July 24, nighttime, Seaview Villa;
William, who had just finished showering, was lying on his bed.
The room no longer looked gaudy like before. He had torn down all the posters of women and thrown them into the trash downstairs.
In their place were a spotless floor, a glass cabinet filled with books from various fields, and the latest desktop computer from 2006.
That entire afternoon, he had successfully selected twenty people from the 120 members of UBCS and assigned them to USS.
Andre had simply been too capable. The 120 people he selected were all roughly equal in ability.
The moment UBCS and USS were separated, the system informed William that he had completed the mission.
However, he wanted to wait until he was alone before listening carefully, so he had delayed it until now.
Staring at the ceiling, William said calmly in his mind, All right, system. Tell me about the new permissions and rewards.
[Received. Detected that the host spent a total of $256.8 million within thirty-three days, with the remainder omitted. Remaining funds: $100 million. Because the host completed the mission, the funding limit has been expanded to $50 billion... System funds: $50 billion. Available funds for the host: $500,000 per month.]
"Wait!"
William sat bolt upright and asked the system, "You mean the previous funds don't carry over?"
[That is correct, host. Funds are reset, not increased. Therefore, this system recommends that the host spend as much as possible before the reset.]
"Hah—"
William shrugged and mocked himself. "Usually, people are supposed to save money. In my case, I have to spend it like crazy. Fine."
[Assimilation permission unlocked. The host's current forces are UBCS and USS. UBCS: $10,000 per person. USS: $30,000 per person.]
What does this assimilation mean?
[Once an employee joins UBCS or USS, the host may consume system funds to assimilate that employee. After assimilation, a UBCS member's loyalty permanently increases by fifteen, and combat power permanently increases by fifteen. When fighting humanoid creatures such as zombies, Vampires, and undead, UBCS members will temporarily gain an additional five to ten points of combat power. After assimilation, an USS member's loyalty will permanently remain at one hundred, and combat power will permanently increase by thirty. When fighting any type of enemy, USS members will gain increases to luck and combat power depending on the circumstances. The values are uncertain. Furthermore, every USS member will completely obey the host's orders. Even suicide orders will be carried out immediately. Note: An order to kill the host cannot be executed. ... The host's employees are as follows: UBCS: 100 USS: 20 Would you like to proceed with assimilation?]
After hearing the system's explanation, William replied without hesitation, Assimilate.
[Received... Deducting $1.3 million in system funds... Assimilation complete. The host has four remaining chances to draw items or characters from the Resident Evil game series. Would you like to draw?]
Of course.
[Received. Beginning the first draw. Please wait... Congratulations, host. You have obtained the Tyrant virus/vaccine.]
As the system spoke, William saw two sealed, spiral-shaped vials appear out of thin air on the bed.
He picked up the two vials. His left hand held blue liquid, while his right held green liquid.
Seeing this, William said with some confusion, Isn't this from the movie?
[In response to the host: the containers used in the film series have the classic design. Their effects are identical to those in the game series. Please rest assured.]
All right.
Hearing this, William carefully placed the two vials on the table beside the bed and said, Continue.
[Received. Beginning the second draw. Please wait... Congratulations, host. You have obtained the Optical Camouflage technology from Resident Evil: Operation Raccoon City. The system has implanted the design principles of this technology into Catherine Elizabeth Halsey's memories.]
"Not bad!" William could not help exclaiming.
It was the game he had played back in high school.
What had left the deepest impression on him was Victor's "invisibility technology" from the Wolfpack.
With this, his USS force would be able to carry out all kinds of covert operations.
[Beginning the third draw. Please wait... Congratulations, host. You have obtained Hunk, an USS member from the Resident Evil game series whose codename is the Grim Reaper. Selecting the strongest existing USS member for modification... Modification complete. Hunk, the Grim Reaper; Basic combat power: 150. Special skill: Lone Survivor. When facing extreme circumstances, luck will increase significantly, and combat power will also increase by twenty. When Hunk is the only remaining member of his team, luck will increase again, and combat power will increase by another twenty. This state will last until the mission ends.]
"H-Hunk?" William's mouth hung slightly open as he repeated the name of the character he had drawn.
He really wanted to shout that streamer's famous line: "What the fuck?"
But he held it back.
Hunk was simply too famous.
The Grim Reaper had first appeared in the Fourth Survivor mode of Resident Evil 2.
William had been very young when he played that game. He only remembered Hunk wearing a gas mask with red-eyed octopus-like lenses and a battle suit that was gray all over.
Moreover, he had never cleared the Fourth Survivor mode, whether in the original or the remake.
He was genuinely terrible at games.
If not for the playthrough videos that had become widely available online before he crossed over, William might never have seen the ending in his entire life...
Back to the point.
For Hunk to escape unscathed from the underground laboratory and police station, both packed with zombies, mutant spiders, Zombie Dogs, Lickers, and Tyrants, was not merely a matter of luck.
It required absolute strength.
The title "Grim Reaper" was thoroughly deserved.
[Beginning the fourth draw. Please wait... Congratulations, host. You have obtained Umbrella's Engineering Team. The company has been implanted as Wang Zhaofeng's FlyChicken Construction Company, which has now been renamed Umbrella Construction Company. Special skill: Rapid Construction. It possesses exceptional construction speed and quality and can greatly reduce construction times. Furthermore, any worker who joins the company will automatically have their loyalty increased to above eighty.]
"Oh, hell yeah!"
William felt incredibly fortunate. He had still been worrying about secrecy and construction just moments ago, and now he had been handed a ready-made construction company.
From then on, he could purchase land on a large scale in Canada and build Containment Centers.
After all, the first anomalous object would appear in less than half a year. Preparing its "prison" in advance was his primary goal.
While William was excited, the system spoke again:
[Because the host has completed two beginner missions, all system permissions have now been unlocked. After the first anomalous object or phenomenon appears, this system will notify the host of its location. After successful containment, this system will provide two draw opportunities.]
"Hmm..." After a low murmur, William asked, "So the system's funding limit is $50 billion?"
[That is correct. It will also reset every 120 days. Note: Profits earned by the company will not be counted as system funds.]
Before you continue