Mutagen

Day 360 - 10:17 AM - Garage, 38th Settlement, Muria Sacred Fortress, Mount Muria, Kudus Regency, Central Java, Indonesia

Just like what Mark said, he spent the entire morning doing maintenance on the three golems and his team's weapons and equipment.

The difference this time was that it was not only Mark and Edge who were in the garage. After Luna arrived, she stayed with Edge. Then, the rest of the leading members of the Moon Chasers also came, interested in what Mark was doing.

As for Mei and Feng Zhiruo, the two went back already. Mei had to prepare their sleeping daughters for the activities in the afternoon. As for Feng Zhiruo, she only wanted to ask Mark about what she had in mind. After Mark agreed for her to teach Luna, she had no reason to stay. The two left after bringing Mark the rest of the equipment for him to manage.

Furthermore, it was not just Luna. Mark also added Edge. In the following days, the two would be learning swordsmanship from Feng Zhiruo.

Back to the present, Luna and her friends were having a late breakfast while watching Mark work. The six were Weebs and Otakus. Being interested in Mark's otherworldly items was not an unsurprising thing if it was them.

Still, the six were unable to get over the fact that the younger maid, the giant rabbit, and the canine-feline creature in Mark's group were actually artificial creatures. They looked no less than a living being and even moved like they were. However, the insides of the three were not biological organs but lumps of different kinds of metal.

What made things even more incredulous was that these three artificial beings were not robots. If Mark said they were robots, it would have been more acceptable. There were already all kinds of robots in development before the apocalypse, and some advanced robotic creatures appeared after the earthquake. If the three were a product of research involving such robots, it would not be surprising for the three to exist.

However, this was not the case. Mark did not hide the truth from Luna and her friends and told them that Brynhildr, Inaba, and Cavall were magical golems. He even showed them Brynhildr's core. It was an item that could not be created even with any kind of advanced scientific technology in existence.

Being privy to technological things, Edge also noticed that Brynhildr's insides had no robotic circuitry. Instead, it had some sort of glowing symbols and magic circles. It was what caused his amazement before Luna arrived.

"Can I touch it?"

In the end, Limabela could not stop her curiosity.

"Just the armor pieces," Mark did not mind too much. "The weapons had functions that can cause accidents if you didn't know how to use them. As for the golems, the insides are intricate, so no touching those."

"It's fine. Thanks."

Limabela thanked Mark as she picked up a chest piece in front of Mark that had yet to be checked. Limabela was extremely curious, but she still maintained the common sense not to mess with the items Mark already finished checking and cleaning.

With Limabela in the lead, Luna and the other four followed suit. The shy Livia was the last to move, but even her shyness could not hold back her curiosity. However, despite her curiosity, he remained calm as she carefully looked at the pieces that interested her, doing her best not to break anything or even scratch the items. It made Mark really appreciate her conduct.

Luna and the others already knew Mark was a craftsman. Part of their curiosity this time was their interest in the things Mark created. They wanted to see his creations and try to understand them.

Unfortunately for the group, the more they looked at Mark's creations, the more they became confused. Mark's creations were not based on any modern technology on Earth but a combination of magical and alien technologies. To normal people, everything in Mark's creations did not make sense.

In the end, after giving up on understanding Mark's creations, Luna asked a question.

"Can you make us similar equipment?" Luna asked, putting down the chest plate that belonged to Mei. "I'm not asking for free. If we can afford the price, we'll pay. Otherwise, we won't bother you."

Luna could not understand how Mark's equipment worked. However, she had already seen what his creations could do in the past few days.

Mei's gun which could kill a [Fog Crawler] in one shot. Miracle's pair of gauntlets that could glow and cause heavy impact in her every punch. And even the pair of pistols Iola, which could shoot elemental bullets. All of these items were now in front of Mark for maintenance.

Mark's creations were out of this world. If Luna could have Mark make some for them, even just a few weapons, she was sure that it would make it easier for her and her friends to protect their home.

Unfortunately, Mark shook his head.

"Is it about the price?"

Luna asked as she saw Mark's initial response. In any case, she would not blame Mark. Equipment like these would be priceless, even in front of the government and the military.

"It's not," Mark replied. "These items use a unique energy source only I can make. I believe you can make out the rest from my answer."

Mark did not bother explaining further. His answer already explained what he needed to say.

And, except for Bajing and Livia, who needed more explanation, Luna and the rest understood what Mark meant.

The items in front of Mark right now needed a unique energy source only Mark could provide. Unfortunately, Mark was only here to help Luna for a limited period of time. Mark's group would not stay here forever. And when they left, there would be no way for Luna's group to get the energy source from Mark anymore. At that time, the equipment would be rendered useless.

While Luna and her friends were mulling over his words, Mark gave them a glance. Mark sure gave them such a reply, which would surely result in such thoughts. However, in truth, Mark was just being lazy.

Mark could continue making the [AT Cells] that gave power to most of the functions of his [Abyss Tech] creations and sell them to Luna's group at fixed intervals. However, since he was the only one who could make these items, it meant that making these items continuously at a larger scale would steal more of his time for researching more things and even take the time he could play video games or watch anime with his daughters. That was a big no.

"Forget it then," Luna said dejectedly. "Sorry for asking something ridiculous."

"It's not ridiculous. You just wanted to expand your options, right?" Mark spoke. "Besides, it's not like I can't make anything else. I just said that I can't make the same as these for your team, but I can make other things."

[Abyss Tech] was the fusion of [Alien Tech] and [Magi Tech]. These items were difficult to distribute because of their energy source. After all, its energy source was mainly based on [Alien Tech] fused from technologies from planet Eriellis and the [Mechids]. However, if [Alien Tech] was removed from [Abyss Tech], all that was left was [Magi Tech]. [Magi Tech] was technology based on magic and things from the Lost Era. And now, Earth was filled with magical energy.

If Mark only used [Magi Tech], it would be possible to make items with similar functions for Luna and her group. The functions and strengths would be inferior compared to [Abyss Tech] items, but the issue with the power source would be eliminated.

After all, magical energy was already in the air. All that was needed was to make something to gather the energy and turn it into a power source.

After hearing what Mark said, Luna's eyes widened in excitement.

"Are you sure? It doesn't have to be similar. As long as we can have better weapons and equipment than what we have now, it would be the best."

"I already said last night I would help your group," Mark told Luna with a shrug. "I'll make it cheap but not free. Also, you need to gather the materials and provide me with a workshop. Can you do that?"

Luna turned to her friends in askance. However, there was no need to ask. They were all in agreement.

"What would you need?" Luna asked. "Since we are going out in the afternoon, we can start gathering what you need."

It was the plan for today. Since Luna's group and Mark's family spent almost the entire night awake, the morning would be spent resting. In the afternoon, they would go to the southern area of Mount Muria's peak.

There were two areas in the central Muria Sacred Fortress. It was the Northside Peak and the Southside Peak. 

The Northside Peak, or northern area, was for the government and those people and families with high standing. With high walls and natural steep mountain terrain, it was the safest area of the Muria Sacred Fortress. 

On the other hand, the Southside Peak, or southern area, was governed mainly by the military. It was where the refugees and most unaffiliated groups gathered. Most importantly, it was where the military hospital was located. It also had a market where groups tended to barter items.

The destination for the afternoon was the military hospital. It was where Luna's niece was admitted and was being taken care of. That aside, they would also need to stop by the military exchange office to get their payment. Since the exchange office and the market were in the same place, it would be better to take care of things in one go.

Mark stopped his work for a bit and began listing what he needed for the workshop. Half of the items were traditional blacksmithing equipment, while the other half was electrical equipment.

The list made Luna a little worried.

"About the electric equipment, should we also exchange gas for the generator?"

The 38th Settlement had a single generator. However, the generator was only being used during emergencies since gasoline was extremely expensive.

"Don't worry about the gas," Mark said with a smile. "I can take care of the power on my own."

Luna and her friends were confused. They could not understand how Mark was going to do it. However, they did not ask questions. The person already said he would deal with the problem on his own. They only needed to thank him for it.

Soon, even with the little disturbance the curious group made, Mark finished the maintenance of the three golems and their equipment. Fortunately, aside from finding another strand of a newly grown vine inside Inaba's leg, nothing else seemed to have problems. Mark only needed to clean the blood-stained armor and melee weapons. 

The blood seeping into the gaps of the equipment was the most troublesome to clean. Mark could understand why most battle equipment was made as sleek and simple as possible. Intricate-looking weapons and armor sure looked cool, but those kinds of things were a pain to maintain.

It was already near lunch when Mark finished. As Mark gathered the equipment, the three golems helped carry the items back to the bunker. Mark and his family would be accompanying Luna, Edge, Bajing, and Nelia to the Southside Peak. As such, they would need to wear the equipment just in case.

Although Mark was already in the so-called safe zone, it was not exactly safe. It was better to take precautions.

Amihan would also accompany Mark as usual. However, Emika and Feng Zhiruo would stay behind. There was no need for everyone to go, after all. Besides, it was the first time for Annica and Hannah to be on a long journey. The two were really tired. They would need protection while resting. It would be left to the Emika and Feng Zhiruo. Chaflar, Laelaps, and the [Ground Hunter] were also there to protect them.

And with that arrangement, lunch ended. After resting and digesting the food, the group set off to the Central Areas of Muria Sacred Fortress.