"DAMN IT!"
Researcher Mahan, Instructor Valdin, and every other person in the lab were surprised by Simon’s roar because it was completely unexpected.
According to Researcher Mahan’s experience and knowledge, Simon should not be in so much pain just from taking an injection of Formula X-V.
But Simon was in pain and in a whole lot of discomfort, and even he did not expect to experience such a thing.
When he was injected with Formula X-I, Formula X-II, Formula X-III, and Formula X-IV, all he felt was that a cold liquid was flowing through his body.
Sometimes, the liquid would feel like a gas, then it would turn back to its liquid state while flowing throughout his body.
But the moment Researcher Mahan injected him with Formula X-V, he felt so much at once.
The first thing he felt was the coldness. It felt like the liquid which entered his bloodstream froze his entire blood and was freezing every single part of his body.
It was like he was dropped into the depths of Antarctica of Earth.
This caused him pain, but that was not all.
He also felt like every organ, blood, tissue, muscle, bones, and so many other things that made up his physical body was sinking.
He was not sinking, but he felt like everything inside of him was sinking into a place of coldness and darkness. A place where life did not exist, and this caused him a pain he couldn’t even describe.
He would have screamed, just like how the previous boy did, but Simon’s pain tolerance was very high.
Despite the pain, he only roared and cursed. However, his body was raised as he nearly snapped the belt in two. His head was constantly to the left and right, and his legs were trembling.
His physical strength which was comparable to that of an Archfiend showed itself, but none paid attention to this or was suspicious of this in the slightest.
They could all see how Simon’s veins were entirely black and the grunts and grinding of his teeth made him to seem like a possessed demon.
"What are you doing?! Formula Y-V! NOW!"
Researcher Mahan was the first to come out his shocked and baffled state. He barked at his fellow researchers, and the man quickly ran to Researcher Mahan while handing over the syringe containing Formula Y-V.
Researcher Mahan grabbed the syringe and quickly stabbed it into Simon’s arm.
The crystal clear liquid entered Simon’s bloodstream, and three seconds later, Simon slowly relaxed.
His breathing became stable, and the blackness in his veins receded.
After a minute, his condition became a lot better, and Researcher Mahan exhaled a deep breath of relief when he saw this.
Even though Simon was a slave, it would have been unfortunate if he died during this procedure, especially after it was known that he had a C grade shadow affinity.
"Only three Initiates and it feels like I’ve made a generational breakthrough. What sort of class is this?" Researcher Mahan mumbled, then he inhaled and exhaled deeply.
"Hey, Researcher Mahan. Can you remove these restraints from my body. I’m sure we’re done."
Researcher Mahan’s eyes widened, and he looked at Simon with surprise.
"You’re still conscious?"
"As you can see, I am."
Researcher Mahan’s surprise increased once again because Simon’s voice was calm, not strained, and sounded like he had not just gone through so much pain.
"You-you... Sigh ... You are really something else, kid."
Researcher Mahan gestured to his fellow researchers to remove the restraints, then he continued speaking.
"Normally, kids your age go conscious after experiencing what you just experienced because the pain is too much for them. Their brains would shut down as a sort of defensive mechanism... But you’re different."
Simon said nothing and just stared at his chest, arms, and feet which were being unshackled.
"After what happened, what does it signify?"
This was what Simon wanted to know. He had no need to brag about his high pain tolerance and neither did he want to hear it from the researcher.
Instead, he wanted to know if his thoughts and guesses were right on what just happened.
Researcher Mahan blinked for a moment. He was very surprised by how calm and composed Simon was, and he could not help but wonder if Simon was truly a teenager.
’Those eyes... I don’t know, but they contain an indifference and growing darkness in them that it sort of terrifies me. I’m a researcher and I love exploring the unknown, but my instincts are telling me not to explore the source of this boy’s darkness and indifference towards life.’
Researcher Mahan finally decided to answer Simon’s question.
"Based on what just happened... Your shadow affinity potential ends at C grade. You cannot go above C grade with our clan’s artificial methods. At best, you might be able to improve your affinity grade from Intermediate C grade to Peak C grade using the clan’s methods. But going above that is impossible."
The last restraint on Simon’s wrist was removed, and Simon rubbed and turned his wrist a few times while looking at it.
He remained silent for a while, then he finally spoke.
"I see."
He said nothing else, and Researcher Mahan believed that he should at least explain a few guesses he had in his mind.
"Normally, if one awakens shadow affinity during their Coming of Age Rite, their potential would at least increase by one grade."
"So, for you, I expected you to have a potential of at least B grade. I’m not certain why yours is different, but I have a few guesses."
"Since you said you went unconscious and suddenly woke up having shadow affinity, then I believe that whatever opportunity you stumbled upon that suddenly gave you shadow affinity is the reason why your potential cannot go past C grade."
"If you want, I can run some more tests on your body to accurately guess what’s wrong with your body."
Simon got down from the bed, and though he felt a bit weak and a little bit of pain in his legs, he could still walk.
Good.
"Don’t worry about me, Researcher Mahan. I’ll be fine."