Chapter 65: Cybernetic-Enhanced Sabre-Tooth Rabbits!

It was to turn them all into cybernetic beasts.

CR1 himself had been the one to come up with this suggestion, reasoning that his cybernetic form was much more powerful than his previous form.

It would ensure their survival and also allow them all to be together.

When they attained their cybernetic forms, they would also understand his current line of reasoning.

I didn’t even need to utter a word to convince him.

I knelt before one, whom CR1 had indicated was his wife, and channelled my mana into her.

Fusion Syncronization.

My hand shone with a mixture of blue and silver glow, bathing the sabre-tooth rabbit.

Fur and flesh receded. Bones transformed into a black metallic alloy. Blood turned to circuits and wires interwining through the joints and the insides.

Metallic plating knitted over its body like skin, with an armour encasing it.

[ Fusion Synchronisation complete. ]

I stopped channelling my mana.

Suddenly, a familiar wave of weakness hit me.

Mana exhaustion!

Despite my abundant mana, it was still insufficient for me to use Fusion Synchronisation on a Sabre Tooth rabbit without experiencing mana exhaustion.

Does the trait’s usage depend on the size or strength of the magical beasts? Or both?

All I needed was time to make preparations and test them later on.

For now, it’s best to stick to the little magical beasts.

I fell to the ground. Weakly and drained.

Felix swiftly broke my fall with his body, supporting me as he gently laid me on the ground.

My eyelids closed on their own, and wonderland embraced me once more.

**

I transformed five more sabre-horned rabbits into cybernetic-enhanced sabre-horned rabbits.

I fell unconscious five times for thirty minutes.

Including the time spent after CR1’s transformation, I had spent a total of three hours.

Adding to the rest of my time within the dungeon, I had spent a total of five hours in the dungeon.

The skies had darkened, indicating that it was also dark outside.

The dungeon was designed to mirror the outside world’s time, allowing students to track their time in the dungeon and return before nightfall if they wanted.

They were magical beasts that came out to hunt at night, and they were also tasks that were specifically tailored to nighttime.

However, they were dangerous and required a team of two or more students to handle.

I made use of the nighttime to hone my skills. So, it wasn’t an issue for me.

I was powerful enough to deter any magical beast that dared to approach me.

I turned to the seven cybernetic-enhanced sabre-tooth rabbits.

I used the same naming scheme I used with CR1.

I called his wife, CR2 and the rest of his family, CR3 to CR7.

Their status screens were precisely the same as CR1.

Meanwhile, CRI’s fusion compatibility had risen to 50 per cent.

After CR1’s explanations, the other Cybernetic Sabre Tooth rabbits’ fusion compatibility rose to a startling 40 per cent.

Regardless, the results were within expectations.

I had hoped to discover a special cybernetic enhancement from among them. But nothing came of such up.

I could only look forward to upgrading them if I wanted to get anything special.

The remaining 17 Sabre-Tooth Rabbits began to awaken.

I turned to them.

As soon as they saw us, especially the multiple cybernetic-enhanced sabre tooth rabbits, they turned around and scurried into the tunnels.

No one tried to stop them.

Even if they choose to escape with CR1’s and the others’ vast knowledge on sabre-tooth rabbits, I could track them to their next burrows and transform them into cybernetic beasts.

Since CR1 and the others had insisted on getting their families together, and doing so would increase their fusion compatibility, I was willing to make the effort.

Sensing their gloomy emotions, pain, reluctance and defeat. I turned back to them.

"I’m going to store you all in here for the meantime. I’ll only bring you out whenever there’s no risk of exposing you to the public. But I’ll surely return tomorrow so we can get the rest of your family."

I said.

[ Fusion Compatibility: +10% ]

[ Fusion Compatibility: +10% ]

[ Fusion Compatibility: +10% ]

Their fusion compatibility increased like a stallion possessing the ability to soar through the skies.

Time for the moment of truth.

I opened my storage bag, channelled my mana into it and pointed it in their direction.

The space around the storage bag twisted.

One by one, CR1 and the others were pulled into it.

None of them were left.

I probed it.

My storage bag spanned 10,000 square feet.

Only students from noble or prestigious backgrounds could afford storage bags of this storage capacity.

Ivory also had a storage bag, indicating how much the Zahara Clan valued her and was willing to invest in her.

It’s no wonder that she was able to carry out Zahara’s Clan’s descendants’ bidding.

However, it was also one of the things that could be bought with merit points in the academy. Although the storage sizes were small, they were still sufficient to satisfy the students’ requirements.

I sent a telepathic message to them through our connection to test if I could still contact them within the storage bag.

’CR1, can you hear me?’

’I can hear you, master,’ CR1 quickly responded.

Thank goodness!

I was grateful that I could still communicate with them, even though our connections were weak.

While I was unconscious, Felix had used the opportunity to train CR1 how to speak our language. He also taught the others. The only one who didn’t know how to communicate properly yet was CR7.

I sensed them freely moving around within my storage bag.

Felix had remained immobile during our experiment to test if a storage bag could carry a cybernetic beast, and there were a lot of other things on my mind then, so I hadn’t put much thought into it.

Now, sensing as they moved from one of my precious belongings to another, gave me a headache.

It was like seeing toddlers grow wings.

There was a way to babyproof a storage bag, right?

’Where is this place? Are we truly inside your storage bag, master?’ CR1 was filled with shock and astonishment. ’It’s like a new world in here.’

"Yes, you all are within my storage bag. It’s a separate space where I store all my belongings. So don’t touch anything. I’ll get something later for you guys to keep yourselves busy within."

I sent the message telepathically to all of them.

They were smarter than they were before. They certainly won’t do anything foolish.

I gathered my emotions.

"Okay, master."

"Okay, master."

"Okay...master"

I shut down the idea of handing them my smartphone to keep them entertained. I didn’t want to go down the same path of development as Felix.

I decided to set a goal to purchase a new storage bag to house them. This meant that I had to put my plans for steadily growing a cybernetic magical beast army on hold for now.

At the moment, I needed to return to the dungeon hall to turn in my task before someone else did.

"Let’s go."

Felix transformed into his cybernetic jet mode.

I couldn’t get tired of it, no matter how many times I witnessed it.

After his transformation, I hopped on his back.

Felix soared towards the direction of the teleportation platform.

With the cover of the night, it was difficult for anybody to notice us. Still to be on the safe side, I got down from Felix some distance away from the teleportation platform and unsummoned him.

I leapt from tree to tree as I dashed forward.

I spotted a few students, but since I wasn’t familiar with any of them, I ignored them and kept moving.

***

Dungeon Hall

[ Received 1,325 merit points. ]

[ Merits Points: 4,416.]

I gained an additional 200 merit points over my last dungeon tasks.

I finally understood why the top rankers came together to hoard such tasks for themselves.

I wondered how they felt about not being able to earn merit points because the tasks were being picked by someone else.

Although I was slightly wary of them and wasn’t yet ready to face them, I hoped they could trigger a quest.

Still, I knew that it was my decision to make. So I could only remain cautious for now.

I was fine as long as they didn’t know that I had completed the tasks.

I placed my phone into my pocket.

The holographic black curtain surrounding me pashed out of existence.

"Have a good night’s rest, Student Ezekiel," the receptionist robot said, nodding slightly.

I returned the gesture with a nod and turned around to leave.

I noticed three familiar individuals sitting at the waiting tables.

Lawrence, Tiana and James.

Encountering them twice in a row without being covered in bandages and carried away on a stretcher with a bloody tinted view felt strange.

Unlike last time, their gazes were fixed on me with more intensity.