Mutagen

Day 364 - 7:40 PM - 38th Satellite Settlement, Muria Sacred Fortress, Mount Muria, Kudus Regency, Central Java, Indonesia

After hearing the possible truth from Mark that she and her niece were being targeted by the [Face Wearers], Luna could not help but feel a strong headache.

If what Mark said was true, then all the struggles they had and the deaths of their members might be her fault.

But before Luna could settle in with her harmful thoughts...

"It's not your fault, Luna."

Edge's voice entered Luna's ears as she felt his hand patting her shoulder.

Luna looked up, realizing everyone was looking at her.

"I... is it obvious?" Luna asked and received affirmative nods from everyone. "Sorry, I can't help but think it's my fault."

"Edge is right," Limabela chimed in. "It's not your fault. If there is anyone to blame, it's those [Face Wearers] or whatever they are called. It's not like we attacked them first. It's them who are causing the harm here for no identified reason."

"But since when have they been targeting Luna? I'm pretty sure we had no problems before. Is it when the other people arrived here?"

Bajing asked.

"I think that's correct," Mark answered Bajing's question, taking everyone's attention. "The [Face Wearers] might have been here since the start, but they never caused problems when your group settled here. It's probably because Luna never left the settlement for a prolonged time while taking care of Amisha."

"But when the other people arrived, Luna got forced to move around while negotiating with the government," Mark continued to explain and unveiled an unexpected and irrefutable fact. "I mean, isn't it strange that all of a sudden, the people you all saved suddenly turned against you?"

"Unless they had been all replaced, then it would make sense."

Mark added.

And Mark's words made everyone silent.

Then Mark added another speculation.

"I wonder where those people are now, the ones that betrayed Luna's group. I'm betting a large cup of instant ramen that they are all on the list of missing people."

Mark then turned to General Wijaya and his secretary.

Understanding the gesture, General Wijaya nodded.

"We will go confirm it as soon as possible."

After hearing the truth, the ally leaders could only shake their heads. The details of this meeting were too absurd. Well, except for the bubbly Kana. She was slumped on the table, not paying much attention.

"So... The [Face Wearers] were not from outside. Then, the missing victims were the [Infected] horde earlier." Estia, the leader of the 41st Satellite Settlement, spoke. "Now that we know that, won't it be easier for us to find where they came from and where they were hiding?"

"Right," Farel agreed. "We can retrace the path the [Infected] went through and find where they came out of. What do you think, General?"

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"I agree," General Wijaya nodded with a solemn expression. "The horde that appeared tonight will also give us irrefutable evidence to carry out our future operations with minimal hindrance."

The settlement leaders understood what General Wijaya had said. It was no secret that General Wijaya's authority within the fortress was being hindered because of the other military factions. It did not matter whether General Wijaya had evidence. As long as the others could hinder him, they would refute his evidence as much as they could.

However, it would be different this time.

Not only did General Wijaya get more support because of the distribution of the anti-disguise equipment, but there would be very little way the opposing factions could deny the appearance of the horde within the fortress.

"But won't it also instill panic?" Nelia spoke. "The residents are still afraid of the [Face Wearers]. Now, the missing victims returned as [Infected]. And not from outside, but appeared from inside the fortress."

It meant that the fortress was no longer safe. No, it was never safe in the fortress in the first place.

What would disappear was the illusion of safety everyone fabricated in their minds. The very illusion that served as a stopper to everyone's fear and panic.

"Then, there's no other way," General Wijaya sighed. "We should determine the source before panic ensues. Informing the general public would only slow things down. If we are going to move, we should move immediately."

"General," General Wijaya's secretary spoke. "If we plan on moving fast, then it would be best for us to avoid interaction with the other factions."

"Yes," General Wijaya nodded. "Informing them would only give them a chance to hinder us. And who knows if any of them were in cahoots with the enemies."

A cooperation between humans and the [Face Wearers]. It was not something impossible to happen. In fact, it might be closer to the truth, as absurd as it might sound.

"You plan to attack immediately?"

Mark suddenly asked General Wijaya.

"If possible," General Wijaya confirmed. "However, the investigation would likely delay us a bit. We still need to find where the horde came from, and it would not be that easy."

It was when Mark gave them a bomb to take care of.

"Then don't just look for the back exit of the [Infected]. You should also storm the front entrance."

Those words from Mark caused General Wijaya to almost stand up from his seat.

It meant that Mark already knew who was the mastermind, or, at least, where these [Face Wearers] came from.

However, Mark turned to the weebs around the table.

"In a dark fantasy setting. No, even in most non-dark ones. Who are always the most suspicious organizations?"

The members of the Moon Chasers were confused as to why Mark suddenly asked that question. Was it even related to the current topic?

It was when Livia, who was silent since the continuation of the meeting started, spoke.

"Religious groups. The church which was actually a devil's cult. A corrupt church. A church of a non-existent god. Or even just a small spreading cult. They always show their good side before showing their darkness in the end."

Livia timidly answered.

Those words from Livia sparked another assumption from everyone.

The Muria Religion.

A religion that was more of a cult, springing out of nowhere. One would think the most active religion in the fortress could be either Islam or Catholicism. However, it was actually the Muria Religion.

But how did they even get the following to be recognized as a religion?

"The [Face Wearers]..."

General Wijaya said with a painful frown as he rubbed the bridge of his nose.

Everyone now realized.

"Sh*t..." Farel cursed. "Wahyu also became a member of that f*cking cult. Is that when he was replaced?"

The initial members of the Muria Religion were likely the first [Face Wearers]. And if they managed to recruit anyone to their cause, that person would be replaced by another [Face Wearer].

That was how the [Face Wearers] operated and kept themselves under the radar.

It was how the Muria Religion grew as the third strongest faction within the fortress.

Everyone was busy surviving. That was why no one questioned the existence of the Muria Religion. Even if there were contradictions, it might have been buried under the louder voices of the [Face Wearers].

But these were still speculations. As such, General Wijaya turned to Mark.

"Is it the Muria Religion?"

General Wijaya solemnly asked.

"I don't know if it's the Muria Religion," Mark answered. "What I know is the church on the northern side of the mountain peak near the spring."

It was definitely the Muria Religion. It was the only religion that built a church in the fortress.

"Wait..." General Wijaya realized something as he turned to his secretary. "When was the Muria Religion's church built?"

It was the realization of another mystery. It was not only the General and his secretary. No one in this room knew when the Muria Church was built. It was as if it already existed there before everyone even noticed.

"Anyway," Mark interrupted their thoughts. "That place is where they should be abducting the people to steal their identities. If you are going to investigate, start there."

"But Sir Mark, how did you know about it?"

Kela asked.

"I have a little spy that I sent to tail the [Face Wearer] disguised as the Wahyu guy."

Mark answered.

"Is that at that time when that guy escaped?"

Bajing chimed in, making Mark nod.

"That guy is among the intruders while you all were fighting the [Infected]. At the same time, my little spy returned to relay what he found."

Mark did not hesitate to answer, although he kept hiding what his little spy was.

Nonetheless, no one pried further. Although Mark and his group had many suspicious points, they had already proven themselves as allies.

"Now I have more reason why we should move quickly," General Wijaya sighed. "Piliang, that coot... He's a backer of the Muria Religion."

Piliang, the one called General Piliang. It was the very same person who sent people to kidnap the members of Mark's group.

"That Piliang guy sure is an evil person, isn't he?"

Mark commented as he remembered the name of the soul he captured mentioned before.

"That guy is also backing the most annoying survivor groups," Estia also had her own comments. "The northside bastards are arrogant because of him."

"That person... I also remember him," Luna sighed. "He was also there when the senator was negotiating with me."

"That guy is everywhere, huh..." Mark could not help but comment. "But it also meant that he's able to manipulate things here without hindrance."

"It looks like we have no other choice but to clash with his soldiers if we had to force the investigation of the source of the [Face Wearers]."

General Wijaya said with a serious tone, and everyone agreed with him.

It was a huge problem. Infighting would cause more instability among the people. Furthermore, if a firefight happened, deaths would be inevitable. It would further pull the security of the fortress down a lot.

"You're worried about the soldiers fighting each other?" Mark understood the worries of General Wijaya. "Why don't you hire me to deal with them?"

All of a sudden, Mark pitched up a mercenary offer.

"What are you saying?"

General Wijaya was more confused than accepting.

"What I'm saying... I can stop enemy soldiers from fighting without killing anyone. Well, as long as they are human. That way, you can minimize casualties and quickly proceed with the investigation. Of course, it won't be free."

Everyone could only stare at Mark. Sometimes, Mark was really hard to understand.

"I'm just suggesting," Mark shrugged. "There's also the option of hiring survivor groups. However, it also meant more possible deaths."

What Mark was saying was the truth. The enemies here were opposing human forces and unknown forces from the [Face Wearers]. If the infighting could be prevented, they could focus their firepower on the [Face Wearers] instead.

"I have a question?" Kana suddenly raised her hand. "Is that Piliang not a [Face Wearer]? Why is he supporting the Muria Religion?"

"As far as I know, he's not," General Wijaya answered the sudden question. "He is wearing one of the badges. It's confirmed that he's human. About the reason... I don't know about it myself. However, it might be because of his own agendas."

"Wanting to be the country's leader, for example," General Wijaya added. "It's no secret that he wanted to be the next president. However, the support he gathered was still not enough to become one."

That was a very plausible reason. To fill in the support General Piliang needed, the [Face Wearers] would suffice.

It was an ambition without regard for anything aside from himself.

"A typical ambitious villain, I guess."

Mark commented with a shrug.

Unfortunately, that ambition had already caused thousands of deaths. It was an ambition that needed to be stopped as soon as possible.

And that was why General Wijaya ended up with a decision. It was to utilize as much as he could. They needed to end this farce before more people were sacrificed.