Kai’s Lorne POV
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Evelina’s raw, tear-soaked confession: "I seek nothing but revenge. Revenge against those who took Prudee away from . Revenge against Mudrel." My heart ached for her, for the depth of her grief. But a cold, analytical part of my mind also registered the chilling intensity of her words, the shift from innocent ambition to vengeful resolve. It was a dangerous path, one that could consu her.
My gaze, fixed from my hidden vantage point, watched as she slowly, deliberately, raised the Knight’s Trial Elixir to her lips. I still rembered the system’s warning:
[ WARNING: KNIGHT’S TRIAL ELIXIR - DETECTING CORRUPTED MANA SIGNATURE ] and [ RECOMNDATION: DO NOT CONSU ].
I had tried to warn her, to dissuade her, but the allure of power, the desperate need for strength, was a powerful motivator. And now, she was going to drink it.
Should I use ’Pause & Observe’? Freeze ti, rush down there, snatch the vial from her hand? The thought flashed through my mind, quick and desperate. But then, the counter-argunt, equally swift and chilling, ca. Pause & Observe was subtle, yes, but it was still an active override. What if soone else was watching? What if the system, already at a 9% Glitch Coefficient, malfunctioned and the pause wasn’t perfect? What if Evelina herself registered a flicker, a montary distortion? It would risk exposing my abilities, and by extension, my true identity as an imposter. It would raise suspicions that could put my very life at risk, far more than the corrupted elixir might put hers. I couldn’t afford that. Not now. Not when I was still trying to navigate this treacherous new existence.
No. Pause & Observe was too risky for this. I needed a different approach. If anything truly dangerous happened, if she started to collapse, if her body began to react violently, I would use Scene Override. It was a more drastic asure, but it offered a complete, undeniable alteration of reality, a way to get her to safety without directly exposing my powers in the mont. It was my ergency button.
With a heavy heart, I watched.
Evelina hesitated for only a fraction of a second, her eyes squeezed shut, a silent prayer or a desperate resolve passing across her face. Then, with a fierce determination, she uncorked the vial and brought it to her lips. The green liquid, thick and viscous, flush down her throat in one gulp.
For a mont, nothing happened.
Then, her eyes snapped open. A gasp escaped her lips, not of pain, but of profound wonder. A vibrant, golden glow flickered from her body, far brighter than any mana gathering I had witnessed. Her mana core, which had been utterly exhausted, seed to refill instantly. Her exhausted posture straightened, her muscles tensed, and a look of fierce, renewed strength settled on her face. She took a deep breath, a triumphant smile beginning to form on her lips. It seed, for a fleeting mont, that the elixir was working as intended, a miraculous boost to her abilities.
But the triumph was short-lived.
After only a few minutes, the vibrant golden glow around her began to flicker. Her triumphant smile faltered, replaced by a look of sudden, sharp pain. Her hands flew to her chest, clutching at her tunic. Her body began to tremble violently, a deep, internal tremor that shook her from head to toe.
She fell to her knees, a strangled gasp tearing from her throat. Her eyes, wide with sudden terror, darted wildly around the room, as if searching for an escape from an unseen torntor.
Then, the scream.
It was loud. Agonizing. A guttural, raw sound of pure, tornt that echoed through the vast training hall, piercing the silence of the manor. Her body convulsed, her hands still clutching her chest, her face squeezed tight with unbearable pain, her mouth twisted, spitting saliva. It was a scream that spoke of unimaginable agony, a sound that made my own blood run cold. This was more than just pain; this was a scream of a soul being ripped apart. Maybe she could die. Right here. Right now.
My heart hamred. This was it. The severe side effects. The corrupted mana signature. I couldn’t wait.
My hand flickered through the air. "Scene Override!" I commanded.
The training hall shimred, a rapid, disorienting blur of light and color. The stone walls of the training hall, the grimoire, the very air itself, warped and twisted. The scream, however, continued, a horrifying constant amidst the chaotic transformation.
When the distortion cleared, the training hall was gone. Evelina, still screaming, still clutching her chest, was no longer on the stone floor. She was lying on the polished marble floor of a long, brightly lit passage. It was the passage that led directly to the manor’s dical wing. The training hall had morphed into the passage that led to the dical wing of the manor.
Her agonizing screams, now amplified by the hard surfaces of the passage, quickly alerted the staff within. Doors burst open. Nurses, in white uniforms, rushed out, their faces etched with alarm.
"What in the heavens?!" one nurse cried, rushing towards Evelina, her eyes wide with shock at the sight of the writhing, screaming girl.
"Get the Chief Doctor!" another shouted, her voice urgent. "Now!"
Footsteps down the corridor. A mont later, a man with a kind, worried face, in white coat, burst into the passage. It was Chief Doctor Alaric, the manor’s head physician. He imdiately knelt beside Evelina, his hands moving with practiced efficiency, checking her pulse, her breathing, his face deep with concern.
He looked up at . "Young Master Kai! What happened here?! What is wrong with Lady Evelina?"
My mind, still reeling from the sudden shift in reality, struggled to form coherent words. "She... she took an elixir," pointing a finger at the small, empty vial beside her on the floor.
Chief Doctor Alaric’s gaze locked at the vial. His eyes, already wide with concern, widened further, his jaw dropping in disbelief. He snatched the vial, examining it, his face paling.
"A Knight’s Elixir?!" he roared, his voice filled with a mixture of shock, anger, and profound dismay. He looked up at , his eyes blazing. "Why?! Why would she take such an artifact at her current mana core level?! Does she have a death wish?!"
His words, though directed at , were aid at the terrifying reality of Evelina’s condition. Her mana core level. He knew the risks, so did she. He knew what this elixir could do, so did Evelina.
I could only stare at Evelina, still writhing, still screaming, her body convulsing on the floor. I had warned her. The system had warned . But she had taken it anyway. And now, she was paying the price. My mind raced, Had I done enough? Could she truly die from this? My intervention, my Scene Override, had brought her to the dical center, but it hadn’t stopped the corrupted mana from ravaging her. Her safety, her very life, hung by a thread.
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