Sharpening Knives for Spencer

The equipment cases were opened.

Inside lay the Mechanical Exoskeletons, hydrogen batteries, and MA5Bs, along with various accessories and attachments for the rifles.

There were under-barrel shotguns modified from the M-26, as well as under-barrel grenade launchers adapted from the M203, providing the MA5B with a variety of options to increase its firepower.

"What is this...?"

"How come they look like weapons from a sci-fi movie?"

"Are these things actually usable?"

"But I have to say, they look really cool."

Seeing the Mechanical Exoskeletons and MA5Bs inside the cases, the young STARS members began to whisper among themselves.

Two Alpha operatives ignored the STARS' chatter and began to skillfully assemble the Mechanical Exoskeletons in front of everyone.

In less than a minute, the Mechanical Exoskeletons were fully assembled.

Sui Bian stood with his hands behind his back, a smile on his face as he introduced them to the STARS: "Everyone, this is our company's latest individual exoskeleton, the NEST-Exoskeleton-1, or NE-1 for short.

"It can grant the wearer strength, speed, endurance, and shooting accuracy that far exceed those of an ordinary person."

As he spoke, Sui Bian walked slowly to another equipment case, bent down, reached out his right hand to pick up an MA5B, stood straight, and held the rifle with both hands as he continued:

"When paired with the MA5B next-generation assault rifle developed by our company, the wearer can become like the superheroes in comics and movies—'hitting the mark every time'—and will never become a master of 'human-shaped outlines'."

Having said that, Sui Bian looked at Chris, who was sitting in front of him, and said: "Captain Redfield, why don't you try the Mechanical Exoskeleton and prove that my words are true? How about it?"

"No problem." Chris readily agreed.

Afterward, Chris stood up and walked forward, putting on the Mechanical Exoskeleton with the assistance of the two Alpha operatives.

Chris moved his limbs slightly to adapt to the feeling of wearing the exoskeleton, then commented: "Hmm, there's nothing uncomfortable about it."

"Then... you can try jumping straight up with all your might," Sui Bian said.

"Alright, I'll give it a try."

Chris said, bending his knees before putting all his strength into a vertical leap.

!!!

This jump instantly stunned the STARS, including Chris himself, as the height reached nearly five meters.

Even if the STARS were unaware that the world record for a standing high jump was 1.9 meters, set by a Swedish athlete, they knew that it was fundamentally impossible for a human to reach five meters.

"Thud!" With two sounds, Chris landed steadily.

Furthermore, there was no significant jarring sensation in Chris's feet, indicating that the shock-absorption effect of the Mechanical Exoskeleton was also outstanding.

"How was it?" Sui Bian asked with a faint smile.

"Im... impressive." Chris was somewhat dazed.

"Heh." Sui Bian chuckled again, then said to the group of equally dazed STARS:

"Behind you stands Umbrella. In the future, even higher-tech weapons and equipment will be released one after another. So... you will have the capital to confront those so-called anomalous phenomena."

"If that's really the case... I have no objections," Marini said first.

"Me neither," Jill followed.

"With these sci-fi weapons, I have confidence now!"

"Isn't it just Satan? Let's take it down!"

Seeing Sui Bian demonstrate the Mechanical Exoskeletons and MA5Bs, the group's confidence soared.

"Very good," Sui Bian said, revealing a rather pleased expression:

"You are the first Mobile Task Force established by Umbrella, codenamed Charon, meaning the ferryman of the dead—but you are here to ferry those anomalous phenomena."

Next, Sui Bian led Chris, Marini, Jill, and the other members of Charon away from the warehouse, driving through a secret passage in the southern suburbs of Raccoon City toward the Hive.

At first, Chris and the others were shocked that there was such a large-scale underground facility beneath Raccoon City, but they quickly accepted the fact.

After all, there were already two underground facilities of considerable size in the Arklay Mountains, so it was only natural for there to be a Hive under Raccoon City; besides, the entire city of Raccoon City had undergone a qualitative change because of Umbrella.

According to the contract, after becoming an MTF for Umbrella, Chris and his team were required to live in the Hive long-term, and they would also need to undergo professional training from Hunk and the other Alphas in the early stages.

Although Chris and the others were elite police officers, and both Chris and Jill had military backgrounds, there was still a significant gap compared to the Alphas, who all had elite military backgrounds and had received training in countering B.O.W.s.

Even after finishing their training, the MTF would still need to be stationed in the Hive long-term to wait for orders, though the contract clearly stated that every four months, members would be entitled to a short vacation in rotation to spend time with their families and children.

On the 16th, all existing members of the Charon Task Force were officially stationed in the Hive, receiving training from the Alphas led by Hunk and learning how to utilize the Mechanical Exoskeletons and MA5Bs more efficiently.

From the 16th to the 30th.

During the latter half of June, following rigorous training from Hunk and Alpha, the tactical proficiency and synergy among Charon members like Chris, Marini, and Jill improved significantly.

Marini, being the most experienced and prestigious, was appointed as the captain of Charon, while Chris, who achieved the highest score in the comprehensive tests, served as the vice-captain.

Sui Bian did not remain idle during this period; he had the Red Queen covertly hire a number of second-rate mercenaries to harass Umbrella facilities in Africa and the Middle East, thereby diverting the attention of Spencer and the other high-ranking executives.

Simultaneously, with the assistance of the Red Queen and the White Queen, Sui Bian began an intensive study of everything related to Umbrella, learning how to manage corporate affairs and the like.

The two AIs had arranged a board member position for him, but he could not simply hold the title without understanding the operations, so he had to learn.

By the end of the month.

Perhaps due to being freed from Spencer's interference, Birkin's mood remained calm, which caused the development process of the G-Virus to progress slightly faster than in the game.

According to Birkin's report to Sui Bian, the development of the G-Virus was expected to be completed by mid-to-late August, after which work could begin on extracting the serum from Sui Bian's body.

August 14th.

After 60 days, the Hive possessed 84 Mechanical Exoskeletons, 177 MA5B rifles, and 41 Hydrogen Batteries.

This was enough to equip two USS combat squads, signaling that it was time to take complete control of Umbrella.

August 15th.

00:30.

Sui Bian, along with the Alpha and Omicron USS squads, used the routes provided by the Red Queen to travel secretly to Europe.

After 17 hours, Sui Bian, Alpha, and Omicron—a total of 41 people—converged 40 kilometers west of Dublin, Ireland.

The meeting point was in the mountains of Dublin, approximately 7 kilometers in a straight line from Spencer Castle.

(The following times are in Irish time)

11:00.

Under Sui Bian's instruction, the Red and White Queens forged an order from Spencer, commanding all board members to travel to the Spencer family castle for an internal meeting to resolve the company's current crisis.

12:14.

As the board members were all European aristocrats, they had all arrived at Spencer Castle by 12:14.

However, Spencer, who was at the center of the vortex, claimed that he had never issued such a summons.