You're too weak now, Raven

"Want the truth?"

Scanning her up and down twice, Ron crossed his arms.

"Yeah, of course I want the truth."

"Beautiful. Uniquely beautiful."

He murmured in admiration.

There's never been a shortage of people with a taste for succubi and she-devils.

Though he wasn't particularly inclined that way, it wasn't something he couldn't accept.

No lie—Mystique's appearance was truly one of a kind on Earth.

"Ron, no one has ever said that to me before."

Raven couldn't help but whisper his name, her eyes brightening, her tone softening with a touch of emotion.

No one had ever said that to her before. When she showed up looking like this, all she got were shouts and curses—monster, demon, and the like.

"A bunch of people who don't know how to appreciate things. Ignore them."

Ron said with a smile, gently stroking her face, then kissed her.

Life is short—try more things.

Think of it as just a dish with a unique flavor. He wasn't going to eat only one dish his whole life.

"Raven, I did it.

I successfully developed the Serum."

That evening, Hank rushed to Raven's door, Serum in hand, excited.

Back at the CIA base, he'd already told her about his idea—to create a Serum that could fix his big feet and Raven's strange appearance.

After a long period of research, he'd finally succeeded.

"Raven, you don't seem especially happy?"

She opened the door, still lost in the memory of that afternoon's kiss, a sweet calm in her heart. She snapped back and smiled.

"No, I'm very happy. Thank you, Hank."

The Serum that could turn her back to normal—of course she was thrilled.

"It's nothing, just a side project.

We're friends, aren't we?"

Hank scratched his head, then got excited again.

"With the Serum, we can both become normal people. No more bearing everyone's strange looks."

And he'd helped Raven solve the appearance that had always made her insecure and sensitive since childhood. She'd surely be grateful, and her feelings for him would grow.

"Maybe then I can pull Raven's heart away from Ron."

He thought to himself, looking at the girl he liked.

Hank didn't know what had happened during the day, but he'd noticed from small signs earlier that Raven seemed a bit close to Ron.

So after burning the midnight oil to finish the Serum, he'd rushed straight to her room.

"Everyone's strange looks?"

But at his words, a smile tugged at her lips as she thought of Ron.

Not everyone. At least she knew one person who didn't care at all about her weird appearance.

"Raven, use the Serum now."

Hank eagerly handed her a pale green vial, ready to inject himself with another.

"Wait, Hank. Will there be any uncomfortable reactions when injecting this Serum?"

Raven stopped him and asked.

"Usually, yes. The Serum works like an antibiotic—it attacks the cells that mutated our appearance and restores us to normal."

Hank paused, recalling. The process would be a bit painful.

"In that case... could you please go back to your room? I'd be a bit embarrassed."

She asked awkwardly.

Raven didn't want Hank to see her in pain, groaning.

"Alright... alright."

Hank's excitement was doused like cold water.

Thump. The door closed softly.

Standing outside, he clutched the Serum and consoled himself: Raven hadn't felt the Serum's effects yet, so she hadn't developed any gratitude toward him.

The next day, when she returned to a normal human appearance, she might joyfully and gratefully embrace him, giving him a surprise.

"Raven, I hope you, with your extraordinary potential, can give me a surprise."

In the room, Ron stood by the window, swirling a glass of deep red wine, gazing at the bright full moon in the sky, a faint smile on his lips.

He had just seen Hank leaving Mystique's room with the last remaining Serum.

He let out a meaningful, soft sigh.

"This full moon tonight is so bright, it instinctively makes one think of a monster werewolf howling under the full moon as it transforms."

"Ah... my body, no!..."

At the same time, in the castle, pained and terrified cries came from Hank and Mystique's respective rooms, but they were blocked by the thick wooden doors, unheard by anyone.

Hank was a genius, but the Serum he had developed this time to solve his and Raven's problems had failed.

The Serum couldn't attack and destroy the cells causing their external mutations; instead, it stimulated them, making the mutations even stronger.

After using the Serum, Hank's entire body grew blue fur, his muscles bulged, and he turned into something like a blue-furred gorilla, becoming a true 'Beast.'

In the original timeline, Mystique had rejected Hank's Serum, choosing to accept her true self, and coincidentally dodged this disaster.

"That's not what I want to see."

He shook his head gently.

Whether it was to change the fate of Mystique, a key figure in the X-Men universe, or out of curiosity and for the future—

Mystique had immense potential; the future mutant-killing Sentinels were researched and developed based on her genes.

He was very curious whether Mystique could, under the Serum's effect, turn her hidden potential into ability, becoming a help in his future plan to establish a new era for mutants.

"You're too weak right now.

You should want to be able to help me too, right, Raven."

Ron took a sip of wine and murmured softly.