Just as the puzzle seemed unsolvable, Javier began rummaging through the furniture in the room, because Javier knew… if this stone cell had been frequented by people, then there would surely be some clues left behind.
"Clang—!"
Sure enough,
After rummaging, Javier actually found a yellowed diary with only two short pages in a rotten drawer, and a photo was folder inside. Javier first glanced at the photo, and after seeing the person in the photo, he couldn't help but mutter, "I knew it!"
Because Javier knew,
If there were still "living people" in the Mansion Villa other than the S.T.A.R.S, then the only person Javier could think of was Lisa…
Lisa was the only remaining sentient being in the Mansion Villa. Although she was a monster, she could barely be called a human.
Therefore,
Javier guessed that this place was likely where the Umbrella Corporation initially imprisoned Jessica and Lisa. After her mother Jessica died, this place also became the only place Lisa could recall, which is why she frequently walked around this stone cell, likely to miss her mother…
This was also why this stone cell was different from other rooms, and even occasionally lit candles, trying to add a little warmth and retain memories.
The yellowed black and white photo above was exactly the same as the one Javier and the others had obtained from the great father George. As for those two pages…
"Ever since Lisa and I were injected with the medicine, my mind has felt off, very hazy, but those people in white coats called it a nutrient solution. But I don't think they have good intentions. I don't know what will happen to Lisa, I hope she'll be alright, my beloved little angel."
"On this day, George was taken away by them, and there was no news of him for several days after that. Oh my god! He couldn't be in trouble, could he…? The news of George's death came… The Umbrella Corporation is a thorough devil. I hate them! Why do they torment Lisa and me? She is innocent!"
"They suddenly stopped providing food. I lasted two days. I feel very wrong with my body. I'm very hungry, extremely hungry. I don't know why, but looking at Lisa, I unconsciously swallowed… "
"I'm a negligent mother. Yesterday, I almost harmed my own daughter. I can probably guess what kind of medicine they injected into Lisa and me, because a miserable scream came from the stone cell next door, faintly accompanied by gnawing sounds. The next morning, I looked through the crack in the iron door and saw a mutilated corpse being carried out."
"It was covered in bite and gnaw marks. I don't want to become that kind of monster, and one that would harm Lisa. Perhaps… I should end it myself, for Lisa, and for myself."
"Because I can clearly feel… Lisa hasn't undergone any strange changes like me. She's still as lovely as ever. Those medicines probably didn't have any effect on her. I hope God will continue to protect you, my child. I love you! Jessica Trevor—"
Again, dense handwriting,
The things recorded in it moved Javier again.
Another great mother. Lisa was truly lucky to have such parents, but she herself was also very pitiful, suffering such great pain at such a young age. And the Umbrella Corporation was as despicable as ever, with no possibility of redemption.
"Hiss… "
"Roar—!!!"
However,
Just as Javier and the others were still immersed in the great maternal love in the letter, two sharp, piercing roars came from the mine. This sudden sound pulled Javier and the others back to reality, and their expressions changed. Jill and the others exchanged glances, then quickly grabbed their weapons and ran out to check the situation.
And outside the mine tunnel,
A tall figure was approaching.
Yellow vertical pupils, a hunched body, incredibly thick arms, five sharp claws like steel knives, and a body covered in dense, tough, dark green scales. Its fangs were also terrifyingly jagged, capable of easily tearing through the flesh of any creature.
From afar, it looked like a crocodile; up close, it resembled a lizard.
And it was an upright lizard-man.
It was their old opponent, the Hunter—!
Javier and the others had encountered Hunters in the Cadre Training Institute. These creatures were very difficult to deal with, second only to the Tyrant in terms of intelligent BOWs. Although they were also T-Virus infected Bio-weapons, Hunters were stronger and more controllable than zombies. They could obey commands, and their combat power was also very formidable. Once they identified a target, they would pursue it relentlessly until the target was completely dead.
This was the origin of the Hunter's name… It was also a proud creation of the Umbrella Corporation. With the excellent reputation of the Hunter, the Umbrella Corporation sold it at a very high price, making it one of the Umbrella Corporation's best-selling products.
"…"
"A difficult one has arrived…"
Barry looked at the approaching Hunter and couldn't help but grip his Colt.44 Revolver, muttering. Without a doubt… even Barry, holding the Colt Revolver, wasn't confident he could easily deal with the Hunter alone.
Even Rebecca and Jill couldn't help but frown. It seemed they really didn't want to deal with something like a Hunter.
However…
Javier and the others didn't notice,
Behind the Hunter, there was also a deformed figure in shackles—!
Chapter 25: Monster Girl
Hunters were undoubtedly difficult to deal with in the early stages of Resident Evil. Their survival and hunting instincts were still preserved; they understood how to weigh pros and cons, inherited the lizard and gecko's ability to shed their tails to escape, had strong recovery abilities, and were difficult to damage with ordinary pistols. High-caliber pistols would be blocked by their arms, trading damage.
Facing a Hunter in a one-on-one fight was very troublesome…
But fortunately, Javier and the others were four people,
And they were all armed with shotguns, which were more than enough to deal with one Hunter. The reason Javier and Barry frowned was simply that they were afraid there might be more Hunters in this mine. After all, this thing… appearing inexplicably in the mine prison.
Who knew if it belonged to the guards of this mine prison? If so… then things would be truly troublesome, because in that case, the number of Hunters might even increase beyond expectations—!
"Click…!"
Without hesitation,
Javier and the others raised their firearms, chambering rounds, and aiming at the Hunter's limbs. Javier had some experience fighting these things; if they shot directly at the head… Hunters would use their arms to block fatal bullet shots.
They would even use this opening,
Hunters would directly close the distance and launch a suicidal attack that would injure a thousand enemies while harming themselves by eight hundred. Therefore, when dealing with Hunters, these strong-recovering lizard-men, breaking their limbs first was the most correct method, because this way, the Hunter would not be able to use its arms to block fatal attacks.
And now…
They just had to wait for the Hunter to get close enough to be in range!
However,
Just as Javier and the others were holding their breath, calmly waiting for the Hunter to approach, the originally aggressive Hunter suddenly stopped moving. This made Javier and the others look puzzled, unsure what was happening.
"Hiss… "
A low hiss continuously emanated from its mouth.
The Hunter looked at Javier and the others, its yellow vertical pupils fixed on them with a fierce glint. But the next second, its massive, sturdy body suddenly stiffened. A strange aura was approaching it. As a hybrid monster of human and lizard, it still retained the animal's instinct to sense danger.
The Hunter could clearly sense that the aura appearing behind it was extremely dangerous… It had to escape the scene immediately!
That strange aura was like endless tentacles of death slowly coiling around its limbs, which was why the Hunter's body slowly stiffened.
"Roar, roar, roar—!!!"
However,
Taking advantage of the gap, the Hunter suddenly let out a roar, instantly breaking free from the aura's restraint, shaking off its body's stiffness, and abruptly turning its head.
It saw…
The strange creature standing behind it—
A humanoid creature only half its height, with an enormous head, layers upon layers of flesh wrapped around its head, and that flesh was already firmly adhered. If one looked closely, it wasn't hard to see that these were torn human faces pasted on, about fifty or sixty of them.
Its entire body showed no signs of decay, but the inner skin was incredibly pale, like someone with leukemia, and covered in dark bruises. Blood vessels were visible to the naked eye, but they were all dense black, not fresh red blood.
It was only wearing a tattered cloth garment, which, while barely covering its body, was useless whether it covered or not.
Because the human face flesh on its head seemed too heavy, it was always hunched over. Its long, thin arms also seemed to have been stretched by the heavy shackles it wore, dangling all the way to its calves. This was a bizarre movement that a normal person could not achieve, and this figure stood quietly behind the Hunter.
The newcomer was undoubtedly Lisa Trevor—!
And the Hunter looked at the creature behind it, which was uglier but smaller than itself, its large yellow vertical pupils filled with confusion.
It didn't understand why it was afraid of such a thing.
Immediately…
"Roar, roar, roar—!!!"
Another roar,
The Hunter directly gave itself a courage buff, roared to embolden itself, and its eyes instantly became filled with murderous intent again. In a flash, it raised its arm, which was like a steel knife, and fiercely chopped down at Lisa's head.
With great force and those thick, sharp claws, it could easily tear apart a wooden door. Even sheet metal would be ripped open with several holes. Back then, even Javier's tactical knife was shattered in one blow.
It showed that the Hunter's pounce was very powerful!
But…
"Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh—!!!"
The next second,
Several whooshing sounds instantly struck, as sharp and piercing as arrows shot from a bowstring. From the back of Lisa's massive head, several fleshy tentacles suddenly surged out, about twelve of them, shooting out at an incredibly fast speed. Before the Hunter's attack could reach her, those twelve tentacles had already pierced through the Hunter's body.
Especially two of the tentacles,
Instantly pierced through the Hunter's head, splattering red and white brain matter everywhere. The explosive power of these tentacles was no different from high-caliber pistol bullets!
This left Javier and the others present in disbelief,
Their expressions were all shocked as they looked at Lisa, not understanding what kind of monster this was, to instantly kill a Hunter without any effort. This level of strength was too high.
Could it be the true guardian of the mine prison—?
Actually, no.
Javier looked at the familiar Lisa,
And couldn't help but exclaim in admiration. This level of strength was a bit too high. There weren't many instances of Lisa's combat shown in the entire Resident Evil 1. Even when facing Jill… Lisa had only used the heavy shackles on her arms to knock her unconscious.
Although she did have one-hit kill abilities in the game, in terms of performance… she wasn't as strong as bosses like the Tyrant. Therefore, Javier had initially thought that Lisa, aside from the G Virus's tenacious vitality, didn't have much combat power.
But now, it seemed,
He had been wrong… Judging by Lisa's ability to instantly kill a Hunter, she was no weaker than a Tyrant. In fact, thanks to the G Virus's tenacious vitality, Lisa was even slightly stronger than a Tyrant, as the current Tyrant had too many weaknesses.
And those grotesque tentacles just now…
If Javier wasn't mistaken, those should be Nemesis-α Parasite. Because the T-Virus caused various defects, especially severe intellectual impairment, and to solve this problem, the Umbrella Corporation developed this Nemesis-α Parasite to replace the BOW's brain.
The Umbrella Corporation controlled the Plaga parasite, and the Plaga parasite controlled the BOW to fight, serving as a portable remote control device.
But this Nemesis-α Parasite had huge side effects; many host experiments resulted in death without exception. William was extremely troubled by this Plaga parasite until he suddenly remembered that he still had a universal experimental subject.
William then found Lisa and injected this Plaga parasite into her. To William's surprise, Lisa's body was indeed universal enough. The large amount of viruses fused within her prevented the Nemesis-α Parasite from occupying Lisa's brain. Lisa could even Backlash the Nemesis-α Parasite herself.
After successfully absorbing this Plaga parasite…
Lisa also gained a new brain, and her intelligence slowly began to recover—
And it was precisely at that time,
When William discovered that Nemesis-α Parasite could not control Lisa, William immediately understood… Lisa's body likely held some secret that made her so immune to all poisons. To uncover this secret, William extracted Lisa's blood for research.
Indeed, he discovered a new evolved virus progenitor within it, and that new evolved virus progenitor was, naturally, what William later named G—!
"Gurgle, gurgle…"
After dealing with the Hunter, these frantically wriggling tentacles quickly retracted into Lisa's body. Lisa herself, as if without any emotion, casually pushed the Hunter aside and continued walking towards Javier and the others.
Her seemingly slow and swaying body,
However, it gave Javier and the others a huge, invisible sense of pressure,
Because they had no idea what this monster in front of them wanted to do. After all, humans facing unknown creatures were the most tricky and troublesome.
Especially the two women, Jill and Rebecca, who couldn't help but frown and show expressions of disgust when they saw the various horrified faces wrapped around Lisa's head. There was no doubt that they were extremely repulsed by these "decorations" on Lisa's head. These dense human faces were undoubtedly the greatest psychological intimidation!
"It's coming over…"
"Should we counterattack directly? Or retreat and test it first…!"
Seeing Lisa's figure getting closer, Jill and Rebecca finally couldn't bear the mental pressure and asked Javier and Barry, the two big men. They didn't know why… the hollow eyes of those human faces seemed to be constantly staring at them.
Therefore, this made Jill and Rebecca, as women, incredibly disgusted, as if this monster in front of them had some special fetish just for the two of them—!
That feeling,
It even made Jill feel worse than being openly stared at and teased by the Raccoon City Police Department officers…
It was that disgusting gaze of a mentally deranged pervert.