Knock! Knock! Knock!
The heavy, impatient thuds against the wooden door shattered the quiet tension in the bedroom.
Just when Alex was desperately trying to circulate his mana and calm his feverish, mutating body, the sudden noise made him jump.
His breath dropped in his throat.
"Hey buddy, are you still inside?" Marcus's loud voice echoed from the hallway, vibrating right through the thin door.
Before Alex could even formulate an answer, Marcus knocked again, harder this time. "Open the door! I heard a girl screaming around here, are you all right?!"
Alex's eyes went wide with pure panic.
The "girl" Marcus heard screaming wasn't a stranger.
It was the high-pitched, breathy moan that had just escaped Alex's own lips while he was enduring the intense, agonizing pleasure of his body reshaping itself.
"Bro, did you secretly bring some chick back home?" Marcus demanded, rattling the doorknob. "Come on, open the door! Don't hide her!"
"Fuck..." Alex cursed under his breath, his heart skipping a huge beat.
He looked down at himself. He was completely half-naked, and the changes from Phase 2 of his Ecdysis were impossible to miss.
His previously flat chest was gone, replaced by undeniable, soft mounds of pale flesh, very clear, firm A-cups.
His puffy, dark pink nipples were fully erect in the cool air, and his waist had cinched into a smooth, delicate curve.
If Marcus saw him like this, his life as a man would be officially over, and what follows that would be no something he wants to even think about.
Without a second to lose, Alex practically dove across the mattress.
He grabbed the thick, dark grey blanket and covered it all the way up to his chin.
The sudden friction of the rough fabric dragging against his hyper-sensitive, newly grown breasts sent a sharp jolt of electricity straight to his groin.
But he had to bite his lower lip hard to stop another feminine whimper from leaking out.
"I… I'm fine!" Alex yelled back.
He quickly cleared his throat, desperately forcing his vocal cords to deepen and sound like his old, rough self. "There's no girl in here! Just give me a second, I'm changing!"
Outside, the rattling of the knob suddenly stopped.
But Alex's stomach dropped.
He knew his older cousin too well. Ever since they were kids, whenever they had a fight and Alex locked himself inside, Marcus never waited.
A tiny clink sounded from the keyhole. Marcus was using the old wire trick to pop the cheap lock.
"He's coming in," the Empress whispered in Alex's mind, her voice dripping with dark, sadistic amusement. "Let's see how you explain those pretty new curves to your big cousin, or maybe he won't give you that chance but pounce on you like a beast."
"Hahahahhaa!! Guess which one, I like to watch more?"
Click.
As he guessed, the door swung wide open. Marcus stepped into the room, his large, broad-shouldered frame practically filling the doorway.
He immediately started looking around suspiciously.
His eyes darted to the closet, behind the door, and under the small desk, clearly hunting for the imaginary girl he thought Alex had smuggled inside.
To his obvious disappointment, the room was empty.
However, as Marcus stepped deeper into the bedroom, his nose twitched.
He took a deep sniff of the air, his thick eyebrows furrowing together.
Thanks to reaching Phase 2, Alex had barely managed to trigger his new [Pheromone Control] ability, locking the heavy, mind-breaking aphrodisiac effects inside his skin.
Thankfully, the raw lust-inducing power didn't hit Marcus and make him lose his mind.
But the lingering scent in the room was still there. It smelled intensely of a thick, undeniably girly perfume that had absolutely no business being in a sweaty guy's room.
Marcus walked right up to the edge of the bed and looked down.
Alex was curled into a tight ball, clutching the edges of the blanket with pale, delicate fingers, hiding everything from the neck down.
His face was flushed a deep, feverish red, his dark eyes wide and terrified.
"What happened to you?" Marcus asked, crossing his massive arms over his chest.
He squinted at Alex, clearly confused. "And why does your room smell like a high-end perfume shop? Why are you hiding under the blanket like a frightened little girl?"
Alex's heart began to beat so loudly he was terrified Marcus could hear it thumping against his new, soft chest.
He pulled the blanket a fraction tighter, the fabric pressing warmly against his swollen nipples.
"I told you, I'm changing!" Alex stammered, trying to sound annoyed, but his voice naturally carried a soft, defensive tremor. "And I... I spilled some of Elena's fancy soap. That's all. Now get out so I can put some pants on!"
"Soap?" Marcus snorted, clearly not buying it. He leaned down slightly, getting uncomfortably close. "Since when does soap make you squeal like a chick getting poked? Come on, Ally. You're sweating like crazy, and your face is all red."
"He suspects you," the Empress teased again, her phantom fingers gently stroking the back of Alex's mind. "He's looking right at you, smelling your sweet scent."
"He might not be mindless with lust, but he knows something is wrong."
"Why don't you just drop the blanket and show him how beautiful you've become?"
"Shut up," Alex screamed mentally, desperately trying to keep his breathing steady.
"I just have a stomach cramp, alright?" Alex lied, shifting his legs under the covers.
The movement caused his soft inner thighs to rub together, and the ultra-sensitive skin sent a distracting, warm flush straight to his lower belly. "It was painful. That's why I yelled. Now please, Marcus, just close the door."
Marcus stared at him for a long, agonizing moment.
His eyes dropped to the tight grip Alex had on the blanket, noticing how small and smooth his cousin's hands looked.
"You're acting super weird today, man," Marcus finally grunted, scratching the back of his neck.
He took another deep sniff of the sweet air, a faint flush creeping up his own thick neck, though the danger of the Enchantress's charm hadn't fully bypassed his logic. "If you're sick, just tell my dad. Don't sit in here smelling like a damn flower garden."
"I will," Alex promised quickly, praying his cousin would just leave.
"Fine." Marcus rolled his eyes, turning toward the door. "But hurry up and get dressed. Breakfast is getting cold, and Dad is already pissed."
As Marcus stepped out and finally pulled the door shut behind him, Alex collapsed back onto the pillows.
He let out a long, ragged exhale, his entire body trembling violently. He survived.
But as he let the blanket loosen, looking down at his pale, sensitive breasts and the smooth, completely hairless curves of his hips, the terrifying reality sank deeper into his mind.
He couldn't hide this forever. With every passing day, his body was becoming less of a man, and more of a perfect, irresistible trap.
"Fuck, how should I hide them?" Alex stared down at his chest.
Every time he took a deep breath, they rose and fell, firm and heavy, with puffy dark pink nipples that ached at the slightest touch of cool air.
"The bra I borrowed from Lily should work," he muttered to himself, rubbing his temples with trembling fingers. "But it might be exposed if what I wear outside is not careful. Damn it…"
He pushed the grey blanket aside and carefully swung his legs over the edge of the bed.
The moment his bare feet hit the cold wooden floor, a shiver ran all the way up his spine.
His body felt different, lighter, softer, and way too sensitive.
Even the light morning breeze coming through the window felt like tiny electric sparks brushing over his bare shoulders and thighs.
He stood up, and the weight on his chest made itself known immediately.
It wasn't massive yet, a solid, full A-cup leaning toward a B-cup…
But to a guy who had been flat-chested his entire life, the strange bounce and pull of flesh against his chest felt weird and distracting.
Every step he took made his breasts jiggle just enough to cause a warm, tingling friction against his bare skin.
"You better hurry, little bird," the Empress's voice purred in his mind. Her tone was dripping with teasing mischief.
"Your big cousin is waiting downstairs. Imagine the look on his face if you walk down there bouncing like a ripe little maiden."
"Shut up," Alex shot back in his mind, his face burning red. "I have this under control."
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