Chapter 96: Progress Channel (Patreon)

"Besides, politics is very often an art of compromise."

"Even a president as powerful as that rarely gets true freedom."

"But precisely because of that, what you're all doing matters even more — because the future belongs to you young people, in the end."

"I'm old. The governor's old. Sometimes the way we look at the world isn't even the right way anymore."

Ivan understood what he meant. Tustin wanted to change things, but he still had to bow his head to the tangled realities of the political landscape.

Yet the hearing had shown Tustin something — the very thing he'd wanted to accomplish, carried out instead by a group of young people. That was what had drawn out such a complicated sigh from him.

Tustin looked over at Ivan then, thinking of the scene he'd witnessed earlier that day at the Raccoon City Police Department — citizens scrambling over one another to sign up for the "limited-time event." His weathered, fierce features softened into an unexpectedly warm smile.

He believed that whether it was Ivan's squad or the officers and citizens of Raccoon City, they would protect this city well.

After taking a satisfying sip of soup, Tustin dropped a bombshell.

"Ivan, would you have any interest in joining City Hall?"

"I could put your name forward to the governor myself."

"And if you wanted, I could even arrange to have that useless deadweight Warren tossed out of a position he never deserved in the first place."

Chris, Barry, and the others couldn't help but look over at Ivan.

What was going on — they'd barely finished a meal and their brother was about to become mayor?

Seated to Ivan's left, Rebecca had just taken a small bite of her pasta. She set down her chopsticks without meaning to.

Her lovely eyes fixed on Ivan, wide with astonishment.

In that moment, he'd become the center of everyone's attention.

It had to be said — this was genuinely a tempting offer. Leaping from S.T.A.R.S. Captain straight to the ruler of a city would be a meteoric rise indeed.

But after a moment's thought, Ivan turned the offer down.

Now wasn't the time. The tallest tree in the forest is the first one the wind breaks.

Umbrella would never let someone they couldn't control — someone who'd just fired a shot at them, no less — take that seat.

It didn't fit his strategic thinking either. He wanted a pace that could be slow, but every step had to be solid.

He refused to act like a gambler, lunging at every opportunity the moment it appeared.

Some opportunities simply didn't suit a person's temperament or choices.

Grabbing at them by force would only end up hurting himself.

Being S.T.A.R.S. Captain was, for now, the best position Ivan could hold.

For one thing, it kept his sphere of activity confined to the police department — which reassured Brian and put Umbrella at ease.

For another, he could fully exploit the position, using Umbrella's own money and resources to cultivate talent for himself.

If things kept going this way, the reputation he was accumulating — through the hearing, the "limited-time event," and whatever crisis Raccoon City might face down the road — would only keep building.

He could very well earn the mayor's seat through real merit, in time.

So why bother taking shortcuts?

The narrow path might be easier to walk, but it was nowhere near as wide as the main road.

With his mind made up, Ivan faced Tustin's offer of an "advancement channel" with perfect calm.

"Thank you for the kind offer, General, but that's not something I'm considering right now."

"After all, I was just a researcher before this. I've only just started working at the police department — I still need to build up more experience at the ground level."

"Only that way can I truly live up to what the people expect of me, and actually become someone who benefits the citizens of Raccoon City."

The words might have sounded almost ungrateful on the surface, but given Ivan's tone and bearing, Tustin could feel the sincerity behind them.

It only confirmed for him what he already suspected — this young man was no ordinary fish meant to stay in a small pond; the moment the winds and clouds gathered, he'd become a dragon.

It had been a long time since Tustin had come across such an outstanding young man.

For the first time in a while, he let out a hearty laugh.

"Ha, good lad — forgive my presumption."

"I know you've got your own scale of judgment inside you."

"Keep walking the path you've set for yourself, then, steady as you are."

"I will," Ivan said, taking another sip of the now-cold soup in his bowl. The taste really wasn't bad — sweet and sour, cool and refreshing.

As it went down, it felt like it washed away an entire day's exhaustion.

For the rest of the meal, the group talked about all sorts of things.

The more they talked, the more convinced Tustin became that Raccoon City was a hidden gem — not only for its natural blessings like the Arklay Mountains, but even more so for the talent it kept producing.

By contrast, Tustin's opinion of Umbrella soured further with every passing minute.

Time flew by.

On the second day of the "limited-time event," Amon arrived in Raccoon City in person, bringing enormous compensation funds, to apologize to the city's officials and citizens.

He came without a single bodyguard, exposing himself to the crowds alone.

He wept openly, and even when some "passionate citizens" struck and kicked him, he never let out a sound of pain.

It left even the people who'd wanted to hit him twice as hard feeling a little guilty.

Gradually, people began to genuinely believe Amon had nothing to do with the Raccoon City incident — which, as it happened, was more or less true.

As time went on, Amon's actions on the ground earned him the respect of the overwhelming majority of the city's residents.

Reporters covered his every move, splashing it across newspapers and television screens, spreading it far and wide.

His conduct restored a considerable amount of trust in Umbrella among ordinary people around the world.

Umbrella's stock price surged back up as a result.

The move drew the attention of Umbrella's shareholders, and Amon's standing within the company actually rose compared to before the incident, rather than falling.

On the third day of the "limited-time event," the heavy weaponry needed by the National Guard was fully assembled and ready.

Alongside it gathered a whole roster of experts summoned by Umbrella.

Among them were more than a few Nobel laureates and other heavyweight honorees.

The fourth day... the fifth day...

With the weapons and equipment upgrade complete, the National Guard's advance sped up dramatically.

Tanks, field vehicles, and more lined up on the ground in formation, crushing anything foolish enough to stand in their way.

Military satellites and armed helicopters patrolled the Arklay Mountains around the clock, pinpointing locations. The moment any trace of a B.O.W. was spotted, ground forces were notified immediately and moved in for a coordinated, devastating strike.

The B.O.W.s that had once thrown their weight around so arrogantly stood utterly powerless before this iron torrent of humanity.

A single encounter was enough to reduce them to a pile of mangled flesh.

The experts took the t-Virus samples extracted from these rare specimens back to Raccoon City, to a proper research facility provided by Umbrella, to begin work on developing an antidote.

Doctor James Marcus had been given a new cover identity by Ivan, complete with an altered face. Publicly, he was introduced as Ivan's old mentor from his days as a researcher.

It was said that Doctor Marcus had extensive expertise in virology.

So he was assigned alongside the other experts at Umbrella's proper research facility, working on the development of a cure for the t-Virus.

The tenth day...

As the "limited-time event" moved into its new phase.

Both the National Guard and the deployed Raccoon City forces gained substantial combat experience against B.O.W.s through this operation.

With Marcus's help and the tireless day-and-night work of the assembled experts, an injectable t-Virus antidote was finally, successfully developed.