Mutagen

Day 367 - 12:11 PM - Kajen, Pati Regency, Central Java, Indonesia

The life and death situation passed favorably for everyone heading toward Bali.

And considering the situation, it was quite a miracle.

A mountain-sized [Infected Turtle], hundreds of puss-covered and rotting [Infected Birds], and a horde of assorted [Mutated Infected], each of these enemies would warrant total annihilation to most survivor groups.

The giant turtle might be doable, depending on the situation. While it moved faster than the average walking speed of an adult human, it was far slower than a human running for their dear life. However, it was an [Infected].

It was not subject to stamina limitations, unlike living creatures. Thus, it was possible for it to catch up to the fleeing humans once they expended all of their energy trying to run away.

But now, the [Infected Birds] got cut into bits and pieces while most of the [Infected] horde were, technically, erased to nothingness.

And the most unbelievable of all...

The mountain-like turtle was now brought to their side and would serve as their mount for the rest of the journey.

It was such a fairytale-like setting.

Was it possible to control or tame the [Infected]? None of the people of Indonesia present here thought it was possible. However, no one could deny what they were currently seeing with their own eyes.

With its body lowered, the mountain-like turtle let the base of the mountain on its shell touch the ground without moving. And everyone was being urged by their leaders to climb such a dangerous mountain.

"Enter one by one! Don't rush!"

Farel shouted as he led the survivors into a portal leading to the flatter area of the mountain near the peak of the giant turtle's shell.

The shape of the [Infected Turtle's] shell appeared to be similar to a sea turtle's. While the sides were the steepest, it was flatter around the peak. There was no easier way up the flatter areas. As such, they could only use a ladder Mark took out of nowhere to climb up the steeper side.

While the non-combatants were cautiously making their way up the turtle's shell, the allied leaders and some of their combatant members were already scouring the mountain-like shell. They needed to make sure there were no other [Infected] left hiddle around the shell. Since the mountain-like shell had small forests and bushes covering it, it was not hard for the [Infected] to hide anywhere.

If they were going to use this mountain-like turtle as transport, they needed to clear it of stragglers.

Fortunately, the search groups had yet to encounter any stragglers. It seemed that the giant turtle neatly shook off all its riders to fight earlier.

"Watch your step," General Wijaya assisted another person while waiting on the other side of the portal. "Don't drag your feet. The ground isn't entirely soil, so you might get hurt by accidentally kicking odd-looking things on the ground."

Odd-looking things. General Wijaya was talking about the greenish-brown bumps on the ground all over the mountain-like shell.

It was common sense that a turtle's shell would have a fixed shape depending on their species. However, while the base shape of the giant turtle's shell appeared to be a sea turtle's, its shell actually had uneven bumps all over. These bumps were the reason the mountain on its shell was not falling off.

Looking at it, one would question if the shell gained a mountain because of that shape or if the mountain on its back caused the odd shape of its shell.

Unfortunately, there was no way for the giant [Infected Turtle] to answer these questions.

While the survivors of Indonesia were preparing their new mode of transport and temporary dwellings, the cause of such a miracle and his members were looking around the battlefield.

"Elder Brother, what are you looking for?"

"Yeah, Uncle... There's nothing much here. If you're looking for the remains of the [Infected], you should look at the other side."

Elise and Emika asked Mark, who was squatting down and observing something on the ground.

Seeing that Mark was not replying, everyone approached him. They then saw him staring at the dust on the burnt ground. It seemed to be nothing interesting, considering most of the surroundings were covered in burnt ashes of grass and plants. There was also volcanic ash falling from the sky.

It was not just Mark. Amihan, on his shoulder, was looking at the same spot of dust.

"It's better not to use that on the [Infected] even if we mastered it, huh?"

Mark finally spoke.

"The attack before, Big Brother?" Annica asked. "It looked cool. So, why not?"

Mark then turned to Annica and explained.

"As cool looking as it was, it got a really annoying downside. The enemies all turned to dust, and nothing was left of them. And that's the problem."

"Ah."

Everyone now understood what Mark was mulling over.

Since there was nothing left of the [Infected] horde, there was nothing to loot or obtain after the battle. While it was not ethical to butcher [Infected Humans], no one would question taking off materials from the carcasses of [Infected Animals]. Shells, scales, claws, and many other things could be stripped from the carcasses and turned into weapons and equipment.

Most importantly, at rare times, the [Infected] had [Mutagen Stones] inside their heads, which could be used for quite several things.

The main ingredient of [Regeneration Medicine] was pulverized [Mutagen Stone]. Even Mark's [Physical Crystals] were created using these stones. There were also other results of research that used [Mutagen Stones] as ingredients and materials.

But if Mark and Amihan were to use such existence-erasing magic, nothing would be left from every enemy after every battle.

That was not a good thing for the loot goblin inside Mark.

"Hah," Mark sighed. "What's done is done, I guess. It should be expected to have drawbacks while doing experiments."

Mark stood up and turned to Aephelia.

"What about you, Aephelia?" Mark asked. "No problems with taking control of the giant turtle?"

"Fortunately, no," Aephalia slightly shook her head. "But I did encounter something unexpected."

"What is it?"

Mark immediately asked.

"Just like you, Master, I also expected the giant turtle to take more slots of my control. But it actually took less. Even less than the powerful [Infected] we had at the base, at the moment. It really is unexpected."

Aephelia explained.

It meant that taking control of the giant turtle was far easier than the [Infected] Aephelia had in her control. This only meant one thing.

The giant turtle was by no means an advanced [Mutated Infected]. It just mutated into a gargantuan body, and that was it. It was not a [Leader Type] or any type of [Infected] at all. Every aspect of its being was just the same as a regular [Infected Animal].

"This is the first, huh."

Mark voiced out.

"Definitely the first."

Aephelia nodded.

Most of the time, there was a correlation between [Infected Mutation Levels] and their sizes. The stronger and more advanced their mutation was, the larger their bodies became. Several examples were the [Flesh Infected] in Catanduanes, the [Breeder Infected] back in Philippine General Hospital, and the named territorial [Infected] in Japan also fell in this category.

Emika's father was also a good example since his tree-like body grew larger as a [Level 2 Mutated Infected].

There were some exceptions, but their kinds were very rare.

And if one would see this giant turtle, one would immediately think it was an [Infected] with a highly advanced mutation.

"So, the giant turtle is a giant fraud, huh," Mark said while looking at the dormant turtle. "Not like it's a bad thing, though."

"Yes. It is the best outcome," Aephelia agreed with Mark. "Controlling this large creature would not be a huge burden for me, even while controlling other [Infected]."

"Well then, Aephelia," Mark shrugged. "Although it's unplanned, you'll be accompanying us for a while. Is it fine? If you need to prepare a few things, ask Spera to open a portal for you."

"It is impossible for it to be not fine, Master," Aephelia smiled. "I always wanted to accompany you in your journeys, but it is my duty to manage the [Infected] in the base. I can't just go with you because of my duties. Now, a more important duty appeared. I can set aside the others for a while, although it would be nice to check on the base from time to time."

Everyone looked at Aephelia. She really looked eager. Seeing her like this, no one would be against her joining the journey mid-way.

With arrangements with Aephelia decided, she immediately asked Spera to open a portal to return to the base. Since everyone was still getting ready to ride the giant turtle, she still had time to reassign her duties at the base and put the [Infected] in her control in the correct storage areas.

Aephelia only took fifteen minutes to finish her preparations on the other side. It was quite fast. She even prepared a bag containing her things, or things that would help her serve everyone efficiently as a maid.

With two maids around, things would be smoother for the rest of the members of Evernight, at least for the chores side.

Unfortunately, while Aephelia quickly finished her preparations, the other things to do took another hour.

Laying out temporary dwellings, clearing areas above the shell, and even getting used to the giant turtle's movement. Not to mention that the large mountain that was nearly five hundred meters across was not easy to search in just a few hours.

That was why everyone had to decide against continuing the journey for the rest of the day. It was to prepare the turtle's back and themselves.

As for Luna, she was still unconscious. The first tent built on the turtle's back became hers, as they needed a place where she could recover. However, she showed no signs of waking up, even after several hours.

No one around knew what was happening to Luna. And those who knew were keeping silent.

The people were getting worried about Luna. However, waiting was the only thing they could do.

***

And while everyone was doing their own things, someone was facing a different dilemma.

"This place..."

Limabela murmured after wandering aimlessly for about an hour.

After climbing up the mountain on the giant turtle's back, Limabela felt restless. It was not because Luna was unconscious nor because she was chosen to be the temporary leader while Luna was out.

The reason was something else.

And after following her instincts and walking for almost an hour, Limabela's feet led her to the source of her unease.

"No way... Why..."

Limabela lamented. Her legs lost their strength as she slumped to the ground and fell on her butt.

Before her was a hill-like scenery. A hill with a cliff and a few layered and uneven areas facing the steep stone wall.

"I am wrong. Right. I am wrong... This can't be the place. There's no way I am correct. I must be hallucinating."

Limabela began murmuring nonsensical things. However, the familiar scene before her never changed.

"No..."

Limabela took a deep breath. She realized she was becoming unstable. She must not let fear get the best of her.

"Should I tell them to abandon this turtle..."

Limabela began thinking. However, for what reason? There was no way everyone would want to leave such a convenient situation. With this turtle, the journey would be less tiring and safer. They would reach Bali in the best conditions.

No one would listen to Limabela, especially since there was no way she could tell them the actual reason.

"Just why would this place be here..."

Limabela could not help but tear up. The pent-up stress she had for the countless nights filled with deaths began to overflow. While the visions became better, she had seen the worst far more times for the new ones to relieve her.

"Why... The place where we died... Why is it on the back of this turtle?"

Limabela asked the heavens.

The visions might have changed. But it seemed that it was impossible for her alone to bend fate.