"Whoosh!"
After collecting the blue crystal core and the white Energy Fruit, Elric left the rooftop behind, stepping back into the dimly lit hallway of the high-rise building with measured steps.
The transition from the open air to enclosed space was jarring—from the howling wind and thick fog to the oppressive stillness of abandoned corridors.
The city outside was silent beyond the windows, shrouded in smoke and ash that drifted like snow. Inside, the air smelled of burnt concrete and rusted metal, mixed with that underlying scent of decay that permeated everything now.
Without hesitation, without second-guessing the decision, Elric pulled out the white Energy Fruit from his pocket.
It pulsed faintly with internal warmth, like something alive—like holding a small heart that continued beating despite being separated from its body. The surface was smooth, almost silky, and gave off a very faint glow that illuminated his palm.
He didn't wait a second longer to analyze or contemplate.
His stamina was running dangerously low after the teleportation and the encounter on the roof. If he wanted to survive the next wave of threats, if he wanted to protect what was his, he needed strength—now. Immediately.
He didn't even know what exactly the Energy Fruit would do. The System had been frustratingly vague about the specifics.
Would it enhance his body like Henry's Physical Enhancement Fruit? Or would it feed energy directly to his System, providing experience points or unlocking new abilities?
Only one way to find out, he reasoned.
He bit into it without ceremony, teeth sinking through the surprisingly tender flesh.
"Gulp…"
The taste was oddly clean—sweet like honey mixed with something vaguely metallic, almost mineral. Nothing like the disgusting bitterness of the Devil Fruits. As the pulp went down his throat, as he swallowed that first mouthful, a surge of heat spread through his chest.
It wasn't painful exactly, but intense—burning through his veins like liquid fire, racing from his core outward to every extremity.
Then it began in earnest.
A strange expanding feeling surged inside him, like his body was trying to grow beyond its current limitations. His bones cracked—sharp, rhythmic pops echoing through the hallway like gunshots in the silence.
Pop. Pop. Pop.
His muscles tensed involuntarily and then stretched, the fibers multiplying and reorganizing. He could feel them growing denser, harder, more efficient. It was simultaneously agonizing and exhilarating.
Elric clenched his fists, eyes going wide with realization as understanding dawned. "It's boosting… my physical stats!"
The fruit wasn't giving him System experience points or unlocking new techniques. It was rebuilding his body from the cellular level up, optimizing everything, pushing him beyond human limitations.
His heart pounded faster, every beat heavier and stronger than before. He could feel the muscle thickening, the chambers expanding, the entire cardiovascular system upgrading itself.
The transformation lasted nearly ten minutes—ten minutes of standing in that hallway, body convulsing and reshaping, barely able to maintain his balance.
When the burning finally stopped, when the last crack of reforming bone faded, Elric felt lighter somehow. Sharper. More alive than he'd ever been, even before the apocalypse.
Every sense seemed enhanced—colors were brighter, sounds clearer, even the stale air tasted different, more complex.
Then the familiar System chime rang in his mind, cutting through his wonder.
[Ding!]
Host status recalibrated.
Updating system panel…
Name: Elric
Physical Power: 155 (Ten times standard human level)
Mental Power: 10 (Normal range)
Abilities:
Surgical Field (Lv. 3) Glare Field (Lv. 1)
Elric blinked rapidly, processing the numbers. "Ten times? That's insane…"
Standard human level was typically rated at 15 in the System's metrics. That meant he now possessed the strength, speed, and durability of ten normal people combined.
He opened and closed his hands experimentally—his grip strength alone could probably crush solid metal now. Bend steel bars. Break bones like twigs.
He could perform at least thirty spatial swaps in a row without exhaustion, and keep Glare Field active for ten full minutes of continuous use.
No more worrying about burning out mid-battle. No more collapsing after a few teleports.
Then his reflection caught his eye, pulling his attention from the statistics.
There was a dusty mirror mounted in the hallway—cracked but still functional enough to show his face clearly.
He froze completely, staring.
His body… had changed dramatically. Fundamentally.
His height had pushed past six feet—he used to be around five-ten, maybe five-eleven at best. Now he had to look down slightly at where his old eye level would have been.
His skin looked cleaner, tighter, almost polished. The dark circles under his eyes from weeks of poor sleep had vanished completely. Even the old acne scars from his teenage years were gone, replaced with smooth, sharp features that could have belonged to a model.
His jawline was more defined, cheekbones more prominent. His eyes seemed brighter, more intense.
Elric frowned, half in disbelief, half in amusement. "Wait… did this fruit just give me a makeover too?"
He tilted his head, running a hand through his hair experimentally. The messy strands looked a shade darker now, richer, glinting faintly in the emergency lighting like they'd been professionally treated.
If someone who knew him before saw him now, they'd never believe this was the same exhausted survivor from two days ago. They might not even recognize him as the same person.
He smirked at his reflection. "Guess even apocalypse Systems care about aesthetics."
Then he paused, his thoughts drifting to Henry—that disgusting tyrant he'd just dismembered. The man who'd eaten two Physical Enhancement Fruits and still looked like a walking corpse. Overweight, yellow teeth, unkempt appearance.
"Guess it's not just the fruit," Elric chuckled darkly to himself. "Some people are just hopeless. Foundation matters."
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