Chapter 91: Side Effects Include Victory

I swallowed the liquid from the flask.

It felt like warm milk sliding down my throat.

Occasionally, there were mushy bits to chew, but surprisingly, it went down easily.

[You bastard!!]

The wild-haired man clutched his graying hair and let out a horrified scream.

Gulp!

But by then, I had already poured every last drop into my mouth.

“What should I do? I already drank it all.”

As I swallowed the remaining granules, my insides began to churn.

Whoosh—!

[You have ingested the ‘Genius Researcher’s Stimulant’!]

[Target: Lee Eunho. Your brain’s potential will be pushed to its absolute limit!]

[Duration: 1 hour]

‘Nice!’

Brain potential, huh.

There was always that rumor about humans using less than 10% of their brains.

But I’d heard that was nonsense.

[With heightened potential, you will surpass human limits!]

[All stats increased by 10 times!]

Maybe… there was some truth to it?

[Stamina drastically increased!]

[Unparalleled reflexes acquired!]

[With extraordinary dynamic vision, you can read the enemy’s movements!]

[Your skin becomes tougher!]

[Defense increased by 10 times!]

……

‘Incredible!’

So many messages poured in that it was hard to listen, hard to even read.

It was almost overwhelming.

Usually, I’d just ignore messages as they flashed by too quickly, planning to check them later.

‘There are 11 effects in total. My physical abilities have skyrocketed.’

But this time, I could easily read and understand them all.

Maybe it was thanks to that enhanced dynamic vision that let me ‘read’ the enemy’s movements.

Well-made, this stuff.

“I like this drug.”

[What?! How dare a test subject say you like it or not…!]

“Do you have another one?”

Clear.

My mind was as clear and clean as the sky after a heavy rain.

An exhilarating sensation I’d never felt before.

[Insane…!]

The furious man hurled himself at me.

He’d already lost his chance to stop me, but I decided to play along anyway.

‘Did I even use acceleration…?’

Ssshhhhh—

His charging body seemed impossibly slow.

Like a bus approaching a stop, slowing to a crawl.

Whoosh!

One step to the side. Another step back.

In that short span when Iro’s body leaned forward, I’d already circled around to stand behind his back.

Even without acceleration, the difference in our relative speed was obvious.

And then.

Thud!

I slammed my foot into his back.

Crash!

Iro tumbled to the ground in an undignified heap.

[Bu...…!]

Face planted against the wall, his lips moved soundlessly.

With that tiny motion, I had already—

“Already feeling the effects wearing off?”

—I ‘read’ his next words before he could say them.

A laugh slipped out before I realized it.

“This effect is just too good. It’s like being reborn.”

His face had gone as pale as his hair.

That arrogant expression, the one that had been watching, calculating, and planning above us like we were lab rats—

“It’s my turn.”

[Wait—!]

I swung my fist.

A bare fist, nothing special.

Whoosh—!

My punch sliced through the air.

Boom—!

And less than 0.1 seconds later, Iro had hunched over, crashing into the wall behind him.

The concrete wall crumbled like a sandcastle.

Ha.

“Doesn’t even hurt.”

I couldn’t help but laugh at the ridiculous power.

On all fours, Iro scrambled away from the wreckage.

[Get a hold of yourself, Lee Eunho! If you lay a finger on a full-time employee before even joining the company… you’re finished!]

Huh?

“Full-time employee?”

I didn’t expect to hear that line here.

[I-I didn’t do anything wrong!]

“Really?”

[I-I was just doing my job!]

“...This restructuring, you mean.”

Crunch!

I grabbed the fleeing man’s white hair.

The thick handful yanked so hard, I thought his scalp might tear off.

This project’s inspector, Iro.

“Turns out, it’s not just the guilty who suffer.”

His bloodshot eyes filled with terror, and his once-defiant limbs now trembled with tension.

“You know that better than anyone, don’t you?”

[……!]

Wham!

I spun him and punched him in the gut.

[Ugh!]

He doubled over, helpless.

But then…

Beeeeeeep!

‘!!’

A sharp warning siren slammed into my mind.

A dizzying pain like a knife stabbing my skull.

[Warning!]

[Researcher Iro’s defensive system has activated!]

[Prepare for impact!]

Tingling!

Electricity crackled from my fist buried in his body.

[‘Electroshock Discharge’ activated!]

Fwoosh—!

A blinding flash covered my vision.

If I were an ordinary person, that barrage would have roasted me instantly.

But.

“Ugh.”

[Your defense, amplified tenfold, absorbs all shock!]

[Status effect ‘Stun’ is converted to ‘Dizziness’!]

Thankfully, my health stayed intact.

I pulled my fist out, steadied my wavering body, and shook my head.

[I-I’ll see you next time! I’ll come back for you!!!]

He took the chance to slip away, bolting for dear life.

“Acceleration!”

Now the hunt begins.

For the rat.

*   *   *

‘Damn, damn, damn!’

Iro was aghast.

Electroshock Discharge was the defensive barrier he’d worked so hard to install.

Equipped with countless new technologies, he had meticulously calculated and prepared this armor to protect himself and prevent technical leaks.

Its power was such that even most HQ combat agents couldn’t get through. Even the Center Director had personally declared, “With this, you’re safe.”

“Ugh.”

Ugh?

Ugh—?!

Just how powerful was that stimulant, for him to withstand it so casually?

No, more than that—how could a mere test subject’s body endure that kind of overload?

‘How much did it amplify him? Five times? Six?’

Lee Eunho.

He’d expected Eunho had considerable potential, but the situation was even more dire than he thought.

And then.

【27F - Trap activated!】

【Toxic gas released!】

……

【Target elimination - FAIL】

He’d sprayed toxic gas that made even giant species cough blood within 10 seconds.

【6F - Trap activated!】

【‘Ravenous Lizard King’ deployed!】

……

【Target elimination - FAIL】

He’d sent in swarms of monsters that even HQ agents had to team up to fight.

【19F - Trap activated!】

【‘Frozen Chamber’ opened!】

The ‘Frozen Chamber’—where a breath would freeze your organs and an exhale would expel bloody ice shards—was unleashed.

【Target elimination - FAIL】

And still, he couldn’t finish off Lee Eunho.

His survivability was truly cockroach-like.

But above all—

‘How does he keep following me?!’

Right now, Iro had the ‘Portable Elevator’ that let him move to any floor within the Spire.

Yet Lee Eunho, running around on foot, always found the exact floor he’d moved to. Even ghosts would cry at this.

Amid panic and growing fear, he heard the eerie sound of footsteps, like a ghost’s wail.

Click!

[!!]

He’d caught up again.

Iro’s mind went blank.

[10th floor, activate trap!]

He shouted in desperation.

【ERROR!】

【No traps available.】

【Would you like to input new settings?】

His stock of traps had run out, just like his frayed sanity.

[Insane!!]

Iro raged, but it was all his own doing.

The Sky Island’s Spire was never built for defense against intruders, so in desperation, he’d used up all the traps on each floor to slow down Eunho.

Regardless.

‘If I get caught, it’s over.’

The genius researcher thought.

[If I face him one-on-one… I’ll definitely lose. But if I try to call in others, it’ll take too long… What do I have left that’s usable…?]

He thought and thought again.

[The test drugs have too many side effects…]

He thought until his frontal lobe felt like it was on fire.

And finally.

[That’s it! That’s the one…!]

After stripping away every other option, he was left with one last move.

Clack!

Let’s go back.

【Select a floor to move to!】

[10th floor.]

The place where Lee Eunho had taken the potion.

The lab.

*   *   *

Tick—!

I dodged the freezing storm falling from the ceiling.

Immediately, the system tracked my target’s movements.

[Target’s location detected!]

[Target to pursue: Iro]

Blink!

10th floor.

He’d gone back to the first floor where I met him.

Where the lab was.

‘Trying to end things where they began?’

Crunch!

Gripping my blood-soaked Pacheon Sword, I walked forward.

The rat had done nothing but run till now, yet now he sat still—almost eerily.

The 10th floor was utterly silent.

[……Huff!]

Except for the rat’s ragged breathing, hiding somewhere in the back.

‘Ten seconds.’

I could only use Acceleration again in ten seconds.

So I—

Bang—!

Swung the Pacheon Sword.

Its power exploded as the sword’s attack combined with my awakened strength.

‘…This much, huh?’

My muscles bulged.

I could feel every organ, every blood vessel boiling inside, power surging like molten lava.

Boom-boom-boom!

The wall crumbled.

And then.

Whoosh— BOOM!

The next wall shattered too.

[!!]

The rat poked his wild-haired head out from behind the broken wall where he’d been hiding.

[You… got here fast.]

With a screen filled with indecipherable numbers open, he frantically tapped at something.

“Found you.”

[W-wait…!]

Slash!

[Ah, aaaargh!]

Best to deal with him before he tried anything stupid.

It took less than a second to sever his hand.

Thunk!

His right hand fell to the floor, along with the strange device he’d been clutching.

‘A syringe…?’

Crunch!

I grabbed his pale neck and demanded,

“What’s this?”

[Guh… It’s, it’s nothing…!]

His face twisted in agony, but with his remaining left hand, he could only weakly scratch my wrist.

Holding his neck with my left hand,

I reached for the syringe on the floor with my right—

[Uh… uuuuuugh…!]

A grotesque moan rang out.

But it wasn’t Iro, whose breath was fading.

It came from the rubble of the broken stone wall.

“…Inspector?”

[Uuuuuuuuuuu—!]

An inhuman howl, impossible to believe from any rational being.

Twitch!

The inspector’s body twitched.

Left arm, right leg, broken neck, twisted spine—all moved, each at a different speed and angle.

“What the…?”

The inspector, whom I’d written off as a good-natured, incompetent middle manager…

Crunch!

His body swelled.

Crunch!

Every joint twisted, broke, and swelled.

As tall as me.

Twice as tall as me.

Tall enough to touch the floor above.

And finally, breaking through even that.

And then—

Crunch-crunch-crunch!

From the inspector’s body, things began to grow that should not exist.

‘…Arms?’

Instead of hands, there were saws, blades, horns, awls, whips—all kinds of weapons.

Dozens of arms, ranging from one meter to dozens of meters long, in all thicknesses and shapes.

[Hmph— Now that’s worth looking at!]

To create a potion like that—such advanced technology.

The syringe Iro had held.

This grotesque transformation.

All clues pointed to—

‘Modification.’

[Eliminate the ‘Multi-Attack Type Chimera’!]

A fist the size of a human, bristling with thorns, hurtled toward me and Iro.

A hose, shaped like a syringe, zipped in from behind. Drops of unknown, inky black liquid dripped from its end.

My instincts screamed.

If that touched me—it was over.

‘Dodge—!’

Bang—!

I managed to evade, but the inspector’s fist shattered the wall, spraying debris like fireworks.

“Ugh!”

[You have suffered severe injury!]

[Awakening effect instantly cures the status ailment ‘Fracture’!]

I was pinned under stone, but my bones didn’t shatter—only my skin was scraped up.

And in that gap, Iro slipped from my grasp.

Leap—!

He landed near the chimera’s feet.

“You bastard… What the hell did you do?!”

[Just a little ‘enhancement.’ He was useless before, anyway.]

‘Enhancement,’ huh.

He’d promised to ‘enhance’ anyone who entered the capsule.

So this was his true ability.

[Chase him!]

“!!”

Dodging the inspector and Iro’s attacks, I ran.

Hurling a question I hadn’t yet solved.

“Wasn’t that guy your ally?”

Whoosh—!

As I dodged a storm of blades, axes, and saws from all sides, a whip sprouted from the inspector’s arm came cracking down.

[I don’t ally with idiots.]

Boom—!

A whip like steel tore up the ground.

The floor collapsed instantly.

As I fell, unable to grab onto anything, I looked up to see Iro…

[Lee Eunho, I’ll make an exception and take you as my ally. You’re the only human I acknowledge.]

He smiled.

Radiantly.

[Of course, you’ll be just a brain in a jar… But company is nice, don’t you think?]

Just like the first time we met, he spread his arms wide.

[Come here!]

*   *   *

3, 2, 1.

“Acceleration!”

The moment the cooldown ended, I shouted.

Tick—!

‘This is pretty high for a 10th floor.’

If they were going to awaken my body, they could’ve thrown in flight or mind-reading, too.

‘Would I die if I fell?’

Something told me I wouldn’t die instantly in this state, but betting my life was a bit much.

“Summon! Activate!”

I created a steel door with a green card.

I hung from the makeshift lifeline for a moment, then dropped.

Tap!

[Your high defense absorbs all shock!]

What incredible condition.

But the problem was…

Thud! Thud! Thud!

‘How do I even beat that?’

[Grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr…...]

Whether he was a researcher or an inspector, whatever his personality, his ability was terrifying.

To turn his harmless, weak-looking ally into a monster in an instant.

A one-man army—or rather, a thousand-man army.

Leap—!

Five seconds left until the skill ended.

“Blade Wind!”

As I ran, I swung my sword, unleashing a crescent-shaped blade of wind.

And then.

Slash! Rrrrrrrrrr…!

I easily sliced off one of the saw-bladed arms.

Tick—!

The timeline snapped back.

Fwoooosh—!

On the severed stump, crimson veins and muscle strands writhed and intertwined, lengthening.

At the end, another horrific saw blade emerged.

‘It regrows even if I cut it off?!’

[It’s no use resisting! Come to me, Lee Eunho!]

This was terrifying.

A battlefield tilted to a ridiculous degree.

This wasn’t one-on-one; it was one versus a thousand.

But.

‘It takes about one second to regrow.’

One second.

If I have even a single second.

‘With acceleration, I could get thirty… no, fifty hits in at this state. And if I use my ticket too…’

Split each second, again and again, even in halves and quarters.

‘It’s a shame I can’t use counterattack skills, but… if you don’t have teeth, you fight with your gums.’

I will win.

I will bring it down.

No matter who stands in my way.

As I made up my mind and stepped forward—

[Don’t worry—just die! I’ll break down your organs one by one and put them on display!]

Dozens of arms, fueled by a madman’s scream, flew at me.

Fwooooosh—

Clang!

Clack! Click!

Rrrrrrrrrr—!

I calculated every attack’s path, destination, and speed.

‘If I want to take its head, I’ll have to give up at least an arm.’

It’s not enough.

But even so, to bring it down, weighing what I can and can’t protect, I leapt—

“Shaping!”

With a fierce shout, a wall of earth surged up.

BOOM!

The ground shot up.

The dirt that should’ve been below was now at my nose.

Fwooooosh—

Clang!

Clack! Click!

Rrrrrrrrrr—!

I blocked dozens of arms.

The wall wrapped around me like a giant hand.

“It’s my turn to help, right?”

“!!”

Then, panting, she ran over, averting her gaze a little as she spoke.

“…Oppa.”

“…….”

I stood before the earthy wall, a grateful shadow cast like a shield.

The scent of grass tickled my nose, mingling with her lilac hair.

“I guess it is. Your turn.”

At my ambiguous answer, the sharp-tongued savior smiled.

Her catlike eyes curled into crescent moons.