Therefore, Krauser also began to feel trepidation about the bio-virus incident.
It seemed everything was true; even the piranhas had mutated.
He wondered what other monsters awaited them in this Amazon Rainforest, as these monsters seemed far more terrifying and ferocious than jaguars!
"Phew…"
"Everything has been checked.
It seems there are no living people here.
There's a church on the water ahead.
I didn't expect religious beliefs to spread to such a place; it's truly amazing.
Should we go take a look, Major?"
Finally, after searching the entire indigenous village and finding no living people, Leon's gaze fell upon the white church floating in the distance.
Although it was dilapidated from water erosion, it was indeed a small floating church.
This made Leon sigh at the power of religious culture, extending religious beliefs into such a primitive rainforest.
Faith… it truly is a terrifying thing.
At the same time, Leon's intuition told him that investigating the floating church might reveal some useful clues, so he turned his head and asked Krauser, the Major beside him.
Krauser, indifferent, nodded and walked straight over.
Of course, he wasn't interested in the floating church; he was an atheist and had no interest in religious beliefs.
He was interested in the boats tied with ropes next to the floating church.
Those things seemed like they could allow them to traverse this complex rainforest environment very quickly, making them excellent means of transportation!
…
At this moment, Manuela, who was in the floating church, had already woken up.
The girl sat on the ground, exhausted physically and mentally.
A stinging pain emanated from her bandaged right hand, and a buzzing tinnitus occasionally filled her ears.
Dizziness came and went, blacking out her vision.
These were signs that her body was on the verge of collapse and death; her internal functions could no longer support Manuela's life activities.
"Hmm…"
"Am I… going to die here?
That's fine.
The church should be my only refuge.
I hope God forgives the sins I have committed."
Leaning against the yellowish, foul-smelling wall, Manuela couldn't bear the pain from her body.
Finally, she sighed deeply, accepting the fact that she could no longer continue, and murmured to herself while looking at the floating church.
At the same time, as if recalling some beautiful memory, Manuela looked up at the sky through the dilapidated roof of the floating church, her lips slightly paused, her throat moved, and a faint hum gradually emerged.
"Hmm… hmm hmm… hmm…"
"Sleep my love as the trees above protect you from the dark."
"Our great river will watch you as you dream until dawn."
"Sleep My Love, close your eyes and when you awaken the new day will bring to you a bright new world."
…
"Ever so gently, hear my voice.
Ever so softly, feel my touch.
Always so tenderly I watch.
So go to sleep, my love…"
A series of melodious songs slowly drifted, gradually echoing within the floating church.
At this moment, everything that heard this song seemed to stand still, falling into a rare silence, just to listen to Manuela's beautiful singing, just like a child being lulled to sleep by a mother, lying peacefully and quietly in her mother's embrace.
However, in reality, this was indeed a lullaby, named Sleeping Beauty.
It was a song Manuela's mother, Hilda, often sang to her by her bedside when she was little.
Every time Manuela heard this song, her emotions would calm down, and she would fall into a peaceful, feigned slumber.
Manuela sang this song only to try to alleviate the pain in her body as much as possible, allowing herself to slowly die in her mother's embrace.
Perhaps this was the best farewell.
And the scene before them—the Amazon River, the pure white girl, the sacred floating church, the beautiful lullaby, coupled with the warm sunlight filtering down like a veil—formed a beautiful picture before their eyes.
It was a breathtaking work of art.
Meanwhile, Manuela, engrossed in humming the song, did not notice a strange head slowly emerging from beside the floating wooden planks of the church.
It was a smooth, round head, covered by a thin, transparent membrane, like a water bubble.
A pair of unusual blue eyes quietly watched Manuela humming the song, and the sharp four pairs of barbed hooks on its mouthparts showed no movement, as if this monster was also immersed in the beautiful song Manuela was humming.
And this strange, smooth monster was Manuela's mother, Hilda—
After being injected with the T-Virus, she unfortunately became infected and mutated into a T-Virus mutant adapted to the Amazon Rainforest environment, not a zombie.
Beneath her smooth head was a massive body hidden in the river.
She was sent by her husband, Javier Hidalgo, to kill the indigenous people in the downstream village, but midway through her departure, Hilda sensed her daughter's presence and followed the scent all the way.
Then, came the scene of Manuela humming the song, which directly touched Hilda's heart, causing her, a monster, to gradually fall into tranquility as the song was hummed.
Her eyes turned a deep blue, showing extremely low aggression, because even as a monster, her subconscious memory retained the memory of this song.
Once she heard this song, Hilda would involuntarily calm down…
However, this quiet moment was still disturbed.
It was Leon and Krauser, who were also attracted by the song.
The two crept closer to the floating church, their pistols gripped tightly in their hands.
It was a village of dead people, yet a living person's song inexplicably emerged; it seemed wrong no matter how they looked at it.
Therefore, Leon and Krauser were both very vigilant.
"Rustle…"
"Rustle, rustle, rustle…"
However, when Leon and Krauser truly saw the pure white figure in the floating church, they couldn't help but freeze first.
Because that beautiful picture, that perfect work of art, also left them in awe.
But soon, compared to the beauty of the girl in the water, Leon and Krauser, with their extremely keen perception, still clearly discovered the blue head emerging from the water.
That strange appearance was undoubtedly a monster mutated by the bio-virus.
"…"
Leon and Krauser exchanged glances.
They both understood each other's meaning and didn't hesitate at all; their partnership's tacit understanding was evident at this moment.
Leon and Krauser both aimed their pistols at Hilda's head, which was emerging from the lake, ready to shoot her dead.
But unfortunately, this sudden action startled Manuela, who was humming the song.
She sensed that someone had approached the floating church, and abruptly opened her grey-blue eyes to look at the entrance.
And as the song ended, Hilda also snapped out of her peaceful and tranquil state.
She immediately discovered Leon and Krauser at the entrance, preparing to ambush her.
Hilda clearly perceived their malice.
And so, "Roar, roar, roar—!!!"
A furious roar erupted from her mouthparts.
Hilda, the water monster, suddenly burst out of the water, rapidly assaulting Leon and Krauser's direction.
Her speed was incredibly fast, like a crocodile lunging out of the water, catching Leon and Krauser off guard!
PS: The song Manuela hummed, Sleeping Beauty (by Osamu Uchiyama), is quite nice—
Chapter Ten: The Old Fox
Hilda's speed was incredibly fast.
Her smooth head suddenly darted out of the water, like a crocodile that had been hunting by the shore for a long time.
At the same time, her silent blue eyes, due to Leon and Krauser's sudden interruption, turned scarlet, which was Hilda's sign of attack.
And the reason Hilda was so enraged… it was very likely that Hilda subconsciously mistook Leon and Krauser for villains.
After all, the pure white girl before her was her daughter, Manuela.
Hilda would instinctively protect her husband, Javier Hidalgo, and her daughter, Manuela.
Therefore, the moment Leon and Krauser suddenly intruded, Hilda instinctively launched an attack to protect her daughter, Manuela, which is why her emotions were so agitated!
"Plop… Whoosh…!!!"
At the same time, Hilda, who had burst out of the water, fully revealed her terrifyingly massive body in front of Leon and Krauser.
Don't let her small head emerging from the water fool you; the body hidden beneath the water could be described as a giant water monster.
Hilda's T-Virus mutated body resembled a dragonfly nymph (Odonata larva), carnivorous and fierce in nature.
Its four pairs of barbed mouthparts at the front could instantly shoot out to grab prey, and its tail was enormous.
When in danger, it could even absorb and eject water to quickly escape, which is why Hilda was so fast.
The mutated Hilda also retained this feature, possessing a massive tail, but instead of water, it ejected corrosive venom and wood-sized poison needles.
Her feet for land movement were webbed like a duck's, allowing for rapid propulsion in water.
Around her, three pairs of tentacles writhed, capable of extending and shooting out.
Of course, the most unique feature was her skin, which had two colors, red and blue, similar to a chameleon cuttlefish.
When enraged, it would turn red.
Its entire body was as large as a small truck, and once it attacked, it was a very dangerous Bio-weapon BOW!
Because compared to conventional types like Tyrants or Lickers, Hilda was clearly more versatile, possessing a certain combat instinct.
She was amphibious, with decent speed and strength, and a variety of attack methods, which was the most troublesome aspect.
Therefore, in just a blink of an eye, Hilda had rapidly assaulted Leon and Krauser, her terrifying speed making it difficult for the two to react.
"Bang bang bang bang—!!!"
"Bang bang bang bang—!!!"
Their pistols quickly pulled their triggers.
Accompanied by the splashing muzzle flashes from the dark barrels, a series of bright yellow bullets, carried by powerful air currents, swept out.
Two magazines, a total of over twenty bullets, were all emptied in an instant.
And taking Leon's previous advice, Krauser's aim was consistently at Hilda's head, this water monster.
But unfortunately, this thing was not a zombie; its smooth, hard head was incomparable to a zombie's.
Pistols and the like couldn't penetrate its defense.
As expected, "Pffft pffft…!!!"
Did it penetrate flesh?
No, it didn't.
All twenty-odd bright yellow bullets embedded themselves in the transparent membrane covering Hilda's outer shell.
Not a single one penetrated into her flesh; they were all blocked outside, and not even a trace of blood was found.
And this was the flaw of pistol weapons.
Despite being on a mission and knowing that bio-monsters might exist, Leon and Krauser still only carried portable pistol weapons.
They always relied on seizing enemy weapons to strengthen themselves; this fighting style was frustrating.
Even if it was to avoid hindering their movement, they should at least carry a submachine gun.
A miniature submachine gun could greatly increase firepower.
In this regard, our Aunt Ada Wong seemed much smarter; for every mission, besides her pistol and grappling hook gun, she would always carry an additional submachine gun for self-defense.
Unlike now, Leon and Krauser simply couldn't break through Hilda's defense.
Aside from fleeing… they seemingly had no other choice.
"Roar, roar, roar—!!!"
Roars came in waves.
Although the previous attack caused no damage, it once again enraged Hilda, the water monster.
Her webbed feet slammed onto the floating wooden frame, and she roared furiously at the two ants before her.
The piercing sound waves echoed throughout the church.
Her six slippery tentacles suddenly became rigid, rapidly shooting out like six spears, striking towards Leon and Krauser!
And seeing the six spear-like tentacles about to strike, Leon and Krauser didn't hesitate at all, decisively turning to flee.
There was no other way… this monster was completely beyond their ability to fight.
Pistols couldn't break its defense; they could only create distance and try a High-explosive grenade.
But unfortunately, the two seemed to have underestimated the attack speed of Hilda's tentacles.
In just an instant, the six spears were already close to Leon and Krauser's backs.
Just as they were about to pierce into their flesh, an anomaly suddenly occurred—!
"Bang… Boom—!!!!"
A violent explosion suddenly erupted.