When she heard it was an allergic reaction, the Old Witchâs tightly furrowed brow finally relaxed a little.
âHis body is too weakâitâs normal that he couldnât withstand the modification,â she muttered while rubbing her bright red lips. âIâll go bring the giant and the barbarian. Hopefully, their innately powerful physiques can withstand the allergy.â
After the Old Witch left for the second time, Oqili came over to help Saul move the dead wizard to the scrap zone.
But what he saw was Saul collecting skin, blood, and parts of the bones from the corpse.
âWhat are you doing?â
âI want to check for the allergen.â
Oqili grabbed Saulâs wrist and said in a low voice, âWhat, you really want to help her complete the experiment?â
Saul broke free from Oqiliâs grip. âIf weâre going to put on a show, we should play the part completely.â
Oqili was stunned. Suddenly, the Saul in front of him didnât seem quite as naive as he had imagined.
Was he⊠getting scolded in return just now?
A sudden surge of anger rose in Oqiliâs heart. More than anything, it stemmed from the fact that he hadnât thought things through as thoroughly as a child. But in the end, the one he took it out on was still this young wizard.
âYouâd better worry about your own progress!â Oqili snorted coldly and stepped back.
Saul noticed he had walked away and turned to deal with the materials in the scrap zone himself.
Recently, Oqili hadnât been very focused on experiments, but every time it came to cleaning up scraps, he was surprisingly enthusiastic.
Saul subtly adjusted the magic mirror, using the reflection to observe Oqiliâs actions.
Moments later, a glint of understanding flashed in his eyes. He smiled faintly, then quickly hid it.
Soon, the Old Witch returned, bringing the giant and the barbarian with her.
As soon as they entered, they saw the corpse on the experiment table.
The giantâs first reaction was to turn around and run, but the Old Witch struck his ankle with her wooden staff.
This time, she hit with particular force. The giantâs ankle broke completely, with even a piece missingâit was as if the staff had devoured it.
Having lost a foot, and already weak, the giant collapsed to the ground, no longer able to run.
The Old Witch grabbed the giant by his remaining leg and dragged him into the lab.
Despite being over three meters tall, the giant was like a helpless infant in the Old Witchâs grip.
The barbarian, on the other hand, didnât run. He remained dazed and vacant, as if he were completely mad.
When the giant was thrown onto the table, wailing, and then died from an allergic reaction, also wailing, the barbarian suddenly began to dance.
He lifted his legs high in alternating rhythm, clapped his hands above his head, beat his chest with his palms, and let out a series of strange âwoo woo wooâ noises.
It was then that Saul noticedâthe barbarian no longer had a tongue.
Barbarians typically worship ancient gods. These gods werenât the all-powerful beings of legend, but merely powerful figures from the previous epochâor even earlier. Their true strength was now lost to time, and they had long since vanished from history.
Most likely, this barbarian had sacrificed his tongue to his god when he was captured by the Old Witch.
As the Old Witch approached again, the barbarian finished his dance and, with sheer force, tore off his right ear and hurled it skyward.
However, before the bloody ear even hit the ground, the Old Witch raised a finger and shattered it with sorcery.
The ritual failed.
Not that completing it wouldâve helped, anyway.
The Old Witch tossed the now-deflated barbarian onto the experiment table like a burst balloon.
Saul looked at the patterns on the barbarianâs bodyâthey felt familiar. He tried to memorize them, but the Old Witch was already impatiently tapping the table with her finger.
Thump, thump, thump.
âHurry up! Continue!â
Saul said nothing and began infusing the âdoughâ into the barbarianâs body.
Soon, the barbarian also showed signs of an allergic reaction. But unlike the previous two, he didnât die right away. After a severe rash reaction, he simply fell into a coma.
This change drew both the Old Witch and Oqili closer.
âIs this a success?â the Old Witch asked with a hint of excitement.
But Saul didnât think so. âFor now, it only shows the possibility of success. But itâs slim. Whether he survives in the end will determine that.â
For the first time, a smile appeared on the Old Witchâs face. âObserve him carefully. If he dies⊠then Oqili is next.â
Behind them, Oqiliâs legs went weakâhe nearly collapsed on the spot.
Since they needed to monitor and maintain the barbarianâs life signs, Saul and Oqili were once again permitted to stay outside after the experiment ended that day.
The Old Witch went next door to rest.
Oqili continued to process the waste.
But halfway through, he suddenly turned red-eyed toward Saul. âHow much longer do you need?â
Saul was checking the rest of his culture dishes. He didnât seem anxious at all, as if completely immersed in researchâtotally forgetting that if this one failed, heâd be next on the table.
âThree days, I think.â
Oqili lowered his head, his body trembling slightly. âYou donât have three days. I have even less.â
Saul held up a sampleâthe tissue that had shown the most severe allergic reaction on the barbarian. âNo. We do have three days.â
By the time the Old Witch had rested, it was already the next day.
Her face was still as gloomy as ever, the severed finger at the back of her head twitching.
The moment she entered, she pointed her staff directly at Oqili. âYou. Up.â
Oqili shuddered and turned to Saul.
If Saul hadnât confidently promised last night that he could buy them three days, Oqili wouldâve taken action then and there.
Fortunately, Saul kept his word.
He stepped forward and spoke up. âOld Witch, in the experiments on the previous three subjects, I discovered thereâs still room for improvement in the perfect bodyâŠâ
âThen improve it on Oqili. I donât have time to let you research at a snailâs pace.â
A night had passed, and the Old Witch seemed even more anxious than before.
Saul raised a test tube and held it in front of him. âRepeating failed procedures is pointless. Multiple experiments help us correct mistakes, not increase the success rate.â
Just as the Old Witch was about to swing her staff at him, Saul added quickly, âI only need ten days to improve the procedure. Even if itâs Oqili and I on the table now, the one whoâll ultimately undergo body modificationâisnât it still you?â
As the Old Witch hesitated, Oqili quickly shrank back and pleaded, âWe only need three days. Even if you donât believe me, you should believe in Saul. Heâs a genius in this field! Heâll absolutely be able to raise the success rate to a level you can accept!â
The Old Witch squinted at Saul, her face clouded. âWhatâs in your hand?â
âItâs the tissue sample from the barbarianâs most severe allergic reaction. Through analysis, Iâve already found a way to suppress the symptoms. But I still need several more experiments. If possible, Iâd like to establish ten control groups to ensure the accuracy of the data.â
The room fell silent. For Oqili, every second dragged on like a year.
Three painfully long minutes later, the Old Witch finally spoke.
âYou donât get ten days. Iâm giving you three
.
As for the control groups⊠five, at most. Iâll go catch more subjects now.â
She disappeared in a flash.
Oqili exhaled in relief and quickly gripped the table to steady himselfâhe had nearly collapsed for real.
Saul turned and patted Oqili on the shoulder. âItâs not time to relax yet. Letâs move on to the final experiment.â
(End of Chapter)
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