Mutagen

Day 364 - 6:53 PM - Northwest Fields, 38th Satellite Settlement, Muria Sacred Fortress, Mount Muria, Kudus Regency, Central Java, Indonesia

A display of unfathomable power.

First was Ellie. Then Edge followed right after.

Ellie always had that kind of strength. It was the power she gained as a mutant. However, it was still absurd for her to stop the initial charge of the ball-like [Infected].

It was even more strange when Edge showed an amount of strength nearly equal to Ellie's. The dented-ball-like [Infected] might not have the same power after Ellie attacked it, but it was still something that could not be blocked easily. Yet, Edge stood his ground, blocking the attack with his tower shield, and bisected the entire thing into two with his greatsword.

How did the two get that strength? What changed about them?

No, the question was unnecessary.

There was only one possible source of that strength. It was the weapons they currently wielded in their hands.

However, it was also strange as to how the two were suddenly able to use the functions of their weapons without any instruction given by Mark.

"Leave the defense on me!" Edge yelled out. "Just shoot your guns!"

The morale began to rise. All the nervous members began to gain confidence to continue the fight.

All the amazement and questions should be for later. For now, everyone should concentrate on fighting.

Edge and Ellie were all set to fight the next round. On the other hand, Bajing, Limabela, and Nelia were all looking at their weapons.

From Ellie's words, a compartment and a needle. It was not hard to find them now that the three knew what to look for.

Unfortunately, Bajing and Limabela were given a pair of weapons. It meant that they needed to prick two needles with their thumbs. Edge was also given a pair, a tower shield, and a greatsword. However, it seemed that the two counted as one since Edge only needed to prick his thumb on the needle on the sword.

Limable and Bajing looked at each other, then turned to Nelia, who was also looking at them atop the roof of a nearby house. The three then turned to the weapons of Edge and Ellie, which now looked even more magnificent and powerful after getting activated.

"What am I even hesitating for?"

Bajing murmured as she pressed her thumb at needles on both bottoms of her dagger's handles.

Limabela followed suit. The needles on her pistols were just above the handle.

Lastly was Nelia, who found the needle on her sniper rifle right in front of the trigger.

After the momentary sting on their thumbs, the three entered a few seconds daze just like Edge.

The mystery of Ellie's and Edge's sudden knowledge about their weapons' functions was revealed before the three.

As she exited her dazed state, Limabela spoke.

"Was that Ms. Mei's voice?"

"Huh?" Bajing was confused as she looked at Limabela. "I heard Ms. Hannah's voice, though."

Limebela turned to Nelia and shouted.

"Nelia! Whose voice did you hear?"

"I... I think it's Ms. Annica!"

Nelia promptly yelled back.

"What are you three talking about?"

Luna asked, confused as to what the three were on about.

"We heard voices on our heads after we pricked our thumbs on our weapons..."

Limabela's voice trailed off as she looked at the pistols she was holding on both hands.

Since the three were in a daze, they did not immediately realize how their weapons changed.

Limabela's pistols seemed to have expanded a little. Just like an armor with locks released, slits and grooves on its body appeared, and each one was releasing a faint glow.

Bajing's daggers were the same. The blades slightly split in half, similar to how Edge's greatsword expanded.

On the other hand, Nelia's sniper rifle began to show glowing streamline slits on its body, giving it a sci-fi look.

The activated appearance aside, the three felt a sudden rise in confidence. The bodies of the three also felt lighter, as if they suddenly gained some borrowed power from somewhere.

"Are you three okay?"

Luna asked in worry. Her friends are behaving oddly, after all.

"I think I'm fine?" Limabela said as she looked around her surroundings. "It's just strange to be able to see this clearly, even in a dark environment."

Hearing those words, Luna became even more worried.

Luna was about to inquire to her friends further while keeping an eye on the [Infected]. However, a sudden beam of light tore through the darkness of the night.

That beam of light, accompanied by a spinning gust of wind, tore a line through the [Infected] horde, around a dozen [Infected] before vanishing.

Everyone turned to where the beam came from and saw the smiling Nelia still aiming with her magical sniper rifle.

But before everyone could recover their surprise, Limabela walked past Luna and went to the frontline while spouting an incomprehensible combination of words. Strange enough, she seemed to be talking to the glowing pistols she was holding.

"LOAD: FIRE. PINPOINT."

Limabela's pistols glowed red as she aimed at the horde. And then, she pulled the trigger.

However, there was no sound of a gun firing at all. All the witnesses could see after Limabela fired her pistols were two trails of marble-sized reddish spheres shooting out of the pistols, flying like bullets. The spheres were particularly eye-catching in the dark than regular bullets.

One bullet hit an [Infected] on its shoulder, while another hit the head of a different [Infected].

The bullets drilled into the bodies of the [Infected]. It appeared to be nothing but normal bullets. It was until the bodies of the [Infected] hit suddenly burst into flames, staring from the wounds caused by the reddish spheres.

But it was not enough.

"LOAD: SPARK. SCATTER."

Limabela spoke, causing the color of the glow of her pistols to turn bright yellow. She then fired about a pair of bullets. This time, the bullets were bright yellow spheres of the same size.

However, as the bullets hit the [Infected], a strong surge of electricity burst from the bodies of the [Infected] hit by the bullets, spreading out to other [Infected] in the immediate vicinity of the first victims.

Seven [Infected] fell with twitching bodies in that shot.

Seeing Nelia and Limabela try out their weapons, Bajing gripped her daggers tightly, wanting to try hers.

"No. Stay here!" Luna grabbed Bajing's shoulders, keeping her in place. "You can't just rush through ongoing gunfire!"

Luna was truly perturbed now. Her friends were acting weirdly.

"But..."

Bajing tried to speak.

"No buts!" Luna glared. "Even Edge and Ellie are not charging carelessly! Wait until we had no choice but to fight in close quarters!"

Bajing sighed and nodded. However, Luna never let Bajing away from her side.

"What is happening with these people..." Luna sighed. "Don't tell me Sir. Mark's weapons did something wrong to them..."

"You're not wrong."

Melfiss' voice suddenly echoed inside Luna's head.

Hearing a voice in her head surprised Luna, but she kept calm as she asked the keris in her hand.

"What? Did Sir Mark intend to do something bad through the weapons?"

"Not exactly..." Melfiss replied. "It's just those weapons he gave were imbued with magical functions that would connect the weapons to their owners. They even had functions to enhance their physical abilities to some extent and boost their morale from what I can see. However, it is the first time for your friends, normal humans, to be subjected to such a highly concentrated amount of magical energy. As such, it showed some effects on their mental state."

"In other words..." Luna turned to Bajing. "They're drunk."

"Exactly."

Melfiss confidently answered.

"But what about Limabela?" Luna turned to Limabela, who already joined the gunner teams. "Isn't her [Clairvoyance] a type of magic skill?"

"Hmm? She's a [Clairvoyant]?" Melfiss spoke as if she was looking at Limabela. "It isn't a magic skill, so as [Seers] and [Oracles]. There is no magic that could tap into the cause and effect and view the future and the past. Those are either [Psychic] or [Divine] Abilities. People with those abilities are either [Espers] or [Blessed Ones]. In any case, it's different from magic."

Luna listened to Melfiss. She needed to understand her friends if she wanted to protect them.

Fortunately, although her friends were under the side effects of magical energy drunkness, they were not uncontrollable.

Edge and Ellie were still leading their groups, while Limabela and Nelia were attacking at a safer distance.

Luna only had to keep an eye on Bajing, who was itching to slash something with her new daggers.

Still, although the morale increased for the Moon Chasers, victory was still far off.

Luna observed the battlefield. The [Infected] horde was still gaining ground. Fortunately, their advance slowed down due to the number of corpses that now littered their path. Many [Infected] even began to slip and fall due to the blood and bodies they stepped on.

Nonetheless, the smell of blood began to seep into everyone's nose. The Moon Chasers had already experienced large fights before, but nothing as large as this.

In these few minutes that passed, there were already more than half a thousand corpses lying dead on the crop field. Yet, the numbers of [Infected] rushing out of the forest had yet to dwindle.

"Huh? GET READY! A STRANGE ONE IS COMING!"

A sniper shouted from the rooftop after shooting his sniper rifle a few times at the target.

And as the guy said, a strange-looking [Infected] was now rushing across the crop field, unhindered by everything on its path.

As the [Infected] came closer, a nauseating stench assaulted everyone's noses. However, it was not poison. It was the thick stench of rotting corpses.

Bullets rained on its body. However, it received not a single injury.

The strange [Infected] entered the reach of the spotlights. It ran on all fours with its sludge-covered body. The sludge was a combination of different kinds of decaying matter, giving it the look and smell it had.

"Why the hell is something like that here!" Luna yelled. "It's a [Corpse Devourer]! Light it up with fire!"

Just like its name, it was a kind of [Infected] that would eat corpses. But that was what made it scarier. In a place where there were lots of corpses, it could absorb corpses into its sludge-covered body and grow more dangerous and harder to kill.

And right now, the [Corpse Devourer] was clearly aiming for the corpses in the front of the horde.

This enemy would have been a problem in normal circumstances. Not everyone would have fire weapons ready at all times.

But now, Limabela and Nelia had the weapons Mark gave to them.

"LOAD: FIRE. BURST."

Limabela prepared her shot.

"ENCHANT: FIRE. FUSE: WIND."

Nelia also prepared hers.

And at nearly the same time, the two shot their weapons.

Limabela's bullets pierced through the sludge-covered body of the [Corpse Devourer]. And then, the bullets exploded in flames from inside the sludge, scattering parts of its sludge all over the place.

Then, Nelia's shot followed. A strong gust of wind spiraled around her bullet, destroying the head and chest of the [Corpse Devourer] before the bullet burst into flames, spread out by the same gust of wind.

The [Corpse Devourer] fell while covered in flames, coming part of the pile of corpses on the crop field. The flame on its body even began to spread to other [Infected] that passed over its sludge.

It was amazing how such a difficult creature to kill was felled in just two shots.

The weapons Luna's friends received from Mark were awfully overpowered.

But unexpectedly, after killing the [Corpse Devourer], Limabela returned to Luna's side.

"What's wrong?"

Luna asked.

"I want to fire more, but the guns don't have infinite energy. I already used up half its charge, so I'll reserve it until needed."

Limabela replied, pointing at what seemed to be an energy gauge on her pistols.

Luna nodded. It seemed that Mark's weapons might be powerful, but they still had limits.

And while the fight continued, the [Infected] finally reached the melee range. The firepower could not keep up anymore as the horde continued to pour out of the forest.

But as everyone was getting ready for the melee fight...

BOOOM!

An earthshaking explosion made everyone's body rattle.

And to everyone's surprise, the source of the explosion was far behind them and not on the battlefield.