At the outbreak of the virus, the police were the first group to suffer its effects. Unaware of what was happening, they went to deal with the citizens who had gone mad.
Because the outbreak began in a crowded area, and the crazed people weren't carrying weapons, the police could only try to restrain them.
During the process, some careless officers inevitably got bitten by the crazed zombies.
After repeated attacks, the first group of people to become infected a second time emerged.
The police here had likely watched their colleagues die and then come back to life with their own eyes. They'd seen them eat people alive, and some had even shot their "crazy" colleagues themselves.
Just looking at them, it was clear they'd endured a lot of things they shouldn't have had to.
"What are you doing? Nobody panic. Lower your guns! Take it slow—don't accidentally fire!" Duncan couldn't understand why everyone had suddenly gotten so tense. After all, he wasn't American, and he didn't really understand how strong their sense of crisis was.
With him mediating between them, both sides lowered their weapons.
The police officer who had spoken was still worked up. Looking at Duncan, he repeated, "Tell us the truth!"
His voice was laced with barely restrained anger. Ordinary Americans had a tradition of distrusting the elite, much like how they suspected masks and vaccines were part of a conspiracy.
Duncan heard the hostility in the man's voice, but didn't care. Once he regained control of the Umbrella Corporation, this city would become his private territory. That was the good thing about the free world: anything could be bought.
"The monsters were created by a highly infectious virus. The virus was stored in an underground biological laboratory on the outskirts of Raccoon City. It belonged to the Umbrella Corporation..."
As soon as they heard that the man-eating monsters were the result of an Umbrella virus, some people immediately started cursing furiously.
"Motherfucker, Umbrella Corporation!"
"So this was all Umbrella Corporation's conspiracy! They'll pay for what they've done!"
"Damn Umbrella Corporation..."
Sam, who had come from Marvel, looked at Duncan in confusion. Hadn't he also opened an Umbrella Corporation in Marvel?
Sam knew the plan for this operation. Duncan's goal was to take control of this world's Umbrella Corporation. If he bad-mouthed the company in front of all these people, wouldn't it be hard to clean up the mess even after he took it over?
Beneath his mask, Duncan was smiling. He'd said that precisely to set up a reversal. If he'd immediately tried to distance the Umbrella Corporation from the incident, people would have been even less likely to believe him.
He had to get them to believe it was the truth first, then offer a reasonable explanation. Only then could he build a more convincing lie.
When it seemed that everyone present had cursed enough, Duncan gestured for them to calm down. "Take it easy, folks. The virus may belong to the Umbrella Corporation, but the corporation wasn't the one that let it escape."
The people around him didn't fall silent at that. Instead, they challenged him.
"You say it wasn't. How are we supposed to believe you?"
"Then tell us who released the virus!"
"It had to be Umbrella Corporation! They even built the city walls ahead of time. They've clearly got some secret scheme!"
Kid, you're actually right!
Duncan glanced at the agitated young man holding a pistol. That was indeed the truth, but he couldn't say so. "Umbrella Corporation's virus research facility in Raccoon City is on the outskirts, and it's a hundred meters underground. All the air and water systems are rigorously inspected. There's absolutely no way the virus could have leaked!"
Seeing him speak up for Umbrella Corporation immediately set off the already sensitive police officers. Even Kendo felt that something about Duncan was off.
They weren't exactly disgusted with the corporation, though. After all, Raccoon City had grown to its current size thanks to Umbrella's funding. If the Umbrella Corporation ever pulled its investment from the city or went bankrupt, this city of more than a hundred thousand people would quickly decline.
Umbrella Corporation made Raccoon City residents who didn't work for it feel conflicted.
"You're speaking up for Umbrella. You're not with the Umbrella Corporation, are you?" A young police officer stepped forward and looked at Duncan suspiciously.
The others were just as suspicious, and began to question Duncan's identity.
There was no need to hide who he was, so Duncan admitted it. "That's right. Not only am I with the Umbrella Corporation, I'm also one of its twenty-one core shareholders!"
After his identity was revealed, the police fell silent instead.
They'd assumed Duncan was just an Umbrella employee—an ordinary one, or maybe a senior one. Either way, that wasn't a big deal.
But being one of the Umbrella Corporation's core shareholders was another matter entirely. The title represented not only assets worth hundreds of billions, but also an extraordinary social status far beyond that of ordinary people.
Even the heads of small countries had to treat an Umbrella core shareholder with courtesy. In this world, the Umbrella Corporation was a force that transcended national boundaries, with its influence reaching every corner of society. It was much like Samsung Group in South Korea.
Kendo was older, and after his surprise wore off, he didn't feel much in particular. If anything, he was pleased. As a core shareholder of the Umbrella Corporation, Duncan surely wouldn't be short of the money still owed for the guns.
If Kendo shamelessly asked him for it, even if there weren't any guns left, he could probably still get the money!
"Ahem!" Duncan cleared his throat to bring the silent crowd back to their senses. He took off his gas mask, revealing a rather stern expression. "It's precisely because I'm a core shareholder of the Umbrella Corporation that I'm telling you this wasn't done deliberately by the company. The virus has existed in this world for more than thirty years. In all that time, there's never been a problem. But with the recent turmoil in the international situation, a large number of corporate spies have infiltrated the company. We have sufficient evidence to prove that this incident was connected to espionage."
What a load of nonsense!
Duncan's words hadn't convinced the police, who already had their doubts. Just as they were about to say something, Duncan continued in a righteous tone.
"I know you don't really believe what I'm saying. How about this? As a core shareholder of the Umbrella Corporation, I promise that once this is over, you can visit our underground Hive facility. Then you'll see for yourselves just how secure the Hive is."
"Furthermore, the Umbrella Corporation won't shirk its responsibility. We'll provide substantial compensation to the victims of this incident, find the culprit, and see that justice is done! It's time for the Umbrella Corporation to reform. To prevent another Raccoon City incident, we'll disclose some of our records going forward and create a channel for public scrutiny, so everyone can help oversee us!"
Duncan's speech was extremely vivid. He expressed his sympathy for the victims and made a number of promises.
At the end, he pulled his Umbrella Corporation ID card from his pocket and handed it to Kendo, who was still bewildered. "Kendo, this is my Umbrella Corporation work ID. Keep it as a token. If we fail to handle anything properly later, you can hand it over to the media and let the law judge me!"
Kendo stared at the ID bearing Duncan's photo and nodded mutely. After that barrage of persuasive words, even James, who knew the truth, was dumbfounded. He couldn't help but feel that Duncan, who'd said all that, was a good man.
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