Liam stood in the center of the disc while the branches applied the liquid at various parts of his body. It seeped into him without breaking the skin.
When the mechanism activated, it felt as though someone poured cold water over his muscles and bones. The sensation lasted for a brief period, after which the feeling retreated.
Nora eagerly anticipated the results, but the numbers she saw were more than what she bargained for.
When Liam approached, Alicia silently passed the badge to him.
Name: Liam
Strength: 3.1
Agility: 3.3
Stamina: 2.9
Evolution factor: 0.99
Mana: 0
Type: Precision
Control factor: 1 (Perfect)
Dunn peeked at the numbers and whistled. "I have to say, I am impressed. You seriously outclassed us both."
"It's not something you should celebrate about. Those readings have many meanings, and none of them will lead to a good outcome," Alisha said.
Liam caught sight of her face. It no longer carried the cold expression she always displayed. There was a tight frown on her face, and her lips stretched into such a thin line, they nearly disappeared.
Liam was surprised by her reaction, but his friends were shocked by it. After working for her, they learned something about her personality. Regardless of the information, whether it was good or bad, Alisha never lost her composure. The sudden display of emotion made them understand the severity of the situation.
Alisha deliberated over the question she wanted to ask. "After surviving inside the Rift for so long, your knowledge about it should be extensive, but you lack knowledge in so many other areas. Understanding those things will require systematic education."
"I won't fill in all of those gaps, but what I am about to tell you is extremely important." Her cold expression was back. "Every race has a set of racial traits and limits. It is a complicated and extensive subject with a lot of people researching it. In the evolved community, the most well-known human limit is something called the perfect evolution. It states the average of the base human stats can't exceed 2.8 before becoming an evolved."
The statement sounded as though Liam had achieved something grand. It prompted Jade to slap his back with a wide smile on her face. "You broke a limit so many people are researching and breaking their heads over! How amazing is that?"
A snort made them turn towards Nora. "Didn't the commander just tell you it wasn't a good thing?"
"Don't worry about people kidnapping him. We have faced much worse than anything they can throw at us." Jade was smiling the entire time.
Nora rolled her eyes. "Just because you survived the Rift, don't start underestimating others. I have seen a lot of people like you dying due to overconfidence. Also, finish listening to someone's explanation before reaching a conclusion."
Jade threw a challenging smile at Nora, ready to tackle any problems people threw at her. Backing away wasn't part of her character.
Ignoring the small interruption, Alisha continued her explanation. "There is a limit to how strong a human body can get by absorbing mana. You can't keep strengthening yourself without end. Evolution changes us, making us something more than human. Only at that stage can we strengthen our body once again. The perfect evolution is something our ancestors have come up with after years of research. No human can surpass it."
A strange silence filled the tent.
"Do you know the implications of what your stats mean?" Alisha asked.
Being careful was the simplest answer Liam could think of, but he knew Alisha wasn't asking about that. There was another explanation, something he wasn't willing to say.
"There's more?" Jade's voice distracted everyone, saving Liam from the troublesome job of answering Alisha. He sent an imaginary thumbs up towards her for the timely interruption.
Jade grew tired of the roundabout questions. She wasn't the kind of person to sit down and listen to tedious and impractical explanations. Understanding the limits was useful as they gave her an idea of the ceiling a person could hit. Beyond that, she didn't find any reason to dig deeper. It wasn't like she was going to research the topic. Liam's involvement was the only reason she kept listening. Still, her mind was starting to wander, and she was getting bored.
Alisha was expressionless, but Nora stared at her with a raised eyebrow.
Liam noticed Dunn tapping Jade's foot, telling her to stop. It was a good idea too. While Alisha allowed them to be informal with her, they shouldn't mistake it for freedom. They were still present in her camp and needed to be in her good graces.
Jade's sudden intrusion didn't distract Alisha. A part of her attention had been centered on Liam's expression. The entire time, his reactions perfectly matched the situation. Either he didn't know what she was implying, or he was a good actor. Alisha was willing to bet everything she had on the second one.
"I'm sorry, Miss Alisha. My friend is sometimes impatient. Please forgive her as she didn't mean anything by it. Can we continue the previous conversation? You were just about to say something." Liam's words diffused the awkward silence.
She brought her full attention back to Liam.
"The conclusion some people may arrive at is you are no longer human." Scrutinized his face, she tried to find minute changes in his expression.
Liam put on a surprised expression while alarm bells were ringing internally. Her guess was close. Due to an event when he was younger, he was no longer fully human. It was never a concern for him as no one was able to identify it, not even elves. He didn't expect the stats to point straight towards one of his core secrets. Not even his friends knew it.
"Is that so?" Jade's interruption was once again timely. Seriously, he never expected her impatience to be so helpful. He nearly jumped in joy.
After a few more seconds, Alisha looked away allowing Liam to relax. The entire time his expression never wavered. If she expected her words to unnerve him, then she was bound to be disappointed.
"From your talents, I know that you will enroll in the Otread academy. The center of the human world is neither the empire nor the theocracy nor the northern alliance. It is the academy."
Jade frowned at her answer. "Are the various nations resigned to let it grow? If they don't moderate the academy's development, won't they lose their power and status?"
The barest hint of a smile appeared at the corner of Alisha's mouth. "Oh, they would like to. It's just that they can't do it. The academy has a lofty position in the hearts of the general populace. They can't attack it without any valid reasons, nor will the other races allow them to. Also, destroying the academy won't be easy. It may not rival a nation, but it can give them a run for its money."
"Why would the other races support the academy? Shouldn't they be facing the same situation?" Dunn asked.
"Let's just say the human's dependency on the academy is higher compared to the other races. It has something to do with the racial traits and limits I previously mentioned.
"I know you have a lot of questions, but bear with it. There is a lot of crucial knowledge you are missing. Hold on to your questions till you reach the academy, and you will find all the answers you need. Some of them may surprise you."
With that, Alisha went back to the previous topic. "Don't mention your real evaluation results to anyone. I will change them before showing them to others. Your stats will have to greater than your friends or others will be suspicious. I will change it to 2.7. It will still draw a lot of attention, but it should be better than before."
Liam nodded at her suggestion, but the fact remained that she knew about the results, and there was nothing he could do to change it. He didn't expect the results to be so problematic.
The current predicament didn't have an easy solution. He just had to hope Alisha would keep it a secret for now.
The main problem was his lack of knowledge about Alisha. Understanding her motives without getting a grasp of her personality was going to be difficult. He will have to find a way to gather more information and figure out her intentions.
One thing he could count on was Alisha's personality. Someone like her would never reveal their advantages. Unless he gave her a reason not to, she would keep his secret, at least for a time.
Alisha showed him his updated stats.
Name: Liam
Strength: 2.7
Agility: 2.9
Stamina: 2.5
Evolution factor: 0.99
Mana: 0
Type: Precision
Control factor: 1 (Perfect)
"There is another thing you need to know about the evolved," Alisha said. "Evolved abilities."
