Kieran wasn’t the only one disconcerted by his comment.

Whereas he felt self-loathing, disgusted with himself for expecting more torture than he endured, Lillian gave him a repulsed look… for other reasons, which Kieran naturally misunderstood.

A lack of information paved the way for incessant misunderstandings.

“What do you mean, is that it?”

Kieran smiled thinly and shrugged.

“I don’t know. I just expected more from them. It was so short-lived.”

Lillian’s jaw dropped, and her mind reeled. She was left speechless and then seemed distraught all over again and on the verge of tears.

“Are you kidding me?! These are your final reserves of X-hancers. It’s all spent. We’re royally screwed, Kieran. Screwed! Are you telling me those X-hancers did nothing for you energy-wise?”

The roles instantly reversed, and now Kieran was on the verge of tears, holding his head in utter disbelief.

Kieran’s jaw dropped. “I’m sorry… what did you say? These are the last of the X-hancers?!”

Lillian quickly realized where Kieran was drawing the wrong assumption and clarified. However, it didn’t make the situation any better. Saying it somehow made it feel worse wasn’t wrong, either.

She shook her head. “No, we still have a store of X-hancers in the containment freezer. YOU don’t. The remaining X-hancers are not fit for you to consume. You won’t respond to any of them. Once these are done… you will need more — you and Xane.”

Kieran lamented the exhausted supply of X-hancers but still extended his arm, ready for the next dosage. A semblance of strength had returned, but his cells ravenously devoured it, leaving his body in that effete state.

So be it if he had to exhaust the entire supply to return to a presentable condition. He wasn’t fit to walk… and he needed to. However, Kieran also remembered he couldn’t selfishly hoard the X-hancers to himself.

Altair clambered down the stairs and leaned against walls for support as he trudged through the medical center. Fortunately, his body wasn’t as monstrous as Kieran’s. Though it burned through energy quicker than the others, that happened at half the rate of Kieran, which was serendipitous for their scant supply of X-hancers that left them wanting.

Lillian injected Kieran with another round of X-hancers, leaving him to metabolize it at his own pace. Afterward, she helped Altair into a chair beside Kieran before promptly scanning his vitals and screening his health.

“…Water.” Altair smacked his crusted lips, his voice sounding raspy. It seemed an absurd heat emission wasn’t unique to Kieran’s situation, but that was somewhat expected.

If they were being tempered and refined… naturally, some kind of thermogenic process needed to occur. Or something like that.

Kieran shrugged the thought aside, watching Altair gulp a cup of crisp water. It looked refreshing from the way he liberally drank from it. Wasted fluids spilled down his neck but distressingly evaporated.

Lillian crossed her arms, seemingly stumped by the situation.

“I just can’t understand what is happening with you two. I had the Blackcrim Pods draw blood samples from you two, but the tests have yet to return.”

Strange, considering the results of most blood draws could be computed in mere hours. It had been days since she drew their blood to check for anomalies.

Lillian may not know… but Kieran and Altair had some thoughts — the Advancing. It was responsible for their change. And if others were seeing anything remotely similar, it proved their theory. There were holes in their thesis, though — such as the intensity of each change.

Finally quenched, Altair gasped. Then he paled, which was strange given the natural pallor of his skin. He looked like a dead body that hadn’t seen the sunlight in… ever.

“Have you seen yourself? You look like you have the world’s worst Vitamin D deficiency. If that’s responsible for color.”

Altair smirked and retorted.

“And you look like a handsome devil.”

Kieran waved the proverbial white flag. “Park it there, brother. I don’t swing that way. Bad enough, I had to listen to Lunariel go on about strange things.”

Lillian’s grip on the injector subconsciously tightened as she listened to Kieran speak. Somehow, the room felt as if it had gotten cold, making Kieran shiver.

“Lunariel? Who is that? A friend, perhaps?”

“A friend?” Kieran scoffed. “More like a crazy witch! She has no class whatsoever. She’s weird.”

Altair chimed in and agreed.

“I second that comment. The girl is weird, for real.”

As quickly as the chill appeared… it vanished. But it didn’t escape Kieran’s senses when it came. Kieran perceived it as danger, and like in Xenith… his eyes picked up on its source — Lillian.

‘What the…’

The appearance of this vision was another unforeseen surprise. In his eyes, Lillian was outlined with a chilling blue fire, but it faded quickly, which didn’t happen in the game unless the target of Kieran’s Burning Ire died or left the range of his Perception.

So, it was similar to his usual abilities but not identical, perhaps due to the difference in how each world operated.

Still, it sprouted additional questions in Kieran’s mind.

This ability lent weight to Kieran’s conjectures about Zenith Online. But more than that, it made Kieran feel… strange.

Kieran didn’t know how it all worked, but a small part of him felt like an impostor — like the effects of the Trial had either branded part of his consciousness or unlocked a piece that had been tucked away.

At that moment, the machine responsible for analyzing blood samples echoed an alert. Lillian checked the contents with her tablet. Her expression changed several times, ranging from excitement to bewilderment and everything in between.

“Well, this is strange. It says there is an unrecognized element in both your blood samples — identical in structure aside from some unique markers to give it unknown diversity.”

Lillian looked up from the tablet to see Altair and Kieran meeting her with an equally bemused expression. If she didn’t know the answer, how could they?

“Don’t turn to us for answers. We’re the test monkeys… and you’re the mad scientist.”

Altair uncomfortably nodded. “What he said.”

“I want to scan your brains again and see what has changed.”

Kieran drummed his fingers on his thighs.

“Like… right now? But we kind of have to take care of some matters with Thomas. Can we wait until later?”

Lillian put the tablet down and stood with her hands on her hips, irritation radiating from her eyes.

“You want to roam the streets in that condition without knowing what you’re getting yourself into? Without understanding what inside your body has changed?”

Kieran looked at Altair, coming to a tacit understanding. In unison, they replied:

“Yes, we do.”

“Holy cow! You two literally share the same brain cell. That is not ideal and incredibly unsafe. We must understand what is happening while I nurse you two back to health.”

Kieran took the reins on the conversation, his expression becoming dark and adamant.

“Have you heard the news about Thomas? His grandmother is sick. My condition be damned… if I can help him, I’m gonna try my best.”

Lillian seemed at a loss as she listened to the news.

“What?! Why didn’t anyone tell me anything about this? I’m a literal doctor. Dagnabbit, is that why he ran out of here a complete wreck? Poor boy. You two had better haul ass to ensure that angel makes it here in one piece! I don’t want to hear any protest. You two are getting doped up with drugs right now!”