Sovereign of the Ashes

Daelis remained unimpressed after listening to Morsidor’s sentiments.

As a spellcaster, she held a sense of pride that was ingrained in mages, and she viewed knights with nothing but contempt.

In her perspective, knights were mere brutes who relied on raw physical strength, unable to fathom the profound depths of magic and the splendor of elemental power.

Even though knights were non-existent in Gloomhaven, Daelis was well aware that on the surface world and across the entire Magus realm, knights outnumbered mages.

This numerical superiority could be attributed to the lower entry requirements for knighthood, as well as the broad recruitment of squires into knighthood Morsidor had mentioned earlier.

In a world where nobles were the minority, the majority of the population consisted of commoners.

However, knights who possessed powerful combat abilities and strengths could ultimately ascend to noble status.

This offered commoners a chance to rise above their common origins and become nobles, rather than remaining commoners for generations.

Yet, the fact that knights were so abundant and that the low entry requirements of knighthood created another fact—among mages and knights of the same rank, mages typically held a higher status.

With a robust magic shield for protection, mages consistently outperformed knights in combat.

The power of magic, whether in terms of range or impact, surpassed the battle qi harnessed by knights.

Moreover, knights, who lacked the capability to produce magic equipment and potions, invariably relied on mages for them.

Even the simplest magical arrays designed to expedite cultivation speed left knights baffled. They needed the support of mages who possessed extensive knowledge and elemental power.

Therefore, although various divine towers and orders of the knights in the surface world proclaimed that knights and mages were equal, the truth was that mages were superior to a greater extent.

Even knights had to ingratiate themselves with the mages of the same rank as them.

The animosity toward the divine towers and orders of the knights on the surface world, along with the general discontentment that the black mages frequently encountered, provided Morsidor and Daelis with additional subjects to discuss on this particular day.

Meanwhile, Sein, who was diligently working in the laboratory, remained oblivious to their discussion.

With the guidance of Zorro, Sein delved into another attempt to enchant the Green Plume Claw.

***

Two weeks had passed, and the most significant progress Sein made during this time was imbuing three Green Plume Claws with the “Sharp” spell.

In addition, Sein also learned how to craft a “dark cuisine”—Faye’s nutritional potions.

Sein called them a “dark cuisine” because he finally learned about the ingredients Faye used in her nutritional potions as he studied under her.

Setting aside the mysterious small black insects that remained unidentified to Sein, his curiosity was piqued when he observed Faye casually adding a thick yellow liquid to her potion.

Perplexed, Sein inquired about this unusual ingredient, and Faye responded, “It’s the saliva of an underground multi-legged dray horse.”

The look of shock on Sein’s face revealed the turmoil in his mind.

Faye astutely discerned the reason for his reaction. Despite her usual cheerful demeanor around Sein, a stern expression appeared on her face for the very first time.

“Listen up! The shells of the Black Scabies are high in calories and they’re one of the most important ingredients in my nutritional potion. The saliva of the underground multi-legged dray horse possesses excellent dissolving properties. Its addition accelerates the fusion of various ingredients within the potion and extends the shelf life,” she explained.

Indeed, whether Black Scabies were terrifying or the saliva of the dray horse seemed disgusting, none of it mattered.

As a mage, Sein should perceive substances beyond their appearances.

Much like when dealing with specimens, the corpse in front of Sein transformed from mere remains of a human into a treasure trove of knowledge about life and bloodlines.

Only with this perspective could Sein genuinely be recognized as a seeker of truth and achieve great heights in the future.

Faye’s lesson left a profound impact on Sein for years to come.

Even in the subsequent years, Sein regarded it as words of wisdom for spellcasters across the entire Magus World.

***

“I believe that the shells of Black Scabbies can potentially be substituted with the rhizomes of Spiny Cane Grass. They share similar traits and boast high caloric content. As for the saliva of the underground multi-legged dray horse, it might be replaceable with green plum juice or my specially concocted Elandria Essence,” Marie suggested.

“Of course, this is merely a suggestion. We’ll need to conduct experiments to confirm its effectiveness. My mentor mentioned that even slight alterations in formula ingredients, dosage, or heat adjustments can lead to significant variations in the final concoction,” Marie added, speaking timidly to Sein.

Sein had come to Bousse’s shop to purchase some basic ingredients as the next academy’s mandatory quest was rapidly approaching. It was during this visit that he encountered Marie, who was also at the shop.

After a brief chat with Marie, Sein casually brought up the topic of nutritional potions.

After all, Marie was an apothecary in training. Although she was only a junior initiate, her knowledge far surpassed that of Faye, who was merely an amateur when it came to potion-making.

It was no surprise that within a few moments of conversation, Sein received the response that left him surprised.

Marie blushed slightly in response to the astonishment in Sein’s eyes.

Without waiting for Sein to respond, Marie took the initiative and said, “Once I’ve completed the experiments I’ve been assisting my mentor with, I’ll help you work on improving the formula.”

Marie’s offer finally brought Sein back to reality.

Sein hurriedly waved his hand and declined. “No, no, as long as this nutritional potion is functional, its taste and formula are only of secondary importance.”

“Rather than doing that, Marie, you should start dedicating some time and effort to your training. I recall that your current focus stands at 17 points, right?” Sein inquired.

Marie had greatly assisted Sein, especially with the two potions that had saved his life. As a token of gratitude, Sein had offered guidance and aid to her.

In addition to providing her with guidance in pyro element-related knowledge during his spare time outside of his experiments and studies, Sein had also lent his crystal ball to her on several occasions.

Marie’s initial focus was a remarkable 13 points, but over the course of several years, she had only managed to increase it by four points.

Her progress was considered relatively slow within the Black Magic Academy.

It was a good thing that Marie had a strong foundation. Some initiates in their twenties barely had a focus exceeding ten points and because of this, they were still a long way from being promoted to an intermediate initiate.

At Marie’s current age of fifteen, a mental focus of 17 points provided a substantial likelihood of promotion to an intermediate initiate.

On the other hand, Bousse’s prospects were less promising due to his lack of talent and diligence.

Sein had doubts whether Bousse could even be promoted into an intermediate initiate before the age of thirty.