However, if awakened by other Dominant Plaga parasite hosts during this period, such as the current leader of The Illuminados, Sadler, or if an oral catalyst like Black Water is administered, the effect will be greatly reduced.
If awakened by Sadler, the drowsiness will disappear. If fed Black Water, the loss of appetite will also disappear. If both awakened and fed Black Water, Luis can only say... this agent will at most last for a few hours.
"Thanks, Luis!"
"I won't say too many words, but after this is over, I will thank you properly."
Facing Luis's timely rescue, Leon was very moved. It was so timely. Clasping the inhibitor tightly in his hand, Leon solemnly promised Luis that without Luis's help, he and Ashley probably wouldn't even be able to escape Salazar Castle.
In response, Luis smiled and shook his head, indicating it was fine.
This was all he should do. Anyway, he also wanted to atone for his sins. A large part of the tragedy in Wolf's Valley Village was caused by his own hands, as he was the one who helped Sadler research the Plaga parasite.
To make amends and cleanse this sin, Luis would help Leon and the others for free. As long as he could rescue Ashley, the daughter of the President of the United States, then the enraged President of the United States could send troops to bomb the stronghold of The Illuminados. At the very least, it would pressure the Spanish government to take action themselves!
Seeing Luis indicate that he didn't need repayment for his kindness, Leon didn't say much. He directly pulled out the inhibitor's needle and began to inject himself. As a high-level agent, Leon had also learned basic medical techniques, and his needlework was very accurate. After injecting himself, Leon also helped inject the inhibitor into Ashley's jugular vein.
Ashley was already anxious because the Plaga parasite was about to mature, and now that the inhibitor had arrived, the girl Ashley could finally calm down a bit.
At least, she wouldn't be running around uncontrollably like before—
"Thump-thump-thump..."
"Clatter-clatter-clatter..."
"It seems everyone is here. Since you've all injected the inhibitor, let's hurry up and leave. I'm in a rush and must leave this hellhole before dawn. It's 2 AM now, so there are still 4 hours. Don't say I'm heartless when the time comes."
Just as Leon and the others were enjoying a pleasant atmosphere, another group of uninvited guests suddenly burst in, interrupting the damned mood. The newcomer was the cold and elegant Ada Wong.
Although she was still wearing that vibrant red patterned cheongsam, her dark ladies' sunglasses, the golden snake emerald earrings, and the dazzling gold bracelet significantly elevated the woman's aura.
She descended before everyone with the demeanor of an urban corporate strongwoman, checked the time, and spoke decisively, without a hint of gentleness in her tone.
Of course, behind her was Mr. Javier Li, acting as her personal male secretary. As President Ada Wong's personal male secretary, Javier was hiding behind the strongwoman Ada with an awkward expression, trying to avoid being noticed by Leon and Luis, but little did he know, his colorful Ten Rings and very conspicuous little white dog had already betrayed him!
Chapter 53: Left Hand, Right Hand
"Javier?!"
"Oh, damn it, am I hallucinating from the Plaga parasite? Or is this guy in front of me a puppet parasitized by the Plaga parasite? You were clearly engulfed in flames, yet now you appear here completely unharmed. Is there something wrong with my eyes, or..."
Undoubtedly, upon seeing Javier alive, Luis's expression was one of surprise, even a bit incoherent, because in the eyes of the three, he was the only one who believed Javier was dead.
But now, with a living person appearing before him, Luis was incredibly shocked. What should he say? He didn't know. This was a strange yet familiar scene, like a plot from a novel where the protagonist heroically sacrifices himself but miraculously survives, eventually reuniting with his companions.
He had thought there weren't so many miracles in reality, but it still happened.
"Alright,"
"Let me explain. This guy didn't die. After escaping the pursuit of those Plaga Parasite Villagers, he snuck into Salazar Castle alone and stole a lot of valuables inside."
"So don't worry about this scoundrel anymore. He's more afraid of death than anyone. The reason he chose to cover our retreat was merely to prevent us from disturbing his grand plan of getting rich and keeping it all to himself!"
Without any mercy, Ada directly exposed Javier's true plan of faking his death to escape: it was just for money, so he chose to deceive all of them. Ada didn't know how to describe a guy like Javier anymore.
At least she had to admire Javier. This guy was the real bounty hunter, a true devotee of the money cult, even more money-loving than her...
...
...
After hearing Ada's explanation, Luis and Ashley in the distance were stunned. They hadn't expected that the real reason Javier faked his death and hadn't chosen to rejoin them was this?
They truly didn't know how to describe it, only that it was bizarre—
...
"I knew you wouldn't die so easily, Javier. Thank you for being willing to come back."
Compared to everyone else's surprise, Leon in the distance appeared much calmer. Although his expression was also a bit moved, he quickly became relieved.
Leon walked forward, his eyes quietly looking at Javier, and thanked him in a tone that showed no surprise.
Leon had understood Javier's foxy nature since Raccoon City. This man would not easily put his life in danger.
If he dared to do it, it meant he had absolute certainty. So Javier's previous Actively sacrifice (voluntarily covering the retreat/sacrificing himself) had made Leon a little suspicious.
And now Javier's appearance confirmed Leon's guess was right. As for being angry? No... Leon would never be angry, because for an old fox like Javier, if he wasn't continuing to plunder treasures in Salazar Castle and instead chose to act with them, it meant Javier was still willing to help him and Ashley.
Given that, what did Leon have to be angry about?
He needed a strong and reliable teammate—!
But in reality, Javier wasn't willing.
Are you kidding? He was caught by that crazy woman Ada and forced to come here. Otherwise, acting alone would be much more enjoyable.
As for treasures... uh, no joke, Javier had already plundered most of the valuable treasures in Salazar Castle. The rest were just some scattered trinkets. The most valuable ones had already been stolen by him.
Now only the castle lord's harem had not been plundered, which is why Javier chose to help Leon. They would cooperate; Leon and Ashley wanted to clear the game, and he would get the treasures. Everyone would get what they needed, so there was no question of helping or thanking...
...
"No need to thank me. I just want to continue plundering the treasures inside Salazar Castle. Most of the servants and cultists in the back of Salazar Castle have been cleared out by me. Only the castle lord's harem remains. We just need to charge through in one go."
Waving his hand, Javier indicated it was fine, then explained to Leon and the others that since the main group had already reunited, they should just set off.
Don't be fooled by the large number of servants and cultists in Salazar Castle. In reality, because Salazar Castle is so big, Javier and the others couldn't encounter people every time, so they could completely avoid most encounters and directly reach Raymond Salazar's harem.
Leon did not refuse this suggestion.
The plan to remove the Plaga parasite from Ashley's body was imminent, so naturally, they couldn't delay any longer. The group quickly reached a consensus and headed towards the main keep where Raymond Salazar, the castle lord, was located.
As for the servants and cultists they encountered along the way, Javier and Leon naturally cleared them out.
After all, there were five of them now, and the servants and cultists in Salazar Castle armed with cold weapons were no match for them.
Moreover, they didn't encounter any powerful Bosses along the way. Even the Exploding Bug cultists were easily dealt with, and their progress quickly advanced...
And naturally—this bad news also reached the ears of Raymond Salazar, the castle lord. The few stinky rats that had snuck into his Salazar Castle not only weren't crushed by his servants, but they also caused chaos, gnawing at everything. Now these rats weren't satisfied and were even aiming their foul gnawing at him, the castle lord?
Raymond was naturally furious upon hearing this news!
Useless, too useless, simply too useless. Those servants were a bunch of good-for-nothings. There were hundreds of people in Salazar Castle, yet they couldn't even catch a mere five people. This was simply too embarrassing for him.
Especially upon learning that Leon, the one who had once verbally insulted him, was also not dead, Raymond was even more enraged.
If he hated anyone the most, it was undoubtedly the extremely venomous Leon, that scoundrel who compared him to a goblin dwarf!
Anyone else could live, but that guy absolutely could not. No... he couldn't just not live, he had to suffer his torturous torment before dying in agony!
Thinking of this, Raymond no longer relied on those servants and cultists who were more of a hindrance than a help. They were a bunch of good-for-nothings, and relying on them would only lead to more disappointment.
So, out of helplessness, Raymond could only turn his murky eyes towards the two tall figures beside him, his left hand and right hand, his most loyal and powerful right-hand men.
The black-robed left hand, the hound Pesanta—
She was a housekeeper who had taken great care of him since childhood. Compared to his father, Diego Salazar, who never had time to discipline him, Raymond felt that the housekeeper was the relative who loved him the most, never hitting or scolding him, and always thinking of him.
So, to repay the housekeeper's loyalty, Raymond fused her with the Plaga parasite and Black Water, granting her great divine power and evolving her into a perfect species. This was Raymond's way of repaying the housekeeper who had cared for him since childhood.
This was a kindness, and Raymond would never let down his loyal servants...
And on the other side, the red-robed right hand was also his most reliable helper, Isidro Uriarte Talavera, his most loyal and fanatically devoted subordinate, who shared a similar flaw with Raymond and was looked down upon by many.
But Raymond, as the castle lord, still discovered the gold in Isidro.
And Isidro did not disappoint. He was the genius biologist who personally developed Black Water and hatched the Invisible Worm U2. To express his loyalty, Isidro also injected Black Water into his own body, thus evolving into the most perfect form of an insect, Executioner Verdugo—
And facing the powerful and perfect forms of these two, Raymond also bestowed upon them the title of U3, a stronger version of the Invisible Worm U2—
Besides these two, Raymond seemingly had no other trusted subordinates. Oh... no, there was one more, a foreigner personally dispatched by the great leader Sadler.
He heard he was an American soldier. Ashley, the daughter of the President of the United States, was abducted by him.
Thinking of this, Raymond sat high on the main seat, and his murky eyes glanced down at the stout middle-aged man standing upright in the corner, wearing a simple green tactical vest, camouflage trousers, and jungle boots. On his golden slicked-back hair, he wore a red beret. His resolute, deep, and serious face was covered in red and green war paint, and a short dagger was tied at his waist.
This was an old-fashioned and serious old man, but the aura he exuded made him seem very unusual.
That was Jack Krauser, the instructor who had fought alongside Leon—
This was Raymond's view of Krauser. Although he looked older than Krauser, Raymond was actually only in his twenties. He intensely disliked these old-fashioned types who resembled his father in temperament, always looking serious.
However, even so, Raymond's sharp, duck-like voice slowly spoke:
"Your name is Jack Krauser, right?"
"Considering you are an external aid sent by Lord Sadler, there is a task that needs to be done, but I wonder if you can complete it, after all, the opponent is very troublesome..."
Using his usual speaking style, Raymond said to Krauser below him in a sarcastic tone.
In Raymond's opinion, everyone in Salazar Castle was his subordinate, even if Krauser was sent by Lord Sadler.
And when dealing with subordinates, he often only needed this kind of taunting tone, and the other party would eagerly want to show their bravery, then accept the task without hesitation. This was how the Salazar Family always instructed their subordinates, and Raymond naturally learned the essence.
However, other Salazar Family heads were noble counts, but when it came to him... it was more like a eunuch relaying messages for the emperor.
What's more, Krauser would never fall for such taunts.
"What task...?"