Mutagen

Day 377 - 8:42 AM - Port of Gilimanuk, Gilimanuk, Melaya Subdistrict, Jembrana Regency, Bali, Indonesia

The celebration was cut short, and the passing of a disturbed night followed behind it. It might have caused the people to sleep through the night barely. Nonetheless, it was better to inform everyone as soon as possible when it came to catastrophic events.

As speculated, the [Third Wave] would come within about a month. A month might be long or short, depending on the situation. In the current scenario, trying to make countermeasures against a tsunami in the apocalypse without any heavy machinery and a limited workforce, a month was extremely short.

In this situation, it was more sensible to leave the town and search for higher ground on which they could build a base. However, as leaders announced, they aimed for a more ambitious approach.

It was to build an outpost in the mountain up north, which could double as a base while trying to preserve the current state of the town of Gilimanuk.

They would temporarily leave the town for safety but would not give up on it.

If the tsunami destroyed the town, they would still be safe and sound in the mountains. But if they managed to preserve the town of Gilimanuk, the shelter would be an outlook outpost and an emergency shelter instead, while they would use the town as their main base.

That was the rough plan announced the previous night. The specifics of the plan would be relayed to the people involved after they were assigned to their roles.

***

The survivors of Gilimanuk slept longer than usual. The announcement may have kept them up late, but once they fell asleep, there was no waking up. It had been a while since they felt safe and secure to sleep without worry, not to mention having a full stomach.

And out of consideration, the people who saved them let them sleep without disturbance.

However, not everyone slept as long as the others.

Uli, the woman who took the role of the children's caretaker, woke up early as usual. As far as Uli remembered, she was not one to sleep deeply. It did not matter what environment she was in. Uli would always wake up at the same time every single day.

Sitting outside the tent where the others slept, Uli watched the bustling port. It seemed that their saviors were already starting their preparations.

Uli wondered how these people could blindly trust their leaders. But then again, the world had already faced several unimaginable catastrophes. If another happened, it would not be much of a surprise anymore.

Still, how did the leaders of these people come to know in advance? It was hard to imagine how.

"Want coffee?"

"Huh?"

Uli was startled as someone suddenly spoke to her, seemingly handing her a glass of hot drink.

"Thank you."

Unprepared for the sudden interaction, Uli accepted the drink without thinking.

"You're welcome."

The person replied as she turned around and left.

Uli watched the person's back. That person... if she remembered correctly, she was the leader of the group called the 3rd Wave. The group's name sure was identical to what the incoming catastrophe was being called.

The other survivors of Gilimanuk might still be oblivious to most details about their saviors. However, Uli was different. She was not only someone who cherished children. She also had a childlike level of curiosity. It might be the reason why the children were also close to her.

At every possible moment, Uli asked questions about their saviors. It was not hard to ask since it was not like her questions were very personal. Her childlike curiosity also affects people around her since she shows her expressions pretty loosely. It was hard to mistake her for a shrewd person.

As such, in a short span of time, Uli became sufficiently familiar with the situation of their saviors.

Feeling the heat from the drink she was holding, Uli carefully took a sip.

"Ugh."

Uli stuck out her tongue, unprepared for the unexpected taste.

So, this was what coffee tasted like, she thought. It looked like it was her first time drinking one. It was bitter but not bad at all.

"Hmmm?"

Uli suddenly looked somewhere. It felt as if someone was watching her. However, there were only busy people in that direction. Past the busy people was the tent of the group called Evernight, though.

From what Uli learned, they were not really part of the survivors from Mount Muria but were helpers from the Philippines. It sounded confusing. After all, how was it possible for them to travel to other countries in the world they had now?

Still, Uli could not help but feel wary about the leader of Evernight. He had all those girls around him, after all. Three of them were even wearing maid uniforms for some reason. What if she also got targeted?

From time to time, Uli's imagination would go wilder than necessary.

But as Uli had those unnecessary thoughts, a commotion broke among the people around the port.

"It's here!"

Uli heard some shouts as people began to gather at the western side of the port, watching the water.

Even the leaders of the survivors from Mount Muria came out. It was the same for the members of Evernight.

Curious, Uli stood up and followed the crowd.

Then, Uli's eyes widened.

From the water, something gigantic began to emerge.

Was it a monster?

Uli wondered as she looked around. However, no one seemed afraid at all. What was happening?

Then, a mountain-sized tortoise soon displayed its entirety as it moved closer to the port. It was huge. Really huge.

Uli watched in amazement as the giant monster turned and walked toward the southern area of the town. But then, she tilted her head. A question popped into her mind.

"Why was this [Infected] giant not hostile to people?"

That was right. In a single look, Uli identified Mountainback as an [Infected] creature. Even the person herself did not realize it.

"Hmmm?"

Uli felt the stare again.

But this time, Uli saw who it belonged to.

Timidly, Uli lowered her head in greeting before turning her head away.

Uli did not really want to meet the eyes of the owner of the gaze.

***

"Mountainback shrunk horribly, didn't it?"

Elise commented as they watched the giant [Infected Tortoise] emerge from the Bali Strait.

"It's only its shell, though."

Spera also had her own remark.

"It's expected," Mark replied to the two. "Since it had to travel underwater, most, if not all, loose dirt would be washed away by the water current. Even most of the trees are gone."

That was right. Mountainback's shell had undergone a drastic change since the last time they saw it yesterday.

Spera's [Rift Portals] had grown stronger. The number she could open in a day had risen significantly. She now had better control, and the size limit was also larger. However, she was still way far from opening a portal the size of a literal mountain.

As such, they could only transport everything they gathered through the portal while letting Mountainback traverse the strait on its own through Aephelia's control.

Unfortunately, making Mountainback travel underwater came with some consequences. Most of the soil on its shell got washed away, leaving only stony peaks. Even the forest on its back was mostly gone. The trees that remained were those rooted deeply in the rocks. Some were even dangling unstably since only a part of the roots connected the tree to Mountainback's shell.

Looking at the state of the mountain on Mountainback's shell, it would be hard to say that it could be habitable. The walls and cliffs of stone and the jagged, stony peaks sure looked hard to traverse.

However, its current state was just fine for what they had in mind.

"We can use it, right?"

Mark asked as he turned to Luna and the others.

Luna took another look at Mountainback and nodded.

"We can only rely on your companions for this."

"No problem," Mark shrugged. "It's my idea, so we will help. There should be enough time before we leave, anyway."

Hearing that Mark and his group would soon leave, Luna and the others could not help but feel sad.

It might have been a short while, but they had been through a lot of things with Mark's group. If they were not here, Luna and the others would not be here too. And not anywhere, either.

Not minding the mood, Mark turned to Aephelia and Louis.

"Coordinate with General Wijaya. Find the best place to set up Mountainback's resting place. Also, determine the best location to build the seawall."

"Yes, Master."

"Ok, Boss."

Aephelia and Louis replied, respectively.

"About me..."

Felicia hesitantly spoke.

"Just go with Louis," Mark interjected. "As if I will separate him from his lover."

"You..."

Felicia blushed, but it was not like Mark was wrong.

"Are we really leaving Mountainback, Master?"

Aephelia asked Mark.

"Yeah," Mark shrugged. "It's a pity, but it can't be helped. We have no way of bringing it away. Besides, even if we just lay it dormant, we need it to be connected to you. That will just end up as an unnecessary strain for you. In this case, we can only end it after giving it its final purpose."

It was what Mark had in mind. Considering Mountainback's size, it would be a perfect barrier against a tsunami. It might not be able to surround Gilimanuk entirely, but it could cover the entire southern area of the town, even with a huge excess for utilization. Then, using Mountainback as the main piece, Louis would raise the ocean floor and create a seawall to surround the town.

And lastly, they would lay Mountainback to rest. After all, it was an [Infected] creature. Once it was let out of Aephelia's control, it would go back to its true nature. It was better to end it.

Of course, there would still be other repercussions after the [Infected Tortoise] died. For example, its body would begin to rot after its death. It would become a health hazard if not dealt with properly. That part would be handled by Luna and her entourage, though. After all, Mark and his group would not be here anymore while it was happening.

With the countermeasures against the tsunami being worked on, the shelter would be up to Luna and the others. It would be their part and Mark would not have anything to do with it.

Going up the mountain and building a base there. It was the most rational approach. If Mark and his group were not here, there was no way to defend the town at all. In this case, trying to preserve the town was more or less Mark's last gift to Luna and her friends before they left.

Then, Mark turned to Spera.

"You already know what you are going to do, right?"

Mark asked.

"I know, there's no need to repeat it."

Spera gave an exasperated reply.

The tsunami would not affect the Mountain Base. However, their allies would be facing the brunt of the [Third Wave]. As such, Mark decided on another thing. It was to send Spera as a messenger to warn them. Spera would be accompanied by Annica and Chaflar. They would also pick up Odelina, share the information with her, and let her come with Spera's group to inform their allies.

Normally, Mark would not leave it to Spera alone. However, he was not in the best state to be roaming around. He also had to recreate his arsenal and wait for Val'Flora's return.

And lastly, there were other things they needed to address.

Mark turned his head. His eyes fell on someone.

That someone sure felt his gaze and their eyes met. However, the person timidly greeted him with a slight bow before turning away.

One was that person.

Then, Mark turned to someone standing not far from him.

Another was Feng Zhiruo.

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