July 3rd, 2023.

As Richard stepped out of the laboratory, the intense and pulsating pain in his body became impossible to ignore. The aftermath of the chaotic brawl with the monstrous Boss left him feeling battered and bruised, his muscles screaming in agony with every movement. The once pristine and orderly hallways now seemed to blur and sway around him, 

His breath came in ragged gasps, and he could feel the sweat and grime sticking to his skin, a stark reminder of the violence that had just transpired. The sounds of the lab—the gunshots, the roars, the shattering of equipment—still rang in his ears, refusing to fade away into the background.

Mark was quick to his side, his face etched with concern. "Richard!" he exclaimed in an urgent tone. "I came as soon as I heard the news. Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. The adrenaline is just wearing off, I can definitely use a clinic," Richard let out a chuckle, though it was strained and laced with pain. He straightened up, attempting to mask the extent of his discomfort from Mark, who was analyzing him with scrutinizing eyes.

"Looks like you've been through a warzone," Mark remarked. 

"That simile would make sense to you if you saw the lab," Richard said as he turned and extended his arms toward the lab.

Mark looked at it and it was literally a warzone inside the lab. 

"But are you going to be okay?" Mark asked, genuinely concerned for his commanding officer's safety.

"I've had better days," Richard responded wryly, trying to make light of the situation. He wiped at his forehead, grimacing as he felt the sting of small cuts and abrasions.

Mark, not entirely convinced but deciding not to push the issue, nodded. "We need to get you to the med bay, pronto." He reached out, offering his shoulder for support, but Richard waved him off.

"I can walk," he insisted, his tone firmer than he intended. He knew Mark was just trying to help, but he needed to remain on his feet and maintain some semblance of control.

As they made their way down the corridor, the sounds of the lab grew fainter, but the events that had transpired lingered heavily in Richard's mind. He replayed the moments over and over, analyzing what had gone wrong, and what he could have done differently.

"Sor sir, about the pill. Is that what caused it?" Mark finally spoke, breaking the silence that had fallen between them. 

Richard nodded. "The pill that Andrea is eating indeed has a transformative effect, on her kind, it'll make them stronger but for humans. Well, let's just say things would get really bad. Anyway, since it's just the first attempt, maybe by doing it again we can achieve different results. We can use the Boss's men who were guilty of heinous crimes at the Resort's World Manila." 

"We can do that sir, but please, no more staying inside the lab, and it must be heavily armed so if things go wrong like earlier, we can prevent it." 

"Yeah…it's for the best."

As they reached the med bay, a team of medics rushed forward to assist Richard, their professional demeanor kicking in as they assessed his injuries. Richard allowed himself to be led to a bed.

"We need to get him cleaned up and check for any internal injuries," one of the medics instructed.

While Richard was being tended to for his wounds, Mark was on his tablet and searched for a perfect fit for a test subject. "How about this one, he committed rape, violence, and numerous other crimes. His record is extensive," Mark said, looking up from his tablet to address Richard.

Richard, still wincing from the pain as the medics worked on him, managed to glance at the profile Mark was holding up. He scrutinized it briefly before nodding in approval. "Looks like a good candidate. Oh, before I forget, I want to share some of my observations."

"Okay sir, spill it out." 

"You see, The Boss earlier transformed into a monster right? However, there were no health bars on her and I didn't receive gold coins or experience points by killing it."

"That's an interesting discovery," Mark replied, showing his intrigue. 

"I think so too. Good thing there'd be no humans on this planet who would open up the corpse of a mutated zombie, grab the pill, and eat it," Richard chuckled.

He opened his system and the user interface popped up in his field of vision. He navigated through the Wheel of Fortune.

[You have two spins!] 

Ever since they rescued Graves from the resort and therefore completed the mission, Richard didn't spin the Wheel of Fortune, he was preoccupied with the post-battle cleanup and investigations, so he didn't have the chance to use his reward. There are two spins because first, the Wheel of Fortune reset every month, and second, he got it from completing the mission. 

With a flick of his wrist, Richard initiated the spin, watching as the wheel spun rapidly before slowly coming to a stop. 

[You have won 10,000,000 gold coins!] 

"Not bad," Richard murmured to himself. It was the lowest possible reward on the wheel, but gold was gold, and he could buy a lot from it. 

He had a moment of slight frustration, though, as he couldn't help but think he had used all his luck on the previous spin. Shaking his head with a resigned smile, he prepared for the second spin, hoping for something more advantageous this time.

With another flick of his wrist, the wheel spun into motion again. The icons blurred together as the wheel spun rapidly before it gradually slowed down, coming to a stop.

[You have won 10,000,000 gold coins!]

Richard stared at the screen for a moment, his initial surprise fading into a wry smile. "Well, I guess it's just one of those days," he said, slightly amused by his consecutive streak of landing on the same reward, and again, they are the lowest. 

Mark, noticing Richard's change in expression, leaned in. "Is there a problem, sir?" 

Richard shook his head. "No. Let's focus on our experiment." 

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