Sovereign of the Ashes

After Marie shared her story, Sein recounted his experiences too.

Upon hearing about Sein reuniting with his family, Marie’s eyes lit up with a genuine smile.

Yet, the smile quickly turned into astonishment when Sein told her about his achievements, including his acceptance as an apprentice by the Tower Master of Verdant Spring after securing first place in the regional academy war.

THUD!

“OWWWW!” An unexpected yelp of pain from the next table interrupted them.

It turned out that Angie, Marie’s junior, had been so focused on eavesdropping on them that she lost her balance and fell off her high stool.

The adorable and energetic thirteen-year-old girl was accepted as an apprentice by Master Monroe possibly due to familial connections.

Both Marie and Angie were Master Monroe’s only two remaining apprentices.

Marie was the fifth apprentice of the renowned apothecary in the Divine Tower of Dawn.

With the passing of her four seniors, Marie naturally stepped into the position of the eldest senior, with Angie, who was always following her around, becoming her junior.

Despite Master Monroe’s youthful appearance, she was actually over five hundred years old, just like Master Medich.

Although she was an expert in apothecary, Master Monroe’s mentorship had seen limited success, with none of her earlier apprentices reaching Rank One.

Marie was her remaining hope for breaking this streak. Should Marie fail to break through to Rank One, it was likely that Master Monroe would reconsider taking on any new apprentices.

“I’m sure you’ll become a full-fledged mage, Marie! Don’t you have a bottle of Laurent Water in your lab? That reward from the divine tower for your efforts in the regional academy war will surely help you!” Angie remarked, her eyes twinkling with mischief.

With a resigned roll of her eyes, Marie picked Angie up and seated her beside her.

Angie was only eight when she arrived at the Divine Tower of Dawn. She had spent the last five years under Marie’s care.

Master Monroe was usually too busy with her research to look after Angie, leaving Marie to fill the role of Angie’s caregiver most of the time.

Now in her forties, Marie was a gentle woman like Selina.

Despite Angie’s evident mischief, Sein could see the genuine affection Marie held for her in her gaze.

“Hey, are you really the apprentice of a divine tower master? That explains your early promotion to full-fledged mage!” Angie fearlessly gazed up at Sein while huddled up next to Marie.

Sein maintained a general indifference towards children and teenagers. He neither held a particular fondness for them nor any dislike toward them.

He met Angie’s bold stare with a calm gaze, causing the girl to cling to Marie’s clothes.

“Grrrr, don’t you dare take my senior sister away,” Angie warned indignantly in her child-like voice.

Her random threat nearly caused Sein to choke on his bitter coffee, while Marie, caught between exasperation and amusement, pulled the tip of Angie’s left ear.

***

Despite spending nearly three decades apart, Sein sensed that his friendship with Marie remained intact.

However, a certain distance and unfamiliarity had inevitably crept in between them.

Given time, the distance between them would likely fade away, considering the strength of their bond.

After all, the friendship forged over more than ten years at the Black Magic Academy in Mystralora City was undoubtedly more profound than any relationship formed within the divine tower academy.

Regrettably, Sein had no intention of staying too long at the Divine Tower of Dawn. He planned to resume his journey after meeting her.

Sein was uncertain when he would see her again, given his allegiance to the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring and Marie’s to the Divine Tower of Dawn.

“Hey! Tell me about your adventures in the Viridian Venom Flame World! Last time I was home, my grandpa shared his otherworldly experience, but somehow, I think you’d tell it better,” Angie said.

“And also, did you bring her back from that world? She doesn’t look like she’s from the Magus World.” Angie gestured toward Yuri who was seated nearby.

Marie’s junior was truly a self-assured girl.

She often interrupted Sein and Marie’s conversation, demonstrating her keen observations and knowledge that were remarkable for her age.

Her ability to recognize Yuri as an extraplanar creature despite being a junior initiate was impressively astute.

When Sein was only a junior initiate, he spent most of his time diligently practicing a Minor Fireball spell. Knowledge of extraplanar worlds was definitely not something he had access to during that stage.

Sein chose to ignore Angie’s interjection. Unlike Master Medich, he was not a very patient man with a lot of kindness to spare.

Although Angie was indeed an adorable girl, Sein did not think of her as one due to her mischievous behavior.

Angie puffed up her cheeks, expressing her disappointment at being ignored.

Marie ignored the brat’s antics for the time being as she sensed Sein’s impending departure and wished to make the most of their brief time together.

“Did you ever run into Bousse back in Mystralora City?” Sein asked.

Along with Marie, Bousse was one of the few friends Sein had made during his days as a black magic initiate.

Therefore, he was genuinely concerned about Bousse’s fate.

“No, I think Bousse was likely at his store. Unfortunately, the district where his store was located was one of the first to be engulfed by the underground lava. Even before that, a particularly intense resistance battle had erupted there,” Marie responded, her face turning somber.

The thought that Bousse, their mutual friend, might have perished in Mystralora City weighed heavily on their hearts.

“Then what about...”

Just as Sein was about to continue, a commotion outside the cafe caught their attention.

A group of magic initiates entered, all displaying considerable strength, with senior initiates and Quasi Mage among them.

The group’s leader was a tanned male initiate with a scar across his face.

Upon spotting Marie and Sein seated in one corner of the cafe, his expression turned to one of sadness and anger.

“Uh-oh, here we go again,” Angie mumbled to herself.

“Marie, did you reject me to go on a date with this guy?” the tanned male initiate demanded angrily.

Since Sein was an outsider in the Divine Tower of Dawn, he had cast an Aura Restraint spell on himself to maintain a low profile.

The tanned male initiate obviously did not possess detection abilities through water molecules like the aquatic beings Sein had dissected before, so he mistook Sein for another young man trying to win Marie’s heart.

Since Sein had been promoted to a Rank One mage, he looked slightly younger than Marie in appearance.

Time spared no one, and Marie, now in her forties, had barely visible faint lines at the corners of her eyes.

Sein, on the other hand, appeared to be in his twenties. Typically, someone his age would most likely be an intermediate initiate and seldom advancing beyond a senior initiate.

Facing the male initiate’s accusation, Marie showed indifference, while Sein remained unfazed.

“You... didn’t purposely pick this place for us to talk, did you?” Sein asked Marie through voice transmission.

Although Marie could not communicate through mental focus since she was still a magic initiate, having two full-fledged mages as mentors allowed her to remain calm when she suddenly heard Sein’s voice in her mind.

She leaned closer to Sein and whispered to him in a barely audible voice, “Help me out, this guy’s been driving me crazy. While there are other annoying people in the divine tower academy, none is as persistent as him.”

Marie’s request brought Sein a wave of nostalgia, transporting him back several decades to a time when their friendship was equally warm and effortless.

Without Marie’s antidote back then, Sein would have perished in the underground world.

Besides, this was just a simple act of kindness, Sein saw no reason to refuse her request.

However, before Sein could take any action, the male initiate let out a sorrowful groan.

The sight of Marie leaning so closely against Sein, whispering in such a familiar manner, was a scenario Kled had longed for but never lived.

With Angie seated on the other side of Marie, the three of them looked like a happy family, making Kled feel as though he was a third wheel or in this case, a fourth wheel.