“Just when I thought I could finally start generating stable wealth, reality found another way to drain my money.”
Though Michael said this bitterly, there was a hint of joy hidden in his voice.
So what if evolution had become expensive now?
When he reasoned that it brought him more strength, it was still a worthy trade.
However, Michael couldn’t deny—it was expensive.
“Hmm, I might have to either use the material method only for key undead and rely on the standard method for the rest… or aside from a few key undead, limit the material use to just a little,” he muttered.
“But for this to work, I need to understand more about the rules behind using materials to influence evolution.”
Another thought crossed Michael’s mind.
In fact, two did.
The first—was it guaranteed that using materials during evolution would always create a mutation?
Or was it possible that sometimes, instead of mutating, it would simply enhance an undead’s existing attributes?
If so, it would still be valuable.
But he would have to find out for himself—and already, he could see just how expensive the future was shaping up to be.
As several thoughts flashed through his mind, Michael turned to look at the four giants standing around him: Gale, Beginning, Lily, and the random lucky undead orc who had evolved into a Goliath.
The first thing he did was instruct the three Goliaths to reduce their size.
Testing how small they could go, Michael found that the ordinary Goliath could shrink to the size of an early teen’s body, while Lily and Beginning could only reduce themselves to roughly the size of mid-teens.
The sight was… intriguing.
Michael was even tempted to let them stay that way.
After all, not everything needed to be so… big.
When Lily and Beginning stood at over six meters tall, everything about them felt massive and intimidating to him.
Still, he had experiments to run.
The {Size Alteration} skill was familiar to Michael—both Purple and Blue had it.
However, the effect of the skill on his Goliaths was bound to be different.
How it was different—that was what Michael intended to find out now.
He first decided to test their strength.
Michael called the three Goliaths forward and had them take a stance opposite him.
In their small forms, they no longer seemed as overwhelming.
Their bodies were compact, lean, and gave off a different kind of pressure compared to their original towering appearances.
He started with the ordinary Goliath.
A simple clash of strength was enough to let him suppress it.
The Goliath still had great force behind its blows, but it was manageable.
Michael nodded slightly, pleased.
Then he moved on to Lily.
The moment their hands locked, Michael’s eyes widened.
The force that slammed into him was several times greater than what the normal Goliath could muster.
For a moment, his footing even slipped.
He dug his feet into the ground and pushed back harder, but the gap was clear—while he could barely hold steady.
“So even in their compact form… you two are stronger,” Michael muttered, already anticipating Beginning’s turn.
When he finally sparred with Beginning, he understood it even more.
Beginning was faster, sharper, and heavier with every blow compared to Lily, and even Lily wasn’t easy to suppress.
Michael pulled back.
His gaze swept over the two mutated Goliaths, a complicated expression on his face.
“Your small forms… don’t weaken your strength much.”
This was different from what he had expected.
The Size Alteration skill to him, for these humanoid creatures, was supposed to make a creature smaller, sacrificing some strength for mobility.
But here, aside from losing some raw weight behind their attacks, Lily and Beginning seemed stronger in some ways.
It was as if their mutations had turned the Size Alteration into a pure advantage without drawbacks.
Michael chuckled dryly, shaking his head.
“They’re already this strong at mid-teen size… what monsters would they be if they fought at full size?”
Still, strength wasn’t the only thing that mattered.
Speed was just as important.
Without wasting time, Michael led them into a bigger nearby forest clearing.
The tall trees and uneven terrain made it a perfect place to test agility and burst speed.
He stood a good distance away from them, lifting his hand high.
“When I lower my hand, we dash to that broken stump over there! First one wins!”
The Goliaths in their smaller forms nodded obediently.
It was almost cute.
Michael grinned slightly—and dropped his hand.
He dashed forward, mana flooding his body for a burst of acceleration.
His footwork was sharp, and he leapt over a fallen log nimbly.
For a moment, he thought he had left them behind.
But then a shadow flickered past the edge of his vision—
Another—
Lily zipped ahead of him like a wild beast
And just behind her, Beginning wasn’t far behind either.
Michael gritted his teeth and pushed harder.
He managed to barely inch ahead of Beginning before reaching the stump.
He turned to look back.
Lily had already stopped, standing tall with her arms crossed like a victor.
Beginning arrived a moment later.
Michael let out a laugh.
“I barely beat you, Beginning, and Lily completely crushed me.”
It was a stunning realization.
They weren’t meant to be speed-type creatures.
Their builds, skills, and base nature were all about power and endurance.
Yet with their mutations and the Size Alteration skill, they could keep up with—and even surpass—a fast fighter like him.
One should know Michael was competing with them as an average average high human.
“Goliaths. This race seems to be just like the Spectral Ant race. Special. Perhaps even a normal Goliath can compete with some extraordinary rank creature in strength,” Michael said with clear admiration in his voice.
It was like an investment that was already starting to show its returns.
“But if this is the kind of result I get… then maybe it’s worth every single coin.”
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