Mutagen

Day 378 - ▋▋:▋▋ ▋▋ - Central Lobby, Commercial Zone, CNC Subspace

After going back to the familiar lobby, Mark and Mei bid farewell to the groups from the Philippines and Japan. The two groups left together since their primary goal in coming to the CNC today was to procure building materials.

Make and Mei looked at the backs of the two groups as they entered another archway and vanished from their sight. At the same time, Mark sighed, remembering the unexpected encounter in the auction house.

After Mark showed the drawing of their perspective of Lucion's appearance, nothing much happened aside from a short small talk. It was not like Lucion was trying to pry information from Mark and Mei. There was no need for him to do so. As the owner of the auction house and a high-ranking member of the CNC, he could send some competent members of their organization to investigate instead.

From what Mark felt from Lucion, the reason for the small talk was to establish a connection. The so-called [Anomaly] wanted an amicable relationship with the [Candidates of Godhood]. Lucion's reasons were surely obvious, considering the story of himself that he shared with everyone in that room.

Still, Mark had to be cautious. As an [Empath], unusual fluctuations would not escape his senses. The fact that Lucion revealed that Mark and Mei were [Candidates of Godhood] was no accident. He did it deliberately and disguised it as a careless mistake. That way, Lucion forcefully established a strong connection, even if it jeopardized the well-being of the agents involved.

Lucion might not bear ill will, but he was a sly person.

After the small talk, a magic contract was also established among the members of the CNC present, binding them to the secrecy of Mark and Mei's identities. At the same time, the items Mark and the Priestess bought at the auction were given to them at a discount. Lucion was about to hand the items for free, but Mark and the Priestess declined. There was nothing scarier than a free meal, they say, especially in the apocalypse.

On the other hand, it seemed that the appraiser had a few things to ask Mark, who had bought the crafting materials. However, Lucion blocked the chance to do so. Unfortunately, the appraiser could not defy their boss.

Soon enough, the unexpected meeting had to be cut short. Everyone had things to do, and time was not as free as it was before the apocalypse.

Of course, it did not end without Lucion telling Mark and Mei not to hesitate to visit.

***

With the other groups gone, Devon spoke.

"Should we proceed to the next destination?"

Even though Devon and Val'Flora were unreasonably bound to a magic contract because of Lucion, they did not seem to mind. After all, it would just become one of the many contracts they were already involved in. Furthermore, the consequences were not as bad as the others, considering some of the contracts had their lives at stake.

"Lead the way. It's better to finish everything soon and leave before something else annoying happens."

Mark replied.

"Sure!"

Devon nodded and, with light steps, guided everyone towards a different archway.

It was not surprising that Devon's mood was getting better. After all, their next destination was where the [Stasis Chamber] that kept his brother alive was located.

"Still, isn't it quite a day?" Devon spoke midway. "The [Founders] were not easy to meet, even for most members of the organization. Yet, a client on his first tour met two of them consecutively."

Those words surprised Mark and Mei. They knew that owning a business in this place needed a high standing in the CNC. However, they did not expect that they had already met two [Founders] of the organization.

It meant that both Chris, the owner of the [Moonstone Boutique], and Lucion, the owner of the auction house called the [Illusory Mansion], were both founders of the Crystallus Notitia Coetus, along with a few others.

"I guess, the title you received the other day, sure fits," Devon continued. "Mr. F*cker."

Then, everyone froze, surprised by Devon's audacity to insult Mark straight to his face.

But the most shocked was Devon himself, as his eyes widened and his mouth hung open in horror.

However, Mark, who received the insult, reacted differently.

"Pfft..." Mark snickered. "Looks like the contract is working properly."

That was when they realized that Devon's unexpected audacity was because of the contract.

"But why?"

Devon asked. But his eyes suddenly looked at Mark in realization.

Val'Flora had the same reaction.

The two remembered what Mark put in the contract.

"The people involved in this contract can not divulge Mark's and Mei's identities and anything related to such information. Any attempt will result in their speech turning into insults towards third parties."

"You're a sly one..." Val'Flora said to Mark. "To think that you made the contract that came at the spur of the moment be used like this."

The intention of the contract was for the members of the CNC present in that room not to spread what Lucion blurted out. But, from the looks of it, Mark's clause made it possible for other information to be included, too.

"Wait..." Devon realized something. "But it should only work while talking to third parties."

"You are talking about something Val'Flora didn't know," Mark shrugged. "No surprise it triggered."

"I see..."

Devon nodded.

With that blunder, Devon shut his mouth until they reached the archway.

Devon then led them through it.

***

After the sticky darkness, Mark and Mei opened their eyes to see an entirely different scenery.

It was different from the cozy feel of the [Moonstone Boutique]. It was also far from the extravagance of the [Illusory Mansion]. And it was also different from the rustic atmosphere of the Central Lobby.

There was not only a single building like the previous destinations. It was more like a large compound of tall structures confined in this dark pocket in space.

The archway was located at the end of what seemed to be an alley between buildings. The buildings in the surroundings were plain and lacking in decorations. The buildings were also shaped like blocks on top of each other. It was as if this place was created with nothing but simplicity in mind.

"Is this an industrial area?"

Mark voiced out.

"Partly correct," Val'Flora replied. "It is more like a combination of industrial and research facilities. Certain services that involve delicate magical constructs are also offered here. Since the facilities here needed more convenience than anything, the place ended up looking like this."

"Let's go. Our destination is still a bit further away."

Devon urged the group.

The group walked with Devon in the lead. Mark and Mei looked around, observing any facility in sight.

As Val'Flora had explained, the buildings lined up served such purposes. Some buildings also had shops on the first floor. Although the shops looked dull in design, the strange-looking items on display were quite intriguing.

The number of people in the streets was not small. It seemed that some of the participants of the auction also came to this place.

While walking, the group passed by a variety of shops, like blacksmiths, gun shops, and even what seemed to be an appliance center. However, the items displayed in each store were sure different from what a human would see in a normal store.

"We're here."

Devon stopped at another dull-looking building. The only difference it had compared to the others was the luxury of having glass walls and double doors in front.

There was a single guard in a formal suit standing beside the glass double doors. Seeing Devon, the guard gave a simple bow and silently opened the doors.

Devon entered the door, and the rest followed. The guard did not question anything, but they could feel his attention observing them.

The inside of the building was silent. There were barely any people. The group's entry was then met by a female employee. She exchanged greetings with Devon and guided everyone inside. She was also paying attention to Devon's company, but she did not engage in any meaningless interactions.

They were led into a corridor with several rooms on both sides. The employee then guided them to the third room to the left of the corridor. She then placed her hand on the panel beside the door. It was like a sci-fi hand scanner, but Mark could feel the woman channeling her magical energy into the panel instead of it scanning her hand.

The door then opened, and everyone entered.

There, at the center of the room, a coffin-like capsule lay in silence. It was as large as the experimental chambers under Mount Muria. The upper cover of the capsule was a see-through glass of unknown material.

As they approached the capsule, no, the stasis chamber, everyone saw a man inside.

The man looked identical to Devon. It was not surprising since they were siblings. However, there were scales covering parts of his body and face. It was the mutation that was going out of control, frozen within the chamber.

Devon sighed as he looked at his brother inside the capsule. He then turned to the employee.

"Open the chamber."

"But Sir!"

Of course, the employee was surprised.

The state of Devon's brother was no secret to the members of the CNC. There was no way to hide it in the first place. To put the already rampaging brother of Devon into the chamber, they needed several strong people to restrain him. Yet, there were only a few people here. The moment the chamber was opened, there would be no one to stop Devon's brother from rampaging.

"We can handle it. If you want, you can go out immediately after opening it."

Devon urged the employee.

"Hah," The employee sighed. "Any damage would incur penalties. Please, remember that."

The employee then manipulated what seemed to be a console beside the chamber.

TSSSSS!

The sound of air escaping echoed as the chamber's locking mechanism loosened.

Then, the glass lid opened from the leg area, turning towards the top of the chamber.

The legs of Devon's brother showed some twitching, indicating the stasis effects were already beginning to fade.

But the moment the lid opened fully, Devon's brother's eyes opened abruptly. His rampage, paused by the chamber, was about to continue.

However, when the brother was about to jump up from his position, a hand grabbed his face and pushed him back down.

No one realized how or when, but Mark suddenly appeared beside the chamber and pushed the patient down by grabbing his face.

The employee, about to escape, saw that scene and could not help but pause in her steps. She did not expect that the man who came with Devon could push down the patient with a single hand.

Unfortunately, the employee's surprise was just beginning.

Under Mark's hand, Devon's brother tried to escape. However, it seemed that the strength of his limbs failed to break the restraints that tied him in place. It was strange. Those restraints should have broken already because of his trashing, but they somehow held on.

Everyone watched Mark. His eyes glowed bright red as he focused his attention on Devon's brother. His hand also began to emit a soft milky glow.

Minutes passed without anyone realizing. Even the patient's struggles began to stop.

Under everyone's eyes, the scales on the patient's body started to recede, turning back to normal human-like skin. His breathing calmed down, and the signs of mutation began to fade.

"Hmm..."

Mark suddenly hummed as a small crystal appeared from his hand. It was the size of a small marble with a greyish glow at the center.

The sight of the crystal sure surprised everyone, especially the employee. But Mark did not care about their reactions as he popped the crystal into the patient's mouth.

Mark then held the patient's head down for another few minutes. Mei then approached him with a handkerchief, wiping the sweat that began forming on his forehead. The process seemed a bit tough, even for Mark.

Another few minutes passed, and Mark finally retracted his hand. He seemed a bit tired.

"How is it?"

Devon asked.

But as if Devon's voice was the cue, another voice called out.

"Brother?"

The voice came from the chamber, prompting everyone to look reflexively.

There, Devon's brother was looking at Devon. There was a trace of confusion and weakness on his face, as if he were unsure why he had yet to turn after getting bitten.

"Cathaoir!"

Devon called back with tears of happiness at the corner of his eyes.