It wasn't like everyone who came to this evacuation zone wanted to fight anyway. Some wanted to stay safe without doing anything. They were those people who complained a lot. Those who were afraid of the zombies or didn't trust anyone else.
And thus led to this massive protest today. It was a peaceful one though, unlike a few days ago when the people demanded more food. That ended up badly when the crowd attacked the military guards. They wanted to break the gate open and attack the supply room directly.
Luckily, they were stopped by a quick response team from the inside.
There was one more thing I was worried about.
'No news from Leon.'
Since he was kidnapped? or taken away by Wesker, we hadn't received any information from him.
I wondered where he was and what happened to him.
Would he survive? Or would Wesker kill him? No, Wesker was smart. He wouldn't kill someone that might be useful later. Leon was a thorn for his side, yes, but if he was kept alive he could become a good hostage. Or a spy, maybe.
At least, I was hoping for that. Because if Leon died then we would lose a valuable asset to fight against zombies.
I really wanted him to be alive.
Tiriring!
My phone suddenly rang and broke the silence. I checked it and saw that it was Saya.
"Hmm?"
Saeko, who glanced at my phone, hummed and tilted her head. She asked me what it was. I told her that it was a call from Saya.
"I see." Saeko said and nodded before returning to her comfortable position.
I wondered why Saya called me at this time. Did she need help or something?
Thinking about that, I accepted the call and put my smartphone next to my ear. Then I answered, "Hey."
"Oh, Daiki!" Her voice was loud. She sounded panicked, which was strange considering how calm and collected Saya always was. "Come here! Now!"
I didn't say anything. I was shocked by her tone and the urgency in her voice. Something bad must have happened.
"What's wrong?" I asked.
"J-Just come!" Saya shouted again, and hung up the call.
I stared at my smartphone for a second before turning to look at Saeko. Her expression was also surprising and she met my gaze.
"I will prepare." She said and stood up, heading to the house.
I nodded and quickly cleaned up our plates.
We arrived at the new military headquarters just twenty minutes later after putting on our combat gear. Saya didn't tell us anything so we prepared ourselves for the worst. We were escorted by soldiers who were stationed outside and led inside the building, which was an old high school.
I was curious as to why they brought us here instead of first base. Did Saya work here instead? Was she that important? I didn't think it mattered, but it did seem unusual.
After arriving at the gate, the soldier on guard checked our identity before letting us in. There was a small courtyard in front of the building where people gathered. There was also an empty parking space to our right, with no car parked there anymore.
The place looked deserted, but it wasn't abandoned. Soldiers were stationed at strategic points throughout the area, and there were several armed guards near the entrance. The atmosphere felt different compared to when we visited the previous base. It was more lovely.
The two guards led us into the building, guiding us to a meeting room located on the third floor. They knocked on the door twice, and someone from inside told us to come in. The two soldiers bowed to us and left after that, leaving me and Saeko alone to deal with whatever was behind the door.
I pushed the door open and saw the room filled with computers, cables, and communications equipment. The smell of coffee permeated the room, and I could see the cups of cold coffee on each desk. The room had been cleaned and tidied recently. Everything looked neat and organized.
At least on the surface.
"You're late!"
The chair in the middle of the room spun around and revealed Saya, sitting in front of a computer. Her eyes narrowed as she looked at me, but she quickly changed her attitude after noticing Saeko behind me. She greeted us politely and gestured for us to sit down.
"There is something you must see." She said.
"Is that why you called us? It sounds urgent..." Saeko asked, taking a seat beside me.
I also sat next to her, watching as Saya moved away from her desk and stood next to us.
"Yes," she nodded, "We intercepted an encrypted transmission earlier this morning. The content of the transmission was too important to ignore."
"Okay, let's hear it," I replied calmly. I didn't expect anything good to happen today, so hearing about an intercepted encrypted transmission was just another thing added to my list of problems.
"I'll play it right away."
She pressed some buttons on her keyboard and soon we were listening to a recording. A man spoke with a calm voice. He had a deep, strong, masculine tone. The speaker sounded confident, almost cocky.
However, that wasn't what I focused on. My eyes widened due to an unexpected surprise.
First of all, the language.
"It's Japanese." I muttered, and Saeko also realized that.
We turned to look at each other before staring at Saya, waiting for her explanation.
"Idiot! Is that all you get from this voice?" She got angry for a moment, "Listen carefully to his voice! Aren't you familiar with it?! I will replay it so put those ears to good use or else!"
... What? Familiar voice?
We both listened to the voice once more, but we couldn't recognize anyone we knew in the base from it. It was filled with noise. And even so, it sounded a bit strange and unfamiliar to us. As if he purposely did something to hide his real identity.
However, the gruff and deep voice combined with Saya's cue made me think of someone.
"Don Takagi?" I unconsciously said, and Saya smirked.
"Correct." Saya said, snapping her fingers.
An unexpected person had sent a transmission. From the noise and how unclear it was, he was clearly in Japan. However, that was enough.
I looked at Saya whose smile could split her face. "Do we have any clue where he is now? His situation?"
"Yes," she answered. Her eyes were gleaming with excitement as she looked at me and Saeko, who sat next to me, listening intently.
"In Hokkaido. The northern island of Japan. The message is unclear and the sound is distorted but we know that much. And we also got news that our friends from the same school are safe."
"I see." I nodded.
The protagonist and his group managed to survive. Suddenly I missed that fatty and wanted to talk more about guns with him. I felt slightly relieved that he was safe.
"That's good, isn't it?" I said, looking at Saya. She seemed happy.
Not even I would tease her at this moment. Hearing her family's safety was great news.