"My friend... she's not here."
Natasha's voice was tight with anxiety as she searched frantically through the penthouse—checking the master bedroom, the guest room, the bathroom, the kitchen, even the closets and balcony. Every corner of the luxurious apartment.
The place was immaculate. Clean sheets on the bed that still looked recently slept in. Clothes folded neatly in the dresser drawers. Personal items arranged carefully on surfaces. Nothing overturned, nothing rushed or chaotic.
Everything suggested someone had been living here comfortably just hours ago, perhaps even this morning.
But the person herself was gone.
"That's impossible," Natasha muttered under her breath, her heart pounding with growing panic. "Two days ago—just two days—I talked to her on the phone. Isabella said she was staying at home. She said she'd be here waiting for us. How could she just—"
She pulled out her phone with trembling hands and tried calling again.
No signal.
The communication networks were completely dead across the entire city now.
Natasha turned toward Elric, genuine panic rising in her chest—not primarily for her friend's safety, but for something more immediate and selfish.
"Elric, I swear I didn't lie to you. I really didn't. I genuinely talked to Isabella two days ago. She was here. She specifically said she would stay home and wait for rescue. I don't—I don't understand why she's gone now."
Her voice wavered noticeably—not because she feared her friend was dead or captured.
But because she feared Elric wouldn't believe her. That he would think she had deliberately misled him, wasted his time and resources bringing them here based on false information.
Elric didn't speak immediately. He simply stood in the center of the living room, his enhanced senses and analytical mind reading the environment like a crime scene investigator.
He observed:
Refrigerator still fully stocked with fresh food and bottled water.
Bedding still neatly made, pillows arranged.
Toiletries left casually in the bathroom sink—toothbrush, cosmetics, hairbrush.
Shoes still lined up by the entrance door—several pairs, indicating she hadn't fled with everything.
This wasn't the home of someone who had abandoned the residence in panic or desperation.
This was someone who had left briefly—either voluntarily for a specific purpose, or taken by force without warning.
The evidence supported Natasha's story completely.
Elric nodded once, his expression remaining neutral.
"I know. You're not lying."
Visible relief rushed through Natasha's entire body, her shoulders sagging as tension released. Her breath came out shakily.
He continued in his usual commanding tone:
"You all stay here for now. Rest and recover your strength. Don't touch anything unnecessary or make noise. I'll search for your friend Isabella later—but survival takes priority over rescue operations."
The five women nodded quietly, accepting his decision without question or complaint. They had learned quickly that Elric's judgment in the apocalypse was far superior to their own instincts.
Elric stepped into the spare guest bedroom, closed and locked the door behind him for privacy, and sat on the edge of the bed.
Then he reached into his dimensional storage and withdrew the two ability fruits he had harvested from the mutated willow tree grove during their escape.
One glowed with vibrant green coloration, radiant like compressed emerald sunlight, its spiral patterns pulsing rhythmically.
The other shimmered with soft white luminescence, smooth like polished marble, emanating a steady ethereal glow.
Both were clearly different from the standard Fruits he'd encountered before—denser, heavier, more potent somehow. The energy radiating from them felt concentrated.
Elric didn't hesitate or deliberate.
Now was the perfect time to grow stronger—while relatively safe, before the next crisis emerged.
He lifted the green fruit first, feeling its unusual weight and texture.
"Maybe ability fruits have different grades or tiers," Elric murmured thoughtfully. "These feel... superior somehow."
No time to analyze further. He bit into it decisively.
The taste was still horrible—bitter, acidic, wrong—but he forced it down.
A sharp surge of energy shot through his entire body immediately—wild, bright, electric—like lightning coursing through his nervous system.
[DING.]
[Ability energy detected and absorbed.]
[DING.]
[Energy converted to 10 Devil Fruit Experience Points.]
Elric's pulse quickened with excitement.
Ten points at once—that was five times more than a normal ability fruit provided. This confirmed his theory about quality tiers.
[SYSTEM: Select which Devil Fruit ability receives the experience allocation.]
There was zero hesitation in his mind.
"Surgical Fruit," Elric commanded mentally.
[DING.]
[Surgical Fruit experience increased.]
[Level 2 (8/20) → Level 2 (18/20)]
Just two points short of the critical Level 3 breakthrough now.
Once it reached Level 3, the next tier of abilities would awaken. Perhaps ROOM expansion to encompass entire city blocks. Spatial slicing sharp enough to cut through reinforced steel. Or even—
Shambles without requiring direct line of sight or range limitations.
His heart beat steadily with controlled anticipation—excited but not reckless.
Then he took the second fruit—the white physical enhancement type—and swallowed it in several quick bites.
Intense heat spread through him immediately, like molten oxygen rushing through his bloodstream.
Click. Crack. Click.
His bones were shifting—reinforcing themselves, thickening with denser calcium deposits, reorganizing into optimal structural configurations. His entire skeletal frame wasn't just growing—it was being reforged from the inside out, density increasing dramatically while joints realigned into perfect biological balance.
Then came the muscles.
His abdomen visibly tightened, muscle fibers layering smoothly into sharp definition. What had once been a decent six-pack restructured completely into nine sculpted segments—efficient rather than bulky, precise rather than swollen like a bodybuilder.
His arms, shoulders, back, legs—every muscle group tightened simultaneously with clean, athletic strength. Not the exaggerated mass of a weightlifter, but the refined power of an Olympic athlete in their absolute prime.
Then came changes to his skin.
It smoothed noticeably, taking on a healthy tone and subtle luster—the natural appearance of someone born with superior genetics, not someone who had built themselves through years of training.
The entire transformation process lasted approximately three minutes.
When the sensations finally stopped and his body stabilized, Elric stood and walked toward the full-length mirror mounted on the bedroom wall.
He stared at his reflection.
The person staring back was no longer the ordinary, unremarkable young man from just eight days ago.
His height had increased from 5'10" to a solid 6'6"—giving him commanding physical presence.
His proportions had fundamentally changed—longer legs, defined waist, broader shoulders creating a classical V-shape. His collarbones sat clean and symmetrical beneath smooth skin. His jawline had sharpened significantly. His eyes seemed more intense, more focused.
He looked like someone who belonged on a movie poster or fashion magazine cover.
No exaggeration—this was objective reality now.
A man who, even before the apocalypse, could have walked onto any college campus and instantly become the center of female attention without effort.
Elric smiled slightly, satisfied with the results.
The system chimed with updated information.
[DING — Host physical status updated and optimized.]
Name: Elric
Physical Strength: 300 (Approximately 20x normal adult human capability)
Mental Strength: 10 (Standard adult baseline)
Devil Fruit Abilities:
Surgical Fruit – Level 2 (18/20) [PRIMARY] Emotion Perception – Level 1 Clairvoyance – Level 1 Magma Body (Elemental) – Level 1
Current Ability Usage Capacity:
Surgical Fruit ROOM: 60 continuous spatial swaps Scalpel Cut: 20 precision uses before exhaustion Magma Strike: 10 full-power bursts per day Clairvoyance: 40 minutes continuous scanning range Emotion Perception: Up to 4 hours passive sensory field
Elric exhaled with satisfaction, reviewing the numbers.
"Just one more push to reach Level 3," he murmured to himself.
His mood had genuinely lightened—a rare occurrence. He actually found himself humming under his breath as he prepared to rejoin the others.
He walked to the bedroom door and pushed it open confidently.
The five women scattered throughout the living room froze mid-motion the instant he appeared.
They stared.
Not one of them recognized him.
Three distinct thoughts flickered visibly across their faces in rapid succession—shock, disbelief, and awe.
Natasha reacted first on pure instinct.
Her entire body tensed like a coiled spring, and she jumped to her feet, grabbing a fruit knife from the kitchen counter in one smooth motion.
"Who are you—and how did you get into this apartment!?" Her voice was sharp, defensive, genuinely alarmed.
Grace and Elsa both instinctively stepped backward, eyes alert and scanning for escape routes.
Shay's hands trembled—not purely from fear, but from complete confusion at the stranger's sudden appearance.
Only Jenna stared harder than the others—blinking once, twice, her athletic mind processing faster—then she suddenly gasped with recognition.
"...Elric?"
Her voice was barely a whisper of disbelief.
Elric nodded calmly, somewhat amused by their reactions.
Jenna's jaw literally dropped open. Natasha's defensive grip on the knife loosened as shock overtook caution. Elsa's sharp eyes narrowed with intense calculating interest, already analyzing what had happened. Grace's tense expression softened immediately with relief. Shay just continued staring, completely speechless.
Elric sighed, rubbing his forehead with mild exasperation.
"What are you all doing? It's still me. I just consumed the physical enhancement fruit."
Natasha slowly lowered the knife, still visibly stunned by the transformation.
"You look... completely different. Like a different person entirely."
Elsa murmured almost to herself, her analytical mind examining his altered bone structure and proportions with fascination.
Grace stared as if watching a celebrity walk directly out of a movie screen into reality.
Shay's eyes flickered with something complex and unreadable—genuine admiration mixed with fragile envy at the dramatic improvement, knowing her own face remained disfigured.
Jenna recovered first, breaking into a wide, proud grin.
"I knew staying with you was the right decision. Best choice I ever made."
There is 50 chapter Advance, in my patreon. If you are interested can check it out.
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