He uncorked the vial. A faint sweet aroma leaked out of its mouth. He took a sip as a test before he downed it.
Nothing happened for a few minutes.
Just when he was starting to wonder if something was wrong with the potion, a searing heat surged within his abdomen.
His muscles started to twist. The heat traveled through his bones and organs and increased the agony. Cold sweat flowed down Isaac’s body.
He refused to scream or writhe around in pain. He tried to calm the rampaging energy within him and fuse it into his muscles, organs, and bones.
The pain turned into a soothing feeling as time passed.
Isaac opened his eyes and noticed his vision had improved.
He felt stronger, and his body was more flexible.
The flow of mana within him had transformed from a dirty river to a clean river without the hint of impurities.
He used Spectral Claw. Energy claws appeared around his hands.
“I can feel that I can circulate the mana much more smoothly, and it helped reduce the skill activation time from three seconds to one second.”
The improved mana circulation made him feel as if his body was made of clouds.
“Show me my stats.”
Strength: 41 → 47
Agility: 60 → 69
Constitution: 35 → 40
Spirit Power: 66 → 76
Mana: 71 → 82
“The stats increased by 15% instead of just 10% that the Principal said. I guess having a higher Talent improves absorption ability.”
Isaac looked down at his clothes.
They were covered in a black tar-like substance. The tar was probably the impurities that were expunged from his body after he consumed the potion.
The bedsheet had been soiled.
Just when he was about to take off the bedsheet, a screen popped up before his eyes.
[Your Wife, Emily Warren, has digested Body Tempering Potion (Mortal-Grade). Share?]
“Even this can be shared?” Isaac muttered in surprise.
He realized Emily had returned to her room in a hurry not because she was sad, but because she wanted to consume the potion. It would help her grow stronger and allow her to protect Isaac.
“Would sharing this have any effect? The Principal said we can consume the potion only once in each rank.”
He clicked the share option with apprehension. His doubts were answered immediately.
A soothing warmth appeared in the center of his abdomen. It slowly spread throughout his body.
“I see, what I shared was the ‘benefits’ of Emily’s potion, not the potion’s content. It’s like the difference between sharing the knowledge of the exam and sharing the marks we get on the exam.”
Isaac closed his eyes and tried to sense the flow of mana within him.
The river of mana within him was tranquil. It flowed with calmness and did not let a single drop splash, as it would’ve led the mana to leak from his body.
He activated Spectral Claws.
The skill activated in half a second. The activation time had been halved again!
Isaac checked his stats with a smile.
Strength: 47 → 52
Agility: 69 → 76
Constitution: 40 → 44
Spirit Power: 76 → 84
Mana: 82 → 90
“My stats increased by another 10%. It must be because Emily gained a 10% boost from the Body Tempering Potion.”
She must’ve not been able to consume the entire potion like Isaac due to the difference in their talents.
“System, show me Emily’s stats.”
Stats (Share):
Strength: 23 → 25
Agility: 41 → 45
Constitution: 27 → 30
Spirit Power: 46 → 51
Mana: 61 → 67
“As I thought, her stats increased by 10%.”
He looked at the share option and grinned in anticipation.
“Share!”
Strength: 52 → 54
Agility: 76 → 80
Constitution: 44 → 47
Spirit Power: 84 → 89
Mana: 90 → 96
Isaac could feel himself growing stronger, faster, and more durable. The addictive rise of strength made him smile.
After a simple calculation, he found his stats increased by roughly 20%!
All he had done was drink one potion and share the effects of potions from Emily!
“According to the stats I told the Vice Principal, she said I was on par with early Elite-rank Awakeners, which are Level 21 or Level 22 rank awakeners.
“I don’t know how many stats Elite-rank awakeners get with each level up, but I should be able to fight Level 24 Awakeners with this.”
Only now did Isaac realize he had downplayed his stats in the morning when he thought he could fight early Adept-rank awakeners.
He made the mistake as he didn’t know how many stats each rank got with a level up.
Smiling, he took another shower and washed the bedsheet before laying another bedsheet in its place.
He hung the washed bedsheet on the balcony to dry.
While he could use the laundry, he was more used to washing his clothes by himself.
He opened the window to air the room. The black tar that his body expunged had a strong smell, and it made his room uncomfortable.
Just then, a white ball of light came through the wall that was connected to Emily’s room.
The creature had a thin, hair-like tail and a tiny ball, one tenth of its body size, was attached to the end of the tail.
It had similarly thin arms with which it gave him a small white paper.
“I digested the Body Strengthening Potion. It was sweet and made me feel light.” Isaac read the letter.
“Why is she telling me this?” he chuckled.
“I guess I’ll write something back to her.”
He wrote, ‘Me too. But mine just stinks.’
The ball of light, which Isaac assumed to be a Wisp, a spirit summoned by Emily through her Phantom Parade skill, took the letter back.
Isaac could imagine Emily giggling after reading his note.
The ball of light returned a few seconds later.
“I noticed.” He laughed, knowing she meant the bedsheet he had hung on the balcony, not that he smelled so bad that it reached his room.
The two exchanged letters until a few hours later when the ball of light suddenly disappeared while it was in Isaac’s room.
He realized Emily must’ve fallen asleep, which canceled her spell.
“Come, Wisp.”
He summoned his own Wisp.
After sending a ‘Goodnight’ note to Emily, he called back his summon.
“I bet she is going to be confused when she sees the note in her room and wonders how she doesn’t remember her Wisp carrying it back,” he thought with a smile.
Unlike Emily, Isaac was not feeling sleepy.
The boost of stats and improvement in mana circulation made him feel energized.
He grabbed his Soulbind Pendant and willed to enter it.
His consciousness blurred for a split second.
The living room where he appeared was large. Sunlight entered through the windows, and a gentle breeze went around.
Isaac noticed a few empty potted plants at the window sill and the porch. He shifted his gaze to the box placed on the table that was present in the center of the room.
“Random Box. I wasn’t able to open this yet.”
He grabbed the Random Box he had received from the system after his first night with Emily.
“Open.”