Unless the gene-enhancing drug they injected into her had serious side effects, or the other party wasn't even sure how it worked, why else would they use her?
Since they asked her to describe how she felt after the injection, Tracy understood immediately—they were using her as a test subject.
If she weren't certain that she couldn't beat them, Tracy would've already fought them with everything she had. This was just too unfair.
She felt so useless. After being strengthened by the basic enhancement drug, and now by this gene-enhancing drug, she still wasn't a match for them.
But strength wasn't just about physical ability. No matter how strong your body was, if you weren't trained to use it properly, it wouldn't help.
The situation was against her, and she had no choice but to bow her head. So, even though she cursed them silently, on the surface she said, "Can I trust your word? If I cooperate, will you really let me go?"
"I always keep my word," Huro said. "Besides, I'm still being hunted by the police. I don't want trouble. If we can handle this peacefully, that's best for both of us."
Even though he said that, Tracy didn't believe him. Trusting a criminal would be foolish.
But for now, she had to keep him calm. At least that way, he wouldn't hurt her. She still needed a way to contact the police.
Unfortunately, he was very careful. When she was unconscious, he had taken her phone. Now she couldn't even call for help.
She regretted not keeping a backup phone in her dimension shop. If she had, she'd have another way to call for help.
Now, she had to rely on herself. But luckily, she wasn't as weak as she used to be. There was still a chance she could escape.
She was also curious about the drug he had injected her with. Maybe cooperating for now wouldn't be a bad idea.
She just didn't know whether the drug would harm her.
Thinking about it made her angry. He was using her as a lab rat. What if the drug was dangerous?
She didn't know that if she hadn't already taken the basic enhancement drug, this new injection might have killed her.
If she knew that, she would've fought Huro right then and there, even if she lost. She'd make sure he paid for it.
"Fine, I'll cooperate," Tracy said. "But how do I know what the effects of the drug are? I don't feel anything special right now."
"What did you feel when the drug was injected?" Huro asked.
"Thanks to you, I was unconscious. How could I feel anything? Weren't you the one watching me? Did I react in any way?" Tracy asked back.
She wasn't telling the truth. Although she had been unconscious, she was still somewhat aware, and she had felt her body changing.
But since she didn't trust him, she wasn't about to give him any useful information.
Huro believed her and said, "The feeling during the injection doesn't matter much. What matters is the result.
Try testing your strength and speed. Most importantly, see if you feel anything unusual."
"My strength and speed have increased a bit. But what do you mean by something unusual?" Tracy asked.
Her strength and speed had already improved before, so saying they had increased wouldn't raise any red flags.
And if she could mislead him a little, even better.
Actually, her strength and speed had increased even more after this injection.
Even though the effect wasn't as strong as the first drug, that was because this new gene-enhancing drug focused on something different.
"This drug is designed to awaken abilities," Huro explained. "Focus and see if there's anything new happening in your body."
"Abilities? Like superpowers? That only exists in novels." Tracy looked surprised.
"You're really clueless. Of course abilities exist. They're just kept secret from normal people. Maybe you've already awakened your ability. So stop acting like it's unbelievable," Huro said.
Tracy was genuinely shocked.
She had known about abilities before, but only in the world of the apocalypse.
Now Huro was saying that they existed in the real world too.
How could she not be surprised?
Still, she didn't think he was lying, because she had definitely felt the effects of the drug.
Even though it wasn't as strong as the last one, if it really could awaken abilities, then its value was even higher.
Tracy focused carefully on her body, trying to feel any changes.
Had she really awakened an ability?
"So, how do you feel?" Huro asked.
"Why are you in such a rush? Let me check carefully," Tracy said.
Tracy had indeed awakened an ability because of the gene-enhancing drug.
And thanks to the energy from the previous basic enhancement drug, she started at level one right away and already had some combat power.
She focused and felt a strange new force inside her.
She could even guide it through her body.
Was this the sign of an awakened ability?
Should she test it out now?
But then she looked at Huro next to her and gave up on the idea.
She couldn't let him find out. If he knew she had awakened, she could forget about escaping.
As for his promise to let her go if she cooperated, she didn't believe a single word of it.
Tracy had gained a special power, but she didn't know if she could use it to defeat Huro. If she attacked by surprise, he was just an ordinary person and probably couldn't fight back.
But even though she could feel a strange energy inside her, she didn't know what kind of power it was. She also didn't know how to use it. Huro wouldn't give her a chance to test it alone. If she failed to use it and he noticed something, she might not even get the chance to ask for help.
"I don't really feel anything strange. What should I feel after taking this gene-enhancing injection if I've awakened some ability?" Tracy asked.
If Huro knew that, he wouldn't have chosen Tracy for the experiment. So he asked, "Are you sure you don't feel anything?"
Huro wasn't someone with powers, so he had no idea what it would feel like to awaken one. When Tracy lied and said she didn't feel anything, he couldn't tell she was lying.
"I really don't feel anything special," Tracy said.
"Then try to attack me. I want to see how much stronger you've become," Huro replied.
He felt disappointed when Tracy said she felt nothing. But after she took the injection, he could tell her physical strength had improved, so it wasn't totally useless.
Maybe her power had already awakened, but she hadn't noticed it yet. It would take time to discover it.
Tracy didn't dare to attack earlier because she feared Huro would kill her if he found out. But now that he asked her to attack, she had nothing to lose.
She hoped her attack could knock him out so she could call the police and have him arrested. Since he escaped once before, the police would be more careful this time.
"You really want me to hit you? I'm going to do it then," Tracy said.
"I told you to hit me. Don't think that just because you're a bit stronger, you're really powerful. You're still far from being a threat. Don't worry about hurting me," Huro said.
After hearing that, Tracy threw a punch at his chest with all her strength.
But Huro sensed her punch coming and quickly dodged it.
"Why did you move? If you avoid it, how will you know how strong I am?" Tracy asked, a bit disappointed.
"I already felt the power in your punch. It's several times stronger than a normal person's. I guess this injection isn't useless after all. Maybe your ability is strength enhancement.
But your speed is also better now. The injection does improve strength and speed. Your strength may be higher, but not enough to be called a power yet," Huro said.
Honestly, he didn't expect Tracy to be this strong. If he had taken that punch without guarding himself, he might've been knocked down. That would've been embarrassing.
Tracy missed her chance to knock him out again. She was really frustrated.
She was anxious because she knew that once Huro figured out exactly what the injection did, it would be the moment he killed her.
She didn't believe his words about letting her go. She had to think of a way to get help fast. But she was stuck in her house, and no one outside could see her signals. She also didn't dare shout for help and make him angry.
Huro had no intention of letting Tracy go. Whoever they chose to test the drug, unless it was one of their own people, they planned to kill them after they understood how the drug worked.
He picked Tracy because of their past grudge and wanted to take revenge.
But since the drug's effect wasn't fully clear yet, Tracy was still alive. Though, she didn't have much time left.
Huro was being chased by the police. If he didn't figure out the drug's effect by tonight, he would kill her and leave.
So far, he was quite satisfied. Even though Tracy hadn't discovered any powers, the gene injection did have some effect and wasn't dangerous.
Even if it couldn't awaken powers, increasing physical strength was already valuable. Their researchers could study it more and maybe develop a version that could trigger powers.
Tracy kept trying to understand the energy inside her. She hoped she could figure out what her ability was.
She couldn't test it inside the house, so she said to Huro, "I need to use the bathroom. Can I go and then we continue after?"
"There's no window in the bathroom, only a vent. I can't escape through that," she added.
The layout of the bathroom was clear. Huro didn't think she could escape, so he didn't stop her.
He needed her cooperation to test if she had powers. Before he killed her, he didn't mind letting her be more comfortable for a while.
"Alright, go ahead. I'll give you a bit of time to feel if there's any change in your body," Huro said.
If she still couldn't find anything, he planned to use extreme methods to force it out. Facing danger often triggered powers. If she couldn't do it herself, he would help.
Tracy locked the bathroom door behind her and quickly entered the dimensional store.
She only had a few minutes to test her ability.
She couldn't let Huro find out. The bathroom door couldn't protect her from him.
Inside the store, Tracy focused and guided the energy in her body.
Suddenly, a flash of lightning sparked and crackled in the air of the store.