Inside a windowless room faintly lighted, initially constructed for the purpose of biological experiments but later changed for other uses… with the sound-proofing setting now being its most defining trait.
With the dry air that seemed to bite anyone who dared stay in the room, and a temperature that made one feel thankful if it was just their breath turning to pale mist—
Would a normal human even be able to stand properly without shivering in such a setting?
If not because of the cold… then because of the eeriness of the situation?
Especially with two men slumped on iron chairs bolted to the floor… their battered bodies tightly tied to the said chairs?
But a short distance away from the two unconscious men, Christian was standing—tall, still, and composed.
Be it the spooky atmosphere or the temperature of more than -20°C, neither seemed to have any effect on him.
… especially considering how light his clothes were.
It was already January of the new year, more than three months after he had acquired his first Expert skill.
And Christian, who was staring at the two men… two criminals with records that began with murder, spiraled into rape, fraud, theft, and many, many more crimes—was thinking that finally, the time had come.
His Talent Detecting Technique skill had been raised to level six, after all.
Initially, he had wanted to wait—either for the skill to rise to the next tier, or at least until it reached level ten.
But that goal proved to be difficult, especially considering how much time it was taking.
Even reaching level six had been a long journey, after all, more so with how he had already started researching the Essence Manipulation skill after his Programming skill had advanced to Expert tier.
So, with the overlapping subject, it was naturally taking less time… yet still more than three months just to go from level three to level six.
And Christian didn't feel like waiting anymore.
But at the same time, he also couldn't bring himself to gamble with his sister's safety, and test her talent without certainty.
He feared that she wasn't talented.
Worse yet, that she had high affinity and low attunement. And that something would happen to her.
That's why he decided to experiment with someone else.
But who could he experiment on in the first place?
Christian had to think for some time before arriving at the solution: to try his technique on criminals.
… Criminals who were nearly impossible to catch, and whom the government had already given up on.
That's how the current situation came to be.
Through Iris, whose capabilities had now increased more than a hundred times, and then Nina, who had gone alone and caught them both without a scratch.
…Did he really have the right to do this to them?
Even if they were criminals, they were still humans, after all.
So did he, as an individual, have the right to make them his test subjects?
Christian had already questioned himself about that, repeatedly.
Previously, he had justified his actions with the assassin, the bodyguard, and others as acts of self-defense. That he had no choice. That it was for revenge.
But this time was different.
This time, he had the choice.
These criminals… no, these two men, despite how hideous and wicked they were, they hadn't actually done anything to him.
So, did he really have the right to do what he was about to do?
While his mind was chaotic with conflicting thoughts, Christian didn't show a single sign of it on the surface.
… A decision he had already made.
And he wouldn't change it now, not after coming all the way to this point.
His sister's safety was more important than anything, after all.
…Moreover, deep down, he knew he didn't mind doing any of this.
He was not someone who valued the lives of strangers. That was just how he was.
Still, he believed it was right not to take these kinds of things lightly, and that was what he intended to do.
He wouldn't treat life carelessly.
Finishing his internal preparation, Christian took a step forward.
With the sound of his footstep echoing inside the silent room, he walked toward the man closer to him, and placing his hand on the man's chest, Christian was just about to begin using his technique—
When he suddenly paused and turned his head over his shoulder.
"Are you sure you want to see this? It could get pretty bloody, if something goes wrong," he said.
And standing there near the wall, bundled in more than three layers of clothes, was Nina, the one who had caught the two men.
Her breath was visibly misting in the freezing air, and her lips had already turned a faint shade of blue.
Despite that, her posture was as straight as ever, and her expression, calm and unreadable.
With her usual impassive face, she answered, "Yes. I want to continue watching."
Her voice was steady, but there was something different than usual… it was the first time she had ever made such a request, after all.
And faced with her unexpected request, Christian simply nodded. He didn't have the mind to think about her reasoning right now.
So, turning his focus back to the unconscious man in front of him, he took a deep breath.
He hoped nothing would go wrong as he finally began.
… And no, it wasn't because he was suddenly growing weak.
It was naturally not because of that.
Especially considering that the fate of these two men had already been decided the moment they were caught.
No… he hoped nothing would go wrong because only when everything went right, would he finally be able to test his sister's talent.
Shaking off these distracting thoughts, Christian focused on the technique he was performing.
On the essence that had left his body.
Passed through various changes and transformations.
And finally, began entering the body of the man in front of him.