Living Specimen

After finishing dessert, Kevira promptly said her goodbyes, leaving Amy and Maggie behind to chat.

Leon was not particularly interested, but he joined in for a few words to clear his mind.

Through their conversation, Leon learned Hershel's intentions. The old man had been worried that Leon's group would waste the opportunity for autumn planting, so he had sent his daughter over to teach them how to cultivate the fields.

It was a kind gesture. Leon thought it over. Growing vegetables was neither exhausting nor dangerous, so he decided to let all the children come and learn. They could study in the morning and plant vegetables in the afternoon, balancing work and rest while earning a modest allowance. Wouldn't that be wonderful?

Whether they ultimately produced anything or not, it would still be a good form of education.

He immediately told Amy and Maggie about it.

Amy agreed with Leon. Her mother had died when she was young, and her father had been very strict in educating her and her sister. That was how they had both ended up graduating from prestigious universities.

Maggie, meanwhile, had grown up on a farm and had helped with farm work from an early age, so she considered this kind of life perfectly natural.

The three of them discussed the details. There were currently more than thirty children of Umbrella Corporation employees. Ten were under ten years old, and twenty were between ten and sixteen. Having Maggie and the two teachers lead more than thirty children in cultivating a few acres of vegetable fields should not be difficult.

After discussing the matter, Maggie wanted to leave, but courtesy required returning a favor, and Leon was not stingy.

He had Amy assign Maggie a private apartment, then converted the gifts delivered that day into Contribution Points and issued her an ID card.

"Since you're here, go browse our shops with Amy today. Exchange these Contribution Points for supplies and have the brothers who escorted you bring them back. We don't take advantage of our friends."

"You'll also receive an income for teaching the children to grow vegetables here. Everyone is rewarded for their work—that's our company's principle."

After Maggie left, Leon sat in his office and studied the map he had marked that day. After looking at it for a while, he summoned Professor Amrin.

This senior software engineer had previously helped the company complete the deployment of its radio communications system, giving Umbrella Corporation communications coverage within a range of five hundred kilometers. He could be considered a major contributor.

Yet this contributor did not rest for a moment. Immediately after completing that task, he proposed dozens of suggestions for the intelligent system, Red Queen. Once Leon approved them, he immediately began developing Red Queen's other functions and applications.

He could almost be called a workaholic who forgot to eat and sleep for the sake of his work.

Amrin's face was still somewhat pale, and his cheeks were covered in untidy stubble. He had not shaved for at least three or four days. Wearing a pair of black-framed prescription glasses, he faced Leon and awkwardly pushed up the frames before asking:

"Boss, why did you call me up here?"

Leon pushed the map in his hands in front of Professor Amrin and asked:

"Professor, today we confirmed the locations of several important places: the Museum, Police Station, TV station, Solar Energy Factory, and Large Department Store."

"In your opinion, what might we find inside these buildings that could greatly strengthen our company?"

Amrin pushed up his glasses again, took the map, and examined it carefully. After thinking for several minutes, he finally spoke:

"This Solar Energy Factory must be very useful. Our current method of generating electricity is too limited—we rely entirely on the base's fuel generators."

"If we can acquire a large number of solar panels, we can eliminate a great deal of unnecessary waste in many areas. We might even be able to supply power to some Ground Buildings and create portable power sources."

"The Police Station's office computers should contain the latest and most complete map data for all of Atlanta. If you bring some of them back, I should be able to crack them and obtain the complete maps."

"The TV station's equipment is quite advanced. I'm not very familiar with it, but if you can find a relevant specialist, we might be able to gain access to part of the satellite network."

Professor Amrin thought for a moment, then added:

"If we can gain access to part of the satellite network, do you remember the Military Base I mentioned that produces Drones?"

"We could even remotely control Drones—not just over a few thousand meters, but remotely from ten or even dozens of kilometers away."

"Of course, I'm only talking about the areas of expertise I know. Perhaps you could ask the other professors and see whether they have different opinions."

After Professor Amrin left, Leon fell into thought again. At present, all his laborers and Warriors were occupied with building the walls. It would not be suitable to make any major moves in the short term. The only idle military force was the more than twenty soldiers under Colonel William.

None of the several tasks at hand could be completed by one person alone. Fortunately, as the base's population grew, the number of laborers he had assigned to the wall construction had reached nearly two hundred—twice as many as expected.

As long as they worked for another month and a half or so, this enormous project would be completed. By then, a large amount of labor would be freed up for other tasks, and it should not be too late.

Leon sighed. Haste makes waste. Success requires patience.

After checking the time, Leon realized that it was already past four in the afternoon after his conversation with the professor. The sun was about to set. He thought for a moment, took the Radio from his waist pouch, and contacted Merle.

"Hello, Merle. It's the boss."

"Three hours have passed. Haven't you caught those two escapees yet?"

A second or two later, Merle's slightly hoarse voice came through.

"Boss, we've caught them. Daryl is already heading back toward the base."

"But one bastard was bitten by a Zombie. Should we deal with him first?"

Leon was about to say yes when he suddenly remembered that Dr. Melpha had once expressed interest in obtaining a sample in the process of transforming.

Because their Warriors had maintained zero casualties, they had never encountered one before, and the matter had been delayed until now. This was a good opportunity.

So Leon said to Merle:

"Don't worry about the other captive for now. Lock him up, and bring the bitten bastard to me as quickly as possible."

"Remember, as quickly as possible."

Very soon—after only about ten minutes—Merle and a burly man arrived on the first floor, panting slightly as they carried a captive bound tightly with ropes.

He had a bite wound on his lower leg, his face was covered in tears of despair, and he was a thin, middle-aged man.

Leon had nothing to say. He waved Merle and his subordinate away, grabbed the man by the back of his collar, and dragged him into the Underground Research Institute.

After disinfecting himself, he stepped out of the elevator.

There, he saw Dr. Melpha and Dr. Jenner already waiting. Leon seemed to catch a trace of excitement in their eyes.

He did not find it strange. Scientists often had an intense curiosity, and a live viral sample was indeed a rare sight for the two of them.

He pointed at the bound man and said:

"Doctor, this man is already doomed."

"There's no need to care about his life or feelings anymore. Handle him however you like. For your safety, I'll stay here and lend a hand."