Chapter 103: Deformed Flesh (23)

“Cough… cough…”

Herbert coughed twice, opening his mouth with discomfort and moving his tongue left and right.

reoreoreo—

The experience of becoming another creature was uniquely strange—so was the sensation of directly biting into an eyeball.

In the final transformation within that flesh world, Herbert took on the form of Valentina as he remembered it, crushing and devouring the eyeball clean.

【“You’re awake. How do you feel?”】

Herbert first glanced at the clock and found that less than a minute had passed in reality; he couldn’t help shaking his head.

The difference in time flow between inside and outside was still enormous—he could never quite adapt to it, no matter how many times it happened.

“What ability did you gain?”

【“This time, why don’t you guess first?”】

“Let me guess?”

Herbert raised an eyebrow but didn’t refuse; he carefully sensed the changes in his body.

His physical attributes hadn’t changed at all, yet Herbert had a strong intuition—he understood his own body better than ever.

“First, control over my body.”

He knew the precise state of every muscle, every organ—how long each needed to rest, how much nutrition was required for further improvement.

Except for the lack of a digital interface displaying exact data, it was virtually indistinguishable from a system.

With that knowledge, Herbert became the true master of his body.

He could also precisely control the movement of a single muscle—even adjust its position at will.

No…

The knowledge poured into his mind could likely do even more than that.

He stared at his palm and, in a daze, felt as if he now possessed x-ray vision—he could clearly perceive the position of bones, the direction of muscles, the distribution of blood vessels…

Hmm, useful skill for a nurse giving injections.

“Second, insight into bodily weaknesses…”

This ability also meant Herbert could now clearly know—where to cut with a blade to inflict maximum damage on this hand!

The same applied to other people.

Just like the butcher who disassembled the ox—he could inflict maximum damage with minimal effort, once he understood the body completely.

“Third…”

Herbert hesitated for a moment, then drew his sword and lightly sliced his fingertip.

Ssshh.

The sharp white blade cut through, and blood immediately seeped out—but when Herbert slowly wiped away the blood, no wound remained on his finger.

Within a few breaths, the wound had already healed.

“Regenerative ability.”

But this regeneration came at a cost.

As the flesh grew back, Herbert felt one percent of his internal energy consumed.

Using his own energy to regenerate flesh—this ability was literally a jackpot!

In a life-or-death crisis, who cares if you get hungry?

Every bit more recovery meant a slightly higher chance of survival.

【“That’s it? That’s all?”】

Nenasha’s smiling voice made Herbert raise an eyebrow; he moved his fingers hesitantly.

“As for the final point…”

He manipulated the flesh on his palm, attempting to reshape it into another form.

Fine, scaly patterns surfaced on the back of Herbert’s hand, shifting toward the shape of a dragon’s claw—but that was all; it never truly became dragon scales.

"Hmm, it still won't work."

There was indeed some flesh-shaping ability—but it wasn’t very convenient.

【“Of course not—you don’t understand true dragons at all~”】

“...Hmm.”

In the mental world, Herbert had seemed to gain the ability to transform into a dragon—but in truth, he had merely forced a superficial imitation.

He still understood far too little about a dragon’s bodily structure.

He had merely clumsily molded his flesh into the shape he remembered, while internally remaining himself.

The flight? Pure brute force—he didn’t fly; he just jumped violently.

Once he understood the problem, Herbert changed his approach.

“If dragons won’t work, then…”

Looking at his reflection in the mirror, he slowly controlled the muscles of his face, soon transforming into the likeness of Duke Albert as he remembered him.

The father and son resembled each other greatly; after minor adjustments, Herbert nearly saw the young Silverwing Duke.

He turned his head again—his face shifted into Blake’s likeness, then changed into three or four other people’s appearances.

Except for one servant whose face Herbert couldn’t clearly recall, all others were perfectly identical.

“I am—the Faceless Man!”

【“You noticed~ You may not understand dragons, but you know human bodies extremely well.”】

“Hmm.”

That meant, unless he could one day thoroughly study a dragon in detail…

He’d have to accumulate vast amounts of knowledge first… Still, he’d find a chance to study one deeply.

“Also, my current flesh power isn’t enough to transform into other body types—I can only change into humanoids roughly my own size.”

After understanding this, Herbert wasn’t discouraged—he was excited.

The ability had clear limitations, but perfect disguise alone was already more than enough.

Profit!

After a major harvest, Herbert decided to press his advantage and expand his gains further.

“By the way, I still have two drops of vampire blood—let’s absorb them now while I’m at it… Huh?”

Herbert reached into his chest pocket—but the vial containing the blood was gone.

“...”

He looked up, scanning the room—and spotted a familiar glass bottle on his left, clinging to a shadowy tendril: empty.

The tendril was now stealthily retracting; noticing Herbert’s gaze, it froze awkwardly, swaying side to side and waving at him.

Cough! Hey, hey~

Herbert narrowed his eyes and spoke slowly:

“Nenasha.”

【“Huh!? W-what? Do you have a question for the great Nenasha? Don’t worry—I’ll answer you!”】

“Have you seen my vampire blood?”

【“No, nope!”】

“Really didn’t see it?”

【“No! How could I possibly steal your monster materials~ Hehe, impossible~”】

After her forced laugh, the room fell, as expected, into an awkward silence.

“...”

【“...Cough.”】

“Was it tasty?”

【“Tch, it was just average…”】

(End of Chapter)