Elias was pacing back and forth inside his lab. Today was supposed to be the last injection. He was hoping that the amount of work that he put in during the last thirteen weeks was worth it. If he knew that there was no danger even if he administered a fatal dose to Alwyn, he would commit suicide on the spot. He spent most of his free time calibrating the dosage and second guessing himself at every step of his preparations that he seldom slept.

Mark was standing far away to avoid any sort of interaction unless he was spoken to. He had finally experienced how his lazy master was especially irritable the first time he did anything worthwhile for a change. Even with him playing the role of assistant, the work still took more time than they could expect. Even if Elias was a Grand magician, he was a lazy one.

“Any news from Kris?” Elias asked.

“Kris’s report says that there is no trace of the Kane family. They used every possible way to retrace any living relative with Alwyn’s blood, starting from the southern kingdoms to the whole continent. Nothing. All the tracking spells come back to Alwyn as the last living member of his bloodline. As for the neighboring continents, with the short time they had to complete the mission, it is fortunate that nothing pops up as well.” Mark reported as he handed a magic scroll to Elias.

Elias unfolded the magic scroll and read it. After he finished reading, a white fire left his hands and instantly burned the scroll into nothingness.

“Once again, he is still alive on the eve of his last injection. Everything has been going on so smoothly that I am afraid something unseen might stab us in the back when we are so close to the end.” Elias said.

“His records are still there, but anyone who’s ever laid eyes on him has forgotten him already. They were either selected for the trial and died or had their memories altered. No one expected him to survive anyway. If he still lives after tomorrow, you will be able to study him at your leisure.” Mark said.

“Tell Kris and his team to be ready. As soon as Alwyn’s state is known to us, they must heed my call. Whether he makes it through or not, every shred of evidence must disappear. Kris must bring his team over to that cell and clean it after we retrieve Alwyn. You will bring him a spare guard uniform for him and a real identity magic badge as well. We must pray that we clear every checkpoint before arriving at my estate in Drake city without alerting anybody.” Elias sternly ordered.

“Right away, sir.” Mark said before leaving the lab.

It was with haste that the duo invited themselves into my room. I had just finished healing. It was always surprising to me the fact that this tattoo could keep itself hidden in front of these two.

I once had a daring idea which was to try and compel the violet smoke to stop healing a simple wound that I had opened myself and it worked. I did not think much of it since magicians could control elements and the likes. I just assumed that I was fortunate enough to be gifted with a healing magic by the demon. I did not know that I could use it on others nor that it could be seen on them. As for the extent of the kind of injuries it could heal, the demon himself said that as long I was still conscious I would be safe from death.

One thing that worried me was the speed of healing that was showing signs of slowing down the stronger I got. It was a minute detail I could only see from the connection I shared with the violet smoke. To my eyes, it was still instantaneous to see a wound being closed, but it was the future problems that would arise as I grew stronger that weighed on my mind. If I used it on a human now who had never been physically enhanced, he would be brought from death’s door in the blink of an eye. I, however, would be brought back a second later. Still, I did not know why I was complaining so much, but there had to be an efficient way of using this violet smoke.

When the alchemist was giving me my last injection, he was almost shaking. This heartless Grand magician was afraid of seeing me die for a change. I could not help but smile.

When he saw me smiling as he finished the injection, he said:

“I hope to see that smile tomorrow again.” As always, nothing more was said as he excused himself from my humble abode.

“Of course, you will.” I thought.

I waited until they were long gone before I released as much violet smoke as I could control. I did it because I knew many parts of my body could explode into pulp without notice. I wanted to heal myself as fast as I could to diminish the pain by instantly pushing it away with every new part that was recreated. That kind of process would repeat itself for what seemed like an eternity when in fact it was just a day. Directing the violet smoke as opposed to letting it heal me automatically had its advantages. It helped me concentrate my mind as I attuned myself with the violet smoke. Through that growing connection, I could even learn how it healed me and understood my own body more and more.

Later on, I grew to believe the words the demon had said about the elixir. What was injected into me daily was nothing more than diluted blood that mostly looked like that of a human. I suspected it was a millionth of a single drop of its source that was being used on me every day. There were some peculiarities here and there that I could only see through the violet smoke, but I knew that whatever made it weird would affect me in the later stages of mutation. For now, I just let both the violet smoke and the diluted blood do their work.

My connection with the violet smoke had deepened on a level that surpassed even the way I communicated with my own body. I could will it to take any form or do any task I wanted. By spreading the smoke throughout my body, I could heal every part that was about to be completely damaged and learned of my own body to the point of having a mental map of it in real time. It was faster to heal from the source than restarting from a lost limb and every new part of the body that was recreated had perfectly fused with the blood inside the elixir. The pain was still there, but I had grown numb to it.

I could tell that my worries were not over from the alchemist’s satisfied expression the next day. He did not know that the part of the slave seal that controlled me was useless. Even if I wanted to dispose of him in a surprise attack, I would still have to deal with his experienced Shadow guard. Besides, how strong would an organization have to be to let two beings who had reached the epitome of power on the Nether continent act as simple errand runners? I only needed to stay long enough to steal the source blood since I was the only one who had a guaranteed chance of survival. If it became impossible, then running away was not out of the equation. The violet smoke could only save me if could stay alive long enough to use it. If I met fire or light Grand magicians who could incinerate me faster than I could heal if they used an army of shadow guards and magicians to pin me down, I would be done for. The odds of such a thing happening were low, but with this place that screamed secrecy, these people would have the means to hunt me down forever should I break out of here. No one would want to become a target with his hard-earned freedom.

The alchemist cast a cleansing spell on me and I found myself cleaner than I ever was. My trousers despite their ragged condition did not escape the spell’s reach as they became even whiter than the day I got them. I suppose I could do the same with the violet smoke as well.

The shadow guard then came forward and gave me a bag. I was surprised to find that there was a complete guard uniform from the hat to the leather boots. There was also a golden badge on which my full name was printed on top of an odd-looking tree drawing that looked lifelike and swayed from left to right.

I did not ask any question and wore everything that was given to me. It fit perfectly for one as skinny as I was. I could feel the presence of spells all over the outfit. Most likely for protection.

For the first time, I felt proud to have the patience to not try and break out of my cell as soon as I could. The outside was an unlit maze. It was easy to tell that we were heading upwards.

On our way, we went past hundreds of little cells just like the one I had just left. Occasionally, you could hear the poor souls imprisoned within screaming or sobbing. They still had a long way to go. I could relate, but it was of no use. They were damned whether they lived or not.

Every time we reached the next floor, a transparent white screen would resonate with our badges as we went through it. Every access to the floors was separated by the same light screen.

After the long corridors of darkness, we reached a luxurious underground city. If Mark had not told me beforehand that we were still below ground, I never would have believed that the blue sky, the bright sun, and the fresh air were nothing more than a product of magic. The crude way the city of gods on the eighth floor was constructed was incomparable to what I was seeing. After inquiring from Mark, this city’s name was Drake city. It was here that every Grand magician and Shadow guard employed by the Headless Dragon organization lived.

After a few hours of sightseeing, we reached a fancy estate.

“This entire northern district is owned by the Tree of Wisdom faction that you now belong to. This here is my estate. You are not allowed to leave a single inch of it. Mark will help you get settled.” Elias said before he flew away.

He could have used his magic to fly us to his home from the very beginning but had opted roundabout way on foot.

“It seems keeping my existence a secret is his priority.” I thought.