Supreme Magus

Chapter 3185 Death Returns (Part 1)

3185 Death Returns (Part 1)

”It must be his fatherʼs fault.” Derek focused on the constructʼs gentle features while focusing hard on the word ”father”.

At first, only flashbacks from Ezioʼs beating and abuse came to his mind, making Derekʼs stomach churn and his eyes twitch. After a while, as the Void dug deeper and the Voidfeather led the way, another face appeared.

It was a poor-looking man who had skipped one meal too many and spent too much time under the sun. His skin was tanned brown and full of wrinkles. Hard work gave him solid muscles but his face was gaunt and there was dirt under his nails.

”The classic piece of shit who takes his anger out on his sons just because he made more children than he can afford.” Derek snarled in disgust, just to eat his own prediction one second later.

The man treated his wife and baby boy like treasures, making sure she had plenty of food and rest to feed the newborn properly. The Void watched another mean-looking young boy, strangely similar to the first, stealing the babyʼs food.

The man stepped in, punishing the youth and more than making up for the babyʼs lost food. Derek stood in a daze as Raaz taught a young Lith how to read, write, count, and at a later age how to whittle.

The man was a hard worker but not an absent father. Raaz spent his free time carving simple toys for the young boy and built with him a wooden swing. He never raised his voice or hands and always led by example, teaching his youngest that a manʼs authority lies in the responsibilities he shoulders, not in how strong he is.

”The fuck?” Derek was outraged. ”The owner of this body had wonderful parents and yet he turned into an evil overlord? I mean, I can understand why he doesnʼt want to die and has summoned me to take my body, but how can he not think how his parents will react when they discover the truth?

”That he has killed countless innocents for his selfish desi- Wait a minute. If he needs another body, shouldnʼt his parents be dead of old age by now? This doesnʼt make sense!” Of course it didnʼt, because there was no evil overlord.

Only Lith.

”Screw it. Iʼm done obsessing over this bastard. If he wants my body, he can take it. Or rather, he can try.” A cruel smile appeared on his face. ”Iʼm not done having fun yet. Little buddy, what am I supposed to do?”

Thanks to the chink in the barrier separating the life forces, the Voidfeather Dragon managed to re-establish contact with Ragnar?k. The poor sword had no idea why its master kept asking it questions and then ordering it to display the answers he already knew.

Yet Ragnar?kʼs loyalty was unshakable and its limited consciousness dismissed things like doubt and confusion as pointless details. The befuddled blade conjured a hologram without hesitation.

Explanations could wait. All Ragnar?k wanted was for its master to go back to normal, save Solus, and return home. In this order.

The holographic interface read: ”Go to the closest city and ask for help.”

The progression bar was now past the 50% mark and Derek noticed there were plenty of new spells available.

”This is really weird. In all the system stories Iʼve read, the guy gets stats and skill points by completing bullshit missions. Instead, I gain mine by following the random memories that pop into my head or simply by following my instinct.

”All the spells listed here Iʼve remembered them while fighting the elves, healing the trav-” The word struck a chord in Derekʼs mind. ”Remembering? Not learning? It would explain how I can master unknown disciplines so quickly.”

ʼIʼm done getting excited.ʼ The Voidfeather Dragon grunted. ʼI bet that now George will spout some paranoid crap to fail to realize that he is Lith Verhen.ʼ

”I think I understand now. This Verhen guy doesnʼt want to prepare my body for takeover. Heʼs already inside my body. When the bar gets filled, either Iʼll turn into him or our minds will fuse into one.

”The ʼsystemʼ is probably not even real. Just something he has dug up from my memories to make me accept this absurd scenario without going crazy.”

ʼGo on.ʼ The Voidfeather waved his hand. ʼTrip on your feet one centimeter away from the finishing line. We both know you want to do it. Thereʼs no need to hold back for my sake.ʼ

”Well, he has made one big mistake.” Derek grinned. ”I donʼt care about life or death. Whatʼs a huge mess for him is nothing to me. Even if I turn into a corpse, Iʼll just be reborn somewhere else. Maybe even in a more powerful body.”

ʼNo! By Oppenheimerʼs guilt, donʼt say it!ʼ

”Iʼll follow your instructions, Verhen.” Derek said while staring at the hologram. ”But I promise you that the moment I feel my consciousness slipping away, Iʼll cripple you so badly and cause so much destruction that youʼll die right after me.”

ʼI knew it! I hate you, George!ʼ The Voidfeather thought about changing the instructions on the hologram, but it was too late.

”Iʼd better move. I have only until sundown before I go crazy again.” Derek grunted, flying back toward the main road.

ʼThatʼs great.ʼ The Voidfeather Dragon rolled his eyes. ʼThe connection is lost again until something triggers more memories and even if I take back my last suggestion, George would never listen to me.

ʼHeʼd think I know that he knows and Iʼm trying to stop him. He would go to the city just to piss me off. I can only hope that someone has come up with a very good plan because I donʼt think George is going down without a fight.ʼ

Lith didnʼt have Solusʼ eidetic memory but he had taken note of enough landmarks and flown in an almost straight line so finding his way back wasnʼt hard. He only got lost a couple of times and ended up two hundred kilometers north of the point he remembered.

Luckily for him, the main road to Zeska was large and extended for dozens of miles. As long as one moved in its general direction, it was impossible to miss.

”Man, I suck at this. I need a [GPS].” Derek sighed.

At least he knew he was going in the right direction because the road signs for Zeska were bigger than those for other cities and written with larger letters. Also, the signs had a small crown carved next to Zeskaʼs name.

”It must be the imperial capital.” The Void said, wrong on all accounts. ”I can finally find out whose body Iʼm inhabiting. If heʼs filthy rich, I can spend his money and live like a Hollywood star.

”I canʼt wait to see Verhenʼs face when he finds out Iʼve left him dirt poor.”

ʼWhy wait? Just look yourself in the mirror, George.ʼ The Voidfeather grunted. ʼAnd take a good picture, because if you squander the money, I bet the moment you regain your memories you wonʼt be smiling for a long while.ʼ

The flight to Zeska took way longer than Derek expected but only because he stopped to study his surroundings often.