover from the ordeal.
Waking up the next day, I reflected on the events. The battle had changed me – I felt capable of dealing decisively even with a living adversary. This newfound ruthlessness was a disturbing aspect of my growth, a reminder of the harsh realities of survival.