Ashley tugged on Leon's arm, lifted her head, and asked with a worried expression on her small face,
There was no sign of Javier and Ada following behind them, which made Ashley have a very bad premonition. She was afraid that Javier and Ada had really gotten into trouble, which was why she suggested this.
But unfortunately,
Faced with Ashley's suggestion,
Leon directly shook his head and refused.
It wasn't that he didn't want to wait, but that there was no need. As he had said before, since Javier and Ada had chosen to cover their retreat, the only thing they could do was trust that they were safe and then buy time to escape Salazar's castle, instead of hesitating and staying put.
If Javier and Ada were truly unharmed,
then they could indeed reunite safely. But if something had truly happened, staying there would yield no results and only waste time!
"No…!"
"Keep moving forward, Ashley. If they're safe, they'll still catch up. But if something happened to them, staying put would only waste their efforts, so pressing forward is what we should be doing now!"
Leon reached out his large hand to pat Ashley's head, comforting her softly, then continued forward with Ashley and Luis. No matter what difficulties awaited them, they had to overcome them one by one. There were no other options now.
And just at this moment—
"Heh heh…"
"Not letting down your teammates who risked their lives to buy you escape time? It seems you've matured quite a bit, Leon, since we last met?"
A muffled voice suddenly echoed in the corridor ahead, causing the trio of Leon to immediately stop in their tracks, looking around vigilantly, guarding against any surprise attacks from enemies. But the source of the voice didn't seem to have that intention.
Instead, a dark figure slowly appeared at the end of the corridor. A tall physique, muscular build, Red Berets, red and green camouflage paint, a stern and rigid face, a hideous scar, a simple and lightweight tactical vest, camouflage pants with jungle boots, and a snake-shaped combat dagger spinning in his hand.
The person was Jack Krauser—!
He had been waiting for his comrade Leon here for a long time…
Chapter 59: Whose Betrayal
"Krauser…?!",
"What are you doing here?!"
The moment Leon saw the incoming person, his expression immediately changed, and he exclaimed in surprise, looking at the figure in front of him with great disbelief. Even if Leon racked his brain, he would never have guessed that Krauser would appear in this godforsaken place.
"Phew… You scared me!"
"So it's an acquaintance of yours, Leon. That makes things easier. I thought it was another enemy!"
Looking at Leon, who was startled beside him, Luis was also startled, but after realizing that the two were acquaintances, Luis's hanging heart relaxed. He thought it was another enemy, but it turned out to be just an acquaintance. Since he was an acquaintance, they now had an extra comrade.
However,
Luis didn't know that,
Krauser had been declared dead by the United States military two years ago. This veteran special forces soldier king was engulfed by fire after his helicopter lost control and crashed, his body burned beyond recognition. At the time, facing the news of the death of Krauser, who was both his instructor and comrade, Leon was heartbroken for a long time.
But what Leon didn't expect was,
Krauser, who had been presumed dead, was actually alive and well, appearing in a medieval castle in Spain.
Moreover, the arm that was injured and poisoned in the Amazon Rainforest seemed to have recovered. This strange way of appearing at the beginning made Leon feel a hint of unease!
Luis might have been happy too soon…
The other party might really be an enemy—
"Luis…!"
"Don't go over there, and don't get too happy too soon. Protect Ashley. The other party is very likely an enemy, because if I'm not mistaken, he was declared dead by the military two years ago in a helicopter crash. Since he's here now, it means he faked his death to escape."
"As for the purpose of faking his death to escape, I don't know, but it's definitely nothing good, and he's certainly not here to help us!"
Seeing Luis so relaxed and off guard,
Leon quickly spoke to warn him, then slowly moved his hand to the M1911 Handgun on his thigh.
Krauser's sudden appearance was undoubtedly an accident, but definitely not a pleasant surprise. It was more likely a fright—!
After all, Leon saw no goodwill in the eyes of this instructor and comrade, only intense malice and killing intent, and that playful expression, as if he was watching a few ants desperately struggling under his feet?
"…"
"What's going on now?"
Luis, who was beside him, heard Leon's explanation, and his expression immediately changed. He somewhat helplessly drew his Mouser C96. Why was it another enemy? Luis thought the other party was a comrade like Javier and Ada!
And in the distance,
Krauser listened to Leon's speculation about himself, and he also gave a mysterious sneer and twitched his lips. Although it was a bit foolish, it was not far off. It seemed that Leon had grown much faster than he had imagined in the past two years.
But as for how much he had grown,
that would require him, the instructor, to personally test him—
"Heh heh…"
"Leon, give me that little girl you're protecting behind you. If you do, considering our past relationship, I might let you off the hook,"
Krauser crooked his finger, narrowing his eyes. The hideous scar on his cheek trembled slightly, appearing exceptionally terrifying and vicious, like a cold-blooded killing machine staring intently at Ashley behind Leon. Krauser spoke in such a light tone.
The reason he joined Wesker's faction was primarily because the United States Government had disappointed him too much.
During his service, Krauser experienced no less than hundreds of battles and missions, big and small: combating enemy nations, assassinating high-ranking officials, apprehending drug kingpins, covert espionage, and even massacring innocent civilians. Whatever missions the United States Government and military issued, Krauser accepted without question, doing all the dirty and arduous work.
In the end, he earned the identity of a Red Berets, which Krauser was proud of. He thought he was a glorious American soldier and wanted to continue contributing to his country.
Only, unfortunately,
Later, he came into contact with the Resident Evil incident. Just a trip to the Amazon Rainforest, and he completely lost his left arm, which was corroded by neurotoxins and permanently damaged. No matter how much treatment he received, it was useless. Seeing this situation, the United States Government directly abandoned him, this veteran Red Berets, and removed him from his previous position in the United States Government.
He then returned to the military.
Because of his crippled arm,
Krauser did not receive preferential treatment in the military; instead, he was discriminated against everywhere, which made him increasingly resent the high-ranking officials of the United States Government.
Even in the end,
The high-ranking officials of the United States Government, fearing that Krauser and his comrades who were with him at the time would leak a series of unsightly and dirty secret missions, completely stripped him of his military status, making him an ordinary citizen and forcing him to leave the military.
This completely ignited the fuse of revenge in Krauser's heart. He wanted to retaliate against the high-ranking officials of the United States Government, to retaliate against these disgusting politicians who only treated them as tools, used them and discarded them, seeing no value in them!
To avoid being hunted down and silenced by high-ranking officials of the United States Government later,
Krauser had faked his death by staging a helicopter crash, and then he met Wesker, who could heal his arm, thus becoming Wesker's subordinate…
And now,
Krauser's desire for revenge against the United States Government still hadn't been extinguished; instead, it burned even more fiercely after seeing Leon. At the same time, Krauser also felt intense jealousy and resentment!
Why…
He worked himself to death, paying the price for the United States Government by completing so many missions, only to be demoted from the military, losing even his soldier status. The United States Government even wanted to silence him!
And Leon? A rookie police officer who just graduated from the police academy, just because he encountered a Raccoon City incident, he was favored by the United States Government, then trained to become a high-status agent?
Finally, he could work under the President, and eventually even became the current President of the United States's personal bodyguard, constantly exposed to top-secret information. The gap between them was as vast as a chasm. This huge disparity made Krauser extremely displeased!
So, along with that…
Krauser also harbored a slight resentment towards this damned, enviable guy, Leon—!
But now,
it doesn't matter.
He had already gained unimaginable power! Extraordinary strength condensed within his body. As long as he continued to seize the Dominant Plaga, he could truly become a superhuman, surpassing Wesker and reaching the pinnacle of humanity, just like Manuela, who was like an angel back then.
At that time,
Having gained power, he…
would unleash his furious revenge upon the United States Government, making those damned high-ranking politicians realize that the tools they casually used and discarded could retaliate and fight back! If they dared not treat them as humans, then he would not treat these high-and-mighty beasts as humans either!
However,
Leon was unaware of what had happened to Krauser.
After all, just as Krauser said, the disparity in treatment between the two was like heaven and earth. At a young age, Leon became the President of the United States's personal bodyguard and also held the identity of a senior FBI agent. No matter how you looked at it, including all aspects of his authority, he was much stronger than Krauser, this grunt.
Don't be fooled by how impressive "Red Berets" sounds,
but in reality, they are just dogs under the military, dogs with red hats, because they are only fit to obey orders and carry out what they consider glorious missions, but in reality, they don't even know what the missions are for.
Unlike Leon,
His senior agent status was indeed not as high as a major's, but Leon could obtain a great deal of secret and intelligence information that Krauser was unaware of. This was the difference in positional authority.
It's like the Imperial Guards in ancient times and the local yamen officials; your yamen officials indeed have a high status locally, but I have private authority, and you can't control me at all, nor do you dare to!
Therefore—
"Major Krauser,"
"Although I don't know what happened to make you fake your death to escape, I will not let you act recklessly."
"Ashley is the President of the United States's daughter. These cultists want to use her to threaten high-ranking officials of the United States Government, thereby gaining control and infiltrating the entire United States. As an American citizen, and once a glorious American soldier, how could you betray your country and aid evil?!"
Looking at Krauser in front of him,
Leon shielded Ashley behind him and reprimanded him righteously. After all, no matter what, even if Krauser, his former instructor and comrade, had some unavoidable difficulties, Leon would not allow Ashley to be taken away by him. No one could!
Only, unfortunately,
Leon's words were correct,
but they happened to touch Krauser's sore spot, directly turning into dancing on a minefield. Leon could insult Krauser however he wanted,
but he absolutely could not say that Krauser betrayed America and the United States Government. As soon as he heard the word "betrayal," Krauser, who had been good-tempered, suddenly narrowed his eyes and erupted with intense killing intent.
"Shut up—!"
"Leon, what right do you have to say that to me? Have you experienced what I went through at the time? You, a pampered agent, how dare you say I betrayed America and the United States Government? It was that ugly country and government that betrayed me first!"
A furious roar,
Krauser, consumed by anger, couldn't help but loudly curse. Then, without any concealment of his killing intent, he fiercely gripped the snake-shaped combat dagger in his hand, and with a slight push of his foot, Krauser suddenly launched a lightning-fast surprise attack!
The distance between them was clearly over ten meters,
but Krauser's speed was unimaginably fast.
In just a few flashes, he quickly appeared in front of Leon, causing Luis's Mouser C96 to not even have time to aim. A dazzling cold light flashed, and the sharp combat dagger instantly slashed towards Leon's neck!
"So fast…!"
And seeing Krauser's explosive speed,
Leon's expression was also somewhat disbelieving. With a big push, he quickly pushed Ashley behind him back a little distance, then also drew the tactical dagger from his shoulder. The dagger that had accompanied him since Raccoon City was still incredibly sharp, not dulled in the slightest.
"Clang—!!!"
The two daggers immediately collided with each other,
Sparks flew, and an incredibly crisp sound immediately rang out.
Leon, gripping the tactical dagger, felt a slight numbness in his tiger's mouth and soreness in his arm. He couldn't help but retreat a few steps. Krauser's strength was too great, even stronger than before. With just one blow, Leon felt somewhat unable to parry.
Moreover,
What made Leon most incredulous was,
Krauser's left arm. There was a clear, hideous scar below his shoulder. Originally, that was the wound where neurotoxins had entered, causing Krauser's arm to lose sensation and be unable to move normally.
But now,
That useless left arm was incredibly flexible?
This was too incredible. One must know that even the most advanced medical institutions in the United States at that time could not cure it. Now Krauser's arm had actually recovered. Leon speculated… Krauser's falling out with the United States Government was very likely due to his arm.
"Rookie!"