Well... How can I put it? I was ready to burn once again in those three weeks...
But the process was incredibly smooth...?
Five minutes after eating the lilies, I felt a burning heat in my chest, but it didn't hurt this time.
It was cozy, to tell the truth...
Soon that warmth spread throughout my body, and something began to form on my skin.
Beautiful crimson patterns...
Reminiscent of the lilies themselves, they blossomed on my body, glowing with a dazzling fluorescent light...
I felt a thunderous wave of mana as they blossomed, filling my heart... Not only my heart, but my lungs as well.
My breath had never been so pure. So clean...
When the mana finally settled completely, it converged on the crimson patterns, filling them.
Then, with a glow even greater than that of the patterns themselves, all the mana in them began to catch fire. Literally fire...
This scared me for a moment. I thought my torture would begin now, so I accepted it with a sigh, but no, at no point did it hurt...
The mana simply returned to my chest a few minutes later with the fire fading, in a much smaller amount this time and ignoring my lungs...
Everything flowed naturally... Ignoring my limitations.
That...
That was totally against anything I imagined could happen...
The lilies weren't exactly the same as mana stones, but something similar, so everything went so smoothly...
It was extremely strange.
Where was the pain?
Where was the suffering?
Where?
For some reason, I felt uncomfortable. Irritated by the situation. It was all so smooth. So normal...
It's all out of the ordinary for me.
My heart was itching with it.
I was so uncomfortable that I didn't even notice the moment when the patterns slowly became inert, losing their shine on my skin. Remembering nothing more than almost colorless blurs.
This situation was harder to process than torture...
... Calm down...
What the hell am I thinking? Shouldn't I be happy?
Yes. Happy.
Why am I reacting the opposite? Don't tell me...
Have I become a masochist?
No, right?
.
.
.
Hahaha... What a joke.
I can't believe I had a crisis because of the lack of pain. I think I've gone crazy enough now...
I couldn't stop laughing about it instead of seeing what really matters. My status.
-------
Name: Lucca Carvalho.
Race: Human.
Age: 22.
Titles: —
Overall rating: E (Updated rank).
Abilities: [Rite of Flesh and Blood — No rank.], [Mana Absorption — No rank (new).]
Resistances: [Pain — Grade A.], [Poison — E.], [Fire — Grade C (updated grade).], [Mental — Grade S (updated grade).], [Biological — Grade E (updated grade).]
Attributes: —
Physical abilities: [Strength — Grade F], [Speed — Grade E], [Reflexes — Grade D], [Resilience — Grade A], [Stamina — Grade E], [Acceleration — Grade D], [Balance — Grade B], [Five Senses — Grade D], [Body Control — Grade C], [Vitality — Grade A], [Spatial Awareness — Grade D]...
Mental Abilities: [Processing — Grade A], [Improvisation — Grade B], [Creativity — Grade B], [Cognition — Grade C], [Combat Intelligence — Grade D], [Mental Fortitude — Grade B/A/S (updated grade)], [Practical Intelligence — Grade A], [Tactical Intelligence — Grade B], [Lucidity — Grade D (Updated Grade)], [Madness — Grade B], [Adaptation — Grade B]...
Mana: [Capacity — Grade C (updated grade).], [Conductivity — 17/100%.], [Manipulation — Grade F.], [Sensitivity — Grade A (updated grade).], [Quality — Grade A (updated grade).]...
Physical Integrity: 87% (permanent).
Mental Integrity: 39% (updated percentage).
--------
"..."
Has my lucidity declined? Am I really a little crazier now?
Yeah. It makes sense...
It really makes sense...
Even though I agreed, I felt my face contorting in a bizarre way...
Where does that make sense, you fucking lunatic?!
Where does that fucking make sense? Wasn't it supposed to be the other way around? My insanity decreasing?
[Insanity — Grade B/A (updated grade).]
No... No... And no.
What a funny joke... I was laughing hysterically now with my hands on my face... Really, a funny joke....
Calm down, you bastard.
I tried to calm down with a punch, but, well... It didn't work. I didn't even feel anything...
In the end, I had to take a few deep breaths for a few minutes to get my head straight.
I don't even know why I got lost in that insignificant detail.
Look at how much has changed. Why should I worry about that? Let's see my new ability.
[Mana Absorption — No grade.
Category: Parasite.
Description: Upon touching a target, thorns attach themselves to the target, sucking their mana, feeding the patterns on the user's body until they mature.]
... Am I a vampire now?
Sucking others dry... What a line, huh.
Why do I only get weird abilities?
And the parasite category? Voodoo is acceptable, but parasite?
I'm speechless... Shouldn't I be happy, not feeling humiliated? Isn't that normal?
Why am I straying so far from normal?
Soon I'll try to convince myself that being different is cool...
Although it is, right? I never thought about it...
Normal is normal. Different is different? So, unique?
Hmm... I like that. My mom always said that I'm not like everyone else anyway.
Well. Well. Let's get down to business now, right? Finally smiling because I liked something, I tried to circulate my mana...
But nothing happened...
I tried again... And nothing.
Despite being annoyed and having a bad premonition, I concentrated, finally succeeding after several minutes and attempts...
Except...
My shoulder melted right away.
There it is. I found the pain I was looking for...
Damn, hahaha.