Chapter 24 Vera’s Experiment (Conclusion)

Seven days passed.

Ellie, fully recovered, led Levin and Vera back to her safe house on the outskirts.

The experiment had been conducted three or four times already, and this time it was to test Vera's final results.

"Here, put these on," Vera pulled out a set of silver ornaments—bracelets, a collar, anklets, and rings—all included.

"Silver... How do these work?" Ellie asked, puzzled, as she donned the silver jewelry. She knew that silver could restrain werewolves, and that wounds inflicted by silver weapons could prevent their automatic healing and severely drain their stamina. But how could these small silver ornaments be used?

"These ornaments are filled with a high concentration of endurance toxin. Once you transform, the mechanisms inside will release spikes that will pierce into your werewolf form, delivering silver weapon damage while injecting the endurance toxin," Vera nodded proudly, clearly pleased with her seven days of work. "Oh, if I had more clients like you, I'd be swimming in wealth just from this invention alone..."

"This setup costs a full five gold Weymars," Levin added with a hint of pain in his voice. "I'm the one funding this research, so I should get a share of the profits when it's done."

"Levin, how many times have I told you? I can't spend your money. This is my expense," Ellie frowned at Levin as she spoke.

"Dream on! How many werewolves are out there needing to hide their identity? Besides your Chief, the rest are just mad dogs kept by the Valkyris Church," Vera shook her head, clearly disappointed that this device couldn't be commercialized.

"Do they trigger by sensing my body's expansion after the transformation?" Ellie asked.

Vera nodded with satisfaction. "Exactly. That's the principle. Today, you'll be testing the effectiveness of this device. However, these devices are likely single-use. If your transformation is too intense, they'll break apart. Even if they don't shatter, they'll deform significantly, which would look suspicious. If you plan to use them on the night in question, make sure to dress thickly beforehand so these things don't show."

"Single-use, meaning each test costs five gold Weymars," Ellie, though wealthy, felt a slight pang of regret. "Let's aim for success on the first try."

"Don't worry, my inventions are reliable. This isn't just any endurance toxin—it's specially formulated based on your blood. It should be even more potent for you," Vera said with great confidence.

"But if the toxin is that strong, won't there be side effects?" Levin asked, concerned.

"Don't worry, there's nothing with lasting effects. Essentially, it works by overloading your body's systems, causing the energy factors to halt...," Vera began explaining the principle in detail when she saw Levin's concern.

"Uh, so no long-term effects, right?" Levin, struggling to follow the alchemical jargon, decided to trust Vera's assurance.

"Yes, it's all temporary. I stake my career as an alchemist that there won't be any lasting consequences, apart from things like fatigue, exhaustion, sleep disturbances, and shortness of breath...," Vera's voice trailed off as her confidence seemed to wane.

That's quite a list of potential side effects...

"But it's all temporary and won't last more than a year!"

A year is still pretty long! Levin inwardly complained.

"All right, no need to say more. I trust your expertise," Ellie waved her hand, nodding to Vera, signaling her trust. "So how many minutes will this device reduce my transformation time to?"

"Reduce by minutes?" Vera's eyes narrowed slightly. "My goal is to abort your transformation entirely, forcing you back into your original form."

"You..." Ellie was stunned, staring at Vera in surprise.

"Huh? What? Did I say something strange?" Vera tilted her head in confusion.

"Thank you... for doing so much for me..." Ellie suddenly stepped forward, nuzzling Vera's red hair with her chin, and hugged her tightly.

"It's all paid for, so why are you being so polite? Levin! Control your Chief! That's enough! Don't treat me like a child!"

...

After some commotion, Vera and Ellie adjusted their disheveled clothes and headed down to the basement together.

As usual, Levin kept watch above.

In the basement.

"Okay, you've taken off your clothes, right?" Vera directed Ellie on how to conceal herself.

"Let me tell you, didn't you say before that it was your 'women's only holiday'? Just drink the endurance toxin beforehand, and when you get to the site, say you're afraid of the cold. Wrap up thickly here, here, and here. No one will notice. Then when you transform, the device will activate, your stamina will deplete, and you'll revert to your original form. You'll return to your superior with little to no flaws. As long as no one suspects you, you should get away with it..."

"Mm, mm, thank you." Ellie, now only wearing the silver ornaments, smiled and thanked Vera, patting her head. She then gulped down the endurance toxin that would preemptively deplete her human form's stamina and staggered into the cell.

"Don't pat my head! If you want to thank me, pay me more! Next time you pat my head, I won't care if you live or die!" Vera stomped her feet in frustration, locked the door, and stood by, arms crossed, waiting for Ellie's transformation.

Since this experiment aimed for a one-step termination of Ellie's transformation, Vera chose not to retreat and wait but to witness this historic moment firsthand.

Lying in the cell, Ellie's body convulsed as knotted muscles tore through her skin, followed by a coating of silver fur. Thick, silver hair sprouted from every inch of her body, and the silver devices strapped to her began to strain under her sudden expansion, nearly bursting. Yet they held firm, with spikes driving into Ellie's flesh, swiftly injecting the endurance toxin into her system.

"Kill! Kill! Kill!"

"Fresh blood!"

"Hunt... the eternal hunt!"

An endless wave of frenzied thoughts surged through Ellie's mind, but the silver-inflicted wounds and the circulating endurance toxin sapped her strength.

"So tired..."

"Let's rest..."

As Ellie's frenzied thoughts were gradually replaced by overwhelming fatigue, her incomplete transformation came to an abrupt halt.

The knotted muscles shrank back into her well-trained, healthy body, and the silver fur receded within her. Her face, which had just begun to change, returned to its human form.

"Yes! The experiment was a success!" Vera leaped with joy.

"Really…? My transformation ended even before it was completed?" Ellie trembled as she looked at her hands—no claws, no fur, just the thick calluses from years of sword practice. She couldn't help but clench her fists in excitement. "Finally…" Completely drained of energy, Ellie fainted.

"Hey! Don't pass out! D*mn it, how am I supposed to dress her now?" Vera groaned, staring at Ellie, unconscious on the floor.

...

"Levin! Come down and help!" After keeping watch for twenty minutes, Levin heard Vera's shout from below and quickly descended the ladder.

"What happened?" As Levin reached the bottom, he saw Ellie fully dressed, leaning against the cell wall, eyes closed, apparently unconscious.

"She fainted from exhaustion. You'll need to carry her upstairs," Vera instructed as she handed the task of carrying Ellie to Levin while she collected the silver devices from the floor, which, though not broken, were severely deformed.

"Hmm... These devices can be recycled and re-melted, saving a lot on costs..."

"How did the experiment go? Was it successful? Did Ellie revert to human form?" Levin asked with concern as he lifted Ellie onto his back.

"Yes! It worked! Her transformation was halted before she fully turned into a werewolf, and she reverted to her human form. How's that for genius?" Vera proudly placed her hands on her hips.

"Amazing! You're the top alchemist in Weymar City!" Levin praised, giving her a thumbs up.

"Of course! Though, let's not get carried away. There are plenty of alchemical masters in Weymar who are way ahead of me. Heh, don't flatter me too much, or I might get a big head," Vera initially puffed out her chest with pride, then sheepishly scratched her head.

"No worries, you're the number one alchemist in my eyes. Conquering such a difficult task—our Master Alchemist Vera is truly unfathomable," Levin lavishly praised her without hesitation.

"Oh, come on, I said no more flattery. Besides, this task was only challenging because no one had tackled it before. The principle behind it is actually quite simple," Vera waved off the compliments, indicating that Levin should stop with the awkward praise. "All right, let's get Ellie upstairs to rest. I'll go back and craft a new set of devices. Just use them when the full moon arrives."

...

"Oh, but there's one thing to note," Levin had just laid Ellie on the bed and tucked her in when Vera suddenly remembered something.

"What is it?" Levin turned his head, puzzled, as he looked at Vera. "Is there something else we need to be careful about?"

"The werewolf form on the night of the full moon is stronger, isn't it?" Vera said seriously.

"That's right. According to Ellie, the full moon not only forces the transformation but also makes it significantly stronger than usual…" Levin nodded slowly. "Even if she transforms during the day, she'll change again at night when she sees the full moon…"

"But we no longer have a full moon night to conduct another experiment," Vera said solemnly. "So, whether this device can suppress the transformation on a full moon night remains unknown."

Levin's expression grew serious as well. "You're right. It's an unknown factor, but as you said, we have no more full moon nights to test it. The next full moon will be the night of our operation…"

"Try to transform in a secluded place, and it's best if Levin is there to watch over you. We'll do our best and leave the rest to fate," Vera said, shaking her head in resignation.