Chapter 45
Marshall glanced over the data he had collected on his own body, compared it with the enchantment strength used for the other two, and finally applied a much weaker version of the spell to himself.
"Hiss—!"
The moment it activated, he nearly cried out.
It felt as though countless tiny blades were tearing through his muscles.
’Wait a damn minute.’
Erza didn’t even consider pain at this level worth calling a "tingle"?
And Mira had endured several times this intensity without so much as furrowing her brow?
’Am I the problem here, or are they the ones who aren’t normal?’
Marshall clenched his teeth and forced himself to endure.
If two girls could tolerate several times the pain he was experiencing, it would be far too humiliating for him to give up now.
"Marshall, how does it feel?" Erza asked.
"I-It’s fine... I just need a little time to adjust."
His body remained rigid as he forced out each word, his gaze fixed firmly on his status panel.
After waiting for a while, he saw the upper limit of his Energy increase by one point.
Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.
As long as it worked, he could tolerate this much pain.
It was only physical discomfort. Hardly worth—
"Marshall..."
"Eek!"
Erza tried to pat him on the shoulder, only for Marshall to let out an embarrassingly high-pitched squeak the instant her hand touched him.
"Huh? Does it hurt that badly?" Erza quickly pulled away. "I’m sorry."
"N-No. It’s fine. My body is just a little sensitive right now..."
Mira noticed his reaction from the side.
Her eyes lit up, and a malicious smile spread across her face as she approached.
"My, my~ Marshall, you don’t look very well~"
"I’m perfectly fine! Ah! D-Don’t touch—"
Mira seized the muscles around his shoulders and neck with both hands.
Tears nearly sprang from Marshall’s eyes.
This was no massage. It felt as though his flesh had been caught between two metal clamps.
It hurt like hell!
Seeing his violent reaction, Mira did not stop.
Instead, she became even more enthusiastic.
"Ahahahaha! You had so much fun tormenting your big sister over the past few months! Never expected this day to come, did you?"
"D-Don’t squeeze! Stop! No!"
"Let go of him! Don’t bully Marshall!"
Fortunately, Erza was a champion of justice who could never ignore evil happening in front of her!
She immediately moved to rescue him.
She grabbed once, twice, three—
"Wait—AAAAAH!"
Erza’s iron grip missed Mira and closed around Marshall instead, whom Mira had shamelessly pulled in front of herself as a shield.
The next moment, Marshall vanished.
All that remained in Mira’s hands were the white laboratory coat and shirt she had been clutching.
Marshall had fled!
"...Ah! This is all your fault!" Mira shouted. "You muscle-brained gorilla! Look how badly you hurt him!"
"I... I’m sorry. I’ll go apologize to Marshall."
Erza immediately began to panic.
That last scream had sounded genuinely miserable. Afraid she had truly injured him, she turned to look for him—only to stop after taking a single step.
When she glanced back, she saw Mira lift Marshall’s shirt to her face and take a suspiciously deep breath.
Her expression looked deeply concerning.
"Mira! Give me Marshall’s clothes!"
"What?! No! They’re my spoils of war!"
"I’m returning them to him! There is absolutely no chance I’m leaving them with you!"
"Heh. Come and take them if you can! I’ll die before I surrender this shirt!"
"You idiot! Have at least a little shame!"
"Mind your own business, you meddling hypocrite! Get lost!"
The two girls immediately started fighting in the forest again.
...
Meanwhile, Marshall had teleported back to his bedroom out of sheer humiliation!
He lay curled into a ball on the floor, shirtless and trembling uncontrollably.
There was no deeper reason for it.
It just hurt like a motherfucker.
Across both of his lives, Marshall had never truly suffered much physical hardship.
The pain had been so intense that tears were still leaking from his eyes.
"Ugh... Hiss... Does this spell also increase physical sensitivity? That was completely pathetic..."
It took quite some time for him to recover.
The dense vitality stored inside his body continuously repaired the "damage," so the worst of the pain never lasted long.
However, the persistent tearing sensation created by the spell could not be avoided.
The side effect was difficult to tolerate, but the benefits were easily worth the suffering.
Judging from the changes in Erza and Mira over the past few months, the spell’s effects were undeniable. Their physical abilities had been increasing at a steady rate.
It could only raise basic physical values. It did nothing for reflexes or nervous-system response, so merely increasing Constitution without Agility would not directly improve close-quarters combat skill.
But raw physical growth was exactly what Marshall needed.
His magic-power development had been restricted by the limits of his body for far too long. He desperately needed to break through that ceiling.
Then he noticed something else.
At some point, his skill Body Conditioning LV1 had changed into:
[Body-Conditioning Magic LV1: 96.7%]
The skill’s name had changed again!
That was excellent news.
It meant the System officially recognized the spell Marshall had created—and recognized it as a new, independent branch of magic rather than a mere combination of existing systems.
His hard work had finally paid off.
It really had not been easy.
Marshall’s mood immediately improved. Even the tearing pain throughout his body seemed to dull, while his Inspiration continued climbing.
He summoned Virgo and asked her to bring him another shirt.
After getting dressed, he was about to lie down and rest when he stopped beside the bed.
There was an egg on it.
"Virgo? Where did this egg come from?"
"Little Master, it was already there when you summoned me. Did you not bring it home?"
"What? No..."
Marshall hurriedly checked every Rune Enchantment and security spell he had placed around the room.
There were no signs of intrusion.
How was that possible?
Someone had bypassed all his defenses and placed an egg directly on his bed?
Marshall approached cautiously.
Only then did he notice an exquisitely crafted box sitting beside the egg, with a letter tucked beneath it.
He opened the letter.
[To whom it may concern,]
[Please look after this child for a while. I will return to collect her in the future.]
[The box contains compensation that should satisfy you. Please accept it without reservation.]
[—A Mysterious Person]
Marshall stared at the signature.
"???"
What kind of idiot signed a letter with A Mysterious Person?
Were they mentally ill?
Still, anyone capable of entering his bedroom without disturbing a single spell had to be overwhelmingly powerful.
Most likely, this was someone Marshall could not afford to offend.
So...
An unknown powerhouse had broken into his home to leave an egg in his care?
What was that supposed to mean?
’Wait. Mira mentioned that Natsu found a large egg too.’
’Could this be the same kind?’
Marshall held the letter, his expression shifting repeatedly.
Eventually, he sighed and picked up the ornate box.
He might as well see what compensation this mysterious person had left.
If it was unsatisfactory, he could always throw the suspicious egg away later.
The moment Marshall opened the lid, however, a blinding light erupted from inside.
Before he could react, the radiance shot directly toward him and vanished into his chest.
"???"
Marshall jumped in alarm and began frantically patting himself down.
"Virgo, do I look different anywhere? Did you see that light just now?"
"You appear unchanged, Little Master. I saw the light enter your chest before disappearing."
"What the hell was that—"
Marshall suddenly froze.
He knew what it was.
The System had given him the answer.
[Dragon Seed: 1]
[Dragon Power LV0: 1/1,000]