Day 376 - 2:21 PM - Gilimanuk, Melaya Subdistrict, Jembrana Regency, Bali, Indonesia
Around a quarter of an hour passed after Mark and the rest located the survivors and the horde infesting the town. As they finished the preparations, it was time to move.
Mark, folding his black, eerie wings, landed on the roof of the school building that sheltered the survivors. It was a step that was not in the plan, but he thought of doing it first to ensure there would be no stupid moves from the desperate survivors.
WOOOM!
An invisible pulse spread toward the survivors below Mark as his eyes glowed red, spreading a particular emotion in their minds.
[Emotion Induction: Lingering Fear]
It was what Mark named this specific move. This action will make the survivors inside the building a bit more fearful while not outwardly panicked. It would also increase their cautiousness, preventing them from acting stupidly panicked.
"This would do, I think."
Mark murmured as he glanced at the others watching him on the roof of a house quite a distance away, confused about what he was doing since it was not in the plan.
Shrugging, he turned his back, opened his wings, and flew due east.
If it were just him, it would be easier to wipe out the [Infected] horde from atop that building. Although it would take a bit more time since he needed to act without damaging the surroundings, it would be doable.
However, Mark was following the plan for a simple reason. It would benefit the Indonesian survivors more in terms of experience. It was to utilize what cards they had in hand and safely rescue the survivors.
This time, Mark was the card. And they decided to use this card to get the danger out of the way.
While flying, Mark's ring vibrated shortly. It was Mei sending a message. At the same time, a voice echoed from the military radio on his belt.
"The truck is ready to depart."
It was the voice of Nelia. A part of the plan was contacting the others to send the military truck to transport the survivors. The military truck might be a bit banged up because of the circumstances, but it was still in working condition. Since the survivors Mark detected were weakened, possibly due to starvation, having a vehicle to transport them was necessary.
"Okay then,"
Mark flew faster.
"My part is what will start this party."
From the sky, Mark could see more of the terrain below. He could have done this when scouting, but it felt lackluster when one just wanted to feel the joy of exploration on foot.
It did not take long before Mark saw the outskirts of the town. Sure enough, the people who lived here put their all into fortifying the vicinity. The entirety of Gilimanuk was actually surrounded by walls made of various things. The most prominent materials making those walls were vehicles turned to their sides, supported by either cement or metal fittings.
Atop most of the walls were wooden ramparts, surrounded by barbed wires and metal rebars turned into pointy spikes. It was very likely to be where guards patrolled before.
Outside the walls, a five-meter-wide moat could be seen about a meter away from the foundations. The depths of the moat were hard to measure since it was filled with seawater. This long moat surrounded the mainland-facing side of the town and connected the northern and southern coasts.
The moat was definitely dug manually. However, the flow of seawater altered its appearance, making it look more natural.
"Hmmm..."
Mark found the entrance of the town. Since they had a moat, the survivors should have a bridge connecting the peninsula to the mainland. And there it was. It was a steel drawbridge, probably dismantled from one of the vehicle transport ships on the port.
Unfortunately, the drawbridge was lowered. It was very likely what allowed the entry of most of the [Infected] inside the town. However, it was unlikely that the initial cause of the breakthrough against the town's defenses would be the gates.
It was when Mark noticed a particular area on the ramparts at the northern part of the walls.
There was too much blood in that area.
Once the defenses had been breached, it was common sense to retreat from the frontlines. The defenders would back up and shrink the defense line until they managed to stabilize and push forward again.
If that were the case, the only place where there would be too much blood in the defensive area would be where the breach happened initially.
"Something managed to jump over the moat and onto the walls, huh? Probably a [Predator Type] with strong jumping mutation."
It had already been proven that the [Infected] were attracted to certain factors.
One was the presence of living things, especially humans. Even without visual or auditory contact, the [Infected] would lurk around areas where living creatures stayed as long as it was nearby.
The second factor was sound. The [Infected] would flock towards any source of loud sound. It would be even more effective if the sounds were high-pitched tones or a living creature's voice.
Third was something peculiar. While not all, some [Infected] would be attracted by familiar figures of living creatures, no matter whether the figure was living or not. For example, just seeing humanoid figures would cause them to attack. While no one really paid attention to it, it was very rare to see an intact mannequin ever since the apocalypse began. If one was even more observant, they would likely see posters of people having indications of being attacked, like bite or scratch marks.
Fourth was smell. The [Infected] were strongly attracted to the smell of raw flesh and blood of living creatures.
And lastly, something that only special individuals would notice, the [Infected] were also attracted to magical energy.
With all those factors in mind, Mark took out the [Wind Manipulation Mental Crystal]. He also closed his eyes and began to meditate.
Mark had a theory. What if the [Infected] was not being attracted to living creatures but being attracted to creatures with souls. Because if it was the former, weren't trees and plants living creatures too? But flora were being left untouched by the [Infected] for the most part.
As such, Mark tried. He already had some experience in handling souls. The previous battles were the most of it, though.
Then, if Mark could imbue a part of his soul to lure the [Infected], would it be more effective?
It was the cause of Mark's mediation. And it seemed that he was succeeding.
However, as Mark's method reached fruition, something, or someone opened its eyes from its deep slumber.
"???"
Panicked, a little girl around four or five years old appeared out of nowhere, floating and circling around Mark in utter confusion.
"It's good that you're finally awake, but can you stay in one place and not disturb me?"
Mark, without opening his eyes, scolded the little girl.
A little afraid, the little girl did as she was told, although the confusion and panic did not die down in the slightest as she stared at Mark.
Finally feeling something, like a gear clicking into its right place, Mark opened his eyes.
"HAH!"
Mark huffed loudly. But at the same time, that huff was filled with a great amount of magical energy and a bit of soul energy Mark managed to draw out. Then, the [Wind Manipulation Mental Crystal] glowed at Mark's command. It did not only spread Mark's huff but concentrated the vibration of his voice into a high-pitched sound.
The sound immediately spread out into the areas within two kilometers with Mark at its center.
***
From the roof of the building outside the school zone, the members of the scouting group watched Mark's silhouette shrink in the distance. They also heard Nelia's voice on the radio. Now, what was left was to wait.
The group waited for a while. Somehow, it took longer than expected. However, they all exercised patience and waited silently.
But then, without warning, everyone flinched as they all covered their ears in panic.
Everyone's ears were ringing horribly. Worse, the ringing never stopped, even after covering their ears. They also felt their entire bodies quiver. It was as if the ringing was not only affecting their hearing but also their minds.
Unknown to Mark, he had given everyone within two kilometers around him a horrible taste of soul-based tinnitus.
But most importantly...
ROOOOARRR!!!
Unrestrained roars echoed all over the place as all the [Infected] in the area entered an excited state. Without getting distracted by anything else, the entire horde began to move.
Faster than they could have ever been, the [Infected] raced towards the source of the sound they heard.
Mark definitely did an outstanding job in luring the [Infected] away from the school zone. However, his method sure was the opposite for the affected humans.