Supreme Magus

Chapter 4060: Burden of Power (Part 1)

To make matters more complicated, Ajatar’s physical body underwent partial evolution while circulating mana and Life Maelstrom, and the changes became more evident as his experiments progressed.

His neck grew longer, small stumps appeared on his back, and his figure became slenderer.

With each atrophied mana organ he identified and stimulated, Ajatar experienced more bloodline abilities, like Origin Flames and Dragon Eyes, and his size increased. His mind reveled in exaltation for his new powers, yet his body screamed in hunger and pain.

All those changes required sustenance, and so did breaking past the physical limits of a Drake’s mass. Ajatar couldn’t eat without losing his focus, and even if he did, the dramatic increase in size and mass would have killed him.

The process was too fast, putting a huge strain on his organs, which failed to keep up with the evolution.

His heart didn’t beat hard enough as it expanded, his lungs didn’t draw in enough oxygen, and his circulatory system carried too little blood to ensure the proper functioning of his organs.

Ajatar pushed his limits, using diagnostic instruments to monitor his condition and stop the process the moment his body was on the brink of collapse.

’Damn, I’ve never eaten so much even as a Hatchling.’ He inwardly grumbled as he wolfed down a spiced roasted cow. ’I almost fainted out of hunger, and Invigoration can’t do anything for the huge amount of energy I burn with every experiment.

’Yet this is still the easy part. Gaining new powers for just a few hours at a time puts little stress on my Dragon Greed. It’s annoying, but it never lasts long enough to get used to any of them.

’Quite the contrary, the more bloodline abilities I Awaken, the more painful the experience becomes. It makes it easier to give up on them and go back to being a dear old Drake.

’Once I step inside the gene-tank, instead, I’ll have long hours to get used to one power at a time at first and then days. One third of my body is the limit. If I try to go beyond that threshold without giving my organs the time to develop, I’ll die of shock.

’The worst part is that as I get closer to success, I’ll spend so much time in a pseudo-Dragon state that reverting to Drake will be akin to having multiple limbs amputated. I’ll regain and lose them over and over again, driving me to the edge.

’At that point, I’ll need company 24/7 every time I’m outside the gene-tank, or I’ll become a threat to myself and others.’

Ajatar closed his eyes, using Invigoration to assimilate the food quickly and regain his peak focus. As soon as the exhaustion clouding his vision cleared, he took detailed notes of the position of the imperfections and mana organs he had identified.

He drew pictures of both, adding his observations on the various bloodline abilities he believed he would gain and his suggestions for the best order to Awaken their respective mana organs to put the least strain possible on his body.

Once he was done, he compared his new notes with the old ones to see if there had been any permanent change to his life force or if he had missed something. Then, he added his latest discoveries to his Grimoire, correcting any past mistakes and compiling a step-by-step guide to Dragonhood.

"This is boring." Aran said while flipping through the Drake’s notes. "Why do you waste so much paper writing the same things over and over again?"

"How can you read my code? It’s supposed to be a secret!" In his focus, Ajatar had failed to notice the arrival of Aran, Leria, and their steeds.

He glared at them, using Life Vision to spot signs of the Eyes of Menadion.

"I can’t read this gibberish." Aran shrugged. "I can look at the pictures, though, and they are all of the same things. Even the gibberish is the same. Mostly."

"What language do you use, Uncle Ajatar? The runes of this alphabet are really cool." Leria had long since learned that a bit of flattery and respect went a long way, especially with grumpy uncles.

"You’re a smart, young man, Aran." Ajatar sighed in relief when he noticed that there was no trace of the Eyes, and the kids were holding his notebooks upside down. "Thank you, Leria. Those are Dragon Runes, the ones you use when you speak Dragontongue."

"Really? You speak Dragon too?" Leria asked in sincere admiration, trying to understand what each rune sounded like.

"Yes." Ajatar puffed his scaly chest out with pride. "Grandfather Leegaain left it to us as part of his legacy. We Drakes are his first children, after all. About your question, Aran, magical research is more complicated than you think.

"You start with an idea, hoping to reach a specific result that acts as your beacon. Yet if you are wrong, it can lead you astray. You often end up trying to fit what you learn from your experiments to suit your goal and dismissing the data that points in a different direction.

"The mind is a powerful tool, but too often it blinds us to the most obvious truth. We see what we want to see instead of what it is. We fool ourselves, and we don’t even realize it.

"That’s why whenever I hit a wall, I always repeat my experiments from scratch. I do everything as if I know nothing and write down my notes without checking the old ones first.

"I let my mind roam free, unfettered by my past failures, and focus only on what I’ve seen and learned now. It’s the best next thing to studying your problem with a fresh set of eyes."

"It makes sense." Aran nodded. "It sounds like a really smart move. But why not ask a friend for a second opinion? I always ask Leria or Onyx when I’m slumped, and when they can’t help me, I go to my Big Brother."

"You’re lucky to have so many people you can trust blindly, Aran. Most mages, like me, don’t have anyone. Magical research is a precious thing. It requires time, effort, resources, and luck.

"When you grow up, you’ll learn that there are plenty of bad people on Mogar who’d lie and cheat to get their hands on even a minor discovery. Yet it’s when you strike it big that the real problems start.

"Even those that until that moment you called friends might be tempted to ’take just a peek’ or demand a share of your success because ’they deserve it for being by your side for so long’."

"That’s stupid and unfair!" The thought of a friend like Onyx betraying his trust enraged Aran, but the ridiculous excuses made his blood boil.

"Yet that’s the nature of the vast majority of people." Ajatar shrugged. "Think about it. Do your aunts and uncles share their respective research? Does your big brother share his secrets with anyone but Solus?"

Aran thought long and hard about it before coming up with an answer he didn’t like one bit.

"No. They share only common projects, like the Indech thing."

"Exactly. And that’s because they can learn from each other." The Drake nodded.