Rebirth of the 8th-Circle Mage

Chapter 328: The God of Magic (3)

‘Seems like Herabola isn’t aware of what happened to Herarion…’

Henry had thought Herabola already knew about Herarion, given that the Khan had greeted him with his usual joviality. However, unlike Henry’s initial assumption, it was clear that Herabola was oblivious to his son’s death.

Henry took a moment to collect his thoughts before speaking up.

“Something… happened. In fact, something bad happened…”

Henry tried his best to maintain a straight face as he continued. He couldn’t smile or cry as he was delivering the news to a man who was already dead. He knew that he himself had to stay composed and be ready to comfort Herabola in case he broke down.

At Henry’s reply, Herabola just nodded a couple of times in silence.

“I see…”

Neither of them had said anything about death, but Herarion could tell clearly what Henry was implying. He also understood how hard it was for Henry to be the bearer of such grim news

A myriad of thoughts went through Herabola’s mind, and both him and Henry stayed silent for a while.

Contrary to Henry’s expectation of a sorrowful atmosphere forming, the mood remained unexpectedly the same. After a while, Herabola broke the silence.

“I’ll inform La of your visit.”

Herabola said nothing else after that. Henry appreciated his effort and slightly nodded toward him.

Once Herabola had disappeared, Henry took a deep breath and leaned back.

'He's holding back his grief.’

Henry could easily tell how Herabola was feeling at the moment, having known him for some time now. The late Khan would burst if he forced himself to say another word while feigning composure.

Knowing this, Henry stayed silent as there was no good in pushing someone who was emotional and struggling to suppress their tears.

But still, if Herabola had indeed burst into tears, Henry would’ve been willing to wait and share his sorrow. However, Herabola had maintained his dignity as La’s assistant and showed his respect to Henry as he was a visitor for the god he was serving.

After a while, Herabola returned to his space.

“Take my hand.”

As Henry grabbed his hand, a flash of light emerged in front of them, and Henry found himself in a different area. He noticed that Herabola was no longer at his side, but instead, there was one table and two chairs in front of him.

In one of the chairs was La, the god with the hawk head, waiting for him.

- Welcome.

Henry had been eager to meet La and Irene after defeating Arthus and Janus. However, looking at La, he seemed rather clueless. Henry couldn’t tell if the hawk-headed god knew how badly he had wanted to meet him.

Even so, Henry wasn’t upset by La’s reaction. Instead, he smiled, knowing that coming to see Herabola had been the right decision.

After La greeted him, Henry walked over to the opposite end of the table and sat down. Once they were face-to-face, Henry said, “La, I’ve been wanting to ask you something.”

- A question for me? Sure, go ahead.

“Thank you. Can you also read my thoughts like Herabola?"

- What? Hahaha!

La laughed heartily at Henry’s question. Even though Henry had seen La before, seeing a hawk laugh, or generally express any kind of human emotions, was still very strange for him.

After laughing for a while, La wiped off his tears and spoke up.

- Henry, you're the god of magic now. In other words, you and I are equals. How am I supposed to read your mind when we’re on the same level?

“I see. Then is Goddess Irene treating you with such respect because you’re her superior?”

- No, that’s just her personality.

“Then there’s no need for formalities between us, right?"

- Sorry?

“Please correct me if I am wrong, but if you and I are both gods that are on the same level, there isn’t a reason for me to treat you as my superior, right?”

- Yes… You’re right.

“I see.”

The moment La confirmed his assumption, Henry dropped the formalities. It was a small defiant act for having to come all the way here so abruptly. Of course, it would be ridiculous to see this as an act of revenge against La.

However, the desert god was actually taken aback by Henry’s sudden change of attitude. Seeing his reaction, Henry asked with a rather audacious expression, “Is there any problem?”

- No…

La realized that it would be rather awkward to tell Henry to keep the formalities despite the two of them being equals, so he decided to let it slide.

Realizing that his attitude wouldn’t be a problem, Henry got straight to the point.

“Great, then let’s get right to it. I took down Arthus as you and Irene asked me to, so why do I have to get all the way here and search for you in a tomb?”

Henry started the conversation by voicing his dissatisfaction. At this, La raised his hand.

- I think you have a misunderstanding about that part. Let me explain why.

Henry was rather irritated by the word “misunderstanding,” but he leaned in his chair and decided to listen to what La had to say.

La spotted the slight dissatisfaction on Henry’s expression and proceeded to explain.

- I understand why you’re feeling the way you are, coming all the way out here. But there’s something you haven’t picked up on. We can’t simply descend into the human world whenever we want.

“What do you mean?”

- Gods have to meet certain conditions in order to descend into the human world. The reason for that is simple. If we intervene in every matter of the human world, it would be plunged into chaos.

Henry pondered on La’s answer for a bit and then replied, “Does that matter?”

- Sorry?

“The human world being in chaos. Honestly, I don’t think it matters to you. You’re already a god. What is there for you to obey that rule?”

- Just what exactly do you mean by that?

La’s voice sharpened, and the atmosphere grew tense. Feeling a chill in the air, Henry chuckled, realizing how absurd this exchange was getting.

“What’s up with the face? Man, you really don’t get it, do you? Is it because of the bird head?”

- Huh…?

“Stop playing with me and listen up. Who cares about some bloody rule? If you were actually concerned about the chaos in the human world, you would’ve intervened to stop Arthus right away. Aren’t you a hypocrite?”

Even though his tone and choice of words were rather aggressive, Henry felt entitled to speak to La this way after everything that he and his people had gone through.

La quickly caught on and calmed down to explain to Henry once again why the gods hadn’t intervened in this whole ordeal.

- I believe I’ve mentioned that part before. My descent through Herarion wouldn't have been enough because he had less divine power than Arthus. Even if I descended, I wouldn’t have been able to stop him.

“Nope, that’s just an excuse.”

- Excuse?

“You said we’re gods of the same level, so why can I remain in this world while you can only descend under certain conditions? And why don’t I possess the abilities that you and Irene have, huh? Why is that?”

Henry became agitated, asking questions at an unusually fast pace. However, all of his questions stemmed from his genuine confusion.

As Henry bombarded him with questions, La fell silent and pondered on them. In return, Henry also went quiet and stared at the god.

The two eventually locked eyes, which might’ve seemed to someone else that they were trying to establish superiority over one another. However, they weren’t playing any silly games like that. In fact, it was something deeper than that.

After a long silence, La finally spoke up.

-I understand your concerns, Henry.

“I don’t need understanding. I need answers to my questions, and I hope you’ll provide them.”

- That’s my intention. You have to understand that we were constrained by time back then. We didn’t have time to explain everything to you, despite knowing how smart you are.

“Short on time…? Alright, I’ll give you that. We were all pressured back then. But now we have the luxury of time to discuss these matters, and I want to listen to what you’ve got for me.”

- Very well. But before I begin, there is something else I need you to know.

“Something else?”

- You are indeed the god of magic, but you are not a complete god.

‘Not a complete god? Is there such a thing as an incomplete god?’

Henry couldn’t wrap his head around what La had just said, so he immediately asked a follow-up question while furrowing his brows.

“A god is a god, no? What do you mean, a complete god? What are you talking about?”

At his question, La nodded and continued explaining.

- Henry, in our realm, a god becomes complete only when they are no longer constrained by their imperfect physical forms.

“Okay… Go on.”

- Henry. You truly are the first of your kind, the first god of magic. Your existence shall not vanish as long as there is magic. And you will forever be known as the god of magic as long as humans practice magic. However, to fully ascend as the god of magic, you cannot remain in the human world.

After La was done with his explanation, Henry pondered on it. After collecting his thoughts, he finally asked about the conclusion he had reached.

“Are you saying I can’t exist in the human world because I may cause chaos in it?”

- Yes

Things were finally clearing up. Henry finally understood why his divine abilities were limited and why he was considered an incomplete god.

Seeing Henry’s somewhat shocked expression, La continued with his explanation.

- The power of gods is tied to the belief of their followers. Our divine power is proportional to the amount of believers we have. That’s why Janus made Arthus gather so many followers. To increase his own power.

“Wait, that doesn’t really make sense. If Janus really wanted power, shouldn’t he have made people believe in him directly rather than in Arthus?"

- Yes, but Janus wasn't after such mere power.

“Such mere power? What kind of power was he going after then?”

Henry was baffled to hear that Janus had been going after something greater. Janus had converted over half of the continent’s population into blind believers, but La was saying that the power he had obtained wasn’t even close to what Janus ultimately had in mind.

- His goal wasn’t limited to just your continent. He aimed to convert all humans on all continents. He believed that would be the only way for him to acquire the power he truly desired.

“But why? He was already a god, wasn’t he? What good would it do for him?”

- He had pursued that for a simple yet unoriginal reason. Humans often seek and obtain power to fulfill their ambitions, and similarly, Janus obtained power because he wanted to challenge the King of Gods. That was his ultimate goal.

“The King of Gods…?"

Henry was astonished, for he had never heard of the King of Gods.

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