Ah, it seemed I had a bit of a blunder—just a teensy one—conveniently forgetting the rather unsavoury business that erupted the last time I used Morphogens.

Thus what followed was a wave of panic, and I promptly screwed my eyes shut, bracing for the inevitable agony I was absolutely convinced would make an unwelcome return.

Except... it didn't. Not in the slightest. Instead, a peculiar, icy tickle tiptoed its way into my brain—only for a moment—and then, just like that, I knew.

This frosty flood kept flowing in, carrying with it a torrent of new insights and knowledge, as if some library hidden in my mind had finally flung open its doors.

For a good while, I just stood there, utterly dazed, until a small voice inside me—no, hang on, it wasn't just a part of me, it was me—gently whispered that my stance simply wouldn't do.

So, I obeyed this curious sensation, just felt right to do so. My body, as bizarre as it sounds, began adjusting on its own, like some deep seated wisdom was instructing my muscles in the fine art of noise minimisation.

Stealth wasn't just magical in nature; it wasn't merely about vanishing into the shadows. No, this new knowledge corrected me, straightening out my misconceptions. It was only half the story— the other half was perfecting every tiny movement.

I glanced at my claws, and they felt, well, wrong. So, I directed this knowledge through them, and before I knew it, I was curving them ever so slightly. I moved, just a bit, and the sound I'd never even noticed before softened with each step. It was perfect, this little adjustment, this impeccable angle.

And I wasn't done yet. I altered the tilt of my clawed toes, spreading my weight just so, and then I moved in a circle once more. Hah! Taking a deep breath, I exhaled, only to feel my eyes widen in surprise. My breathing—it had changed, transformed into something so shallow, so controlled. I tried again, and I could've sworn it barely stirred the air around me.

Stephan was still lingering in the corner, his presence more felt than seen—though I think his head might have been cocked in my direction. Couldn't quite tell where his eyes were, what with having to keep mine in this annoyingly unfocused state. Really ought to sort out these peepers of mine.

But hooray! I've got enough Morphogen to do just that!

First, though, a little experiment. If Stealth brought me all that nifty know-how, what about Crunch?

I zeroed in on my jaws, and instantly, something shifted. The memory of sinking my teeth into that spider now felt all wrong—like I'd missed the mark. I could have adjusted my bite, angled it just so, maximised the force with barely any extra effort. And it wasn't just my jaws—my whole posture seemed to realign itself, spine straightening until it felt just right. The way to close my jaws became instinctively clear, as if I'd always known how to do it.

Every little tweak, every movement, felt eerily natural. It was exhilarating, and frankly, a bit terrifying, how mere knowledge could wield such power. But then again, it wasn't just knowledge, was it? I didn't fully grasp what was happening to me, but spending this... currency, these skill points, to gain mastery that would take anyone else years—it was odd, yes. Odd and exhilarating, all at once.

If I had to put a label on my current state of mind, it would be satisfaction. Maybe a bit of happiness. And something else I couldn't quite name. But confusion? Fear? Not a trace of either.

With a slow breath, I shook my serpentine neck. I'd mull over my mental state later. For now, time to upgrade these blasted eyes.

That first experience was nothing short of horrifying—using Morphogen left me a bit, well, traumatised, to say the least. But the worst bit? I'd have to go through it all over again. Oh, dear heavens, please, let it be like last time—no pain, just that delightful, chilly rush of aha, so that's how one uses their eyes knowledge.

[Would you like to use 2 Morphogens to mutate your eyes?]

Intriguing. So, it takes two Morphogens to go from +1 to +2. I wonder, does that mean it'll require three for +3? Perhaps. For now, I just nodded along, mentally crossing my fingers that it would be as painless as before, with that lovely, icy tingle that came with spending those skill points.

…

Errr—

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!

Once more, I collapsed, writhing about like a fish out of water, as whatever the devilish thing was, decided to rearrange my eyes with what felt like thousands of tiny needles.

NONONONONONONO!

I wouldn't say the pain was worse than last time, but bloody hell, it certainly felt like it!

STOPSTOPSTOPSTOPSTOP!

This time, I dug my claws into the ground because I couldn't trust myself not to gouge out my own eyes to stop the agony. So, I held on. And then, as quickly as it had come, it vanished—poof! Gone, as if it had never existed. Well, perhaps a lingering phantom pain, but after it had done its job, it was like it had never been there at all.

Weird.

But anyway! My peepers—they were on the mend! I could fling them open without a second thought, and no longer did I have to squint like a mole at high noon. The blinding colours were still there, but as Lotte mentioned, I had this [True Vision] of a dragon hatching. What it all meant, I hadn't the foggiest, but these maddening hues that danced outside the range of my human sight—or even Stephan's—surely they were connected, no?

Perhaps. It still stung like the devil looking at them, but at least now I could make out what they were. It was as if a Specter had lit a firecracker in its nether regions and was gleefully setting off bursts of random colours. The colours kept shifting, much like said firecracker—constantly, relentlessly. My eyes couldn't take the strain, so I shut them again. Still couldn't keep my gaze fixed on them for long.

But at least now, I had moments—glorious, fleeting moments—of crystal-clear clarity before the hues became unbearable, forcing my eyelids to snap shut again. FINALLY!! I could properly assess my surroundings. Stephan had mentioned the chamber was dark, but for me, it was quite the opposite from the start. These hues illuminated everything within my field of vision.

Huh…

I knew something was amiss when Stephan pointed out the hole in the wall. It all made sense—the space beyond was hollow, not a part of the original structure. The far wall, maybe four metres away, and the hole we'd entered from—the cultists' lair—seemed rough, like a natural cavern formation.

If I were to hazard a guess, I'd say the cave formation didn't quite align with their plans for a tunnel, so they just walled off this hollow section. The space narrowed on both sides until it reached an end, confirming my suspicions.

If you stumble upon this narrative on Amazon, be aware that it has been stolen from Royal Road. Please report it.

I closed my eyes once more, giving them a well-deserved rest before returning to the unfocused state, and made my way towards Stephan. Oh, if he wasn't forthcoming with an explanation, I'd get it out of him, one way or another!

****

"You had a go at biting me, you did!"

Hoh!

"I didn't know what was happening! The moment you sunk your teeth into that screeching beast, you looked utterly lost. It was still making such a racket, and I—I thought something was horribly wrong when you chomped down on its still-screaming maw."

HOH!

"I was, erm, ravenous, I suppose."

"Ravenous? Right, well, I thought I'd ask if something was amiss—bad idea, that was. If I hadn't stepped back quick enough, I'd be missing a hand, I swear it!"

"…"

"And, you know, you called me a wanker."

"…"

I turned to face him, gradually letting the focus return to my eyes. The hues made his face glow like a stained glass window—blue, red, and a touch of green.

His emerald eyes weren't quite meeting mine, flickering about like a candle in a draft, and his hands had a slight tremor to them. Only now did I spot the small, bloody gash where his grey tunic was torn around his torso. The blood had dried, so it must've happened a while ago—perhaps when he was fending off those creatures, or maybe the wall itself took a swipe at him.

"It-it wasn't from you." He must have noticed my gaze.

I'd already figured as much, seeing as the wound was hours old.

I shut my eyes again. Yeahhhh… I didn't remember any of that. Biting him? It sounded utterly ridiculous! But then again, he didn't seem to be fibbing. And to be fair, I was in a bit of a daze. My memories were as murky as a bog… Oh, bloody hell, now I was properly spooked. What in the world happened to me that I'd try to bite him, of all people?

I didn't like it! Not one bit!

Damn it! I added another question to the ever-growing list for Lotte. What else could I do? I couldn't remember a thing, let alone figure out how to fix it.

I summoned my stat screen. It was about time, wasn't it? There was one thing I hadn't tried yet, and it seemed high time to give it a go. The fact that I couldn't remember trying to bite my own companion had my paranoia cranked up to eleven.

Name: Jade

Level: 2

Species: Dragon Hatchling (I)

Attributes:

* Strength: 15

* Durability: 12

* Intelligence: 30

* Will: 17

* Mana Points: 0/0

* Stamina Points: 11/14

Species Skills:

* Claw Swipe: Level 1 (I)

* Tail Whip: Level 1 (I)

* Roar: Level 1 (I)

* Scale Harden: Level 1 (I)

* Stealth: Level 1 (I)

* Crunch: Level 1 (I)

Exclusive Skills:

* Transformation: Level 1 (I)

Mutations:

* Eyes: +2

Resources:

* Skill Points: 0

* Morphogens: 0

I zoomed straight to my Transformation skill. This one was a bit special, tucked away in the [Exclusive Skill] section, all fancy-like.

Closing my eyes, I braced myself. After all, every time I'd used Morphogen to tinker with my body, the pain was enough to make anyone twitchy. With a mental click, I activated it.

Eeep! Any moment now!

...

...

...

"You look like you're constipated."

Nothing happened. I ignored Stephan's quip, though a part of me was glad he was finally cracking jokes and engaging with me again. But seriously, why didn't it activate? Wasn't this supposed to revert me to human form, just as the description said?

I eyed the screen, ready to pull up the skill's description again, when my gaze snagged on a glaring red exclamation mark right in front of Transformation.

What the hell?

I zeroed in on it, and another screen popped up.

[Not Enough Mana]

Huh?

HUH? I needed mana to activate it? But I didn't have a drop to my name! If I'd turned into this form without mana, shouldn't I be able to revert just as easily?

Making sense, heh, as if turning into a monster ever made sense to begin with.

My thoughts were now leaning a touch more towards the sensible side. I mean, sure, I could wallow in self-pity till the cows came home, but really, what good would that do me? Especially now that I could see these mana points staring back at me from my stat screen. They were at a big, fat zero, yes, but I knew they'd grow! So, naturally, my mind wandered to more pressing matters—like just how many of these mana points would it take for me to turn back into a human?

Oh, and there was another timer ticking away on my stat screen. How did I miss that? Ah yes, the reward I'd snagged earlier.

1:35:09

Steadily dwindling away, it was.

Now, I couldn't say I felt particularly safe at the moment. Would those wretched spiders ever leave? Or were they planning to set up camp indefinitely?

There was still some time before Barn would awaken from his slumber, but sitting here in this tiny, claustrophobic hole was making my scales crawl. Quite literally, in fact. I felt trapped, boxed in.

Now that I had this stealth ability, wouldn't it be jolly clever to pop out for a quick reconnaissance? Just a little peek to ensure the coast was clear, get a better grip on the situation, and maybe, just maybe, snag another solitary spider beastie to cash in on that reward!

I relayed my grand plan to Stephan.

"Are you sure you'd be alright?"

Was I sure? Ha! Not a chance. Who in their right mind would be? But I couldn't stand another minute in this stifling enclosure, with the threat of something nastier sniffing us out and leaving us with nowhere to run. So, with a bravado that was probably more bravado than sense, I nodded.

"Don't you worry! I know precisely how to be stealthy!"

And so, the little ritual began anew. Stephan hoisted me up once more, though I could have easily managed with my claws. But where was the fun in that? Plus, it was rather satisfying to have him do the lifting and contribute somewhat—certainly not because I enjoyed bossing him about. Not at all!

But the moment I poked my head through the hole, my eyes widened in sheer terror.