Under the influence of Charm, the Bugbear walked blankly to the center of the Magic Ritual, where numerous magic Materials—hardly precious, yet quite a variety—flickered slightly.
A faint ripple of magic power appeared within Lyle's perception.
Swish!
Lyle reached out and pulled the corpse of a strong, three-meter-tall Manticore from his Inventory, tossing it onto the ground: "According to the standard steps, the monster's corpse needs to be placed into the magic circle as well."
Puchi!
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With a flick of his wrist, his hand became a palm blade.
He easily sliced open the Manticore's chest, pulled out a bloody heart the size of half a basketball, and threw it toward the Magic Ritual.
The Bugbear raised its thick-furred arm and caught the heart, blood dripping through its fingers drop by drop.
"What happens if I don't include the corpse?"
Lyle was curious, so he only threw the crucial heart to the Bugbear.
The "Wild Shape" ritual was a power ritual passed down by the Forest Gnome tribe. First, one must consume the heart of a monster, and then activate the ritual along with the monster's corpse.
This allows the user to gain the ability to transform into that monster. At the same time, the "Wild Shape" skill completely loses the ability to transform into other monsters, limiting the user to this single form from then on.
Under Lyle's control, the Bugbear quickly ate the heart, its face and chest stained with a large amount of blood, looking quite gruesome.
"Activate ritual."
Lyle crouched down, placed his hand on the edge of the Magic Ritual, and injected magic power into it.
Thump.
A vibrating ripple of magic power formed from the ritual, centering on the Bugbear and creating an invisible pulling force that seemed to want to absorb something.
"Ah!!"
The Bugbear suddenly let out a scream of agony. Its originally thin body began to flatten visibly, but its head expanded at an alarming speed, transforming into the head of the monster Manticore.
However...
By the time the head had fully transformed, the Bugbear's body looked as if it had been sucked dry, becoming truly skin and bones.
Bang!
In the next moment, the Bugbear's body exploded directly into a cloud of blood mist. Severed limbs flew everywhere, leaving only half a head to crash onto the ground and roll twice.
This scene...
Left Lyle somewhat stunned. He couldn't figure out what had happened at all—a precious experimental subject had just died?
"Just a small modification, and the impact is this huge." Lyle's eye twitched.
Logically, the truly difficult part of this Magic Ritual should be how to hunt a powerful monster, not the ritual itself.
If Dugan Basilisk were still alive, seeing this scene, he would probably have muttered to himself that it was the curse of their Forest Gnome tribe.
But Lyle didn't believe in that!
"Fifth Tier: Resurrection."
Lyle looked at the other two Bugbears huddled in a cage nearby with terrified expressions and emotionlessly activated the Resurrection magic.
The corpse parts were all there, perhaps a bit fragmented, but they could be brought back through low-level Resurrection magic.
These three Bugbears weren't very high in Rank, around level fourteen or fifteen, and each could be resurrected about three times.
Altogether, they could be used nine times.
"I didn't react in time just now. If this happens again, I should use healing magic and Regeneration Potions; that should save their lives."
"That way, I can conduct even more research sessions." Lyle nodded to himself. His voice reached the ears of the other two Bugbears, making them tremble all over.
They looked at Lyle as if he were a demon, letting out sharp, fearful howls.
Unfortunately...
In the deep forest of the Great Wetlands, there was clearly no one who could save them.
In the following days, aside from a trip back to the Royal Capital to specifically arrange for the Emerald Leaf Witch and Enri to continue selling Regeneration Potions and purchasing Alchemy Materials as usual...
Lyle stayed in the Great Wetlands, conducting his research.
Based on the current situation, the "Wild Shape" Magic Ritual didn't offer Lyle any ability to increase his own strength.
The reason he valued it so much was that the ritual showed him the possibility of helping people of this other world break through their Rank limits.
By transforming into a more powerful monster, besides a simple increase in strength, would they also inherit the monster's level cap?
Especially with that Ancient Fire Dragon corpse.
Although the Dragon Clan weren't considered monsters and it likely wouldn't work, Lyle still couldn't help wanting to experiment.
...
Shangshui Month, January 5th.
Lyle returned to the Royal Capital. He had mostly figured out the operational process and hidden restrictions of the "Wild Shape" Magic Ritual, so he could put it aside for now.
Of the three Bugbears, only one remained alive, and even that one had only one Resurrection chance left.
His sudden return to the Royal Capital...
Wasn't because he wanted to stop, but because he had to return to handle some matters.
He had arrived in the Royal Capital on the twentieth of Lower Earth Month, and had now been there for half a month. Compared to his previous travels, it wasn't exactly a place he'd stayed in for a long time.
Previously, half of his time was actually spent on the road. Now that he had mastered Teleportation magic, he had much more flexibility with his time.
Many plans changed according to the circumstances.
Without Teleportation magic, Lyle would never have placed himself at the forefront so quickly to implement the plan of exchanging "fame" for "influence."
His current disguised identity was a "Genius Alchemist" plus a "faith system magic caster." This identity would naturally be used for a long time at the forefront.
It would even be used until after the Great Tomb of Nazarick descended, so naturally, the earlier he established himself at the forefront, the better.
In the inn.
The Emerald Leaf Witch and Enri stood at the door of Lyle's room, waiting quietly.
Enri carefully glanced at the Emerald Leaf Witch, then quickly averted her gaze, pinching her pale fingers and remaining silent.
During this time, the Master hadn't appeared much, but Enri didn't find it strange. As an Alchemist, the Master enjoyed researching various potions.
On the way to the Royal Capital, the Master would often stay alone in his tent for a long time, so Enri had long since gotten used to it.
Knock! Knock!
The Emerald Leaf Witch suddenly raised her hand and knocked gently on the door a few times.
"Come in," a calm voice came from inside the room.
Only then did the Emerald Leaf Witch gently push the door open and enter. Enri's innocent eyes widened slightly as she quickly followed, her gaze flickering with wonder.
This scene had happened several times.
Enri couldn't understand at all how Young Miss Emerald Leaf judged when to knock and when to wait outside.
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