Mutagen

Day 359 - 12:34 AM - Meeting Room, 38th Settlement, Muria Sacred Fortress, Mount Muria, Kudus Regency, Central Java, Indonesia

Mark, Mei, and Iola continued to listen to Luna's story. At this point, even without being an [Empath] like Mark, they could feel the sadness in her voice.

At that time, Luna's group safely reached the countryside town where Luna's brother married and lived with his family. The number of [Infected] was considerably lower, too, making them feel a higher chance of survival for her brother and his family.

But when they reached the house of Luna's brother, all they found were corpses. Luna's brother and wife were dead, and even her brother-in-law, the wife's older brother, was killed with them.

It was not the work of the [Infected]. Everyone was pretty sure the undead could not fire a gun.

Luna was devastated at that time.

It was one thing to be killed by the [Infected]. Being killed by a human was another.

After fighting for several days, Luna's group learned many things about the [Infected].

Dying to an [Infected] was akin to dying to a natural disaster. It was sorrowful but easier to accept. No one could stop the anger of nature.

However, a death caused by another human, specifically due to evil intentions, was not easy to accept.

"Luna's tears uncontrollably fell at that time."

Ellie chimed in before getting silenced by Nelia once more.

At that time, Luna's fear indeed fell. It was not because of sorrow but the uncontrollable anger roaring within her.

The rest of the girls described their opinions on this part of the story.

It seemed that Luna's anger was transmitted to everyone. Her hair even flowed as if there was a strong wind, even indoors.

Luna was losing control of herself due to the deaths of her brother and his family.

It wasn't until Limabela put her back in control. It was by finally revealing her ability to them.

That time was the first time they saw Limabela's ability as a [Clairvoyant] in action.

Using Limabela's [Clairvoyance], she tried to view fragments of the past through her vision.

What shocked Luna was Limabela's description of the killer.

Luna's anger rose once more, but it also had the hints of askance to control it.

The killer was a person Luna knew.

Furthermore, after killing her brother, his wife, and the brother-in-law, the killer kidnapped Luna's niece.

Why?

Luna could not help but ask the wind.

In a timely manner, someone appeared outside the house.

"Luna? Is that you?"

The person outside asked Luna as he saw her go out of the house.

When Luna saw the person, her anger boiled.

It was the killer. The thick-faced killer was pretending to talk to Luna as if he knew nothing.

The killer was actually her brother's best friend. It was the very same person who brought her brother and sister-in-law together.

Why did you kill them?

That was what came out of Luna's mouth at that time.

However, the killer tried to pretend not to know what Luna was talking about. He even asked her to stop joking around since he had just arrived to check on Luna's brother.

But as Luna's glare intensified after each lie, the killer realized he was busted.

With an insane demeanor, the killer laughed as he revealed his reasons. Luna's brother and his wife were not brought together by this guy. The killer introduced the woman to Luna's brother as someone he was courting. But after a few days after introducing the two, the woman dumped him, saying she felt love at first sight on Luna's brother. She did not beat around the bush as she did not want to hurt his feelings further. In the first place, they were not in a relationship yet. She was just being considerate in her own way.

That was the cause of it all. The man had to bear the feelings of anger, jealousy, and betrayal of that event. But he persevered. He wanted to forget. However, he was unable to. Despite the smiles he had around Luna's brother, his heart was boiling in anger.

The only thing stopping the man from stepping over the line was being afraid of the law.

However, the apocalypse brought something else rather than just the [Infected]. It was chaos unbound by law.

Without any reason to be afraid, the man picked up a pistol and made his way to kill Luna's brother. Once the woman became a widow, he would take care of her and her daughter.

But the killer did not expect the woman to jump between him and Luna's brother, taking the first shot of his gun through her chest.

It drove his insanity further as the killer unloaded ten bullets on the body of Luna's brother, even after killing everyone in the house except the daughter.

When Luna asked where the killer brought her niece, the man laughed as he said he gave the noisy kid to the gang members now ruling the area. The bastard even smiled as he began narrating the likely fate the girl had in the hands of the gang members.

Luna snapped at that time.

At this point, Luna stopped her story, letting her friends continue since Luna barely had any recollection of this part.

It was the first time Luna lost control. The purple hair Luna gained after becoming a [Mutator] started turning silver.

The killer felt the danger Luna was exuding. The killer knew that Luna was a cosplayer, giving reason to her purple hair. But as her hair began changing color on its own, he could only take out his gun to shoot her.

But the killer was unable to do so. It was because a flash of light passed by his wrist holding the gun, and it started falling to the ground.

The pain of getting his wrist cut off made the man roll on the ground while wailing in pain.

But Luna, being out of control, waved her hand. Flashes of light passed by the killer's body. His limbs began falling off one after another.

The killer wailed further, but he could not roll around anymore. However, he was not dying due to blood loss. The wounds caused by the flashes of light were immediately cauterized. There was no bleeding at all.

Everyone felt a little afraid of the Luna at that time. She had been calmly leading the group all this time, and Luna never lost her calm, even in dangerous situations.

It was really the first time Luna lost control. It was also the first time she showed that unknown power.

At first, everyone thought Luna would question the killer where the gang members were. However, she did not, as she kicked his body, which turned into a limbless stump, into the group of [Infected] attracted by the commotion.

The killer became the horde's meal in no time.

Luna then left the area alone, forcing the rest of the group to follow her. They did not know where she was going, but she was not saying anything at all as they tried to talk to her.

At the end of it, Luna arrived at the local elementary school. Armed people roamed the place, with wails of help and an aura of despair looming around it.

Even without knowing what the place was, the rest of the group knew it was the place where the gang members the killer mentioned resided.

The rest of the group felt afraid. There were only six of them, and the gang members were all equipped with guns.

But Luna did not stop. She walked to the gate, causing the guards to look at her with eyes filled with lust. Luna was a beautiful woman, and Luna's silver hair at that time gave her appearance a boost of allure.

The guards let their defenses down. Their head fell off without resistance.

Luna then walked into the school compound, eliminating all ill intent in the surroundings.

Against the overwhelming power, the armed gang members could not resist. Even the fleeing and surrendering gang members were not spared. That was how merciless the silver-haired Luna was.

Luna only snapped back after finding her niece. However, it was already late. With a battered body and sexual injuries that would make one question how the girl was still alive, Luna's niece lay in the corner of a room devoid of consciousness, as if she were a doll thrown away.

With tears in her eyes, Luna picked up the unconscious girl. She decided to take care of her and bring her back to health. She would not let the six-year-old girl die. If the girl woke up with mental trauma, Luna promised she would not leave the girl alone and protect her.

After reuniting with the rest of the group and learning of the situation, they left the school to become infested by the [Infected]. The members of the gang deserved not to leave any parts of their bodies intact after death.

At the same time, the group escorted the poor victims and hostages out of the school. Luna's niece was just one of the victims. There were fifty more women and children caught up in this mess. There were even more, but those who were not around were the ones who did not make it due to the abuse of the members of the gang.

Unfortunately, these women and children had nowhere to go. Their families were killed by the gang, and the entire place would soon be swarmed by the [Infected].

It was the time the group began laying its foundations after taking in the victims.

Luna's group decided to build a base to house the victims. It was also for Luna to have a place to let her niece recuperate. They could not just carry the girl in a coma while searching for their families.

It was when they decided to base in the safest place they could see.

The place where they decided to build a base was Mount Muria. It was nearby, and the mountain should already have a settlement ready to secure at the top.

Climbing the mountain was not easy. It seemed other survivors had the same idea as Luna's group but brought the [Infected] along with them. As they reached the village settlement atop the mountain, there was nothing but [Infected] and a few mutated animals feasting on the corpse. After clearing the place, the settlement, along with the supplies the survivors that came before them brought, became theirs.

After a week of securing the place, Luna's group decided to separate.

Luna had to stay behind to protect the people they brought here and take care of her niece. On the other hand, the other five decided to search for their families.

Two months passed. It was how long it took the other five to return. Unfortunately, while everyone found their families, most of them were already dead. Bajing's and Edge's families were all gone. Nelia only had a sister left, and Livia only had her younger brother. As for Limabela, they did not search for her family. With her [Clairvoyance], she knew her family was alive. They did not have to search for them.

With the original members returning and the people they brought back, the settlement became stronger and more self-sufficient.

Several months passed, and the settlement was doing better than before. Unfortunately, even though Limabela and the others brought back a doctor and medical supplies, Luna's niece never woke up.

Still, the place was safe and peaceful, with powerful people protecting it.

It was a good place until the military and the remains of the government arrived.

The military began exerting force. They began turning the members of the settlement against Luna and the others.

Fortunately for them, the military and the government were also afraid of Luna's group for some unknown reason. They did not resort to direct violence.

Nonetheless, Luna and the others were not going down without a fight. It was a place they created.

Unfortunately, Luna had her own needs. No, her niece's needs.

Offered with the most high-tech medical facility for her niece, Luna finally wavered. And the others supported her in this decision, as they finally handed the settlement at the top of the mountain to the military.