System of the Beast Slayer [litrpg Adventure]
Copyright© 1999 by CaffeinatedTales
Chapter 108
Nenneke’s laboratory.
Under a cluster of crucibles, test tubes, beakers and crystal lamps, Roy lay on a cold operating table, white, elegant hands moving softly across his bare chest. The soft touch made his skin prickle and gooseflesh rise; he twisted uneasily.
“Don’t move!”
“Lady Coral, I feel uneasy, can you be quicker?”
“Haste won’t get you to Kaer Morhen, be patient ... almost ... I’ll finish the check soon.”
“I’ll give you five minutes at most ... hiss ... where are your hands going ... not there ... let go of me!”
...
After a while the sorceress set down a vial of clear liquid and fixed her gaze on another tube of dark red blood. Her right forefinger traced a double-triangle sigil in the air, and the blood burst outward in colours, bright and dim at once.
“Blood oxygen within normal parameters.”
“Heart rate and blood pressure readings are excellent.”
“He’s only taken the Trial of the Grasses pre-potion so far; he has some toxin resistance.”
“Young one...” Coral’s blue eyes glinted, “are you sure you’re fourteen and haven’t lost a stretch of memory? Your physique is better than most grown men, you’re as sturdy as an ox.”
Roy’s eyes burned red; he lay numb, feeling like a proper lad violated by a wench, and had no mind to answer the sorceress’s questions. He snapped back, “Is this your idea of a short checkup?”
“Exactly.” The sorceress patted his cheek with a comfort that was too hot, “body fluids like blood and tears are within the scope of an exam.”
“I’ll say it again.” Roy drew a deep breath and sat up straight, “do not fiddle with my body without consent, otherwise you ... I don’t need you, I can make it through the Trial!”
The sorceress stroked her small, fine chin with one hand and regarded him the way one studies a lab mouse.
In her memory boys this age were either flushed and meek, or as stiff as wooden men.
Most could not refuse her orders.
Roy’s attitude was odd; he wanted closeness but was fiercely restrained.
“What a strange child, is that Witcher pride?”
“That is my bottom line!”
“Fine, next time I’ll ask your consent. But first a frank truth: under my control, you won’t find it easy to kill yourself.”
“Ugh...” Roy felt a chill down his back and gave up arguing, “keep your promise. Now, conclusions? What did your exam show?”
“The conclusion is—” Coral’s gaze lingered on the boy’s slightly parted lips as if checking a horse’s teeth; translucent fingers drew patterns in the air, “ ... indeed fourteen...” she muttered to herself, “this is both good news and bad news.”
“How so?”
“As an over-aged apprentice your constitution is far superior to most nine- or ten-year-old initiates; gains and losses both follow. Your physical state is more stable than a child’s, which means the mutation remodeling will be harder and take longer.”
“Half a year should be enough?”
“Less than half a year.”
“Can you give me an exact success rate?”
“According to the records Letho provided, past Viper School apprentices had less than a thirty percent chance of surviving the full mutation process, and you...” Coral interlaced her fingers and considered, “now you sit at roughly a fifty-five percent success rate.”
“Over half?” Roy felt steadier, “that’s not reckless then.”
“By the way, little Roy, do you know why Witchers pick children for the Trial of the Grasses?”
“Because children are easier to control and brainwash.” Roy frowned and said gravely, “Lady Coral, please don’t put ‘little’ before my name.”
“I’m merely stating a fact.”
The sorceress tucked her warm red lips close to his ear, “let me add, young bodies brim with vigor, their recovery from exertion and wounds far outstrips adults. Those undeveloped frames are also better suited to directed mutation.”
“What does ‘directed mutation’ mean?” Roy had a bad feeling.
“It’s the first step we’ll take. I will use hormonal agents to condition your body, pushing your immunity and cellular vitality into a high-growth state.”
...
According to Coral, she divided the entire mutation into three parts—alchemical conditioning, exposure to mutagenic pathogens, and finally taking the series of mutagenic elixirs of the Trial of the Grasses.
The first part, alchemical conditioning, required daily administration of measured hormonal agents and similar substances into Roy for about a month, so he would gradually adapt to the hormones.
He would also continue taking the unfinished pre-potion.
But the sorceress did not intend to use the traditional oral or injection methods; instead—
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