Chapter 147: Spoilers
"Hah!"
Jake suddenly opened his eyes, gasping for breath. That was the first time he'd ever experienced being shot while dream-walking—even if it wasn't his real body, the sensations were disturbingly real.
When he turned to look at the still-sleeping Dr. Abraham Erskine, he smiled with satisfaction, snapped his fingers, and then pulled back the curtain and stepped outside.
The Super Soldier Serum data was now his. All he needed to do was compile the information and send it to his two scientists for analysis and replication.
He'd barely stepped out when Dr. Erskine followed him, looking confused.
Rubbing his temples, the doctor was wondering what had just happened and why he'd suddenly fallen asleep.
When he saw the MP standing guard outside, the soldier immediately asked, "Doctor, are you alright?"
"I'm fine," Erskine replied, still rubbing his head. "What happened? How did I fall asleep in there?"
"You went in with that Asian gentleman saying you had something important to discuss, but he came out a minute later saying you'd suddenly dozed off, Doctor."
"An Asian man?" Dr. Erskine searched his memory but couldn't recall anyone fitting that description at all.
"Nothing significant could have happened in just a minute," Dr. Erskine reasoned, taking a sip of water to clear his head before promptly dismissing the entire incident from his mind.
Meanwhile, Jake, having successfully stolen the information from Erskine's subconscious through dream manipulation, walked forward with a satisfied expression. He pulled out his dice and casually tossed them into the air. The dice landed on the ground showing the smiling face.
The exhibition at the Modern Marvels Exposition was still in full swing.
When Jake emerged into the main hall, he unexpectedly spotted the future Captain America himself—Steve Rogers.
The guy was still short and scrawny, exactly as he should be at this point in the timeline.
When Steve noticed Jake's gaze on him, he gave a shy, awkward smile.
Suddenly, an idea struck Jake: it wouldn't hurt to make an impression on Captain America now. It would be interesting when Rogers woke up seventy years later to find Jake still around in that future world.
He walked over and followed Steve toward the recruitment testing area.
Even standing on the height-measurement platform with shoes on, Steve barely met the minimum requirement.
"Hello," Steve greeted politely as he stepped off the platform, noticing Jake—this well-dressed Asian man—still standing nearby.
"Hello," Jake replied with a knowing smile, his eyes taking on an intentionally mysterious depth.
A carefully crafted atmosphere of mystique surrounded him.
The diminutive future Captain America immediately sensed something unusual about this stranger.
"I've seen you before," Jake began, steering the conversation to establish psychological control.
This was merely a basic application of hypnotic suggestion, quite effective in social interactions.
"Seen me?" Steve stammered, shrinking back slightly and glancing around nervously. He assumed his repeated attempts to enlist under false identities had been discovered.
He was too frail, too small—even finding work as a dockhand would be nearly impossible given his physique.
"Not in the present," Jake shook his head enigmatically, "but in a certain future."
Steve chuckled awkwardly, shook his head, and started to walk away, clearly dismissing the comment as fortune-teller nonsense.
He was a rational man who didn't believe in superstition, though he wouldn't be rude enough to call someone out on it.
"I see you growing strong—stronger than any man alive," Jake continued, watching the thin figure preparing to leave. At that moment, he probably seemed like some street mystic peddling fake prophecies.
"I see you wearing the colors of the American flag, carrying an indestructible shield, heading into battle. You will be unstoppable!"
"Your life will be long. Perhaps one day you will fall into a deep sleep, but don't be afraid when you awaken. It will be another opportunity for you to defend freedom and justice."
When Jake mentioned Steve growing strong, this physically weak but mentally resilient man subconsciously stopped in his tracks. Especially when Jake spoke of going to battle, Steve had to admit his heart skipped a beat.
Just as he was about to turn around, a little girl holding a black cat came running toward them.
Steve instinctively stepped aside, knowing he didn't know any girls—or women, for that matter.
"Thank you, Captain Rogers," the little girl unexpectedly said after he moved aside.
Rogers? She knew his name?
Captain? What was that about?
That voice also sounded strangely familiar.
Turning his head, Steve saw the little girl with the black cat happily running up to the Asian man who had just told him those incomprehensible things, acting completely comfortable with him.
The black cat nimbly climbed onto the man's shoulder and settled there.
However, a pair of cat eyes like polished obsidian stared directly at Steve, making him feel oddly like the cat was studying him with human intelligence!
"You just gave him a spoiler," Jake said, taking Matilda's hand with mild amusement.
"Spoiler?" Matilda covered her mouth with her small hand, feigning innocence. "Sorry! When I realized he was Captain America, I just blurted it out."
Then she laughed mischievously. "But it was pretty fun, wasn't it?" Her eyes curved like a little devil who'd successfully pulled off a prank—she absolutely hadn't said it accidentally.
Although this elaborate setup was just a spontaneous idea for Jake, Matilda's unexpected participation could be considered a helpful assist.
"Mr. Rogers," Jake said, the black cat perched on his left shoulder while his right hand held Matilda's. He approached Steve one more time. "If you want to successfully enlist, I suggest you spend a little more time at the recruitment office. Stay visible."
"Th-thank you," Steve stammered, nodding slowly as he watched Jake and his unusual companions leave.
Twenty minutes later, just as he'd always dreamed, Steve met Dr. Abraham Erskine and was selected for Project Rebirth.
Jake's cryptic advice had actually come true!
The future Captain America didn't know what a "spoiler" was, but he suddenly remembered something important.
"Wait a minute!" he exclaimed, clenching his left fist and slapping it against his right palm. "That little girl's voice... it's the same girl from earlier today!"
Rogers, even when being beaten in that alley, hadn't lost his hearing. He still remembered Matilda's voice clearly—perhaps because he rarely heard any woman say his name.
Could it be that the mysterious Asian man really did know something? What had that girl done when he'd been knocked unconscious today? When Bucky had helped him up, the strange duo had completely vanished.
Meanwhile, having successfully obtained what he came for, Jake quickly returned to his own base. After taking an NZT-48 pill, he perfectly recalled and transcribed all the Super Soldier Serum data from Erskine's memories.
Not only that, he also received several pieces of good news from his research team.
For example, research on the parasitic organisms had made significant progress. Their disturbing head-splitting attack pattern had been successfully controlled after his two scientists altered their chromosomes and genetic structure.
The parasites could still perform biomimetic transformation and even possessed enhanced durability, yet they no longer exhibited the grotesque splitting behavior.
This modification didn't affect the parasites' effectiveness, but for Jake, at least their appearance wouldn't be horrifying anymore—which was good enough. He immediately sent Princess back for the genetic modification procedure.
The T-virus research hadn't fully commenced yet because they still needed access to a perfect T-virus test subject—specifically Alice—which meant Jake would need to re-enter the Resident Evil universe eventually.
The Super Soldier Serum, the latest addition to their research portfolio, was surprisingly considered relatively simple by his two doctors.
They estimated they could produce a functional version in a very short time. However, removing the psychological side effects—specifically, the serum's tendency to amplify existing personality traits, making good people better and bad people worse—would take additional time, though not much.
After all, the Super Soldier Serum was far less complex than the T-virus.
One brought a person to the theoretical peak of human capability, while the other essentially created a superhuman with abilities beyond natural limits—they operated on completely different levels.
Having obtained the confirmation he needed, Jake decided to return to the world of Captain America: The First Avenger. After all, it would be a waste to enter this universe just to collect some research data and leave.
There were other opportunities here worth exploring.
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