Mutagen

"It had been a long time since the last I had been here."

Magwayen calmly said as she reminisced her memories overlapping with the sceneries around her.

After several thousand years, while this place remained hidden, many things changed.

The people Magwayen knew were no longer here. The village occupied by their servants was left abandoned.

And a new, larger village could be seen on the other side of the mountain.

However, some things never changed. One was the [Pure Spirit Tree] that Sidapa owned. The other was this place where they were currently seated.

This was the very place where Sidapa sat under his tree. And as it seemed, it was maintained the way it was even after a very long time.

"You personally maintained this place?"

Magwayen asked Silim, sensing that her presence was etched around this place.

"Yes." Silim respectively replied. "As the messenger between Mother and Sidapa, I believe that it is my duty to keep this place as is despite Mother and Sidapa\'s absence."

That reply from Silim made Magwayen smile. It seemed that she was really satisfied with Silim\'s growth. It was a pity, however. She was not there to witness the process.

Magwayen turned her head, looking at the empty seat surrounded by the roots of the [Pure Spirit Tree].

"How did the others face that calamity?"

Magwayen asked.

"They all faced it valiantly," Silim responded with a meaningful sigh. "Unfortunately, the protectors of this world are backed by its laws. Even if the gods resisted, working together and burned their existence, they still faced their end."

"..." Magwayen stared at the empty seat in silence for a few moments. "Sidapa is not a reckless being. And being the harbinger of death, she should have ways to escape danger."

"It is because of her husband, Makaptan," Silim explained. "The God of Sickness had a remarkably elevated pride. He led the resistance, dragging Sidapa into the battle she never wanted. They perished together along with the other Deities of Kamaritaan."

"It is a pity." Magwayen smiled sadly. "The laws of this world began to change while I was ferrying the dead. It was a fortunate circumstance for me but not for the others."

Magwayen closed her eyes, remembering the calamity during the end of the era of gods on Earth. As the Goddess of the Underworld and the ferrywoman of the dead, she was always amidst transporting the souls of the departed towards Sulad.

And when the new administrator of Earth, the current [Observer], took the position, Magwayen was amidst her duties as the ferrywoman. She was outside the jurisdiction of the [Eyes] and managed to escape without getting noticed.

Magwayen might be powerful as one of the principal beings of the Visayan Pantheon. However, her powers were never made for battle. And although she still had her abilities as the previous Goddess of the Sea, it was something negligible against the beings protected by the laws of the world.

"Mother..." At this silence, Silim took the opportunity to ask. "Those people... Do we really have to guide them to Kahilwayan? Their group was led by Demons."

"It seems that you are still reluctant."

Magwayen replied.

"I\'m sorry, Mother."

Silim apologized.

"You did not have to apologize," Magwayen slightly shook her head. "I am the same. We sealed the passage to Kahilwayan after Kaptan left this world, and the Deities under him decided to return to our world. From that time forwards, no one was allowed to step into the sacred land Kaptan created."

"Then..."

Silim tried to speak, but she was met with a decisive stare from her creator.

"The circumstances now are different," Magwayen stated, standing from her seat and facing the [Pure Spirit Tree]. "Sinogo finally escaped from his seal after succumbing to this world\'s recent calamity. The worst thing... Sinogo absorbed Kaptan\'s seal and its remaining energy. At this time, Sinogo might be roaming the local seas, wreaking havoc using my beloved husband\'s powers. Even I find that unacceptable."

"But is it really safe?" Silim worried. "I might be less reluctant if it was just regular Demons. But that Demon and his wife... They have the potential to become gods. We might end up helping our potential enemies in the future."

Magwayen closed her eyes. From her expression, she understood Silim\'s worries.

Even among gods, aside from Evil Gods, Demon Gods were the most painful to deal with. Becoming a god was akin to changing their past race to a new one. It was not wrong to say that gods were a race of their own. Although some gods were called Demon Gods, Beast Gods, Human Gods, and the like, their races were all the same as long as they attained godhood.

What mattered, however, was their origin race.

While Demons were also divided into countless races, the majority of them were inherently evil. And most Evil Gods were once Demons that attained godhood.

In the least, however, like Spirit and Elemental races, Demons were not all evil.

"From what I observed, it is not something you should be worried about." Magwayen opened her eyes. "If they were evil as you think, the incarnation of that gentle girl would not accompany them."

"That..." Silim fell silent since the words of her creator this time were not something she could refute. "I was also surprised. I did not expect to meet another god\'s incarnation in the current times, given that the protectors of this world chased away or killed the gods of the past. Furthermore, accompanying a group of Demons and Humans."

"Two of their members were not Human nor Demon, either." Silim continued. "I could not tell what the little girl was, but the other man, he had a mixture of different auras on his body that belonged to both holy and demonic creatures."

"If you and the residents of this realm fought them, who do you think will win?"

Magwayen suddenly asked Silim, who could not help but immediately fall into contemplation.

And after a moment of thinking, Silim answered.

"We will suffer a devastating defeat."

The answer made Magwayen smile.

"It is good that you know how to measure the strength of the people in front of you. Do not antagonize them in any way. What I will say is unbelievable. But their group had direct connections to the protectors. The first time I met that Mark, he was with two protectors standing beside him." Magwayen then stared at Silim. "Right now, you might be the only one left among my people from that era. I do not want you to die in vain."

"Yes, Mother," Silim said with all seriousness. "I will heed your words."

Silim looked at her creator. Magwayen might be the Goddess of the Underworld and the ferrywoman of the departed. She was strict and a bit uncompromising. However, she was one of the kindest gods that appeared in this country in the past. And to her people, she was like a mother.

"Now, then..." Magwayen spoke. "Should we talk about something else? I wanted to hear your stories."

"I would love to, Mother."

Silim delightfully replied.

***

Day 206 - ▋▋:▋▋ ▋▋ - Old Village, Secret Realm, Mount Madia-as, Panay Mountain Range, Province of Aklan

At the village, Mark\'s group began preparing.

It was not to sleep, however.

Mark took out a double gas burner and an LPG tank. They began setting up a place to cook.

Although it was nighttime in this realm and hard to tell what time it was already, it was still about past noon outside. Since Mark\'s group went hiking up the mountain a few hours before noon and just stopped now, they were unable to eat lunch.

Thus, they were already hungry, especially the little girls.

"What do you guys want to eat?"

Mark asked. Food was not a problem for them. Mark and Mei had a lot of food stored inside their rings, not to mention the portion they left stored in the [Mini Cube].

"I want some rice."

Ilia said, and both Spera and Feng Zhiruo agreed.

Feng Zhiruo aside, it was surprising that Ilia and Spera, both foreigners, liked rice. After all, unlike countries in East, Southeast, and South Asia, most foreign countries did not have rice as their staple food.

However, Ilia and Spera came to like rice and how it could blend well with any kind of side dish they were offered.

As for Chimetrice, what kind of food he was given did not matter. It was not like he could not taste anything. But for him, food was nothing but sustenance.

Mark\'s question did not matter for both Miracle and Amihan, either. Miracle would only consume Mark\'s blood, and Amihan would only eat fruits.

Well, Miracle was actually starting to eat other kinds of food. She would not eat as much and would only consume soft food like porridge or sweet fruits, or naturally flavored drinks like milk. Nonetheless, it was a good sign that her body was beginning to adapt.

And as requested, Mark and Mei began preparing rice, and for the side dish, it would be fried canned meatloaves. Mark also separated some of the rice to make porridge for Miracle.

There, they began cooking.

Unfortunately, the cooking could only fall unto Mark and Mei. Both Ilia and Spera were terrible at this, while Feng Zhiruo was only good at slicing ingredients.

As Mark was amidst frying the sliced meatloaves, however...

Mark detected a pair of uninvited guests.

Glancing at Ilia, Mark signaled to intercept the two who were hiding behind one of the houses.

***

"*slurp..." Donna slurped the drool at the side of her mouth. "Uhh... The smell..."

"Donna, why do we have to hide like this?" The older sister, Bella, questioned Donna. "We looked like we are doing something bad."

"But we can\'t just approach them, either..."

Donna answered.

"Then, we should just return." Bella sighed. "It is not like we are starving to death."

"But..." Donna hesitated. "I\'m already sick of eating fruits and boiled vegetables. Those are the only things we receive here. Maybe we can ask even just a single slice of what they are frying?"

"You... Hah..." Bella sighed. "If you want to ask them, then stop hiding. You\'re just making yourself look suspicious."

Bella understood her sister\'s frustration. Even she was kind of sick of the food they were being given here. However, she had better self-control than her younger sister.

"That is right. If you want to ask for food, stop hiding. You can get yourselves killed this way."

Suddenly, a voice was heard behind the two.

"HIIH!!"

Donna screamed in surprise and jumped back.

Bella was calmer, but she also retreated.

There, they saw the gorgeous woman that spoke to them at the entrance of the village.

The two sisters did not know how the gorgeous woman managed to get behind them. It made them really nervous.

However, compared to their nervousness, their craving weighed heavier. Despite her defensive stance, Donna asked the gorgeous woman.

"Can we really ask? Even a slice is just fine. We\'ll just share it with each other."

"Hmm..." The gorgeous woman tapped her chin. "Asking is free. But the call won\'t come from me. I\'m not the leader, after all. Anyway, stop hiding and follow me. He might not look like it but our leader won\'t bite. It\'s unless you two are planning something bad."

With those words, the gorgeous woman passed between the two and straight to where the cooking was happening.

***

"So, are they asking for food, right?"

Mark asked as Ilia returned with the two uninvited guests in tow.

"Why ask if you already know the answer?"

Ilia shrugged.

Mark then turned to the others.

"What do you guys think?"

Spera and Feng Zhiruo looked at each other.

"We don\'t really mind."

Spera said, and the others agreed.

Food was the least of concern for Mark\'s group. That was why they did not really mind giving away some.

Hearing the decision of the group, Bella and Donna were extremely delighted. They became even happier to the point of tears as they were not only given a slice of fried meatloaf but a bowl of rice and a few more slices.

How long had it been since they ate actual food?

Nonetheless, happy times would not always end happily.

"Wha! Who are you, people?!"

A man with a haughty face appeared, also lured in by the smell. He then saw the two sisters.

"You two! What are you eating?! How dare you two eat on your own?!"