Lear understood that Friday said this simply to vent on his behalf. At this thought, Lear softened his tone. "Alright, I know you mean well. If I need you to do something, I'll tell you."
Although Friday looked like a ferocious B.O.W. on the outside, its mind was no different from that of an eight or nine-year-old child. Hearing Lear's words, its previously gloomy mood vanished instantly, and it became excited at once.
"Okay! Okay! Lear tells me who to hit, I hit them!"
Watching Friday bounce around, Lear shook his head helplessly.
Time passed much faster than expected. Before long, the sky outside the window had turned completely dark. A light drizzle had begun falling in the evening, and by nightfall, it had turned into a torrential downpour.
During this time, Lear continued to drag his injured body around, scavenging for supplies.
Friday and its subordinate Hunters had already left the Main Hall; as Friday put it when leaving, the place gave it an uncomfortable feeling and it wanted to head outside for a bit.
Roughly every half hour since then, that Hunter would return to the Police Station Lobby carrying food found from god-knows-where. Each time, it would silently drop off the food and vanish back into the rainy night.
Ada actually hadn't strayed too far from the Police Station; intermittent gunshots mixed with the roars of zombies echoed through the empty building. She seemed indifferent toward Friday's existence, perhaps even finding its presence favorable.
As for Lear himself, though his body was recovering, for some unknown reason, he could clearly feel that once his physical damage reached a certain point of repair, that mysterious power ceased its activity no matter how much he ate. Thus, Lear was currently in a state of limbo.
His current condition could be described as recovered, yet not quite. Compared to an average person, he was perfectly healthy, but that terrifying Herculean strength and Wesker-style speed had not returned.
Gazing at the deepening darkness outside, Lear silently pulled out a brand new RPD Police Bulletproof Vest and a neatly folded RPD uniform, placing them both on the wooden table in the Main Hall. These were originally intended for Leon by Marvin.
"Leon and Claire should be here by now..."
BOOM!
A deafening explosion suddenly cut off Lear's train of thought.
"They're here!"
Lear immediately pulled himself together and walked to the iron gate outside the Police Station.
Due to the previous clearing and the frequent entries and exits of Friday and the others, there were no longer any zombies in front of the station—only a few charred, abandoned vehicles still hissing with black smoke.
Right then, a figure came sprinting through the curtain of rain in the distance. It was a young man with a center-parted hairstyle wearing a black jacket, his hair and clothes soaked and clinging to his body.
The youth ran quickly toward the gate. When he saw Lear inside, he immediately waved his hand.
"Hey! Officer!"
Lear said nothing. He simply stepped forward quickly, pulled the youth inside the iron gate, and swiftly slid the bolt shut. "Sir, Leon S. Kennedy reporting for duty!" The youth stood tall, snapping to attention the moment he was steady. His words tumbled out in a rapid-fire rush. "I'm the new recruit. I received a notice from the department last week telling me to delay my arrival, but when I heard about the riots, I was worried you'd be shorthanded, so I rushed over as fast as I could."
Watching the rain-drenched Leon, who still looked eager to dive in despite the chaos, Lear couldn't help but smile. He reached out and pushed open the Police Station doors, stepping aside to clear the way. "Relax, kid. Take it slow. First, let's get inside. I don't feel like standing out here in the rain with you."
Embarrassed by the comment, Leon scratched his head and hurried after Lear into the Police Station.
As they stepped into the Police Station Lobby, Lear pointed toward the clothes and gear laid out on a desk. "This is all yours, Leon. Lieutenant Marvin prepared it for you earlier. We didn't think you'd make it in to use it."
Leon looked at the uniform and didn't hesitate, immediately beginning to change.
A moment later, Leon stripped off his rain-soaked jacket and donned the RPD uniform. He snapped to attention in front of Lear.
"Sir, Leon S. Kennedy reporting!"
"Lear Edward. I'm not exactly a 'sir.' You can just call me by my name. I was with the patrol team, but now I'm the one holding down the fort at the Police Station."
Lear patted the shoulders of the green, rookie Leon and gave a small laugh.
Leon hesitated for a beat. "Then I'll call you Boss. Boss, what happened to the department? Last week I got the notice to delay my reporting, and then a few days later, I saw the news about the riots. Since I entered the city, it feels like the whole place has fallen."
Lear looked out at the rainy night beyond the doors, his voice dropping an octave. "It's an infection. An Umbrella Biological Virus leak caused a massive viral outbreak. The Infected have all turned into bloodthirsty zombies. I assume you've seen them by now."
Leon nodded. "Yes. On my way into town, I saw some of those things eating people at a gas station. If I'm not mistaken, those must be the zombies you're talking about."
At that, Leon suddenly remembered something and spoke up quickly. "Boss, has a girl come by the station yet? Her name is Claire. She's the sister of Chris, a colleague here at the station. We agreed to meet up at the Police Station."
Lear shook his head. "No. You're only the second living person I've seen today. The first was a woman claiming to be FBI. I don't think she was the Claire you're looking for."
Hearing Lear's answer, Leon's expression visibly clouded.
Thinking of the ending of RE2 where Claire wields a Gatling gun and tears through G5, Lear couldn't help but shake his head inwardly: Rookie, at this rate, you might not even be able to take Claire in a fight.
Seeing Leon's distress, he offered some comfort. "Don't worry too much. If the place where you were separated isn't far from here, she should be arriving soon."
Lear's reassurance seemed to work, and Leon's expression softened slightly. He turned to Lear and said, "Boss, is there anything you need me to do? I want to keep myself busy."
Hearing this, Lear thought to himself: As expected of the chosen laborer who keeps at it until he's forty-nine. That initiative is exactly the same as the original story.
When Lear didn't respond immediately, Leon blinked in confusion. "Boss? Is something wrong?"
"No, nothing's wrong. But everyone else has already evacuated the Police Station. It's just us and the zombies left now." Lear paused, then continued, "If you're willing, go check the East Office. Inside... some of our fellow officers are in there. They're likely zombies now. If you can, put them to rest."
Leon's expression instantly became solemn, as if he had filled in the tragic blanks himself. He said gravely, "Don't worry, Boss. I'll make sure our colleagues find peace."
With that, Leon turned and headed toward the East Shutter Door.
Just as he was about to leave the Main Hall, Lear seemed to remember something and called out softly to his retreating back:
"Hey, rookie. Welcome to Raccoon City."
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Leon S. Kennedy pictures