Supreme Magus novel Chapter 220

Handling two kinds of mana at once, on two different patients, was the hardest thing Lith had ever done. He had to repair all the injuries in a timely manner, using darkness magic against the wounds the Valor’s life force caused, otherwise his companions would die of shock or organ failure.

At the same time, he couldn’t relieve the pressure on the black mass, not even for a second. It was already only centimeters away from their cores, a single slip up and everything would be lost.

The memory of the kid dying in his arms during the plague was still etched into Lith’s mind.

There was no way to repair a broken core. Lith only had one chance and had to make it count. His energy reserves were constantly depleted by his endeavor and replenished by Invigoration, but with every cycle, his breathing technique would lose part of its effectiveness.

Lith needed Solus’s help from time to time, letting her take control of his mana flow whenever he felt his focus was slipping. Soon it became a battle of will, Balkor’s against Lith’s.

***

Ironhelm would have liked to let himself fall on the ground and rest, but Nalear was getting worse by the second. He placed his hand on the fallen Skoll’s neck, caressing his soft fur for the first and last time before leaving.

Then, he felt a pulse. He immediately activated his communication earpiece.

"Manohar, Marth, get your as*es over here! Otherwise, I swear to the gods that I will kill you!"

***

Blood Desert, Balkor’s secret lab

When Ilyum Balkor finally regained his senses, everything was already over. Kalla’s opening move had caused a domino effect, making months of careful planning go to waste. The shock from the sudden death of the Valors had taken him out of the picture long enough for the battle to be lost.

Without his supervision, the Valors had let themselves be blinded by the hatred Balkor had infected them with, making them conceited and reckless. Each time one of them fell, all the others would become weaker, making it easier for the enemies to kill another one, rinse and repeat.

While trying to get up, he coughed blood again and again. Not only was almost all of his life force gone, but also most of his magic. It would take him years to recover, if that was even possible.

"Mother, father, my siblings, please forgive me." He wept uncontrollably.

"I have failed you. Tomorrow, no blood will be shed. Your deaths will be forgotten because of my incompetence!" The Lords of the forests had proven to be way stronger than he anticipated and so too were their minions.

Many Professors had fallen, even the Lightning Griffon Headmaster had died during the attack, but only a few students had been harmed. The four remaining academies had survived, all of Balkor’s efforts had been for naught.

Following Linjos’s protocol, the other Headmasters had removed the academies’ power cores, entrusting them to the Crown. When Balkor’s minions had stormed the academies’ gates, the castles were empty shells.

"I only have one choice left. I can’t activate my last prototype. I would die in the process and without my control, it wouldn’t be able to distinguish friend from foe. It could even harm my family. That accursed bear has ruined everything.

In the end, even the god of death dies."

Before Warping out of his lab, Balkor activated the self destruct mechanism. The memory crystals, his method to fuse Abominations and undead, his whole life work.

All of it was too dangerous to allow humans to ever get their hands on it.

"It all ends now." Watching the small mound collapse from afar, Balkor found himself sighing in relief. Even if things hadn’t gone as planned, he still had his closure. Two of the six great academies were lost, several Archmages had died.

His legend would live on, instilling fear in the accursed old nobles’ households for years to come. They would never know what had happened to him or why he had stopped his attacks.

For all they knew, the god of death would be biding his time, waiting for his enemies to lower their guard while building an even stronger army.

"Also, I would pay my weight in gold to see their terrified faces. Tomorrow night nothing will happen, yet their fear will make it the worst day of their lives."

Balkor laughed heartily, cleaning the blood from his clothes before returning home. His children deserved to finally have a full time father.

***

When Lith regained his senses, he had no idea how much time had passed. His body ached with every movement due to the strain of prolonged excessive mana use.

He barely had the mental energy to open his eyes. His vision was blurred from physical exhaustion and he had a splitting headache caused by the severe lack of mana. Human figures seemed to be moving around him, but because of the haze, he wasn’t able to recognize any of them.

- "How... how long was I out?" Even in his own thoughts, Lith couldn’t avoid stuttering. Thinking was a heavy burden, he just wanted to close his eyes and sleep.

"A few minutes." Solus replied.

"Just enough time for Friya and Quylla to wake up and infuse you with some of their life force. Try not to speak much, your core is almost empty. We already know what happens when someone forcefully goes beyond their limits."–

Solus was worried too. This time Lith had gone too far, treating his companions’ condition until he had lost consciousness. She wanted him to be more human and compassionate, but not if the price was his life.

She had even given him part of her mana without him noticing. She didn’t care about her own hunger or the weakness that was numbing her senses, she wanted for him to be alright.

Lith nodded, using Invigoration once again. His mana core was still empty and his body exhausted, but at least now he was able to see and talk properly.

"Lith what happened?" Both Friya and Quylla were worried to death.

"Why won’t Yurial and Phloria wake up? No matter what spell we use, their condition does not improve, nor do we understand what’s wrong with them. Also, how did you get so exhausted?" Friya asked.

"So nice of you to think about me too, even if only at the end." Lith rubbed his temples, trying to ease the pain.

Friya opened her mouth to reply in kind to his sarcastic remark, but remained silent.

- "Telling him that I can’t help but see him as more of a monster than a human would be too cruel of a joke. Lith may be a bit scary sometimes, but he has always been nothing but a good friend to me. Thank the gods I can hold my stupid tongue."– Friya thought.