As if sensing someone, the old man hunched over the workbench stood up straight and turned to Alec.

"Awake already? Disgusting cur."

Alec glared at Shim.

"Isn't it just that you suck at putting people to sleep, fucking bastard?" Alec shot back.

Shim answered by firing a magic missile at Alec's bare chest. Alec was a little surprised by the casting speed of a teacher, but he still tried to throw up a barrier to defend himself.

The magic missile struck him right in his torso, eroding skin and burning his flesh slightly.

Alec felt the pain. But he was more concerned about the fact that his mana didn't respond to him. It refused to budge.

"Freak." Shim snorted. A magic missile should have done a lot more damage than that. A normal, dignified person would have felt enough pain to make them curl up and cry out in pain. Only a freak would wince and look at the shackles instead.

"Don't even think about trying anything stupid. Those shackles—"

"...Are nilver silver. I know. They restrict my mana. Motherfucker. Are you that scared of a first-circle newbie mage that you'd use such precious material?"

"Hmph. Precious for peasant lowlives like you, maybe. But you're right. It would be a waste if it was just to keep a mage like you in check. That's not what they're for. The nilver is there in case you turn into a monster."

Alec froze.

"Oh, you thought I wouldn't know? There is no mistaking your lowly background, no matter how much you try to hide it. Did you think you could hide your activities from me?"

'So, I was careless. That's not good. I really need a detection spell.'

"Still, you're lucky I'm the one who discovered you. You see, I also have an interest in uncovering the secret of monsterification. Cooperate with me, and I won't report your accomplices to the Kingdom."

"What?" Alec frowned.

"My friends had nothing to do with this!" He shouted in outrage.

Shim raised an eyebrow and looked at Alec like he was even more garbage than usual.

"What do I care about those insects? I am talking about those so-called teachers who agreed to help you. Keeping knowledge about an existing or a potential human monster is a crime punishable by mana erasure."

"So, the same as what you are doing right now?" Alec asked.

Shim had somehow found out about Moira, Reina, and Basra agreeing to help him. That wasn't something Alec could have prevented if even the three of them couldn't do anything about it.

"They are nothing like me!" Shim shouted.

"They fell for the seductive voice of a lying abomination! I am working for the betterment of mankind! My success will carve my name in the annals of history! They will be forgotten the moment their souls leave their bodies!"

"..."

'He feels pretty strongly about this, huh. Noted.'

"So, how is kidnapping me supposed to put your name down in history? I am sure there are as many forgotten kidnappers as there are grains of sand in the desert."

Shim gave him a long, silent look before answering.

"It's because you hold the key to unlocking the secret of monsterification."

"News to me."

"No, it isn't. Anyone but you would have long since turned into a monster. Somehow, you haven't, even after all this time and all of those monsters you've eaten. Whatever secret you are hiding is the answer."

'Gluttony? I doubt that will be applicable to anyone but me. But…'

"You sound very certain about that."

Shim spoke as if turning into a monster after eating one was a certainty. Reina and the others had made it sound like it was more like common knowledge. They doubted that fact after seeing Alec remain human after eating a monster.

Shim clearly identified Alec as the outlier—the exception to the rule.

"Enough talking." Shim flicked his hand, and a spell formation briefly flickered to life before silence descended around Alec. He couldn't hear anything, and any sound he tried to make vanished before he could.

But he could still see, move, and think. It was a spell that blocked sound.

'Nifty.' Alec studied the spell formation that he caught a look at and confirmed that it was a wind-attribute spell that isolated a target. It was surprisingly advanced since it allowed for the passage of air, just not sound waves.

Alec's attention was grabbed by Shim, who moved over to him with a knife and a glass plate in hand.

Alec wanted to ask what he was doing, but the spell had him unable to speak. And since his back was already against the wall with shackles chaining his arms and legs, he couldn't exactly back away.

Still, he tried to squirm away, but Shim grabbed his wrist with shocking strength and sliced a piece of his forearm muscle off in one go.

Alec cried out soundlessly in pain, ripping his arm back from Shim to clutch it against his stomach. Fortunately, the shackles allowed him at least that much leeway.

Warm blood streamed through his fingers, staining his lap and stomach red.

Alec glared at Shim with poison in his eyes.

He could only watch on in fuming silence as Shim inspected his flesh under the magnifying glass. After an initial inspection that didn't reveal anything, Shim started testing it with all kinds of strange tools and unhealthy-looking liquids and materials.

Nothing seemed to satisfy him, but he wasn't dissuaded. He had worked toward solving monsterification for years. Finding Alec was a bigger step forward than any he had taken so far. Not finding the answer to his constitution immediately wouldn't even impact his mood.

It just meant he had to work harder.

Shim collected some of Alec's blood and did a series of tests on that as well. Then, he knocked Alec out. Alec was unconscious, so he didn't know what was happening.

He could at least rest easy knowing that Shim wouldn't kill him. But being treated as a lab rat wasn't exactly pleasant. He had to find a way out.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.