Chapter 308: The Plan To Evolve
The portal shimmered open, and the moment Steve and I stepped through, we landed right back on the floating island, just in front of the castle.
Before I could even take a proper breath, Azalea appeared in front of us, materializing like a wisp of air bending to her will.
"Hi, Azalea," I greeted her with a casual wave, trying to keep my tone light.
She looked surprised to see us, her eyes flicking from me to Steve and back again.
"Why are you back so early?" she asked, her expression a mix of curiosity and concern.
I glanced at Steve and then turned back to her.
"Before we get to that... let me introduce you properly." I gestured toward him. "This is Steve Harper. We’ve been friends since we were kids. He’s like family to me."
Steve gave her a polite nod.
"Hi, Azalea. I actually met Lily earlier, but missed the chance to meet you in person."
Azalea’s lips curved into a soft smile.
"Yes... I remember you. I’ve seen you through Lily’s memories."
There was a brief moment of quiet, then I stepped forward slightly and spoke more firmly.
"Azalea, I want to use that favor you mentioned earlier."
Her smile faded almost immediately. Her expression grew serious, her posture straightening.
"You’re not planning to use it in the fight against the Holts in the realm?" she asked, her voice low, slightly cautious.
I shook my head.
"No. I don’t think I’ll need to."
After everything I’d learned in the Empire, from the Emperor, from Grandma, and the others, it became clear that I wouldn’t have to face the Holts alone.
I already had someone in mind I wanted inside the realm, and I was fairly sure I could get them through the Emperor. Convincing the Empire wouldn’t be as hard as I’d originally thought.
Azalea watched me for a moment, studying my face, then gave a slow nod.
"Alright," she said, her tone neutral but curious. "Tell me, what kind of help do you need?"
"I want the transformation ability," I said.
She tilted her head slightly, eyes narrowing just a bit. "For yourself?"
I shook my head and placed a hand on Steve’s shoulder.
"No. For him."
Azalea looked between the two of us, clearly surprised.
"You want to use your favor... for Steve?"
I nodded.
"Yes. The Ferans got the second transformation technique from your research, right? That means you must know how to bestow it too."
Azalea’s gaze grew thoughtful.
"I do. But... are you sure? That technique was never meant to be shared lightly."
"I know," I replied. "But I trust Steve with my life. And I know what’s coming. He needs this."
She crossed her arms, staring at me for a moment, then asked the question I’d expected. "And you don’t want it for yourself?"
I gave her a half-smile and shrugged. "Not really a fan of being someone’s test subject."
Azalea raised an eyebrow, clearly not amused.
But before she could say anything else, I added, more seriously this time, "Besides... I don’t need it and you know that."
She didn’t press further, but I saw the glint of understanding in her eyes. She knew. She’d seen what I could do, how I’d started adapting traits from the Phantoms and Abominations I’d captured.
She probably understood better than I did what kind of transformation potential my soul-bound technique held. I didn’t need to explain. And I was glad for that.
Steve, standing beside me, was still quiet. I could feel the tension in his shoulders.
Azalea finally let out a slow breath and looked at him.
"You’re not the one I expected this favor to be used on," she said with a wry smile. "But maybe that makes this more interesting."
She stepped closer to Steve and studied him like a craftsman examining a raw piece of metal.
"You understand this won’t be easy, right?" she asked him. "This technique wasn’t designed to be gentle. Your body will be pushed to its limits. The pain will be... significant. And there’s no promise it’ll work. It depends on your potential and how deep you can reach into yourself when the time comes."
Steve met her gaze with a calm nod.
"I’m ready. Whatever it takes."
Azalea gave him a long look, then nodded.
"Good. But remember—if your resolve wavers during the process, even for a second, the backlash could be permanent. It’s not just power, it’s a tearing and reforging of what you are."
Steve swallowed, but his voice didn’t shake.
"I won’t break."
She gave a small smile.
"We’ll see."
Just as Steve took a step forward, ready to accept whatever came next, Azalea raised a hand to stop him.
"Wait," she said. "Before we begin, there’s something important we need to address."
Steve blinked, looking at her in confusion.
"What is it?"
"You’re not ready yet," she said simply. "Before you can undergo this transformation... you must first complete your first evolution. You need to cross level 100."
Steve stiffened.
"Why does that matter?"
Azalea turned slightly, folding her arms.
"Because the foundation of your body, the structure the System recognizes as ’you’, gets locked in at that milestone. If we try to graft another transformation on top of an incomplete base, the results could be unstable... or even fatal."
Her eyes settled on him, serious and calm.
"Let the System acknowledge your natural evolution first. Then we build the second stage upon that. That way, the changes won’t interfere with your core identity or future growth."
Steve nodded slowly, processing it all.
Azalea continued, "And once that’s done, I want you to think deeply about what kind of evolution you want. Speed? Strength? Regeneration? Density? Some unique trait?"
She paused, letting her words sink in.
"Because your second transformation isn’t something I’ll just cook up from a vial. We’ll have to hunt the right kind of Abominations, creatures that naturally exhibit the kind of traits you desire. I’ll need their biology, their physical pattern."
I raised my eyebrows at that.
"Wait... you need Abominations for this technique?"
Azalea turned to me and nodded.
"Of course. This isn’t some magic spell or bloodline gift. I’ll need to craft the transformation using real tissue samples. Once we’ve chosen the right template, I’ll begin re-engineering Steve’s body, so the System recognizes the change as permanent."
Steve looked uncertain for a moment, but nodded. "So I’m going to be... rebuilt?"
"In a way," she said. "Not overwritten. Not mutated. But reforged."
I couldn’t help but glance at Steve and grin. "Well... at least you’ll look cool doing it."
Azalea smirked faintly. "Looking cool isn’t my priority. But yes, side effects may include looking terrifying."
She turned to Steve, her expression more clinical now.
"You can think of it this way: whatever the System does naturally when it guides your evolution... I’ll be doing manually. In a far more crude, hands-on way."
Steve gave a slow nod, his face serious. "Got it."
I clapped my hands together. "Alright then, no more delays. We need to get you pumped up and ready before the sun rises. Azalea, how long will the whole thing take?"
She thought for a moment, then replied, "About a day. The prep, the hunt, the grafting... if all goes smoothly."
I nodded, already calculating the time in my head. "So by day after tomorrow... you should have your new transformation."
Steve exhaled deeply.
Azalea added calmly, "That’s if your body survives the process."
I turned around, ready to dive into the forest and start hunting Abominations to help Steve level up.