As Professor Kelgorn introduced himself and continued to write, he would occasionally mumble as he nibbled at the end of his brush.
"So what am I suppose to do to test my capabilities, just hold this orb?" Milo asked but it was slightly muffled behind his mask.
"Well...at first I was intrigued at your increased capability and enhancement of your alchemical abilities but having no soul defies the very foundation of alchemy," said Professor Kelgorn said skeptically.
Milo who has no training or knowledge of alchemy besides an old anime when he was younger was slightly confused. "Uhh...can you elaborate?" Milo asked.
"Did you not retain any knowledge of alchemy then?" frowned as the professor gazed upon Milo with a sense of pity before saying. "Well if I were to put in laymen terms, alchemy consists of the Tria Prima which are mercury, salt, and sulfur. Mercury represents the mind, while salt represents the body that you obviously possess. Sulfur, on the other hand, stands for the soul in which case is something you lack."
The professor then moved towards a chalkboard and grabbed a piece of chalk and began drawing. The first symbol was a circle with a crescent moon that laid flat on of it facing upwards, under that was a cross. He quickly wrote under it in a strange language that he seemingly could understand, which said mercury. Then the next symbol drawn was a circle with a horizontal line drawn through it and it was denoted as salt. The last alchemic symbol was a triangle with a cross connected underneath which Milo had already assumed correctly, it was sulfur.
"Alchemy transmutation itself is scientific magic that focuses on stripping down the elements to the most primal form so that it may be observed. In order to use alchemic magic one must understand the composition or the body which is represented by salt. Mercury stands for the process in which a solid turns into a liquid so we may alter and reshape it into something else. In order to do all of this, the soul must enable or kickstart the change." the professor lectured in a monotone voice.
"Uh....that wasn't in laymen terms?" Milo stated confusingly.
The professor sighed and said "You don't have the ability to activate alchemical transmutation circles which would reform a substance into another. In essence, you can't use magic because you have no soul. Which means your talents contradict each other."
"So...my innate talents are useless!?" Milo was slightly regretting the news and wished he had chosen another race.
"Well, you could use a lesser form of alchemy that doesn't involve magic but essentially, yes." said the Professor.
Milo stood there for a while as he contemplated what Professor Kolgorn had said and tried to make sense of it. His skill passive that he had unlocked stated that it would improve his alchemy spells which meant there was still a possibility of him learning how to use spells. He just had to figure out how to bypass his restrictions but he couldn't think of anything at the moment.
"I'm glad you have the ability to analyze your situation but we can leave the thinking for later. Right now we need to test your physical capabilities so follow me." the professor said as he once more fixed the position of his glasses and walked back out into the large gymnasium. Knowing that he couldn't do much with his current situation Milo followed the man.
As soon as Milo took his first step out of the room he was met with a sharp blow to his solar plexus that left him on his knees. The pain wasn't as much compared to what happened during the ritual but it still left him gasping for air. Kelgorn had uppercut him with a surprising amount of strength that did not match his feeble appearance.
"An average constitution..." mumbled Kelgorn as he inspected Milo before grumbling "Get up and run over to those wooden dummies."
Milo had half a mind to deck this guy straight in the throat but refrained from doing so. He had discussed it with the crew the night before and they had all agreed that Milo should attempt to milk his situation as much as possible. Compared to other homunculi who would most likely be one of many in a test lab, Milo has a connection with the head researcher and Lord who oversees the experiments.
Without a word, Milo complied as he ran over to the dummies but he could hear a sigh of disappointment from Kelgorn once more. Soon Milo was forced to partake in several evaluations by running, attacking dummies with his bare hands, testing weapons out, and even being beat on to test the extent of his constitution. The whole process took several hours and had left Milo physically exhausted. The mask didn't help as it limited the amount of air he could intake and whenever he gradually picked up the pace his life force would deplete. After testing it out, he found out that it was due to the larger intake of air that was causing damage to him.
The entire time Milo felt like he had drawn the short straw as he lamented his situation. 'Fucking hell...I would sell my damn soul for a better start' he thought to himself in spite. 'Eh...? Sell my soul?'
Milo took a moment to further explore the thought before turning towards the professor.
"Professor...if I lack a soul can't I just used other people's souls?" Milo had asked.