Still overwhelmed by the surge of euphoria running through his body, pupils dilated and breathing accelerated, Lud appeared like a gust of wind in front of Seran. Without hesitation, he applied an injection to the boy's injured shoulder.
"This will stabilize the wound and improve recovery," he said, smiling with a faint, restrained satisfaction.
"Now come back to yourself. Extract the core. Absorb it," he urged, pointing at the Evox's corpse.
The tremors and irregular breathing gradually returned to coordination.
Drawing his multitool knife, Seran knelt in front of the wolf.
"Ten centimeters from the heart. A clean, precise incision will be enough," he recalled from one of Ricant's lessons.
As he worked on the extraction, warm blood and viscous organic matter covered his hands.
Finally, the removal succeeded.
A sphere no larger than a ping-pong ball glowed faintly in his palm.
"This will be the first and last time I do something like this…" he thought, staring in disgust at the extracted organ.
Bringing his hand to his mouth, assaulted by the sharp, wild smell, he swallowed the core in one motion, with visible disgust.
As soon as the energy substance reached his digestive tract, it dissolved within five seconds.
Muscle spasms attacked his body.
His bones crackled as if struck by stones, being reinforced.
It felt as though his brain was on fire.
His lungs contracted and expanded like never before.
The pain was blinding.
"This is nothinggggg!!!"
Only five seconds had passed.
The symptoms intensified, but he clenched his teeth.
"Remember… hmhmh," he managed to think, "Regis… our promise."
Another thirty seconds passed, and gradually an energy began flowing into him from the atmosphere.
At first it was translucent, but as the seconds passed it started taking on a color not yet defined.
A color that would determine which type of mana he would develop as his own.
Time seemed to stop flowing.
Thoughts and memories twisted in his mind.
After another four minutes, the spasms ceased.
A faint sound of bones shifting echoed.
His lungs resumed a rhythm that was no longer normal, but different.
And the fire in his synapses went out.
What had once been a transparent torrent of energy had now taken on a silver coloration, with intermittent blue and red reflections.
Lud frowned at the sight of this chromatic composition but remained silent, observing.
"*#+i+!, ?&%$£ flows!!!" Seran shouted upon waking.
A brief glance made him look toward Lud.
Lud seemed different, as if the resolution of reality itself had increased. Details that were previously invisible now became clear.
A small scar on his upper lip framed his mouth.
The colors of his clothes appeared more vivid, more alive.
But the changes were not over.
The environment, once silent, now seemed filled with overlapping sounds, like an orchestra performing.
The smell of death had become sharper, almost penetrating.
Disgusted, he stood up.
But without understanding how, he suddenly leapt two meters into the air, shocked by the unexpected motion.
Managing to land back on his feet thanks to gravity, he finally noticed something wrapping around him like a thin blanket.
A faint, solid silver light covered his hands.
"Whoa…" he muttered.
"Focus on my voice now. Draw the MANA back into yourself," Lud ordered.
"Imagine a vessel being filled with water," he added.
Taking his guide's words literally, Seran—who until then had been focused on defending his body during the evolution—began trying to follow the instruction.
With initial difficulty, and after several attempts, he managed to call back the energy surrounding him, extinguishing the light that enveloped him.
"You are officially a FLOOR 1," the veteran declared solemnly.
"We will return to base. During the journey you will familiarize yourself with your new physique and abilities. The rest of the day will consist of boring bureaucracy and theoretical lessons."
The one-hour journey turned into a three-hour odyssey. Every step was a mistake, every movement a test.
Falling, sprinting, jumping through the forest, Seran began adapting to his new body.
Dirtying his suit with soil, crashing into trees, he realized that impacts no longer hurt the same way, and his breath seemed endless.
And by chance, throwing a shoulder into a boulder, he nearly shattered it, noticing how much strength now resided within him.
Once they reached the walls separating danger from safety, they finally returned to the Patrol Block Teta.
New kinds of gazes fell upon Seran.
Some of approval, some of challenge, some of curiosity.
The other Floor members immediately sensed the arrival of a peer.
With calm and composed eyes, without arrogance, Seran returned their gaze, observing how mana in the atmosphere reacted differently for each of them. He was finally able to distinguish colors and intensity.
After a while, Lud said:
"Pull yourself together. In one hour I'll be waiting for you at the logistics center for your registration in the database," and walked away with his usual steady pace.
The shower water felt different on his skin. A faint grin appeared on his face; relief from having passed this first trial filled him.
Wiping the steam from the bathroom mirror, his eyes widened and his mouth opened slightly.
His onyx-black hair now had strands of faint silver.
His previously athletic body showed greater definition, his muscles unconsciously tightening.
Even his amber pupils were now stained with a hint of silver.
"What the hell!!!" he exclaimed in confusion.
Many things had changed in him, and he had noticed most of them—but one thing still remained unknown.
"What does silver mana correspond to? It's the first time I've seen or heard of such a color."
Still confused and intrigued, after getting ready, he headed toward the center of the patrol block.
"Two minutes late. I see nothing has changed," the boy said unconsciously, finishing Lud's sentence.
The guide paused for a moment, stunned by the boy's apparent foresight, as if he had read his mind.
Even Seran himself was surprised, as if he had heard those words before actually speaking them.
"Impertinent… but let's leave it," Lud said, masking his shock. "Follow me inside."