Grey lay motionless on the couch. His eyes were tightly shut, and his chest rose and fell in a steady rhythm. It seemed as though he had completely sunk into his inner world and utterly forgotten about reality.
The waiting was agonizing, and Grey could not quiet the faint trembling in his soul. At that very moment he was experiencing an entire spectrum of emotions. He wanted to burst into booming laughter, wanted to cry, and wanted to leap up and dance.
As he recalled the past few years in the village, he felt a mixture of joy and sorrow.
If one thought about it carefully, Grey's childhood could be considered fairly carefree. He received his mother's love, the support of those close to him, and the simple joy of playing with his sister, yet he could never truly be happy. The faith and expectations of those around him pressed down on his fragile being.
Sometimes Grey felt as though he were suffocating.
In recent years he had exerted five times more effort than any of his peers just to live a "normal" life. He tortured himself with training, memorized books like a madman, and endured inhuman pain while experimenting on his own body.
And now, at last, his persistence was about to bear fruit.
He would be completely healed. He would be able to stand on equal footing with his sister. And he would no longer have to worry about dying prematurely.
Selin did not hurry.
She could not fail to notice the boy's suppressed emotions. At first glance Grey appeared calm and restrained, but to an elf like her, his mask was transparent.
Is this some kind of joke?
As a practitioner of life energy, she could sense the emotions of grass and trees. How could an ordinary child possibly hide his pain from her?
But Selin was not angry.
Grey was neither a genius nor a hero. He was an ordinary child who had been crippled and branded a monster. How could such a child not feel anger? It would have been a miracle if he had not come to hate the entire world.
And yet he could still smile. He cherished the feelings of those close to him. He gave them love in return.
His persistence impressed Selin.
She swore that she would do everything in her power to help him, and for that, she too needed to calm herself.
The boy's injury was not a simple one.
His trauma had baffled many Heaven-dwellers, people whose abilities were rightfully considered the finest in the world. Even now, when she remembered the piercing gazes of those terrifying elders, her palms still grew damp.
Five minutes passed as the doctor and her patient tried to attune themselves to the proper state of mind.
At last Selin spoke:
"I'm glad you've calmed down, Grey." — her voice was gentle and encouraging, like that of a caring older sister, — "You know better than I do how serious your condition is. That is why I ask for your cooperation. Life Magic is the gentlest of powers, but we will be dealing with divine laws, which means pain cannot be avoided. Tell me, are you ready?"
Grey nodded silently.
"Excellent. Take off your shirt. I will be interacting with your magic core, and I don't want your clothes interfering with the contact."
Grey was an obedient child. He removed his shirt, revealing his thin, pale body to Selin. His face reddened under her attentive gaze.
"You little rascal, why are you feeling shy in front of an old woman like me? Do you know how old I am?" — the elf joked, trying to ease his tension.
His reaction amused Selin and even flattered her a little.
In truth, she did not think Grey had anything to be embarrassed about. Although he was slender, his muscles were clearly defined, and a bold scar traced across his chest and back. Combined with his handsome and refined face, he looked quite attractive.
"Miss Selin, how can you call yourself an old woman? You're very beautiful and look only a little older than me. It would be strange if I weren't embarrassed. Let's focus on the treatment." — Grey pleaded, admitting his defeat.
"Very well," — the elf smiled and got to work.
Grey flinched when Selin's cold, yet astonishingly light fingers touched his solar plexus.
The touch was almost weightless, yet the boy felt as if a heavy stone had been set upon his chest.
Selin pressed her palm down slightly, as if checking the rhythm of his heart, and spoke in a more serious tone:
"First, we will examine the body's natural reaction to various magical stimuli. I know you have already gone through a similar procedure, and I have even read Albedo's report. But I need to observe every change myself. There are things only elves are capable of sensing."
Grey nodded silently, and the procedure began.
Selin took several vials of tinctures and bundles of fresh herbs, carefully laying them out on a cloth beside the couch. She moved unhurriedly, as if preparing for a delicate operation.
First, she gave the boy a few drops of a bitter infusion, watching the expression on his face and the change in his breathing.
Then she rubbed the clear juice of a glowing leaf onto his skin, listening to the faint fluctuations of energy.
Later, she placed a damp petal of a plant that responded to Fire magic against his chest and closely observed the body's reaction.
Each of her actions was aimed at finding the lost fragments of the magic core.
First Selin had to determine the innate type of mana, then trace every scattered fragment that had hidden itself deep within the body. It was a process that demanded the highest concentration and the most delicate sensitivity.
One had to understand that a magic core was a formless entity: it could not be seen with the eyes or touched with the hands. It lay hidden deep within the bearer's body and responded only to its owner.
Only someone with an affinity for Life magic could sense the presence of those fragments and gather them together again.
Grey's situation proved especially severe.
Too much time had passed since the injury, and the fragile balance inside him had already begun to collapse. Worst of all, the magic core had not been shattered by an ordinary force, but by divine Light energy.
It had broken into tiny specks scattered throughout his entire body, like shards of a shattered mirror flung across the boundless expanse of space.
The elf closed her eyes. Sweat beaded across her brow as she guided the currents of Life into the boy. Her power sank deeper and deeper, exploring every cell, every vessel, every vein, searching for the pitiful remnants of Grey's innate energy.
All elements except Light and Darkness remained silent, as if they did not exist at all. But the moment Selin's energy touched those two forces, they responded differently. Darkness vanished and crumbled away, as though Life energy were its deadliest poison.
Light, on the contrary, greedily absorbed her magic, growing brighter and harsher. It did not heal. It burned. Each pulse of that power injured Grey's body, inflicting excruciating pain and striving to destroy him.
To hold back his groans and keep from biting his tongue in agony, the boy hurriedly shoved a gag into his mouth.
His thin body convulsed violently, as though invisible threads were tearing him apart from within, yet he stubbornly remained conscious, refusing to let himself sink into oblivion.
When the pain became unbearable, Grey could endure no longer and asked for his limbs to be chained to the couch.
Selin froze, stunned by his determination. Not every grown adult could have endured such torment while keeping a clear mind.
But it was too late to retreat. Everything he had already endured could not be allowed to go to waste. As the finest healer of her tribe, Selin clenched her teeth and continued her work, refusing to let herself doubt.
Everyone believed Grey had become a cripple because his magic core had been destroyed and divine energy remained within him.
To Selin, that diagnosis sounded like a bad joke.
Her experience clearly showed the true cause: Light and Darkness were colliding within the boy, two utterly opposite forces that had formed a fragile balance. They fought constantly for dominance, using Grey's body as their battlefield.
The innate magic core had been shattered, and the child's inborn Darkness had scattered throughout his body. Light pursued it like a pack of starving wolves. The two elements battled silently and without pause, spreading chaos everywhere.
After several years of endless struggle, the two forces seemed to have reached a kind of parity.
Now they were exhausting each other in a war of attrition. A war that promised to drag on so long that the boy would never live to see its end.
Before long Grey reached his limit and lost consciousness. Selin continued working, forcing his body to break apart and restore itself again under the influence of Life magic. Yet little by little, she began to fall into despair.
Life energy could heal, but the chaos of Light and Darkness made her efforts nearly useless.
The Light within Grey's body was foreign, while the Darkness was native, that much was obvious. In theory, to restore the core Selin first needed to destroy the Light and then gather the Darkness back together. But in practice, it proved impossible.
First, the foreign Light energy had somehow taken root within the child's body.
Apollo had used the most ruthless method, drawing upon the divine source of Light so that the energy would remain in balance with Darkness.
Second, the Darkness energy, which should have been neutral, stubbornly rejected her Life magic as if it were its sworn enemy. There was only one explanation for such a phenomenon. And that explanation spelled a nightmare for Grey: the Darkness had transformed into Death energy.
The boy was doomed.
The energies continued to struggle against one another, and only their fragile balance preserved the faint spark of life within him.
Any attempt to restore the core now could only lead to a premature death. Aura and mana could not form within such chaos, runes burned away in the crossfire, and cellular mutations remained completely locked.
"Sigh"
Exhausted, Selin's body collapsed onto the couch beside the unconscious boy. In a daze she stared at his tormented yet very attractive face, and tears rolled down from her emerald eyes.
"I'm sorry, little one. I did everything I could. Apollo was simply too ruthless. What could you possibly have done to deserve such merciless hatred?"
Two hours passed, and at last Grey regained consciousness. He was drenched in sweat, weak and utterly drained.
The small boy raised his gaze toward Selin. In that look she saw far too many emotions. Hope, expectation, sorrow, and gratitude smoldered within his eyes, all mixed into one fragile feeling.
Selin felt as if she had been struck by lightning. Those innocent blue eyes dealt a critical blow to her heart.
Her lips trembled, a lump in her throat made it hard to breathe, and her heart tightened with guilt and helplessness.
For the first time she hated her own overwhelming empathy, because it allowed her to feel another person's pain as if it were her own.
What was she supposed to do? What was she supposed to say? How could she explain to a child who had endured so much suffering that all his efforts had been in vain?
Selin stood on the verge of hysteria.
"Grey…" she called in a trembling voice. She wanted to say so much, but the words simply stalled halfway.
"S-sorry," was the only word she managed to force out.
She did not dare raise her eyes to meet his gaze.
Grey understood everything at once. For a second he stared at the ceiling with an empty look and let out a quiet sigh.
"Thank you very much for trying, Aunt Selin."
He silently put his shirt back on and headed for the door. His face remained calm, as if everything had been within his expectations. But Selin saw the fragile, lonely back that disappeared beyond the door.
When Grey stepped out of the hut, he saw all the villagers watching him anxiously, waiting for news.
For a moment everything fell silent. Even the wind refused to disturb the stillness.
In the end, he could not bear it and simply shook his head helplessly.
"Don't lose hope, son. I... I... will think of something." Catherine was the first to break the silence.
Her heart was tearing apart with pain, yet she tried to comfort her son, even though she herself could hardly believe the words she was saying.
It was as if her words had been the final straw, breaking the camel's back. The mask of calm behind which Grey had been hiding finally cracked. He said nothing—he simply decided to run.
He wanted to get as far away from this place as possible, to run without looking back, to disappear from everyone.
Grey did not want to hear any comforting words. He did not want to see disappointment on the faces of those he loved. Their hope was an unbearable burden for him.
Every fiber of his being told him he was failing their expectations again and again. He felt unworthy of being among them, as if he had no right at all. He did not want to show them his pain—but even that he could not manage. All that remained was one choice: to run without looking back.
"Dear! Brother!" Catherine and Grace cried in panic, rushing after him, but Jack stopped them.
"Calm down. You'll only make it worse. Give him some time to be alone."
As a teacher, he understood Grey's state of mind better than anyone. He knew how hard it was for him, but he believed his pupil could endure it.
"I'll make sure he doesn't do anything foolish!" Cassia said, hurrying into the shadows of the trees.
"Damn it, damn it, damn it! Why does he have to go through all this?!" Catherine cursed. She could hold back no longer, covering her face with her hands and crying bitterly.
Soon Selin emerged from the hut.
The young elf looked more dejected than the patient himself. She had done everything she could, yet it had not been enough. She had boasted loudly and beaten her chest with pride, but now she had to face the consequences. Shame and frustration made her wish she could sink through the ground.
"Little Catty, calm down," commanded Grandpa Ma. He was the only one who could remain composed. "Let's go to my house. Little Selin, please tell us about the treatment and your conclusions. Now, more than ever, it is crucial to stay calm and rational. We must all move forward."
Grandpa Ma understood better than anyone how important it was to control one's emotions in moments like this. As elders, they could not show weakness. They needed not to wallow in grief, but to face the problem head-on.
Though the treatment had failed, Selin, as an experienced healer, had made many discoveries they might have overlooked. The better they understood the boy's condition, the more chance they had to change the outcome.
"Albedo, Jack, Cornelia, I ask you to record all of Selin's conclusions. You are the most qualified doctors among us. Her perspective and findings will allow you to see the problem from a new angle.
Damn it all! You're already so old, yet still so emotional. Where is your praised wisdom and experience when it's needed most? Get to work!" shouted the village chief in a commanding voice.
His words sparked a small flame in the dimmed eyes of the elders.
Indeed, they had always known they were facing a serious problem. They were old monsters who had lived through who knows what. Surely they would not let a single failure shake their confidence? No! They had no intention of giving up.
Very soon, the entire community had gathered in the small, secluded hut.
Selin spoke in detail about her own conclusions and discoveries, while the elders held paper and quills, recording every word like a group of obedient students.
Catherine and Grace stood silently to the side, listening intently.
"Grey's current condition does not look very promising. The magic core has shattered into tiny fragments drifting throughout the body. Over time, the divine Light energy has taken on regenerative properties. Due to the conflict between the two forces, the Darkness energy in his body has mutated into Death energy.
Although Apollo was unable to take his life—which, I must admit, is quite perplexing—Grey's body will last at most another ten to fifteen years.
Ruthless, as always. As one should expect from the Greco-Roman gods." — concluded Selin.
"Exactly! They've never taken mortals seriously. What about Medusa, Adonis, or Prometheus? I could list endlessly. No one who has tangled with their pantheon can expect a happy ending. Right, Grandpa Ma?" — Aunt Albedo sneered.
"Their goals are none of our concern. Be kind, Albedo, and focus on Grey's condition," — Grandpa Ma snapped.
"How merciless, how vile! My admiration, Apollo!" — Jack commented sarcastically, unconsciously letting his deadly intent slip through.
==============
Dear readers, I have to inform you that this work was rejected when applying for a contract without the possibility of revision. Therefore, I was forced to create a second version of the book, where I will publish the latest updates.
I will not give up on this version, but some chapters will be posted a little later than in the main one.
The book is called "The Mad Immortal"
https://www.webnovel.com/book/the-mad-immortal_34969618200258905###
Many thanks for your support, active comments and reviews.
This will help more readers to get acquainted with my book, which means my chances of getting a contract will increase and you will receive content more often. (The author also needs to eat and provide for his family)