Magus Supremacy-Chapter 887: Bestowing Power (2)

Chapter 887

"Not until you arrived and changed everything."

"...."

"When I found out that Thalos had actually managed to find someone worthy enough to follow, I was confused.

I pondered on it constantly, stupefied that the stubborn gargoyle actually managed to find someone worthy of his loyalty. The fool refused to tell me who you were initially, but later on, I let it go. Not until he arrived..."

Initially, Grey was resisting the alien energy flooding his body, but for some reason, Borfan actually managed to find a way to force it through.

His Dantian began greedily gulping the Ki up like a thirsty donkey at an oasis.

"... The second person Armin had been close to, who was searching for ’Hope’ the same way Armin was. He had entrusted two different tasks to different people who hadn’t met each other before. That sneaky bastard."

Borfan chuckled, a deep, resonant sound that vibrated like a slumbering beast finally arising from its cave.

"My role was simple; I was to bestow the ’hope’ with all my Ki. Initially, I refused. I didn’t want to—even until now, I didn’t want to. I couldn’t stand the concept of working hard for decades and then simply giving it all away. Even if I wanted to give it out, what about my kids? I mean; there’s Dame—my weakest child."

"Then why are you giving it to me?! Just take your hands off, please!" Grey transitioned from resisting to pleading, his voice thick with desperation.

He knew what would happen if Borfan finished what he was doing.

The warrior could chip away at his own life force and, at the same time, lose his very life in the process of this total depletion.

"Why did I want to do this, huh?" The warrior muttered for a few moments, his eyes glazed as if he were deep in thought.

"He also asked me the same question that day."

Glancing at the bruised skies, Borfan’s face darkened with a sudden, weary melancholy.

"I guess I’m doing this because I’m tired. Exhausted. For years, I have been carrying the weight of this power, bearing its crushing responsibility.

Even though I’m on the mortal realm, nothing excites me anymore. It’s all so boring. Like I said; I have become stronger than any normal warrior. Nobody can handle my true strength, nor can they match me.... Except him."

Thalos lifted a stony brow, the pressure on him easing just enough to speak.

"Him? Who’s that?"

Borfan looked down before blinking at Thalos, refocusing his drifting thoughts.

"Oh yeah. I forgot to tell you both that there’s another Celestial in this world. He also had the same ambition and drive as me. The Celestial plane was too boring for us, hence we descended."

Grey stopped struggling immediately, his mind racing through the implications.

’Another Celestial? Wh-who’s that?’

Before they could ask any more questions, Borfan abruptly changed the topic:

"What was I saying? Uhm... yeah, right. The other person Armin told about his plans was a mage, one of the first mages like him who is now a Celestial."

’Wait? A first mage who is a Celestial?’ Grey’s eyes widened as a terrifying realization dawned on him, clicking pieces into place.

’Mage Blake?!’

***

Oblivious to Grey’s internal shock, the warrior continued his explanation, his voice growing slightly thinner.

"His own role was to guide the ’hope’ on the right path before the Otherworlders snatched him up into their cohort. I think he did his job perfectly because here you are, Supreme Magus..."

Borfan beamed, though he was beginning to feel visibly weak, his life-long energy sapping away from his body and into Grey’s marrow.

"... You are the hope we sought for years. A being capable of harnessing both mana and Ki in his body without dying.

A being capable of wielding destructive abilities that even those above would fear. A being with strength capable of going toe-to-toe with demons. You were the one we have been searching for for decades!"

Grey’s mangled leg was now beginning to knit itself back together, healing on its own as the golden energy mended bone and sinew.

But the Ki kept coming, surging into him while his Dantian grew dangerously close to becoming full.

"When that mage had told me about you, I didn’t believe it. It felt like hype. How can someone take down two Zodiacs, a lower echelon demon, have Thalos as an ally, defeat a lightning phoenix, and manage to harness both Ki and mana?

It felt... exaggerated to me, which was why I called you here today. I wanted to test you by challenging you to a fight to the death to see all your hands, and you certainly exceeded my expectations.

You also have a fiery drive... a fiery hatred against the Otherworlders. You have ambitions and won’t bow down to those blasted Celestials or the world. You-You are like a mix of both me and Armin in one. An image I couldn’t find in anybody, not even my own kids."

Grey felt weak in a different way now, his Dantian overflowing with the foreign energy, causing sharp, electric jolts of pain to course through his veins like liquid fire.

"... Then the mage told me something; you are someone who wouldn’t allow me to do this willingly.

You are a stubborn prick who wants to do everything by himself and with his own strength, which was why I orchestrated all of this—the challenge, the fight—that resulted in this very circumstance."

Borfan paused for a moment, his brow furrowed in deep contemplation.

"You asked me something; why I couldn’t just join you in this fight rather than doing this. The answer is simple; I’m tired of everything. The wars, the endless battles, the cycles of hatred and anger.

I have been carrying the weight of this world for years, and I simply can’t do it anymore. Being who I am, everything is bound to get lonely; hence, later on, I found myself believing in that ’hope’ Armin spoke of, which is why I’m doing this. It’s time to let go of the old guard and let the new generation take up the mantle. Besides,"

Borfan tightened his jaws one more time, his eyes beginning to glow with a fierce, molten golden light.

"... I would rather die than be forced back to the Celestial plane to bow to the whims of those ancient Celestials who love to play God. I won’t do it!"

Looking back at Grey’s suddenly still, paralyzed body, Borfan smiled... a soft, unexpectedly gentle expression.

"I know I’m being selfish and all, but I have always been a selfish man, so this is no big deal. I don’t know if it sounds like I’m giving excuses for my motives, but I have just one thing to ask of you, Supreme Magus."

Suddenly, Borfan’s eyes shone with a much brighter, blinding radiance.

The energy that had been slowly trickling into Grey’s body suddenly intensified, as if the knob on a massive tap had been twisted wide, letting the power pour down in torrential waves.

"AAAAAAAAAAARGH!" The Supreme Magus bellowed into the air as a localized shockwave erupted from his lungs.

A searing pain, unlike anything he had ever endured, rushed through his veins like molten lead.

"Help carry my drive and my wish. Defeat those blasted Otherworlders for me, for Armin, and for all of us... I’m doing this because I know that my own strength is simply not enough. I’m doing this because,"

Borfan was looking strange now.

His skin was becoming sickly pale, his eyes were losing their vibrant color, and his once-dark hair was turning a brittle, snowy white.

He was looking deathly ill within seconds.

"... I’m doing this because you are the only one capable of harnessing my strength to its full potential; the only one capable of turning it into a truly deadly weapon against the Otherworlders.

You are the hope the universe needs, and I’m happy that I will be accompanying you in your journey... at least, even if I can’t defeat those bastards personally, I can help you do it indirectly."

A faint, tired smile now flashed across Borfan’s face as he turned to face Thalos, who was clenching his own jaws in empathetic pain and frustration.

Shaking his head, the gargoyle finally croaked out:

"You really didn’t have to do this, you old fool."

Borfan smiled once more, his lips trembling.

"I know. But I want to. It’s Armin’s wish... and now, it’s mine."

"AAAAAAAAAAARGH!" Grey thundered once more, his voice cracking as his Dantian expanded to a breaking point to accommodate the Celestial Ki.

THUD—!

Borfan collapsed to the ground, his body looking skeletal and fragile.

His breathing was shallow, a mere ghost of the powerhouse he had been just moments before.