Sovereign of the Ashes

Sein had no plans to make any purchases on his first day at the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring.

However, that did not deter him from exploring and expanding his horizons.

It would not be an overstatement to say that over ninety-nine percent of the items and materials showcased in the divine tower’s outskirts were entirely unfamiliar to Sein.

This diverse array of items represented the wealth of the regions within the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring’s sphere of influence, including some exotic goods from otherworldly planes.

While strolling through the commercial streets on the outskirts of the divine tower, Sein observed that the primary mediums for transactions were energy crystals, magic cores, and magicoins.

Conventional currencies like gold coins found no takers in this bustling marketplace.

Spatial equipment seemed to be relatively common in this area, a trend Sein noticed as people effortlessly made their goods vanish with a casual stretch of their right hand at the end of a transaction.

Despite the prevalence of such equipment, Sein was sure that their internal storage could not possibly compare to his space bangle.

Although there were some full-fledged mages and knights hidden among the crowd, the commercial streets were predominantly dominated by magic initiates and squires.

Sein surmised that the area where higher-ranked beings gathered for trading was likely elsewhere.

Sein stopped in front of a sizable stall. It turned out to be a slave market, run not by mages, but a knight from foreign lands.

The burly knight stood at nearly two meters tall, sporting a thick black beard.

His arms were thicker than Sein’s thighs, and the massive black axe he wielded was now resting at the side of his stall.

His merchandise consisted of a group of exotic humanoid creatures confined in cages.

These creatures, with a delicate and captivating appearance, gazed fearfully at the knights and mages from the Magus World surrounding their cages.

“These are native beings from the Featherbloom World, a vulnerable plane that had been forcefully conquered and annexed by the Magus World due to its refusal to join the Magus Alliance,” the knight began his sales pitch.

“The Featherbloom Sprites are gentle and submissive in nature, making them ideal as slave familiars. When you’re exhausted from your experiments, they can be of assistance, helping with lab chores, or serving as obedient servants,” the knight added with a suggestive grin.

Several female mages appeared to contemplate the proposition, but a considerable number of onlookers chose to merely observe without participating.

The captivating appearance of the Featherbloom Sprites fit the beauty standard in the Magus World.

Despite their modest height averaging less than 1.6 meters, they possessed exceptional beauty regardless of gender, characterized by their pure white skin.

Each Featherbloom Sprite had two tufts of white fluff resembling wings near their ears, giving them an angelic appearance.

Both male knights and mages entertained the idea of purchasing one eagerly, and even some female mages exhibited a hint of interest.

“These are the creatures I captured during the war in the Featherbloom World. Although they are ordinary Featherbloom Sprites below Rank One, they can still live for at least thirty years, even in our slightly different Magus World environment, taking into account the average lifespan of these sprites in their native world,” the bearded knight explained.

“Female Featherbloom Sprites are priced at ten magicoins each, while male Featherbloom Sprites are available for twelve magicoins each. Stocks are limited, do act quickly if you wish to acquire one,” he urged with a mischievous chuckle.

Contrary to conventional expectations, the black-bearded knight priced the male Featherbloom Sprites higher instead of the other way round.

While this might seem perplexing, the brawny knight displayed shrewdness beyond common perception.

He understood the formidable purchasing power of female mages compared to male knights and mages.

The experiments of mages were often tedious and time-consuming, and the notion of an obedient and charming Featherbloom Sprite providing assistance and companionship after such experiments appealed to their desires, regardless of gender.

The knight’s pricing strategy could indeed be criticized as “opportunistic”.

Despite the outward beauty of the Featherbloom Sprites, the actual cost the black-bearded knight spent procuring them back to the Magus World was a mere one or two magicoins.

After all, the Featherbloom Sprites were not creatures of Rank One and above. They were just as common as humans in the Magus World.

Their only appeal lay in their identity as an otherworldly creature exotic to this world.

Sein was merely one of the onlookers. Although he could afford them, he had no desire of getting ripped off.

Other knights and mages in the crowd with considerable strength or knowledge showed no attempt in purchasing the sprites either.

The first two patrons turned out to be two relatively young male magic initiates who bought a female Featherbloom Sprite each.

“Magicoins are rare and precious currency, even for full-fledged knights and mages. Those two magic initiates actually have the financial resources to purchase these otherworldly creatures? I guess they must have some connections and backing behind them,” Sein thought to himself as he observed the two intermediate magic initiates walking away from the store, noting the expensive robes they were wearing.

***

After wandering around the island for some time, Sein eventually reached the entrance of the divine tower located on the central island.

This served as one of the main passages to the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring, and the initiates who had traveled on the same airship as Sein entered the tower through this passage.

Initially, Sein had intended to explore the other smaller island on the outskirts, but he discovered that he lacked the qualification to visit as it was exclusively for individuals of Rank One and above.

Nevertheless, the island he was currently on had several experts of Rank One and above engaging in the trade and selling goods.

In fact, the black-bearded knight selling otherworldly slaves was a full-fledged knight with formidable strength.

When Sein arrived at the entrance of the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring, he realized that it was in a closed state. Apart from the two full-fledged mages on duty, no one else was allowed nearby.

One of the mages, noticing Sein’s approach, scolded, “Initiate, the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring strictly prohibits unrelated outsiders from entering!”

Sein could clearly feel the oppressive aura of the full-fledged mage who reprimanded him.

Even so, Sein maintained composure. He withstood his oppressive aura and explained, “I am an initiate who has come to join the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring Academy for further education.”

Sein’s demeanor surprised the two full-fledged mages.

The female mage among them softened her tone and clarified, “The academy isn’t accepting right now. If you wish to join the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring Academy, you’ll have to wait for another two years.”

Sein found comfort in her gentler tone.

He then presented his Divine Light Badge and stated, “Master Medich from the Divine Tower of Dawn recommended me here. He said to use this as a letter of reference.”