Magus Supremacy

In just three hours of settling into the room, Grey, like a sponge, had already absorbed almost everything from the new book he got from Dame.

With his extraordinary memory, he was able to recall all the magic circles described within, the symbols, and even how to alter them to transport him to places he had already visited before.

He was so sharp at this that he had already developed a magic circle capable of taking them back to the cave they had come from, and from there, he could easily create another circle that would lead him back to Aetherian Academy.

'It's as if I have done this before. None of this feels foreign to me, not even the smallest details. Who was I really? Just how strong was I?' Grey thought as he finished studying a magic circle meant for weapon crafting, his fingers tingling with eagerness to put it to the test.

"Wait! I don't even have chalk or something to draw with." Grey facepalmed himself, muttering in irritation.

As if listening to his complaint, his pendant shimmered faintly, and a small piece of white chalk dropped to the wooden floor beneath him.

'Huh?' he blinked rapidly, startled. 'When did I ever store this inside?'

Thalos, who had been lounging with his usual bored expression, now wore an entirely different look.

His sharp eyes carried fascination as he watched the young mage working with such diligence and immersion that even time seemed to slip away unnoticed.

'I thought my master was a genius. But if that old man truly was one, then what should I call this boy? He is absorbing knowledge at an impossible pace, repeating the same things over and over until he perfects them. In just hours, he has managed to get a few circles right.

Surprisingly, or perhaps unsurprisingly, at this rate he might even surpass my master. I wonder if my master is still alive… and if he is, what would happen if he ever met Grey?

The two of them together could stir up storms across entire worlds. Yes, worlds. I can no longer think of this place as a single continent. For Grey, this is another world altogether. I wonder what his original world is truly like.'

"Perfect." Grey muttered at last. He had drawn a neat circle on the ground, and his lips curled upward into a wide smile.

'I have always been fascinated by these things. Now let me see what they are truly made of.'

A small pouch appeared in his hands. Without hesitation, he pulled out three pills of distinct colors.

"Green, yellow, and red." He muttered as the pouch vanished once more.

With a calm exhale, he placed the green pill into the circle and infused it with his mana.

The circle lit up brilliantly, the pill glowing as though pulled by an unseen force. Slowly, piece by piece, the pill dismantled and vanished.

A faint cloud, invisible to Thalos but clear as day to Grey, formed above the circle. Strange glowing words appeared within it, and Grey calmly read them.

'Hmm… a beast core from an earth-tier beast, some herbs from a particular plant, and a drop of Ki.'

"So that's what it's made of, huh," Grey murmured before slipping the yellow pill into the circle. He repeated the same process, and once more the cloud revealed its secrets.

'Two earth-tier cores from a speed-based beast, a pinch of ash from the corpse of a mortal beast, and two drops of Ki.'

"Now, let's see the red pill." Grey mumbled, his curiosity bubbling as he activated the circle again.

The third cloud appeared, this one more intense, and his eyes narrowed as he read the words.

'Four sky-ranked beast cores, a teaspoon of a stage four warrior's Ki, and two drops of sky-ranked beast's blood.'

"Sheesh! That seems too extreme." Grey grumbled with a frown tugging at his lips.

He leaned back, staring at the fading circle. 'Wait a minute. The Yun warriors have pills that restore their Ki and stamina. But what about mages? What do we have? What do we take in the middle of battle to replenish our cores, to keep fighting? Do we just run dry and collapse?'

He rubbed his temples while erasing the chalk marks from the floor. Then, suddenly, an idea struck his mind. His lips spread into a grin.

"I'm already slightly above the other warriors because of my magic. But there's no way I will let my mana run out in battle. I should create pills specifically to restore mana. If I succeed, it might change everything." He muttered under his breath, excitement crackling in his tone as he began rubbing his palms together.

Thalos, from the corner, stared with furrowed brows.

'Is he going insane, or is this how legends are made?' he thought carefully while watching Grey throw himself headfirst into his work once again.

'In all the descriptions I saw, these pills needed one factor; Ki. And it worked for Yun warriors, so let's alter it a bit and replace its factor with one of my own. Mana!' he thought as he began drawing a magic circle on the ground, but then paused for a moment.

"Hold on! I would need to crush those cores. I need to draw a circle for that too." He muttered, turning to another corner of the room and carefully sketching signs and symbols.

Within two minutes, he was done with that, and then he moved back to the earlier circle he had been working on. After another three minutes, he finally completed it.

"Thalos, help me draw those curtains together. I don't know what effect what I'm doing will have." Grey said. With a sigh, Thalos walked over to the window and pulled the curtains shut, plunging the room into a dim, heavy darkness.

'Alright then. Let's create a pill to replenish one's mana before I move on to the next.' Grey thought, and then he walked over to the second circle, dropped two earth-tier cores into it, and adjusted their placement slightly.

"I hope this works." Grey whispered to himself as he activated it with his mana, causing it to light up brightly.

He then moved onto the first circle he had drawn, pulling out his blade and cutting himself so his blood could drip into the center.

The circle lit up instantly, and to his shock, both formations connected at once, glowing in unison. Without losing a beat, Grey began inputting his mana into the first circle.

Almost immediately, he could feel the effects. His mana… and not only that, but his Ki as well, surged violently out of his body, consumed by the circles like a starving beast devouring prey.

His eyes blazed white, his hair floated upward as though weightless, and his teeth ground against one another while his body trembled. The circles continued draining his energies without mercy.

Within a minute, the blinding light dimmed, leaving Grey staggering back, gasping for breath. His gaze locked on the merging circles as they fused into one, something faintly hovering a few inches above the ground, wrapped in a pulsing white light.

Beads of sweat cascaded down Grey's face as he stared at the floating object, his chest rising and falling heavily. Thalos, too, widened his eyes, unable to look away.

Soon enough, the light diminished, and the object dropped from the air, rolling gently across the ground before coming to a stop.

Grey walked over, crouched down, and picked it up. A smirk curved his lips as he examined it.

It was a pill, but not like the ordinary colors Grey or Thalos were used to.

This one was deep purple, far richer and more mysterious than any pill he had seen before. Grey clutched it tightly, his smirk deepening as an odd glint flickered in his eyes.

"I did it, huh? Kek! Let's see what this baby can do." Grey mumbled. Without hesitation, he tossed the pill into his mouth and swallowed hard, standing still as he waited for its effect to take hold.