A Distant Reverie

Chapter 38

"Relax."

The single word slithered into his ears. The baritone timbre echoed in his head. The soft casual tone tingled with an air of indifference.

No malice. No anger. No intent to do harm. Just a simple command uttered by his captor. And yet, that eerie indifference somehow made it all the more terrifying.

Vesper grimaced as the Grand Master crept above him. The glint of steel. A scalpel and pair of scissors in his hands. Slowly, the sharp tools dropped. The faint smell of alcohol accompanied their descent.

The cold blade grazed his chest. A slight tingle. The blade traced downwards, digging into his skin. It stung. The alcohol coating the blade seeped into his flesh. He felt a breezing burn as blood leaked from the open wound.

The sensation was foreign and invasive—and soon, Vesper felt the blade being carefully dragged across his chest. A long incision was left in its wake.

"S-stop..."

The sound of his heart frantically thumping boomed in his head. He could feel his sanity slipping as the terror of being dissected alive ate at his conscious. He could feel every vibration of the blade. Every cut made to pry open the secrets of his body.

His body was being violated, defiled by this heinous man for the sake of learning.

"I said relax, didn't I? You're going to make a mess," the Grand Master said, irritated. Blood from the incision on Vesper's chest was seeping outwards, likely due to the pressure of his pulsating heart.

"You're only going to make this more difficult for yourself."

The coldness in his eyes made Vesper freeze. He couldn't comprehend how this man perceived the world. How was someone able to commit such atrocities without even a blink of an eye? How could he stomach these heinous deeds without guilt and remorse?

He realized too late that the person in front of him was a monster dressed in human skin.

"Now one more time. Relax."

The scissors came next.

Why?

Vesper closed his eyes.

Why is it always me?

He laid there, unable to resist.

What did I do to deserve this?

The monster continued to desecrate his body. Vesper's mind gradually drifted. The stinging pains eventually faded.

Soon, he found himself in a distant reverie.

-----

"Why can't you do it?!"

The voice screamed at him with a familiar fury. Vesper cowered, anticipating what always followed.

Slap!

His head rattled. His eyes flickered white. His ears rang. The side of his face was scalding hot, burning with pain. The rough texture of his father's calloused hands lingered on his cheeks.

"Try again!"

He did as he was told. He closed his eyes, trying to recall the tranquil sensation of mana swirling in his vicinity. After a brief second, he felt it. The tiny bit of ethereal particulate unnoticeable to the eyes, gently meandering about in the ambient surroundings. Mana. The next step was to seize control of it and mold to his mind's desire.

As he tried to grasp the mana and channel into his body, however—

"Cough! Cough!"

He choked, wheezing. His head spun with vertigo. His vision blurred. Symptoms of mana intolerance. His body fiercely rejected the foreign matter. No matter what he did, no matter how hard he tried, he cannot overcome the limitations of his own body.