TWP 9: Play Possum

September in Newo City isn’t actually that cold, but Lin You habitually wore a gray thin sweater, layered with a lab coat.

This was quite rare in the Reid Bio-Research Institute, where even those in short sleeves struggled to stay warm.

But at this critical moment, no one would care what Lin You was wearing, unless he decided to put his underwear on his head.

The long sleeves also did a good job of concealing the marks from his injections.

After sleeping for an afternoon, he felt relatively refreshed and made his way smoothly to the confinement room where Cole was held.

He plopped down in front of the monitoring room, adjusting the microphone and sound equipment.

Before coming, he had injected himself with two more doses of medication, and his body did feel a bit better; he wasn’t as uncomfortable as when he had just woken up, and he couldn’t even feel the pain anymore. Perhaps if he got two shots every day, he could die without feeling a thing.

Lin You leaned back in his chair and let out a sarcastic laugh, then hugged his stomach and closed his eyes, pretending to sleep.

Only when he felt no pain did he seem to sense something churning in his stomach, but he hadn’t eaten anything, so there was nothing to digest. Could it be stomach acid mixed with blood?

He was going to die.

At that moment, he felt a sense of reality.

He touched the two wounds on his still-healing stomach, lowering his gaze, his fan-like eyelashes slightly obscured by the reflection of the lens.

Inside the confinement room, Cole was sleeping with his back to him.

What Lin You remembered most was how beautiful Cole’s back muscles were. After becoming a test subject, they had developed slightly, but not in a way that was alarming; rather, they were beautifully defined muscles.

Lin You propped his chin on his hand, silently fixating his gaze on Cole’s back muscles.

Why did he want to take Cole to Gowei City?

It clearly wouldn’t help his and Xia Zuo’s plan, yet he still did it.

Or was it to resolve him personally?

To eliminate this monster he had created, which could potentially interfere with his variables.

As he pondered, he chambered a round in the gun he held, the sound echoing softly.

Then he extended his left hand, aiming at the glass wall, directly at the back of Cole’s head as he slept.

Aiming at his head and pulling the trigger would kill the bulletproof infected; even a small GLOCK 17 could easily take his life.

His right hand held a cigarette between his middle and index fingers, and he took a deep drag. As he pulled the cigarette away, he was surrounded by slightly hazy white smoke, the nicotine rushing to his brain, numbing Lin You’s senses.

His trembling right hand dropped some ash onto the pristine floor, and Lin You’s left index finger lightly moved on the trigger. In the end, he still put the gun down.

Cole, with his evenly rising and falling back, seemed completely unaware of Lin You’s earlier actions.

Just a month ago, meeting Cole had triggered Assimilation Symptoms.

Knowing that Cole’s thirst for his blood wasn’t just due to the virus but also because of the Assimilation Symptoms made Lin You feel somewhat helplessly amused.

Important?

So what if it was important? It might even be important enough to want him dead.

He was going to die, and Cole, affected by the E-Virus, would forget him. After the operation in Gowei City, regardless of whether the Cole who had lost his past memories would eat him or not, he wouldn’t allow himself to be infected and assimilated.

He wanted to die; this was his own decision.

For both of them, it would be the best outcome.

“Eek—” The door to the monitoring room opened.

Lin You didn’t turn around. “Dean Matthew, good evening.”

After speaking, he put the cigarette back in his mouth.

“You know this is dangerous, right?” Matthew’s displeased voice came from behind.

He then glanced at Cole, who was soundly asleep, chained up, and at Lin You, who was leisurely smoking. He furrowed his brow, suppressing his anger, his throat moving as he spoke, “What were you thinking? You want to take Cole to Gowei City? Is our military strength not tense enough? Not enough protection for you, and now you want to subdue Cole?”

“What else? You know we’re still unclear about that Assimilator’s strength.” Lin You replied nonchalantly. “I’m just using Cole’s Assimilation Symptoms to have him protect me during this process. Nothing will happen.”

“That’s very dangerous.”

“What, am I some fragile item?”

“…”

“Cole said he can sense that the strength of that Assimilator is weaker than his, which is why he can resist those summoned commands.” Lin You turned his chair to face Matthew. “We made a deal; he’s willing to protect me, allowing me to safely enter and exit Gowei City, and in return, I’ll feed him my blood. When the time comes, we’ll gauge that Assimilator’s strength, and if it’s feasible, we’ll return to Reid. As for Cole, if he becomes uncontrollable, we can just kill him. Isn’t that killing two birds with one stone?”

“Don’t you want to give it a try?”

“Killing him is easy.” Lin You tilted his neck to the left, tapping it with his fingertip. “Don’t forget this.”

“And today, he caused a scene in the lab just to see me. If he doesn’t see me in the next few days…” Lin You raised his gaze, “he’ll probably destroy the lab like he did today. But don’t forget, no one can subdue him like I can.”

Matthew took a deep breath, then rubbed his temples wearily.

On one side was the virus developer, and on the other was the perfect test subject. Dealing with either side was enough to give Matthew a headache, not to mention the current viral outbreak in Gowei City and the looming threat of the unknown Assimilator.

Lin You was right; using Cole to retrieve that high-level infected was a good idea. If Cole became uncontrollable later, they could directly kill him to ensure Lin You’s safety, which would be the best solution to guarantee the continued development of the E-Virus.

If Cole could be controlled by Lin You, that would be even better…

“…Not speaking means you agree.”

“…Fine.” Matthew said, taking a deep breath.

Lin You smiled, took one last drag from his cigarette, and then extinguished it on the pristine tabletop.

This action successfully caught Matthew’s attention, so he didn’t notice the gun and the lit microphone indicator behind Lin You.

Matthew immediately scolded, “Didn’t I prepare an ashtray for you? Must you act like a rogue?”

After searching nearby, Matthew turned and pulled a white ashtray from a storage cabinet, handing it to Lin You. “The entire Bio-Research Institute is set up for you.”

“Such honor.” Lin You didn’t take it, lazily flicking the cigarette butt from the table into the ashtray in Matthew’s hand. “So, I’ll wait for your arrangements.”

This action once again sparked Matthew’s displeasure.

“We leave tomorrow morning; after all, time is of the essence, isn’t it?”

“…Fine.”

Matthew gritted his teeth, feeling somewhat tricked.

“Six-thirty tomorrow morning.” Matthew casually put the ashtray back in the cabinet, turning his face to glance at Lin You. “Three other guards will accompany you….” His deep brown eyes flickered with a hint of anger as he pointed to his own neck. “Don’t forget your purpose. If I find out…”

Lin You’s gaze turned cold, responding indifferently, “Mm, understood.”

Matthew sneered, turning to leave, slamming the door of the monitoring room behind him.

…

A mouse stepped onto a trap set with sweet cheese.

After waiting for the footsteps outside to fade away, Lin You finally turned back, leaning closer to the microphone.

“Did you hear that? We’re going to Gowei City.”

Cole’s back remained motionless, and after a few seconds, he slowly turned his head, a smile in his eyes. “Honey knows I’m awake, huh?”