"..."
William's Adam's apple bobbed involuntarily, as if he were startled by the sight before him.
The room was neat and tidy; the bedding, desk, and clothes rack were free of any clutter.
And Halsey?
She was wearing a white camisole and jeans that showcased her perfect curves, with slightly wavy long black hair, and...
...and wheat-colored skin.
She was worlds apart from her former self.
After all, Halsey had never cared about her appearance, usually wearing hoodies or sweatshirts—a total slob of a female academic prodigy.
But now, having abandoned her baggy clothes, Halsey possessed a stunning figure.
To William, she completely outshone any star or model at this moment.
"Does... this look good to you?" Halsey seemed a bit shy.
"Ah... well... how did you..."
Hearing this, William quickly turned to face the wall, his right hand on his hip and his left hand pinching his temple. He hesitated for a moment before saying:
"It looks great, but your old style felt more like the Halsey I know.
This... isn't you."
"I see..." Halsey sounded a bit disappointed and muttered under her breath, "Yet you're still having scandals with supermodels."
?
"Scandals? What's going on?" William asked hurriedly.
"Hmph."
Halsey rolled her eyes at him, reached up to pull off the wig, revealing her original pale blonde short hair.
Then she picked up a newspaper from the desk, shoved it hard against William, and said huffily:
"See for yourself!"
"This?" William caught the newspaper before it could slip.
Unfolding it, he found it was the Hafa City Daily.
On the most eye-catching section of the front page was a photo of him on the set of Iron Man, looking overly 'intimate' with Megan due to their positioning.
The headline read: The Prodigal Son Finally Starts Looking for Love; Is a Young Master or Lady of Umbrella Not Far Off?
Holy crap...
Now, William finally believed in the power of his employees' gossip.
In the future, he would have to have Hank clear out any nearby 'trash' whenever he went out; otherwise, he wouldn't be able to live a normal life at all.
Taking off her lab coat nearby, Halsey said in a sarcastic tone, "So, when are you having a baby with her~?"
"No! Listen to me..."
William quickly explained everything that had happened on the night of the 6th to Halsey, including the part about being mistaken for being gay.
He spoke urgently, as if afraid Halsey would misunderstand something.
After hearing William's explanation, Halsey couldn't help but laugh:
"Haha~ Isn't Uncle Andre going a bit overboard? Why is he more anxious than you are?"
"How should I know?" William shrugged.
"Alright then~"
Having changed her clothes, Halsey walked up to William and gently tapped his nose with her left index finger, saying softly:
"I believe you. Don't forget who invented that chip."
"Uh..."
William felt like he had no privacy left.
But he didn't dwell on it and hurriedly asked, "Can your skin color change back then?"
"Oh, that," Halsey said nonchalantly.
"I thought you'd like this skin tone, so I went sunbathing on purpose. If I stop... it'll go back to normal in a few months."
"Phew—"
William breathed a sigh of relief and said while turning to walk outside, "Alright, tell me what you've invented lately."
"No problem~"
————————
...
Hive Level 4.
In a certain partitioned observation room;
William and Halsey stood there alone, looking through the massive bulletproof glass at the wide-open testing grounds below.
It was filled with a vast number of zombies wearing orange D-Class Personnel uniforms.
As well as many heavily decayed Zombie Dogs that seemed to be nothing but skeletons.
And several skinless Lickers with exposed brains and fingers turned into sharp claws.
Seeing such a large number of t-virus byproducts, even someone with high tolerance like William couldn't help but feel his scalp tingle.
Just imagine...
If you fell down there, wouldn't you be dead meat?
On the contrary, Halsey had no such worries. She even gestured downward and said with a smile:
"What do you think of these little cuties?"
"They're alright..." William tugged at his tie to breathe more easily.
Then Halsey asked, "Boss, if we sent the UBCS or USS into this testing ground, how many people would it take to clear it?"
Hearing this, William rubbed his chin with his right hand, thinking for a moment.
Then he said in an estimating tone, "For the UBCS, at least a platoon."
"But with those Zombie Dogs and the skinless guys (Lickers), the UBCS might suffer heavy losses."
"As for the USS... Hank is right outside. Should I have him come in and analyze it?"
"No need. Take a look at this first."
Halsey operated the computer and turned on the screen hanging in the center of the observation room, presenting a set of diagrams and text to the two of them.
...
...
Advance Armor Exoskeleton System — UBCS Model;
Advanced Armor Exoskeleton System, UBCS Model.
Black one-piece combat suit.
Paired with reinforced military boots and a helmet, it boasts excellent airtightness.
Featuring temperature and pressure regulation as well as good radiation resistance, it allows the wearer to operate in a vacuum for fifteen minutes.
In a normal atmospheric environment, the filtration system protects the wearer from bacteria, viruses, fungi, and other microorganisms.
Furthermore, the outer layer of the suit is made of titanium fibers developed by Dr. Halsey, capable of resisting 7.62mm caliber rounds (AK series) at close range.
Note: The suit only prevents the wearer from being penetrated by the projectile; it cannot fully mitigate the kinetic energy.
The wearer has a metal exoskeleton on their limbs, back, and shoulders.
The exoskeleton provides the wearer with a maximum load capacity of two tons, super jump capabilities, and other functions.
Vital areas of the wearer are equipped with a certain amount of lightweight titanium alloy armor plating, which can effectively resist 12.7mm armor-piercing rounds (Barrett).
The wearer can customize the titanium alloy armor plate on the chest, such as adding external tactical belts or magazine pouches.
The AASE/UBCS model is equipped with hydrogen batteries developed by Dr. Halsey, allowing for thirty-six hours of continuous operation.
...
"This..."
After reading through the series of descriptions, William was speechless.
"Heehee~" Halsey poked William's back again, saying with extreme pride:
"What if those grunts wore this to deal with the little cuties down there?"
"Gulp!"
William swallowed ungracefully and looked at the somewhat triumphant Halsey with anticipation. "How about... we give it a try?"
"I was waiting for you to say that~" Halsey tossed her head and then gave a calm command through the microphone by the computer:
"Team B, the Boss is watching. Start the show."
As her voice fell, the gate to the testing ground opened.
Immediately after, six UBCS members wearing AAES exoskeletons flooded in.
This commotion also caught the attention of hundreds of zombies, Zombie Dogs, and Lickers.
The 'trial' was about to begin.
-------------------------------
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