The bald researcher carefully placed the vial inside a small metal case before turning toward the iron door.
Wren, who had been watching the strange group in confusion, narrowed his eyes.
"Okay, seriously. What’s going on here?"
The woman at the head of the table finally leaned back in her chair.
?"Think of this as nothing more than part of your special treatment," a chilling voice echoes across the dark chamber.
?Before Wren can even process the words, a hand reaches out, forcing a small vial of glowing green liquid directly toward him.
?Wren stares down at the luminous, swirling vial with extreme caution. This is way too strange... Something is seriously wrong here.
?He tries to pull back, but when he looks up, he realizes every single pair of eyes in the room is locked onto him, sharp and menacing. There is no escape. With no other choice left, Wren grabs the vial, tilts his head back, and drinks it down.
?Gulp, gulp, gulp...
?The bitter, burning liquid slides down his throat, searing his insides like liquid fire. He swallows every last drop before dropping the empty glass vial onto the cold stone floor with a sharp clatter.
?The moment the glass hits the ground, everyone in the room leans forward, holding their breath in intense anticipation.
?Suddenly, a series of glowing system notifications flash violently across Wren’s vision:
?[ You have absorbed [%^@%@ Liquid] ]
[ All stats will increase by 10! ]
?Strength: 4.7 ? 14.7
Agility: 1.3 ? 11.3
Vitality: 1 ? 11
Intelligence: 0.4 ? 10.4
Spirit: 0.3 ? 10.3
Will: 2 ? 12
Wren stared at the notifications.
For several seconds, he couldn’t make sense of what he was seeing.
All stats will increase by 10?
His Strength had jumped from 4.7 to 14.7. His Agility had reached 11.3, while even his weakest attribute, Spirit, had climbed to 10.3.
In an instant, every single one of his attributes had increased dramatically.
"What the hell...?"
Wren’s eyes widened.
A strange warmth spread throughout his body. The stiffness in his limbs disappeared, replaced by a feeling of incredible lightness. His breathing grew deeper, and the dull aches lingering from his previous injuries seemed to fade.
He clenched his fists.
A faint cracking sound came from his knuckles.
This was power he’d never experienced before.
Even after receiving the three attribute points, his body had still felt weak. But now, it was as though someone had replaced every part of him with something stronger.
"Hahaha..."
A laugh escaped his lips.
"HAHAHAHA! FINALLY!"
Wren threw his head back, laughing like a man who had just struck gold.
"Did you see that, Envy?! Look at my stats! I’m finally getting stronger!"
The spectral owl didn’t answer.
Instead, Envy stared at the floating notifications with an expression Wren had never seen before.
Its golden eyes narrowed.
Its feathers slowly rose.
"Wren."
"Hmm?"
"Don’t move."
Wren’s laughter stopped.
He glanced at the owl.
"What?"
"I said, don’t move."
For once, there was no sarcasm in Envy’s voice.
Wren’s smile faded.
He looked around the chamber.
The woman at the head of the table was watching him with an unnerving intensity. The bald man beside her had already opened a thick folder, while the man with spectacles hurriedly scribbled something onto a sheet of paper.
Even the figure who had appeared to be sleeping was now sitting upright.
Every single person in the room was staring at him.
Not with surprise.
Not with confusion.
But with anticipation.
As though they’d been waiting for something to happen.
Wren’s stomach tightened.
"...What’s going on?"
The woman smiled.
"Fascinating."
She rose from her chair and approached him, her footsteps clicking against the stone floor.
"Twenty days of preparation, countless failed experiments, and an extraordinary amount of resources."
She stopped directly in front of him.
"And yet, the result exceeds even my expectations."
Wren instinctively stepped backward.
"Twenty days? What are you talking about?"
The woman’s smile widened slightly.
?"How do you feel after drinking that, Wren...?" the mysterious woman asks, stepping closer as her cold eyes scan his face.
?Wren blinks, taking a slow, deep breath as he tests his limbs. The burning sensation in his throat has completely vanished, replaced by an extraordinary, surging vitality.
?"I... I don’t know what it is," Wren murmurs, his voice filled with genuine astonishment. "But... a warm feeling is coming over me. It feels like my entire body has become weightless..."
?The woman narrows her eyes, stepping in to examine him closely. She watches the way his chest rises and falls, tracking the subtle, terrifying hum of energy radiating off his skin.
?For a long moment, the chamber is dead silent as she studies the impossible transformation happening right before her eyes.
?Finally, a faint, unreadable smirk touches her lips.
?"Alright... you may go," she says coldly, turning her back on him.
?Without another word, she walks away into the shadows of the facility, leaving Wren standing alone in the chamber as the heavy iron doors slowly begin to unlock.
~~~~~~~~~~
?"What was all that, Envy...?" Wren asks mentally, his voice tight with suspicion as he turns and begins making his way back toward his cell block.
?"I don’t know," Envy replies, floating just above his shoulder, its feathers ruffled in deep unease. "But I do know one thing for sure. Something far bigger and stranger is happening in this world than what we saw when we first arrived."
?"Yeah..." Wren murmurs, his fists clenching at his sides. He has never heard of anything like it—a mysterious green liquid that can instantly shatter normal progression limits and hand out massive power-ups to whoever drinks it.
?The entire prison of Norhera is built on layers of terrifying secrets.
?"Envy... I think we need to get out of here as fast as possible," Wren says quietly.
?"I agree with you. I’ve got a mountain of questions myself, and I have a strong feeling the other inmates or the authorities know a lot more than they’re letting on."
?Wren doesn’t voice the darker thought resting at the back of his mind, but he knows it’s true: the longer he stays trapped inside this nightmare of a prison, the deeper he risks losing whatever is left of his actual life.