The Magician of Miracles

I started wandering through the street with no clear destination. I was just dragging my feet around while my head was still drowning in fog. The scene of Adam and Diana turning into pieces kept haunting me no matter how hard I tried to push it away. Every time I closed my eyes for even a single moment, their image came back again.

The past weeks were extremely packed. I went through a lot in those few days. A lot... more than any normal person could possibly endure.

And I am not even sure if what is left of me can handle going through this endless swirl of crap that never stops.

I am tired. I just want to lie down and disappear from the world for a while or honestly forever. But no, of course not. Rest is a luxury that does not belong to people like me unfortunately. There is still a mountain of things waiting for me, all of them staring at me like they are saying go on hero when exactly is it my turn?

I realize now how weak I am. During that fight... if what happened can even be called a fight, I would have died for real. This is the first time since I took over Jevan's body that I felt like I was truly about to disappear forever.

And my bigger problem is that this is the first time my Authority... felt useless.

I am going to face many people like that man. I do not know who he is or what he wants, but his strength was enough to make me feel like a child wrestling a starving bear that has not eaten in a month.

And worse, I do not think my next enemies will be as polite as he was. I doubt they will give me any time to catch my breath and rest so I can fight them at full power.

I stopped in front of a shop window. I saw my reflection in it. The mask, the scratches, and the dried blood all over it. I looked at myself for a moment then kept walking.

I think I started relying on the system pieces too much. That is obvious but what is the alternative? I do not have a quick method to increase the الاستيعاب of my Authority, and I do not have time to sit and grant wishes for people so my power grows.

Maybe I have to rely on allies. I do not like that idea but it was necessary. And speaking of allies... it seems I am in trouble now. One of the assimilators from the Night Wolves died while he was with me. During a mission that was not official and extremely secret.

Yeah I can imagine how they will interpret this when they find out. Great, exactly what I needed: more enemies added on top of the pile of enemies I did not even know existed but apparently they do and all thanks to the original bastard Jevan. More enemies like our noble friend with the eye patch... what a wonderful addition to my already chaotic life.

I should have brought Corvin with me as a witness. But how was I supposed to know Adam... would literally explode into pieces?

And what makes things worse for me is that I failed to break that Controller's play. He is the reason behind most of what happened, and probably even behind the deaths of Iris and Raven. If that is true it explains a lot of things. Like their stupid decision to go face that researcher.

But what can I do? Nothing. The man is too strong for me to even think about facing him right now, and that fact makes me feel far more helpless than I already do.

I raised my head and wiped the dried blood off the mask with my thumb.

"Good job Jevan you look far more pathetic than usual."

Anyway whatever. For now I have to return and get some rest. I actually need a little of it.

All these problems can wait for a while. Right now all I need to do is... find a way back to the inn.

This is supposed to be the easy part.

***

Meanwhile Grivus had arrived at the tavern where he spent most of his time. He had been feeling irritated ever since his last fight with Jevan. A fight unworthy of even being called a fight. He thought he would face Jevan in an epic battle, but what happened was a one sided crush.

The moment he received the message telling him that the masked man had broken into the prison, he went there immediately.

The place was extremely close to the tavern he was sitting in. The prison itself used to belong to the police until he seized it by force and placed it under his control. He barely used it. His followers were the ones who threw people inside it. The only time he personally threw someone there was when he imprisoned Diana.

He entered the tavern then sat at his usual table and raised his finger, signaling the waiter to bring him his usual order.

This time he was not in the mood to drink much. He expected a real fight against Jevan. A fight where he could regain his pride, repay the wound the masked man left on his face, and end the last old debt in his life after finishing Garrod and completely crushing the Bloody Fang.

At first he tried using his followers to bring Jevan to him even if he had to make him lose one of his limbs during the process, although he wanted a fair fight with him. He could reattach it easily using the Authority of the doctor who worked with them.

All those attempts ended in failure. Until he learned that Jevan had appeared in the prison and then he felt excitement and went there immediately.

But what happened when he arrived and fought him was ridiculous. Jevan was extremely weak, far weaker than in their last fight.

Grivus felt he could kill him without any effort... and that did not satisfy his pride.

While he was sinking in his thoughts, someone approached and sat in front of him. Grivus lifted his head and looked at him. A short man sat across from him.

He was the same person who delivered the message that said the masked man was at the prison. Grivus did not know him and had not seen him before, but he did not care. He had hundreds of men under him. Naturally he would not know all of them.

"Boss, did... did you manage to eliminate that masked monster this fast?"

Grivus took a small sip from the cup.

"I did not eliminate him."

The man blinked in confusion.

"Then... did he escape from you?"

"I let him escape."

The man raised his voice intentionally.

"And why would you do something like that boss? Why would you let a lunatic like him escape after everything he did?"

"He was exhausted. Fighting him would not be fun. Do you have a problem with my decisions?"

The man raised his voice more while people started gathering around them.

"No, but many of us died fighting him. My brother died against him and my close friend too, and more will die as long as he is alive. You as the boss should..."

Grivus raised his hand only, and in less than a second the man's body turned into pieces scattered across the floor.

Then Grivus slowly stood up from his chair, wiped a drop of blood from his hand, then turned to the crowd.

"Does anyone else have an objection to my decisions?"

Everyone stepped back at once. None of them dared look him directly in the eyes. Grivus sat again at the table and took another sip of his drink.