Rising pain

Nero had a long conversation with Gerald. It seemed to be going well, and the mage spoke enthusiastically with Nero.

He showed a great interest in Nero's story and his parents, which made Nero a bit uneasy. Fortunately, Nero had prepared himself well and was ready for many questions. However, what disappointed Nero was that Gerald didn't mention anything about turning him into a magician.

But Nero quickly reassured himself. How could it be that easy? Nevertheless, he was making visible progress. Not only did he befriend the magician, but he also gained an understanding of magic. Though it was still minimal, it was at least a start.

On the first day, Nero went home filled with excitement. His mind was already planning future events. He was already thinking about how to proceed and expected that Gerald would help him become a magician by the end of the month.

The next day, Nero went to Koal's house early and continued teaching mathematics to his daughter. Putting everyone else aside, Nero was still amazed at how quickly she absorbed the information. While Christina could be quite a problematic girl, when she focused, she could easily grasp and understand the math material. Nero quickly realized that she, too, was a rare genius.

After teaching Christina for several hours, he played another game of chess against Koal and engaged in lively conversation. This time, Koal won, and Nero lost narrowly. Both Nero and Koal knew that Nero was far more talented, but Koal had much more experience, so Nero lost after a harsh game.

To Nero's disappointment, Gerald didn't show up that day. He was absent, but Nero didn't lose hope. At least not immediately.

But as he waited on the second day, then the third, fourth, and fifth days, he gradually grew a bit annoyed. On the sixth day, he sat with Koal at the table again, playing chess and eating.

"When is Gerald actually coming to visit?" he asked, suppressing his growing impatience.

Koal, who was focused on the chessboard, looked up and gave Nero a strange look, but then he smiled his usual smile.

"I'm not exactly sure. He never stays long and usually only comes back at the end of the month."

Nero sighed inwardly. He had expected this.

"Why does he visit you every month?" Nero asked Koal, not out of genuine curiosity, but just to keep the conversation going.

Koal remained silent for a while before responding,

"We were friends before I came to this camp. He was the one who conducted the affinity test on my daughter. He was also the one who suggested this camp to me and brought me here when it seemed like my daughter had no magical talent. Since then, he has been visiting me at the end of every month."

Nero absorbed this information and replied half-heartedly,

"I don't understand how you can trust the magicians so easily. You treat them like gods..." Nero made his move.

Koal looked at Nero penetratingly. His smile had weakened slightly.

"You lost your memories and can't understand that. Outside of this camp, we are nobody. We are nothing more than livestock. Slaves whose lives are worthless. We live in constant fear for our lives and in great poverty. That's why so many Mortals come to this camp, despite the strict contract. They hope for a better life. They have no choice but to believe in the magicians because if anyone can perform miracles, it would be them."

Now Nero looked up. Thoughts raced through his mind, but he swallowed his remark. He had known Koal for quite a while now and knew a lot about him. The man was highly intelligent, although he didn't show it much. Nero had noticed that very early on.

The following days were uneventful. Nero worked every day and slowly accumulated a considerable amount of credits. He had already reached a figure in the thousands, thanks not only to Koal's generous payment but also to his tournament compensation.

Later he learned that Kiel, the madman he fought against in the arena, was imprisoned for twelve years for breaking the rules. All his credits were confiscated, and Nero received one thousand two hundred fifty (1250) credits as compensation.

With that, Nero was already halfway to the credits he needed to qualify for magical ascension, but he had no intentions of doing so. By now, he had almost completely lost hope that this was true.

He had to find another way to develop magic, and his greatest hope lay with none other than Gerald.

However, things didn't go as planned as well.

The first month flew by, and Nero finally met Gerald again. But this time, he wasn't as friendly and open towards him. He barely spoke to Nero, and no matter how hard Nero tried, Gerald only gave him brief answers and excuses.

That made Nero angry, very angry. Nero knew that this anger stemmed from pure disappointment.

He had thought he could escape this slave camp and regain his independence, but Gerald seemed to have no intention of freeing him or helping him attain magic.

Nero's eyes burned with anger as he walked home that day. He couldn't hide his emotions; they were too strong. Everything in him despised his existence in this camp.

What had he eradicated his world for? Why had he led a massive army to other worlds? To never be captured by anyone or anything again! Yet now he was just a prisoner again in a world he didn't know.

Mortals bustled around him, busy with their tasks. Nero also hated these ignorant idiots who willingly subjected themselves to slavery instead of fighting for their own freedom. Magicians were far from immortal, especially the ones running this camp.

They were all just beginning their cultivation, and Nero knew very well that five mortals with swords could easily kill them. Yet tens of thousands or more people in this camp voluntarily submitted to the few dozen magicians and even kissed their slaveholders' feet for more work.

All for a naive hope of being chosen to become a magician. Nero hated their ignorance.

But amidst his despair, he had another problem. Since encountering Kiel for the first, a pain had started spreading within him.

It had been growing stronger ever since. He couldn't see anything on his chest, but something was causing him immense and escalating pain. Every time Nero got used to it, it became slightly harder to endure.

It made clear thinking difficult for Nero. His concentration began to weaken, and he had to exert great effort to keep himself from losing his sanity.

He endured it. He had no other choice. The doctors in this camp had all been useless and couldn't help him without cutting him open. But Nero wouldn't allow some stranger to slice him open and entrust his life to someone else's competence.

From this point on, Nero had only one hope: magic.

He knew that his body became significantly more robust and stronger the last time he received magic, including his immune system. He hadn't fallen ill once in the almost eight years since he possessed magic.

But he faced the same problem again: How could he acquire magic?

Over the next few months, he encountered Gerald repeatedly but made no progress. It was as if his first encounter with Gerald had been a dream. Gerald had spoken to him on equal terms, asking him many questions about himself and his past. But now Gerald was condescending.

Nero didn't understand it, but it filled him with disappointment and anger. One day, months after their initial meeting and a few hours after another visit from Gerald, Nero sat at the large dining table. The pain within him had become incredibly intense, and Nero had to use a large part of his mind to keep himself from tearing his own skin apart.

It was already visible in his eyes. They were no longer bright and intelligent like before, but weak and glassy.

Nero knew it: He was on the verge of death. He knew he couldn't endure another month. His body would give up before his mind.

Whatever was happening inside him was like nothing Nero had ever heard or read about, but he felt himself slowly moving toward the abyss with each passing day. And there stood Death, swinging his scythe, already waiting to claim his long overdue soul.

Nero shook his head violently, dispelling those thoughts. He wouldn't simply give up hope like that. He was still alive. There was still a chance.

Koal entered the room and smiled kindly at Nero. He looked into his eyes, and Koal saw it. He saw the pain but also the anger and disappointment within them. Nero couldn't hide it anymore; he lacked concentration. But Koal continued to smile and looked Nero directly in the eyes.

"Nero, let's have a little chat..."