My body hung suspended in midair, limbs limp like a marionette's.
The teacup slipped from my fingers—only to halt inches from the floor and glide smoothly to the corner of the room, as if placed by invisible hands.
Definitely Virion's doing.
"Stop squirming," the serpent chided confirming my guess, his tail flicking playfully. "and brace yourself."
I forced my muscles to relax, letting his power lower me toward the jade-green water. The lack of control prickled at my instincts, but resistance was pointless against a primordial beast.
Then my back touched the surface.
"!"
Argh-!
My eyes shot open as if thousand needles of ice and fire stabbed into my skin, seizing my lungs.
My body jerked instinctively—or tried to.
Virion's hold kept me immobile, submerged up to my collarbones in the churning, herb-laden liquid. Every nerve shrieked as the concoction invaded pores, veins, heck maybe even the bone.
This can't be normal.
The thought surfaced amidst the pain.
Neither Luna's nor book's instructions mentioned this torment. But as another wave of fire raced up my spine, I realized - Virion wasn't following standard procedures.
"Bear with it," Virion's voice cut through the haze. "This is for your own good. That weak human will of yours would've wasted the pill's potential."
Weak—?!
I gritted my teeth, swallowing the retort. He wasn't wrong. My fingers clawed at nothing, but I steadied my breathing as instructed.
I focused on the one certainty - Virion had no reason to harm me. Why would he make me and himself go through all this trouble if he wanted my life?
He's obviously helping me even though the process is a bit different. This torture had purpose. I hope so.
In. Out.
I took deep breaths to calm my nerves.
No pain, no gain.
The water rose higher, guided by Virion's power. As it lapped at my chin, he flicked his tail. "Open."
The pill arced into my mouth. I swiftly swallowed the—!
H-Hot-!
The pill dissolved like molten metal, scorching a path down my throat before exploding through my meridians. My vision whited out. Just as the agony peaked, warmth bloomed in its wake, soothing and paradoxical. Then—
"!"
Water closed over my face.
The pain shifted, crawling up my scalp, etching into my face and eyelids. I kept them shut, focusing only on survival. Distantly, Virion's muttering reached me through the liquid:
"...idiots, both so kind... trivial for me... you're lucky, boy..."
The words fragmented as the pain intensified, though I didn't get anything as I poured all my focus and energy into surviving.
My skin itched, fibers knitting anew.
Time lost meaning.
Tick—Tock—
Seconds stretched into eternities of suffering as my body remade itself.
Tick—Tock—
I lay still, the torment ebbing incrementally until—
"You can come out now." (Virion)
"Whoo!"
I burst upright as the process already stopped.
"Hmmm, hmm!"
Air flooded my lungs as water sluiced off gleaming skin. No wounds, but my entire body hummed with alien vitality. The bath's hue had faded to murky gray, herbs dissolved into sludge.
Virion hovered closer, emerald eyes appraising. "Hmm. Only thirty minutes? Better than expected." His tail tapped my forehead—
Boom.
A surge of energy detonated behind my eyes. The world sharpened—colors brighter, sounds crisper, the very air vibrating with unseen currents.
"Ah," Virion mused. "There we go."
I stared at my hands.
"..."
They looked the same.
Guess, only protagonists get six packs and iron skin from things like this.
"How's it?" Virion asked, his emerald eyes gleaming with mischief as I stepped out of the tub, water dripping onto the tiles.
I shot him a flat stare.
Weren't you enjoying my suffering?
"...It was painful." My voice came out rougher than expected, scraped raw from screaming.
The winged serpent coiled lazily in midair. "Tch. Weak. If you can't endure this much, you'll need to train your—"
"I'm just an ordinary human," I deadpanned. "You're a dragon, you told me yourself. There's a big difference between you and me."
Virion's tail froze mid-flick. "...That's true too."
He cleared his throat—an oddly human gesture—before floating closer. "Well? How are you feeling?"
No point lying to a primordial being.
I stretched my arms out, examining my skin. The same, yet...not. My muscles moved with unsettling precision, each tendon firing exactly on command. "Can't pinpoint specifics, but...good. Really good."
"Obviously." Virion preened, wings flaring. "I realigned all thirty-two minor meridians, expanded your core vessel capacity by forty percent, and purged enough toxins to kill a small village." His tail gestured proudly at the black sludge in the tub. "You're basically a newborn phoenix. Minus the feathers. And fire. And—"
"I get it," I muttered, though my fingers kept flexing, testing their new responsiveness.
Virion's gaze suddenly dropped, scrutinizing me from head to toe. His nose wrinkled. "Though you should retake a bath. Properly this time. Without magical herbs. You reek of...potential."
He said the last word like it was a bad smell.
I glanced at the murky bathwater, then at the black film clinging to my skin.
Right.
It must be that - impurities and toxins being expelled from the body.
"Wait in the living room. I will be done in five minutes."
Virion's wings twitched in amusement. A swirling black portal materialized beside him. "Try not to drown, boy," he teased before vanishing through the rift - confirming my teleportation theory.
It was cool, I wonder if I can learn it too?
...
Well, maybe sometime in the future.
Shaking my head, I drained the filthy water.
The tub needed serious scrubbing to remove the sludge clinging to its sides. Fresh water gushed forth, carrying away the last traces of my former limitations.
The first wash was clinical - soap scouring every inch to remove the residual grime. The second became a revelation.
Under the bathroom's lamplight, the changes became undeniable:
My skin had tightened, blemishes erased like polished stone. The muscles in my abdomen now showed subtle definition - not the exaggerated six-packs of warriors, but the lean, efficient tone of a healthy young man.
Even my hands looked different - fingers slightly longer, nails harder, like I'd been reforged at the cellular level.
A grin tugged at my lips as I toweled off.
Not bad. Not bad at all.
Dressed in fresh clothes, I emerged to find Virion draped over my reading chair, tail flicking like a metronome.
"Well?" he drawled. "Satisfied?"
A small, genuine smile touched my lips as I nodded.
"More than satisfied." I bowed slightly, the motion coming easier than before. "Thank you for your help, Mr.Virion. Truly."
The primordial beast waved a claw dismissively. "Hardly worth mentioning. Barely tapped into my reserves for that."
"By the way," My smile turned knowing. "You didn't give me the Clearflow pill, did you?"
I tilted my head. "And those herbs weren't what Luna specified either. Even the moonbloom tea was... fake, wasn't it?"
The temperature in the room dropped several degrees. Virion's eyes narrowed to slits. "Are you doubting me, little human?" His voice carried the weight of ancient storms.
I held up my hands calmly. "Not at all. I know they were superior in both quality and quantity."
Flexing my fingers, I added, "The taste alone betrayed the difference. The book described Clearflow as mildly bitter. What I swallowed tasted like molten silver and lightning." Meeting his gaze, I finished softly, "So thank you. Again."
Virion studied me for a long moment before his posture relaxed. "Hmph. At least you're observant."
"Thank you, and I already thought of a good plan about those two."
"Oh, let's hear it then."
"It's like this..."