After a long while, Sherry finally ceased her sobbing. She raised a hand to wipe the tears from the corners of her eyes and looked up at Lear with wet, shimmering eyes.
Lear smiled gently, reaching out to softly brush away the teardrops on her cheeks. The tears had washed faint streaks through the grime on her small face.
"All right, no more crying," he soothed softly. "Look at you, you've turned into a little messy-faced kitten."
Sherry's cheeks flushed, and she looked down sheepishly, her fingertips lightly clutching the hem of her shirt.
"Brother Lear... are you all right now? Does your body still feel unwell?" She seemed to suddenly remember something, quickly looking up to ask with concern.
"I'm fine, just a little hungry. Everything else is good."
As Lear spoke, he deliberately puffed out his chest and struck a comical strongman pose, making Sherry burst into a fit of giggles.
He wasn't lying. While Sherry had been struggling with the Zombie Dogs earlier, he could feel her terror.
He had tried to struggle to his feet back then, but his body completely refused to obey, as if a strange force was competing with him for control. His limbs had felt as heavy as lead.
It wasn't until Sherry turned to lead the vicious hounds away and those two slavering, mutated, hideous muzzles were about to snap shut on her that the worry and heartache in Lear's soul were instantly ignited by rage.
He thought he heard a subtle series of "crackles" coming from within his body. Blood was suddenly pumped out by his heart, surging through every limb and bone.
That force which had been contending with him for control of his body was washed away by the tide of blood, transforming into a warm power that flowed to every corner of his frame.
In the next second, Lear leaped into the air.
He had been nearly thirty or forty meters away from Sherry, but in that moment, everything around him seemed to slow down. In less than a second, he had crossed the open ground like a bolt of lightning, shielding Sherry and seizing the two pouncing Zombie Dogs.
Feeling the strange power surging within him, Lear softly signaled for Sherry to step aside.
He wanted to personally test his current strength and speed.
Lear walked over to the side of the small hut where they were sheltering. Facing the mottled wall, he dropped his shoulder and suddenly threw a punch.
A dull cracking sound rang out, and the wall surface instantly dented inward. Spiderweb-like cracks rapidly spread out across the masonry.
Before the rubble could even hit the ground, he followed through with a second burst of force. The brick wall, a full adult fist's thickness, was completely pierced by his arm, his forearm easily reaching through to the other side.
Looking at the destruction before him, even Lear was slightly stunned.
This power was far greater than before.
He then remembered his abdomen, which had been pierced by the Licker's long tongue not long ago, and he instinctively looked down at himself.
The wrapped bandage had long since been soaked through with foul blood, turning stiff and clotted.
With a slight exertion of his fingertips, the bandage tore away.
Beneath the bandage, his skin was smooth. Not only was the expected gruesome puncture wound gone, but even the bruises left by the Tyrant's heavy blows and the small scratches from running had completely vanished.
"Is this... the enhancement of the T-Virus?"
Lear snapped back to reality and turned to look at Sherry.
The little girl was tilting her head, her big, cute eyes wide with astonishment as she stared blankly at the wall that had been punched through.
"Impressive, right?" Lear gave a soft smile, his tone light. "Now you should finally believe me when I say I'm really okay."
Sherry nodded repeatedly.
Lear let out a light chuckle, no longer dwelling on the strange changes within his body. Whether it was a blessing or a curse, there was no avoiding it; he had to handle the task at hand first.
Just then, Sherry spoke up softly, her small face filled with anxiety:
"Brother Lear, should we go find Sister Jill? She said she'd come back for us once she finished off the monsters, but it's already dark and she hasn't returned... I'm worried something happened to her."
Lear's expression turned serious, and he nodded immediately:
"Alright, Sherry, we'll go find Jill right now. Do you know which direction she..."
Before he could finish his sentence, a dull explosion suddenly sounded in the distance, making the air tremble slightly.
Lear immediately ran outside, looking up toward the direction of the blast.
"That direction is... the Orphanage?" Lear's expression was now quite grim.
Jill had run off to the Orphanage? That was not a good place to be.
The terrain around the Orphanage was narrow; while one could use hit-and-run tactics against a humanoid Nemesis, it would be a nightmare if it reached its Second Form.
The Second Form of Nemesis occurs when its regenerative abilities spiral out of control, causing it to lose all human characteristics. Its speed and strength increase drastically, and with the Parasite's presence, its raw destructive power far exceeds that of a Tyrant.
At that moment, Sherry came jogging out of the small house, looking up at him with a voice full of tension:
"Brother Lear, what happened? Did you find Sister Jill?"
Lear nodded slowly, his expression solemn. "Sherry, I'm afraid we have to head back to the Orphanage. If I'm not mistaken, the direction of that explosion is likely where Jill is."
After hearing this, Sherry's small body stiffened slightly, and a complex mix of emotions immediately surfaced on her face.
She had never had good feelings about the Orphanage. In young Sherry's memories, that place represented separation; her mother and father were always busy with work.
When her mother was busy, she would leave her at the Orphanage. She had to face strange rooms and cold nights alone, unable to be by her parents' side. Loneliness and fear were her deepest impressions of that place; back then, she truly felt like an orphan.
But Sherry was only silent for a brief moment. She suddenly looked up, a light gradually sparking in her clear eyes.
She wasn't alone anymore.
"I'm not afraid." Sherry took a soft breath, her gaze becoming determined as she nodded firmly.
"Brother Lear, I'll go with you! Let's go find Sister Jill!"
Hearing Sherry's resolute answer, Lear no longer hesitated. He leaned down and gently picked the girl up, leaning in to whisper a reminder in her ear:
"Don't be afraid. I've got you. Hold on tight."
As the words fell, Lear's legs exerted a sudden burst of power, and his figure shot forward into a sprint.
Sherry squeezed her eyes shut, wrapping her arms around Lear's neck. She felt as if she had suddenly taken flight; the buildings and scenery on both sides blurred past at high speed, the wind whistling past her ears.
Lear held Sherry tightly with one hand as he ran swiftly toward the Orphanage.
What he didn't know, however, was that a satellite high in the sky had been locked onto him this entire time.
In the satellite's surveillance images, a lone figure could be seen charging straight from the Police Station toward the Orphanage along the streets of Raccoon City.
Lear sprinted at full speed with Sherry in his arms, his figure flickering through the alleys like a bolting arrow. His enhanced legs exploded with staggering speed.
The zombies blocking his path along the way didn't even have time to react before they were sent flying by the impact of his charge.
In mere moments, the mottled, eerie walls of the Orphanage appeared before his eyes.
"Sherry, we're here."
Lear called out softly, gently patting her back as he set her down on the ground.
Sherry gazed at the familiar yet sinister Orphanage before her. She took a deep breath, the unease in her eyes gradually fading, replaced by determination.
Just as the two were about to step inside, a monster's roar and the sound of shattering glass rang out from the courtyard.
Lear looked toward the noise and saw a massive entity lunging across the roof of the Orphanage, its beast-like claws anchoring it to the wall.
Through the window, Lear saw Jill moving with great difficulty, desperately trying to evade its attacks.
(Translated by yourtl.app)