The Cycle of Fate

Chapter 82: A Fresh Corpse

Lumian squatted there, holding the three metal vials, and looked at Jenna with a smile. "I have a way to figure it out."

"What way..." Jenna was initially curious, but soon became nervous and flustered due to his ambiguous smile.

Lumian smiled and said, "Help me test which vial is which."

"Are you kidding me?" If Lumian hadn't just saved her life and if she weren't in a weakened state, Jenna would have cursed him out.

Lumian maintained a serious expression. "If it's the vial with the gas that makes you faint, you'll just pass out again. I'm not going to do anything to you. If I really wanted to, you wouldn't be able to resist anyway. Once we figure out which vial is which, I can use the one with the irritating gas to wake you up and get you back to normal."

"And if we're lucky, we'll pick the one with the irritating gas right away, and you might regain some strength immediately."

That does make some sense... Even if things go badly, it won't be that bad... Jenna almost let herself be persuaded by Lumian.

But she quickly regained her senses, gritting her teeth. "But what if it's the other one? We don't even know what it does!"

If it's poison, there's no one here who knows how to treat it!

Lumian chuckled and, in a mocking tone, said, "Are you stupid? Most of what's in the vials is gas, and some is liquid. There's a significant difference in weight!"

"This one should have liquid in it!"

He lifted one of the three metal vials, shook it slightly, and could "clearly" hear the sound of liquid sloshing inside. He then tucked it into his pocket.

"I see..." Although she was mocked, Jenna was now focused entirely on the "experiment" and didn't get angry.

After a few seconds of hesitation, she closed her eyes and tilted her head slightly back. "Go ahead, try it!"

Lumian placed another of the metal vials into his pants pocket, leaving just one in his hand.

He then slowly and calmly brought the remaining vial close to Jenna's nose.

The next second, he noticed Jenna sneaking a peek by opening her eyes slightly.

Lumian chuckled, then twisted the cap. Almost immediately, an intensely irritating odor, reminiscent of fermented waste, assaulted Jenna's nose, making her sneeze several times in a row, with tears and mucus almost streaming down her face.

Each "Achoo!" helped her regain some strength, and by the time Lumian had sealed the vial and stood up, she had sprung to her feet, instinctively moving her arms and legs.

"Seems like I got lucky!" Jenna exclaimed, delighted, as she adjusted her clothes and skirt.

She had drawn the vial with the irritating gas right on the first try!

But then she noticed Lumian's mocking expression, and a sudden sense of foreboding gripped her.

Tentatively, she asked, "Did you already know which vial had the gas?"

Is that why you picked the vial with the irritating gas so accurately?

Lumian laughed, handing the metal vial to Jenna. "Smell the cap for yourself."

Jenna suspiciously took the vial and sniffed the bottle. The lingering odor was faint, not particularly irritating, and didn't have any noticeable effect, but it was unpleasant enough.

"The other vial had no smell." Lumian added with a smile.

Jenna's already slightly flushed face turned beet red.