"Bastard, Javier, what have you done!"
Krauser, finally reacting, clutched his shoulder and half-knelt on the ground, his left arm gone and the pain intensifying.
He glared viciously at Javier, gritting his teeth and cursing.
He had fallen for it again…
He thought Javier would truly demonstrate something, but he never expected this guy only wanted to sever his left arm.
Now that he had lost his most powerful left arm, these damned guys could wantonly abuse him?!
This was Javier's true plan… Damn you, despicable scoundrel!
In Krauser's eyes,
Javier's recent actions were exactly that: feigning deception to seize the opportunity to cut off his left arm!
However,
Javier paid no attention to Krauser's roar and anger; instead, he raised a hand to shush him.
He continued to use the black blade to cut at the left arm on the ground, his actions extremely cruel, like a perverse corpse defiler dismembering a dead body.
This drew strange looks from Leon and Ada nearby.
They weren't sure what Javier was thinking.
Even if he hated Krauser, was it necessary to defile his arm so repeatedly?
One had to know that Krauser's most precious asset was his left arm; after all, it had been ruined once in the Amazon Rainforest, sending him into a deep abyss.
However—
Just a second later,
"Gurgle…"
"Hiss, hiss, hiss—!"
As Javier repeatedly defiled Krauser's mutated left arm, the muscles of the thick arm suddenly began to writhe frantically.
A white Plaga parasite quickly burrowed out, covered in viscous blood and mixed fluids, and began to try to escape into the distance.
And this was the Plaga parasite hosted within Krauser.
The reason Krauser could remain conscious
was not only because of his strong will, but most importantly, because this Plaga parasite was located within the arm muscle.
The parasite's tentacles constantly extended from the arm to Krauser's spinal nerves, but its main body remained in the arm's position.
Because Krauser's left arm had been poisoned by neurotoxins and rendered useless once, this Plaga parasite had no choice but to reside there.
And now…
Krauser's left arm had been severed, and intense danger enveloped this Plaga parasite.
The instinct for survival made it frantically flee.
It had no intention of re-entering Krauser's spine, because it knew Krauser couldn't possibly defeat Javier and the others, so it chose to escape.
Watching the very strange white worm wobble and prepare to escape from the ground, Javier did not rush to stop it.
Instead, he looked at Krauser, who was staring at him with venomous eyes, and spoke calmly:
"Look…"
"Krauser, your power has betrayed you; it's already preparing to flee.
Are you still sure that power is the only thing in the world that will never betray you?"
These words were both murderous and heart-piercing.
Krauser looked at the gradually escaping Plaga parasite, feeling somewhat helpless, his eyes filled with pain and unwillingness.
He wanted to reach out and grab it back, but then realized his left arm was long gone, with only a few white tentacles drawing out from the grotesque wound.
Finally,
the unbearable Krauser felt a sweetness in his throat and couldn't help but cough up another large pool of blood.
"Cough, cough…"
The blood was dark red, from his lungs, and the bleeding was heavy.
But this wasn't because Javier's heart-piercing words had enraged him; rather, it was a side effect of the Plaga parasite injection.
The disappearance of the Plaga parasite
caused Krauser's originally modified, powerful body to immediately retaliate.
Now, as a human, he
could not withstand the changes in power brought by the modification.
Large numbers of cells began to die, muscles twisted and broke, and thus blood was coughed up from his lungs.
Krauser was like an American muscle car, but he had discarded the original factory engine, properly tuned, including the tires and wheels.
To accommodate the speed of the race, he began to replace them with a more powerful racing engine and tires, then accelerated recklessly, endlessly pursuing his own limits.
And now,
the racing engine was scrapped.
He put the original engine and tires back, thinking it would be fine, but the car body, having been subjected to a storm-like battering, immediately broke apart the moment the engine started.
This was Krauser's current situation…
The sudden escape of the Plaga parasite
left Krauser's body suddenly on the verge of death.
Although his muscles were still incredibly strong,
blood was constantly seeping from beneath his reddened skin.
Javier knew… that was the sign of cells dying.
Krauser didn't have long to live.
Seeing this, Javier's expression suddenly became a bit more complex.
To be honest, Krauser was once one of his favorite characters, but he never expected to be the one to kill him.
It truly was fate's cruel twist.
And at this very moment,
the grittingly persistent Krauser could bear it no longer.
He suddenly fell heavily to the ground, his chest rising and falling rapidly, his breathing appearing very shallow, and blood continuously flowing from his mouth.
Krauser's pupils were somewhat gray, and his time was running out.
But his eyes no longer held their previous ferocity; instead, there was a hint of relief, as if he had understood something before death.
He tremblingly opened his mouth:
"Cough, cough, I don't have much time left…"
"Javier, two years ago, the beautiful, splendid, dazzling, yet fleeting golden butterfly we encountered in the Amazon Rainforest… did she disappear into the world, or is she still flying freely?"
His blue eyes glanced at Javier, and Krauser asked in a calm tone.
This seemed to be the question he most wanted to ask before his death.
"She's still alive…"
"She's in the United States, protected by me.
She wants to atone for her past sins now, so she's desperately studying medicine, hoping to save more children afflicted with diseases like her."
Javier knew what golden butterfly Krauser was referring to, so he naturally answered without any hesitation.
Krauser was dying, and as a character Javier had once deeply admired, Javier was naturally willing to fulfill Krauser's dying wish and request.
"Heh heh… Is that so?"
"It seems life is not as small and fragile as I imagined.
No… life is indeed small and fragile, but it is unimaginably resilient."
"Cough, cough… I have nothing more to say.
I was wrong; you were right.
I should have chosen more carefully.
The Plaga parasite, truly an ugly thing."
"I don't have many friends because my temper is too bad.
And not counting now, two years ago, if you considered me a friend, take this knife.
Perhaps it will be the only trace of my existence in this world."
"They say death is not the end; being forgotten is the end.
I don't want to reach that point so soon…"
Hearing Javier's reply,
Krauser's lips suddenly curved into a smile, devoid of his usual ferocity and brutality, but like a kind middle-aged man.
Finally, embracing his dying wish, Krauser used his remaining right hand to pass the snake-shaped combat dagger with the curved blade into Javier's hand, and then he breathed his last…
Jack Krauser—
Deceased—
Chapter 67: Remote Control
"…"
"Rest in peace… Bang—!!!"
Looking at the now deceased Krauser, Javier could only offer this faint blessing, then quickly drew the Desert Eagle from his waist and fired a shot into the distance.
It was aimed at the Plaga parasite that had almost successfully escaped, but now it, too, died with Krauser at Javier's hands.
Coming back to his senses,
Javier looked at the snake-shaped combat dagger that had appeared in his hand, unsure how to handle it.
Its blade was slightly curved, but even so, it remained sharp.
Perhaps this was the true reason why Krauser was so fond of this blade.
This knife was originally meant to be passed down to Leon, because in a sense, the two were both teacher and friend, able to better complete the inheritance of their bond.
But perhaps Leon's immaturity earlier had disappointed Krauser—
After all, as a living soldier,
he viewed this world with extreme cruelty and realism, because he had experienced enough to truly understand the dark side of the world.
But Leon…
Actually, it couldn't be said that he was immature;
it was just that Leon sometimes liked to mix his own ideas with reality, which often led him to be constrained by these things when performing missions.
So Krauser refused to confide in Leon, choosing the more rational Javier instead.
And the words Krauser had just spoken,
that death is not the end, but being forgotten is, this phrase also more accurately reflected Krauser's current situation.
As an excellent Red Berets soldier king, he had performed countless missions for his country, achieving countless meritorious deeds and honors.
Krauser was immensely proud of this.
But due to some accidents,
he parted ways with his country, and the fabricated helicopter crash also summarily ended his life's identity.
Military personnel would simply make a quick note in the records, confirming Krauser's death, and then there would be no follow-up.
Things were that simple.
There would be no so-called honorary tombstone…
Nor would any words related to Krauser be engraved on it.
Even the information he had once stored in military records would be immediately and thoroughly deleted, because Krauser not only brought glory to the nation but also carried out many unspeakable, dirty missions, tasks that the United States Government did not permit to exist.
Therefore, after Krauser's death, everything about him would immediately vanish completely.
Coupled with having no friends, family, or even a lover, Krauser possessed almost nothing.
Once he died, everyone in the world, except for Javier and a few others, would forget him—
And that blade,
it truly seemed to be the only trace of his existence remaining in this world…
So,
Krauser intended to hand it over to Javier.
Even if it was just preserved and sealed in glass, Krauser would be content.
And if Javier could repair this blade and continue fighting with it,
then Krauser would be even more grateful, because in that case… Krauser would believe that he had not truly died, but was still fighting his own battle, another battle.
As for why, before his death,
Krauser would ask about the so-called golden butterfly, Javier understood even more clearly.
The so-called golden butterfly… was actually Manuela—
Back in the Amazon Rainforest,
Krauser, due to his arm injury,
was unable to perform strenuous movements, let alone provide rapid combat support.
This led to Manuela, a delicate young girl, protecting them during the final battle.
This caused a huge emotional fluctuation and psychological contrast within Krauser.
And upon seeing Manuela's body on the verge of breaking apart after overusing the T-Veronica power, Krauser felt sad, lamenting the Creator's mighty power, yet also lamenting why the life created by the Creator was so fragile.
So…
What truly changed Krauser's mind was definitely not just his suddenly useless arm; it was more the temporary sense of contrast Manuela presented before him.
A seemingly delicate butterfly could unleash such terrifying power, yet still couldn't avoid the end of death.
Therefore,
Krauser also began to doubt himself,
just like a certain Orochimaru, he posed a soul-searching question: life is so small and fragile, so what is the meaning of life's birth?
And then…
When his arm was ruined, Krauser's answer to himself was power.
Life has no meaning!
Only by obtaining stronger power, POWAH!, can one control everything they desire, and only then will they not die so easily!
So Krauser embarked on a path of no return—
However,
upon hearing that Manuela had not died from overusing the T-Veronica power, that missed question seemed to have a new answer.
Life, though small, was not as fragile as Krauser had imagined, but instead, extraordinarily resilient…
After receiving the answer he desired,
Krauser then contentedly chose death…
"Major, please rest in peace."
"Although I don't know what conflict you had with the United States Government, I will do my best to return to you a fair, just, and incorruptible United States Government."
Watching Krauser die,
Leon, standing nearby, sighed deeply, unsure what to say.
After all, they had once been comrades, and instructor and student.
But now… In his helplessness, Leon could only make this promise before Krauser.
However,
what Leon didn't realize was that
what he had just said would be almost impossible to achieve in his entire future.
Though somewhat comical, the formation of any organization cannot be perfect; it is bound to contain so-called malicious elements, or "Woodworms" (moths/parasites).
If it didn't, the organization couldn't form.
Even if it truly didn't, it would only be a matter of time.
The vast United States Government, a perfect tool for the execution of power.
To ask those people to just let go is simply laughable.
Later, the President of the United States, Graham, whom Leon protected, stepped down, the United States Government was reshuffled, and a new President of the United States took office.
Although Leon continued to serve as the presidential bodyguard, due to a new biohazard outbreak, the new President of the United States turned into a zombie.
Leon was forced to shoot him, and he was also wanted for killing the President of the United States and was caught up in a new biohazard incident.
Over decades, Leon had always been dedicated to eradicating biohazard and saving more people, but unfortunately… despite Leon's immense efforts and thwarting countless evil organization conspiracies, he had made no improvements to the global biohazard situation.