Before long, a loud pounding sound came from the other side of the command room door. Ryan and Leon watched as the door was battered, only breathing a sigh of relief once they were certain the zombies couldn't break through.
"Let's check if there's any ammunition in the command room first."
Leon nodded, and the two split up to search. The room was in complete disarray, likely caused by officers fleeing in a hurry. They only managed to find 20 rounds of 9mm ammunition, and the other exit of the command room had been chained shut. Ryan took the map from the whiteboard and handed it to Leon.
"Take this. If something happens to me, you won't be running around like a headless chicken."
Leon took the map, folded it, and tucked it into his body armor. He slapped Ryan on the shoulder.
"Don't say things like that. We're both getting out of here."
Ryan nodded and grinned.
"Maybe…"
Since both doors were blocked, Ryan led Leon through the broken glass in the wall, jumping into the adjacent hallway. Not far away, a zombie was repeatedly slamming itself against a vending machine, attracted by its light.
Ryan gestured for Leon to stay put. He drew a knife from his waistband and slowly approached the distracted zombie.
Back in his original world, Ryan had been very familiar with zombies from the Resident Evil series. He remembered that the weakness of T-virus zombies was the cervical spine. A headshot worked—but with low-caliber weapons, it wasn't always reliable.
Now, he wanted to try something different.
Ryan gripped the knife in a reverse hold and carefully moved behind the zombie. Leon held his breath, afraid of making any noise.
When Ryan reached its back, he paused, then lunged forward.
The blade drove deep into the zombie's cervical spine.
The zombie roared and tried to turn—but Ryan grabbed its shoulder and forced the knife deeper, slicing cleanly through.
The zombie went limp.
Ryan released it, and it collapsed to the floor.
Leon approached cautiously.
"Did it work?"
Ryan nudged the body with his foot.
"It should. No matter how unscientific zombies are… they still have weaknesses."
Leon nodded thoughtfully.
"So with weaker weapons, you aim for the neck… with stronger ones, a headshot is enough."
Ryan smiled.
"From now on, we finish them like this. Who knows if they'll get back up after being shot."
---
The hallway led to two rooms: the evidence room and the West Office.
They entered the evidence room first.
Just like in the game, the keypad was missing two buttons.
Leon sighed.
"According to the notice, we need to search the entire station to find them…"
Ryan clicked his tongue, pulled out his knife, and jammed it into the missing button slot.
Leon blinked.
"...I didn't think of that."
Ryan shrugged.
"There are only three people left in this station. No need to follow the rules."
"Fair enough."
They split the ammunition they found. Although they couldn't access the shotguns, Leon found a knife, giving him an extra means of defense.
---
They moved into the West Office.
Two zombies remained inside.
Working together, they silently took them down with their knives.
Ryan froze.
"…David…"
Memories flooded back.
These weren't strangers—they were colleagues. Friends.
And now, he had killed them.
Leon stood silently, staring at the "Welcome Leon" banner above.
This place was supposed to be his beginning.
Instead, it had become a nightmare.
Leon was the first to recover.
"We should go."
Ryan nodded.
---
Ryan noticed the door connecting the West Office to the main hall was blocked by fallen cabinets.
"Help me move these."
Together, they cleared a path.
"If things get bad upstairs, we can retreat through here."
Leon nodded.
---
They headed toward the second floor.
At the base of the stairs was a darkroom used for developing film.
Ryan glanced at it curiously.
"In the game… there should be film here…"
Leon gave him a strange look.
"What are you thinking about?"
"Nothing."
Ryan quickly wiped his mouth and moved on.
---
They reached the locker room.
Beyond it was the shower room—and behind that, the S.T.A.R.S. office.
Leon frowned.
"Why is the layout so strange? Why is the shower room next to an office?"
Ryan shrugged.
"This place used to be a museum. They just repurposed the rooms."
"That explains it…"
The path was blocked by steam from broken pipes.
The valve handle was missing.
They had no choice but to head to the third-floor storage room.
---
The third floor was a mess.
Broken furniture was scattered everywhere.
Near the library entrance, a zombie hung from the ceiling.
Ryan signaled Leon to stay alert.
He stepped forward, grabbed the zombie, and yanked it down.
It came alive instantly.
Before it could react—
Bang!
Leon shot it.
Ryan finished it with a stab to the neck.
---
They moved deeper into the storage room.
There, they found the first emblem.
A thick wooden board blocked the statue.
Leon cracked his knuckles.
"I think we can break this."
Ryan grinned.
"Now you're thinking."
They stepped back.
"One… two… three!"
They kicked simultaneously.
The board shattered.
"Done!"
They bumped fists.
Then—
A crawling sound echoed from above.
A low, beast-like growl followed.
The two exchanged looks and forced smiles.
"…We're not that unlucky, right?"