Sovereign of the Ashes

Apart from Bousse, Sein had another close friend he could confide in—Marie.

Marie was a young girl who arrived in Gloomhaven three years after Sein and Bousse, making her just fourteen years old this year.

Despite her tender age, Marie possessed remarkable luck and talent that left Sein feeling envious.

In addition to her impressive initial focus of 13 points, Marie achieved another remarkable feat in her third year at the Black Magic Academy. She was accepted as an apprentice by a full-fledged black mage shortly after being promoted to a junior initiate.

Sein and Marie’s friendship blossomed through an incident five years ago. During an anatomy class, Sein had saved Marie’s life by risking his neck to dissuade Master Collance from dissecting her.

At the time, Marie had just arrived in Gloomhaven, with no one to rely on. Sein’s compassionate act immediately forged a sibling-like bond between them.

Marie regarded Sein as her older brother and continued to maintain her connection with him even after becoming the apprentice of Master Daelis. They often discussed academic matters after public classes.

Master Daelis was a renowned apothecary, but she rarely made public appearances to impart knowledge. It was purely by a stroke of luck that Marie was able to become her apprentice.

Over the past six months, Marie had seldom been seen, likely because she was busy assisting Master Daelis in experiments and crafting potions for her.

Marie and Bousse were not just close friends of Sein because of their shared history, but also because Sein took great care in maintaining their friendships.

The Black Magic Academy was not an easy place to navigate, and finding trustworthy allies was crucial for survival.

Although Marie and Bousse were not exceptionally powerful, both of them were still valuable allies. Marie was the apprentice of a full-fledged black mage and an apothecary in training. Bousse had a broad network of contacts and was skilled in business trading.

Their friendship allowed them to assist each other and thrive in the harsh environment of the academy. It was all about survival.

Although Sein had a deep fascination with the mysteries of magic and the wisdom possessed by black mages, he understood that his first priority was staying alive.

***

The venue of the annual assessment was a rather spacious training ground behind the largest academy building. Initiates would often practice new spells there.

Sein still vividly remembered creating his first small spark on this very training ground.

The annual assessment of the Black Magic Academy lacked detailed regulations, as the esteemed black mages had neither the time nor energy to spare on such things.

Typically, no more than four full-fledged black mages attended the assessment each year. This year was no different from the previous year, with only three in attendance.

Over five hundred initiates filled the training ground, accounting for roughly 80% of the total initiates in the Black Magic Academy of Mystralora City.

Fresh and junior initiates made up the majority, with around seventy intermediates initiates and slightly over ten senior initiates present.

Not all initiates from the academy were in attendance. For instance, Sein knew that while Faye had joined the assessment, Zorro had opted out. Additionally, some initiates were absent for various reasons.

Participation in the annual assessment was not mandatory, as it was a game for the strong. The weak likely had been weeded out in the challenging daily life of the academy.

The assessment mainly consisted of duels in an arena, where initiates from their respective tiers would fight each other, sometimes to the point of life and death.

Alternatively, they could choose to challenge an opponent from a different tier. Victorious outcomes in such battles would secure a spot in the top three rankings and potentially earn recognition from the full-fledged black mages in attendance.

Fresh initiates, with their very limited magic knowledge as well as meager focus and mana, often found themselves unable to cast even a basic spell. Hence, their rankings depended on their ability to defeat opponents without the aid of magic or their success in casting a basic magic spell.

As Sein and Bousse walked around the training ground, they found no sign of Marie. It seemed she had chosen not to participate this year.

“Are you planning to compete in the assessment this year?” Bousse asked Sein in a hushed tone.

Sein had put on his white mask at this point. He nodded and replied, “Faye, my senior, mentioned there might be valuable prizes in this year’s assessment, so I thought I’d give it a try.”

Bousse nodded approvingly upon hearing Sein’s decision.

Through conversations with other initiates, Bousse had learned that other than the Pale Mask, Sein also had a powerful magic wand in his possession. It was a gift from his mentor, Master Morsidor, intended for Sein’s personal protection.

With such a magic wand in hand, he believed that Sein even stood a chance against an intermediate initiate.

***

As the annual assessment commenced, the three black mages took their seats in the highest section of the stands.

“It seems there are some promising talents among this year’s participants,” one of the black mages commented, casting a glance at the senior initiates, then the intermediate initiates, and lastly, the junior initiates.

He did not even spare a glance for the fresh initiates, who made up the majority of the participants.

When the black mage was observing the junior initiates, his gaze lingered on Sein for half a second. He recognized Sein, as he had been one of the black mages present during the incident involving Sein and Leena on Black Street two months ago.

Mystralora City was home to a significant number of black mages, with nearly every one of them either serving as a resident expert or carrying out specific duties within the academy.

In a sense, Mystralora City served as a sanctuary for these black mages, while the Black Magic Academy offered them a space for communication and collaboration.

In exchange for this support, these often self-serving and independent black mages were obligated to contribute in various ways to both the academy and the city.

Unbeknownst to the lowly initiates, the ruler of Mystralora City was none other than the powerful and enigmatic dean of the Black Magic Academy.

The dean remained mostly hidden from the view of most initiates, and seldom graced even the full-fledged black mages with his presence.

Currently, the academy was run by three vice deans who handled its day-to-day affairs and possessed authority to appoint black mages to specific roles.

Dedaelon, with whom Sein had crossed paths before, was one of the vice deans. He managed most of the academy affairs, including supervising the academy overseers.

The other two vice deans remained equally enigmatic, and Liliana’s mentor was the only female vice dean among them.