The Antidote (3)

Frondier extended a hand. He had always been curious. How did they manage to turn Mana into a liquid?

No matter how concentrated Mana became, it wouldn't turn into a liquid. It simply wasn't that kind of substance.

Therefore, Frondier's reasoning was this: "This lab didn't develop a technology to turn Mana into a liquid. They developed a technology to insert Mana into a pre-existing liquid."

Whatever that liquid was, it would be a substance harmless to the human body, like saline solution. After all, they chose injections as a means to insert Mana into others.

And whether it was harmless or harmful, Frondier already knew of a liquid that inherently possessed Mana.

Obsidian.

"Absorbing it is probably impossible," Frondier muttered, raising his hand.

Shhh!

His Obsidian extended in all directions, attaching itself to the people behind the black wall.

"But I think I can detach it."

Frondier's sixth sense reacted vividly. Within each person, a foreign Mana clashed with their own inherent Mana.

'Human Mana comes in various colors. But the injected Mana, at most... no, there are still five types. They've been conducting quite a reckless experiment.'

Five types of Mana injected into them. This meant that the lab had modified the Mana injections at least five times, using humans as test subjects.

Just like when he absorbed the black monster, Frondier brought Obsidian's Mana into contact with the Mana inside the humans' bodies.

"Ms. Ellen, and Dier," he called out to them just before attempting it.

"Be prepared. This is my first time too. These people could die."

"......!"

Their expressions hardened at his words, but they didn't stop him.

They didn't know what Frondier was trying to do, but just before he arrived to help, Dier and Ellen had also resolved to kill these people. If there was another way, they had no choice but to try it.

After confirming their resolve in their eyes, Frondier pulled on Obsidian.

"Kuuuurgh!!"

"Kugh......"

Some screamed, some groaned in pain, but their subsequent actions were the same. They collapsed like deflated balloons.

Ellen rushed over to examine them. Her hardened expression while diagnosing their condition softened a moment later.

"...They're alive. The symptoms are gone too."

Hearing that, Dier let out a sigh of relief. But then, surprised, he looked at Frondier.

'Just who is this guy?'

Through the cause of the side effects and what Frondier had just shown, Dier understood that Frondier had removed the Mana that had been injected into them.

But that was as far as his understanding went. He couldn't fathom how Frondier was able to extract another person's Mana, even if it was injected Mana.

'...He's definitely changed, Frondier.'

Meanwhile, Ellen was tense because of Frondier's aura.

His expression and voice were the same as usual, but today's Frondier had an unexplainable eeriness about him.

Compared to when they had confronted each other, something fundamental seemed to have changed, or rather, something seemed to have been discarded.

"Then the rest..."

Frondier raised his head and looked into the distance. There, a massive lump of Mana that had awakened before the others was rampaging.

The prototype, the first to be experimented on, far before those who had just collapsed.

Many researchers had already been swept away by it, and it was slowly walking towards Frondier.

"Frondier, be careful. It has immense Mana."

"...Yes, it certainly does," Frondier replied to Ellen's tense voice.

In the meantime, the prototype revealed itself. Its body was abnormally swollen, likely due to the injections.

Its eyes were far more bloodshot than the others, its veins bulged all over its body, and the excessive heat of its body caused a mist-like substance to rise around it.

Thump, thump.

It made heavy sounds with each step it took.

"Ms. Ellen, Dier. Step back."

They retreated as Frondier instructed. Both were stronger than before thanks to the Mana injections, but Ellen's condition had worsened due to the side effects after some time, and Dier wasn't yet proficient in handling Mana itself.

And above all, even after receiving the Mana injections, Frondier still seemed much stronger.

"K, Kuhahaha!!"

At that moment, Angus's unhinged laughter, oblivious to the atmosphere, echoed through the air.

"Behold! That tremendous Mana! A human body still alive and moving despite being injected with such Mana! This is medicine! I dreamt of creating human weapons, starting with that prototype, to reclaim humanity's territory! I have been fighting for humanity all this time!"

No one responded to him. However, it was an extremely unpleasant statement.

Was that a justification for creating human weapons? Or was it sincere? Either way, Angus was now filled with self-righteousness.

Since this Mana injection had spread throughout the world, the number of people saying things similar to Angus would increase.

Even in a somewhat moderate way, opinions like 'Isn't the Mana injection necessary depending on the situation?' could easily arise.

"It's coming."

But that wasn't the problem to worry about right now. Frondier drew up his Mana and sharpened Obsidian, assuming a stance ready to attack the prototype at any moment.

Frondier's eyes met the prototype's. Their movements stopped, with the black wall between them.

"Hahahaha! Die! Die with me here, everyone! See the power of the prototype!!"

As Angus said, it seemed like their clash would begin at any moment, but...

"No."

Frondier saw something in the prototype's eyes. He actually released his battle stance and deactivated the black wall, returning it to Obsidian.

"Frondier?"

Ellen called out to him in surprise, but Frondier didn't answer, simply observing the prototype silently.

As the black wall disappeared, the prototype approached Frondier with heavy steps,

thump, thump, thump

and then...

*Thud.*

It knelt on both knees.

Ellen and Dier's eyes widened.

Of course, the most surprised was Angus.

"Wh, what are you doing! Prototype! Kill him! What do you think you exist for!"

According to Angus's explanation, the prototype should have lost consciousness due to being subjected to all sorts of Mana injection experiments.

So, all that would remain would be the impulse to unleash Mana, without listening to anyone's commands.

Therefore, it naturally wouldn't listen to Angus either, but the prototype's current actions were so unexpected that Angus screamed his lungs out.

"Why! Why are you! You, who should be a human weapon!!"

Ignoring Angus's harsh words, the prototype spoke.

"...Kill me."

"......!"

Those words.

When the opponent he considered an enemy mentioned death themselves, Frondier's eyes widened.

His hands trembled like never before. For Frondier, who was always adept at hiding his emotions, it was a significant change.

He clenched his fists, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath.

And then, his eyes opened again. Ellen saw them.

'...He's back.'

Seeing that, Ellen finally felt like Frondier had returned, even slightly, to the Frondier she knew.