685. Assimilation

Waste Alley was exactly what its name suggested: a corner that had been utterly forgotten.

The houses were still there, but the windows were nothing more than empty frames, and door planks hung crookedly from their hinges, creaking whenever the wind blew.

The great cold snap in the Northern Territory had driven away nearly two-thirds of Cold Bay Fortress's population, leaving many districts empty. Waste Alley was the most dilapidated of them all.

But now, figures were moving in the alley.

Gray slowed his steps, his gaze sweeping over the figures leaning against the foot of the walls or squatting on the steps. White mycelium crawled over their exposed skin; clearly, they had all been parasitized.

He and Ke had also put on Camouflage.

Before setting out, the two of them had used a special gel to stick imitation mycelium to their cheeks, the backs of their hands, and their necks, making them look no different from those who had truly been parasitized.

At least, that was what they thought.

But the moment he stepped into Waste Alley, Gray sensed something was wrong.

"We're being watched hard, senior." Ke's voice was very low, low enough that only the two of them could hear.

His footsteps did not falter, but Gray could feel that Ke was getting a little nervous.

"It's normal for them to be wary when we're here for the first time," Gray replied just as quietly, his gaze fixed straight ahead, not meeting anyone's eyes.

What he did not know was that within Waste Alley's Local Mycelium Network, all of the Parasites were discussing the two of them.

"Those two don't have good intentions."

"They even put fake mycelium on their faces. Are they trying to sneak in?"

"Looks like we've been targeted by the higher-ups—"

"Who's going