RE - Chapter 349: Where’s the Bad Thing? (Patreon)

“Oh my God... Don’t tell me this is some kind of local custom.”

“Obviously not.”

“Holy shit.”

“What the hell did those bastards do?!”

Team 141 stared down from the helicopter at the infected natives rampaging below, and a chill ran through them.

When they heard Tricell’s secret base was located inside the tribe, they had assumed the village was simply being used as cover while the real facility sat underground.

They had never expected every native in the area to already be infected.

“Using the locals as guards for the base? Nice one, Tricell.”

“I just hope there are a few living people inside that base, or I’m going to lose my mind.”

Ghost rolled his shoulders as he spoke, then became the first to rappel down.

“Fuck. They really pissed Ghost off.”

“Move, move!”

One heavily armed figure after another dropped from the helicopter like special forces operators, then charged toward the village like a pack of starving wolves.

...

“Let me out! I’ve already told you everything I know!”

No matter how loudly Excella shouted, nobody answered her anymore.

All she had left was a sheet of mirrored glass that refused to break no matter how hard she pounded on it, reflecting her disheveled appearance back at her.

Krauser gave Excella one last glance as she screamed like a madwoman, then turned away and ignored her.

It was not because he had lost patience.

The problem was that she was dressed far too revealingly, and every big movement threatened to show far more than anyone needed to see.

Krauser was a gentleman, after all. He was just built a little bigger than most.

“...Uncle, does your voice sound a little strange?”

“That’s not important, Sam.”

“Okay.”

The room was too noisy, so Krauser moved closer to the doorway before continuing. “I probably won’t be back anytime soon. I still have a mission.”

“...Okay. I’ll watch the house. I won’t go anywhere... Bye, Uncle Krauser.”

Sam waited for Krauser to hang up, only to realize Krauser was waiting for him to hang up first.

His mood had been a little low, but that small realization made him feel slightly better.

“Uncle, take care of yourself.”

“Ah... Yeah.”

Sam hung up and placed the receiver back on the landline beside his bed.

A clap of thunder made him turn his head.

Before the rumble had faded, another flash of lightning lit up the entire night sky.

“Rain again.”

Sam climbed out of bed and slowly walked to the window.

Raindrops struck the glass, smearing the neon lights outside into hazy, indistinct colors.

The rain gradually grew louder, but it still could not drown out the clutter of footsteps in the hallway.

“At this hour...”

A serious look entered Sam’s eyes. He was only nine, but Krauser taught him constantly never to let his guard down.

Alan and Leon had both criticized that kind of upbringing before.

They said it would only make Sam more withdrawn.

Still, he was Krauser’s adopted son, and Sam himself had always been an obedient child.

He moved quietly to the door, checked that the lock was secure, then rose onto his toes to peer through the peephole.

“Mom, are we moving again?”

“Ah, um... Yes. Are you tired?”

Following the voices, Sam saw an adult and a child making their way up the hallway.

The woman wore a red coat, with a brown briefcase slung over one shoulder and a suitcase in one hand.

At her other side, a white-haired girl held her hand. Judging by her size, she was probably a little younger than Sam.

“...Doesn’t look suspicious.”

But just to make absolutely sure, Sam decided to keep watching a little longer.

It definitely was not because he was usually bored and happened to be feeling a little curious.

“But I don’t want to move...”

The girl looked miserable, but she still clung tightly to the woman’s left hand.

“Hey, hey...”

The woman reached Sam’s floor and set down the suitcase, though the shoulder bag remained hanging from her shoulder.

Then she crouched down and looked the girl in the face.

“I’m sorry, Grace Ashcroft... but my job... Ah, seriously, how am I supposed to explain this to a kid?”

Alyssa helplessly tucked a loose strand of hair behind her ear and looked at Grace again.

Grace let go of Alyssa’s hand and instinctively drew both hands against her chest, clenching them tightly.

At that sight, whatever explanations Alyssa had prepared crumbled immediately.

“All right... We won’t move again, Grace.”

“Really?!”

“...Yeah.”

Watching through the peephole, Sam studied Alyssa’s expression and pursed his lips.

“She’s lying.”

Still... it was better than what he had.

Grace had a mother willing to lie for her.

His toes beginning to ache, Sam finally pulled his gaze away from the peephole.

“...All right, let’s get inside first, okay? Let me see... It should be on this floor.”

Sam stopped mid-step.

“All right, in you go.”

Alyssa unlocked the apartment, picked Grace up, and set her on the living room sofa.

“Be a good girl and wait here for me, okay?”

Alyssa crouched until she was eye level with Grace and gave her an affectionate smile.

“Okay.”

“Good girl.”

Alyssa kissed Grace on the forehead, stood up, carried the luggage inside from the doorway, and shut the door behind her.

“All right, there’s still more luggage downstairs... Hopefully this landlord is better than the last one.”

Alyssa muttered to herself, her voice full of resentment toward her previous landlord.

Her footsteps down the stairs were quick and crisp, then gradually faded away.

Sam’s curiosity seemed to disappear with them.

“...Mom?”

A soft little voice made him stop again.

“Mom, where are you?”

Grace hurried to the door on short legs and began knocking on it.

“Mom? ...Waaah, there’s something bad! Something bad!”

The sound of the girl sobbing erased Sam’s hesitation.

He snatched the handgun from the shoe cabinet and chambered a round in one smooth motion.

He unlocked his own door, pushed it open, and stepped into the middle of the hallway.

Staring at the wooden door across from him, Sam opened it without hesitation.

It had not been locked, so the handle turned immediately.

Grace, who had been pounding on the door from inside, suddenly swung at empty air. A figure immediately stepped in front of her and shielded her behind him.

“Where is it?”

Grace froze, then instinctively answered, “Mom?”

Sam kept his gun aimed straight ahead.

“I’ll protect you. Stay behind me!”

The next second, Sam moved.

His small figure darted quickly through the apartment.

Using furniture and corners as cover, he swept the entire place, but found absolutely nothing.

“...”

When Sam returned to the living room, the only thing waiting for him was a gun pointed directly at him.

“Put the gun down.”

Seeing Alyssa in front of him, Sam immediately ejected his pistol magazine.

The magazine clattered to the floor, followed by the round from the chamber.

Only after watching the bullet roll to her feet did Alyssa lower her guard and move to Grace’s side.

“It’s okay. Mom’s here.”

Then she immediately looked at Sam.

“I heard her crying.”

“...Crying?”

Alyssa had not expected him to answer before she even asked the question.

When she saw he showed no intention of attacking, she lowered her head and asked Grace instead.

“Is that true?”

Grace seemed to short-circuit for a moment and only kept insisting that there was something bad inside the room.

Hearing that, Alyssa’s expression toward Sam gradually turned less friendly.

Sam broke into a cold sweat.

“Look! It’s right there!”

Grace grabbed Alyssa’s hand, finally feeling a little safer.

She pointed at the ceiling, making both Alyssa and Sam look up.

One corner of the ceiling had been stained by a leak caused by the recent bad weather.

From where they stood, the shape of the water stain looked disturbingly like a human face.

And right now, it seemed to be staring straight at them.