Chapter 53: Proceeding with the Fusion Surgery

He nodded in satisfaction before shutting off the rinser, rolling his sleeve up to his elbow, and grabbing a binding wire from the workstation, which he wrapped tightly around his arm before clenching his fist.

The veins beneath his skin bulged as he drove the syringe into his arm and carefully extracted a small sample of his blood, and once enough blood had filled the syringe, he placed it on a tiny circular tray beside him before moving to another workstation and dragging over a microscope-like device, which he positioned beside the Core sink.

Lady Blythe unconsciously leaned forward in her chair as Declan adjusted the Corescope to the proper setting and placed the first Core beneath it, and with the device calibrated, he took the blood sample and carefully allowed several drops to fall onto the Core at precise intervals, causing its energy signature to gradually change as the blood mixed with its surface.

Once roughly half of the sample had been incorporated, the Core emitted a completely different glow, prompting Declan to carefully lift it from the Corescope and transfer it into the Core Oven.

"You’re remodelling the Core? But the containment has been affected by your blood. What are..."

Lady Blythe’s question was cut short when Declan closed the oven and set the marker to fifteen, then immediately returned to the second Core and prepared another syringe.

He reset the Corescope, placed the second Core beneath it, and repeated the same process, carefully introducing his blood into its structure before transferring it into the second Core Oven.

"Three minutes and twenty-five seconds exactly."

Declan brought out his device and set the timer.

Lady Blythe watched silently, and exactly three minutes and twenty-five seconds later, Declan shut off both ovens and removed the Cores, placing them into the Core sink to cool.

This time, Lady Blythe’s eyes widened, as Anomalous Cores were famous for their brilliant energy signatures, larger sizes, and destructive power, yet one of the Cores Declan had modified had actually become smaller while somehow retaining an even greater energy output.

She immediately scanned it, and the result left her speechless.

The first Core possessed an Energy Level of 1,650, but its Danger Level remained at 65%, while the second possessed an Energy Level of 1,700 with a Danger Level of only 35%.

Lady Blythe stared at the readings in disbelief.

"How!?"

Declan turned toward her and pointed at the first Core.

"This one is bad. You can throw it away."

He then picked up the second Core, examining its pulsating surface one final time before looking directly at her.

"Fuse this one with me."

"Nano-remodulation?"

Lady Blythe muttered to herself as she stared at the Core in Declan’s hand, her brows furrowing while she reconsidered what she had just witnessed.

"No."

Her eyes narrowed.

"You spilled your blood."

She continued thinking aloud, piecing the process together almost immediately.

"That means you used personalized genetic coding implantation to alter the Core itself, eliminating its drawbacks while unlocking its base power and producing more pronounced effects beyond ordinary Nano-remodulation."

Declan’s eyes widened slightly.

’She caught on quite fast.’

"How did you even know that?" she asked.

Declan merely shrugged.

"I used to be a Mech Scientist... once."

She clearly wanted to ask more, but the way he spoke made it obvious that he had no intention of explaining further, so she let it go, saving herself a headache.

Declan would never reveal where his knowledge came from because he had paid for that knowledge with his own death, and there was no chance he would simply hand it over to someone else for free.

Lady Blythe picked up the modified Core and nodded before tapping her spectacles, causing one of the Core Fusion beds to immediately respond as its transparent surface slid open.

Without hesitation, Declan walked over to it and removed his shirt, knowing that only his torso needed to be exposed, before climbing onto the bed and positioning himself beneath the machinery.

A set of restraints emerged from within the machine and secured both his arms and legs against the sides of the bed, after which the glass enclosure slowly closed around him.

One of the robotic arms descended, carrying a blue syringe at its tip. It pressed against Declan’s forehead before piercing through his skull and injecting the blue liquid directly into his brain.

For a brief moment, his entire world became blindingly bright as every light embedded within the glass enclosure illuminated simultaneously.

Then his consciousness disappeared.

’Huuuuuuu.’

Lady Blythe released a deep breath as she stared at the unconscious young man inside the fusion pod.

She had performed this surgical procedure more times than she could count, but an Anomalous Grade Fusion?

That was different.

She had personally performed only three such procedures before, and two had ended in failure with only one succeeding

And now she was about to attempt another, except this time, the Core had undergone personalized genetic encoding and Nano-remodulation before fusion.

The possible effects were impossible to predict.

Yet when she remembered the person who had given Declan her Invitation card, her expression softened slightly.

’It was Morgaret. Her Boss Morg!’

"I’ll do my best. Only because of you, Morgaret," she whispered.

The next moment, the skin covering both of her hands began retracting, revealing a layer of incredibly thin Nano-hands beneath.

Her fingers transformed into needle-like surgical instruments as she approached the fusion pod.

"Activate 100% Precise Focus Surgical Mode."

The moment her command was issued, the machines throughout the laboratory shuddered to life.

One mechanical arm after another extended toward the pod, their movements synchronized with perfect precision.

The lights throughout the laboratory dimmed until the only remaining illumination was focused directly upon Declan’s body.

A circular opening appeared in the glass directly above Declan’s chest as the mechanical surgical arms descended through it, their joints shifting with precise movements while razor-sharp blades extended from their tips.

Blythe’s crimson eyes narrowed as she activated the surgical system, her gaze becoming intensely focused while every machine around the fusion pod synchronized with her movements.

The first blade slowly descended toward Declan’s chest before piercing through his skin, marking the beginning of the delicate procedure that would determine whether he emerged from the pod as a Nexian...Or never woke up again.

The fusion surgery had begun.

________________________

Declan had no idea how long he had remained asleep.

For all he knew, it could have been hours or even an entire day. Time had become meaningless to him while he was unconscious.

However, when his eyes finally opened, the first thing he saw was the crimson rays of light shining across the pitch-red ceiling above him.

Several vents had been built into the ceiling, releasing a faint stream of cool air into the room.

He was lying on a bed, and aside from it, the only other things occupying the crimson room were the vents scattered across the ceiling and walls.

Declan slowly pushed himself upright, his head feeling incredibly groggy as he rubbed it.

Then,

STEP

STEP

STEP

His ears suddenly twitched, and his eyes snapped toward a random section of the wall.

There was no door there, nor was there any visible entrance, yet the sound of footsteps was unmistakably coming from the other side.

A moment later, several runic lights illuminated across the wall, tracing the outline of a concealed doorway.

The wall then separated along those glowing lines, revealing an entrance through which a familiar figure stepped.

"Lady Blythe?"

Declan stared at the crimson-haired woman as she entered the room.

She looked considerably different from when he had last seen her.

Her hair, which had previously been tied up, now flowed freely over her shoulders, while her formal laboratory attire had been replaced by a loose crimson pajama set.

She was visibly surprised to see him awake, although that surprise lasted only a moment.

"You’re awake? That’s abnormal. You should still be unconscious for another eight hours."

Declan sat up straighter, but the moment he did, a sharp pain spread through his chest.

He immediately stopped and placed a hand over it.

Looking down, he found his entire upper torso covered in layers of bandages.

"The surgery?"

The memory finally returned to him.

Before he could think further, Blythe was already beside him, sitting down on the edge of the bed.

"You never told me your Talent affinity was D-grade."

"Did that affect the fusion?" Declan asked.

Blythe nodded.

"It did. Your body absolutely refused to accept the fusion, and most of your cells began breaking down because they couldn’t handle the destructive energy."

She sighed, clearly remembering the trouble she had gone through.

"Thankfully, everything worked out in the end, although it was one hell of a headache."

"A headache I normally wouldn’t have signed up for."

From her tone alone, Declan could tell the surgery had been far more difficult than expected.

Still, he lowered his gaze slightly.

"Sincerely...Thank you."

Blythe paused, and for a brief moment, the annoyance in her crimson eyes softened.

"You’re welcome."

"What time is it?"

She reached into the pocket of her pajamas and checked her device.

"It’s 10:56."

"Wow..."

Declan stared blankly ahead.

"That’s... a lot of time."

He had entered the Core Fusion Lab at around ten in the morning, and it was already ten at night.

"You should be glad you’re alive at all," Blythe said. "I wanted to perform one final check-up on you to make sure you’re asleep."

Declan ignored that last part and immediately pushed himself to his feet.

"What are you doing?"

"Heading back to my dorm room."

"You absolutely cannot do that."

Blythe’s voice became firm.

"Your body is still highly unstable."

"But I have a class at six, and I also have a challenge," Declan replied and Blythe rolled her eyes.

"And which one exactly is worth your life?"