I AM A GOD

Chapter 4

He was stunned. An A-Tier was unheard of for a student, but the "Endless Evolution" tag was something out of legend. It meant his power had no limits and there was no end to his growth. He wasn’t just the Origin God by name; his power was finally returning.

A new sense of confidence swelled in Henry’s chest. He had the chance he had always asked for and the power to become anything he had ever wanted.

Unknown to him, the Magic Affinity Stone was linked to the school’s central network. In the highest tower of the academy, a red light began flashing on the Dean’s desk.

Dean Silas, a man who had seen thousands of mages come and go, dropped his pen as he read the decrypted result sent from the laboratory. There was no name attached, but the information was undeniable.

His eyes nearly popped from their sockets at what was displayed before him.

Someone else would have passed it off as a mistake, but he knew more than anyone that the Affinity Stone could not make one.

The stone read directly from a mage’s core, even though no one could explain how it worked.

His eyes remained glued to the information, and his entire body trembled beneath its weight.

"How is that even possible?"

"Endless Evolution," Silas whispered, his hands shaking as he gripped the edge of his desk.

"If this is true, which it is, then this person is a prodigy beyond anything history has ever recorded. They could become the greatest mage to walk the earth."

He slammed his hand onto a communication rune.

"There is an abnormality that needs to be found immediately. The information has been transferred to the academy security forces. Scour the security feeds and check the mana signatures. Find whoever entered the advanced laboratory tonight. We cannot lose this person."

With this person in the school and by his side, Capricorn would not only become the most powerful academy in the world, but no one would dare oppose him once he got this person for himself.

A smirk formed across his face.

He was the first to receive the information, which meant he was already a thousand steps ahead of everyone who might learn about it later.

                   ***********

Henry stood beside the narrow window of his dormitory, watching the silver moonlight wash over the stone grounds of Capricorn Practicing Mages Academy.

The encounter with the Magic Affinity Stone still hummed inside his mind like a physical vibration, while his secret power remained coiled beneath his skin.

For the first time in his life, he did not see his future as a dark tunnel of disappointment and humiliation.

He saw an opportunity, a ladder to a height of power so absolute that no one, not Oregon, not his parents and not even the people who had killed his former self, would ever dare to look down on him again.

To reach that height, he needed more than a legendary title. He needed something that could fuel his evolution.

According to the ancient, dust-covered scrolls he had spent the night searching through, a mage with the Endless Evolution pathway could not rely only on meditation or standard classroom drills. He needed the concentrated mana found inside the hearts of magical creatures.

The fastest way for Henry to grow was to absorb beast cores.

Fate was finally playing on his side. He had heard the announcement echoing through the halls earlier: the academy was organising a hunting expedition into the Forbidden Beast Clan Forest.

In the past, Henry would not have dared to even look at the sign-up sheet. Facing a magical beast without a reliable spell was suicide, a one-way trip to becoming monster food.

This time, he did not need to be afraid.

He felt the fire in his veins and the water in the air, waiting for his command. All his years of preparation and studying were finally going to pay off.

Henry dressed in his dark grey robe, pulling the hood low enough to shadow his unique grey eyes.

As he walked towards the preparation room, his mind was clouded with dark emotions. He thought about the being he met in the void. He remembered his anger, how he had attacked that light with everything he had, only to learn that his power and memories had been sealed without his permission.

The thought made his blood boil. He wasn’t just a student anymore. He was the Origin God, and he was done allowing other people to decide his fate.

He reached the massive oak doors of the preparation room. Inside, he could hear Tutor Vaughn explaining the dos and don’ts of the outside world.

The students were barely listening, and some looked visibly irritated by his long speech. They wanted the action and danger waiting beyond the academy walls. They were young, arrogant and hungry for glory, unaware of the real terrors inside the forest.

Henry pushed the doors open.

The moment he walked in, the air shifted. It felt as though a cold wind had entered with him and killed the warmth of the torches.

The chatter died immediately, replaced by a heavy, uncomfortable silence.

Every eye in the room settled on the boy who had spent almost a year as the academy’s greatest joke.

Henry did not stop. He walked with his head raised and his eyes fixed on the equipment tables. He did not care about the murmurs.

"Look who decided to crawl out of the infirmary," Oregon sneered, stepping out from the crowd.

He looked at Henry with a mixture of shock and lingering malice, surprised that he was not dead.

"I thought you would be halfway home by now, Maxwell. Did you come here to find somewhere to hide during the hunt?"

"I’m here for the expedition, Oregon," Henry said, his voice flat and steady. "Just like everyone else."

"Everyone else?" Divia laughed, his fat face shaking with amusement. "Everyone else here can actually cast a spell. You’re just a walking snack for a Shadow-Wolf. Maybe you think the beasts will feel sorry for you because your parents hate you."

"That isn’t funny, Divia," a voice snapped.

Alistair stepped forward, his face filling with dread the moment everyone looked in his direction. He studied Henry’s face as though he were searching for any sign of sanity.

"Henry, what are you doing? I told you to stay in bed. You aren’t ready for this, and you don’t have a single combat spell."

"You don’t need to babysit me all the time, Alistair," Henry said, reaching for a hunting satchel. "We are the same age, in case you forget sometimes."

"Babysitting? I’m trying to save your life!" Alistair said, grabbing Henry’s arm.

"The Thicket is filled with C-Class beasts. I have to be careful inside it. If you go out there, you’re committing suicide. Is this because of what Father said? You don’t have to prove anything to them this way."

Henry pulled his arm back with enough force to surprise Alistair.

For a second, the worry left Alistair’s face. It returned the moment the students began watching them closely.

"This isn’t about them, and it isn’t about you," Henry said. "For the first time, I am doing something for myself. Stop trying to protect a shadow, Alistair. I told you that I am fine."

Another voice rose above the snickering, a girl’s voice sharp with disdain.

"Maybe he thinks we’re about to embark on a fashion parade.”