Sovereign of the Ashes

Bringing Kelman Grantt to the main battlefield on the western front was, naturally, for his own good.

Sein was well aware of Jeremy and Julius’ intentions with this decision.

The western front was on the brink of erupting into the grandest battle Sein had experienced since joining the Thunderfall World War.

However, it was likely the safest place because the Order of the Steel Fist had concentrated the majority of its troops there.

In contrast, at the Thunder Marsh camp, all the knights had been redeployed, leaving only a group of both lightly and seriously injured people behind.

Should the creatures of Thunderfall World decide to split their forces and attack here along with the frontline battlefields, the situation could become dire.

Leaving Kelman here might actually put him in danger.

Moving him to the western front would be safer, where Sein, Julius, and Jeremy could watch over him.

After talking with Jeremy, Sein heeded his advice and planned a visit to the fortress command center at the Thunder Marsh camp.

In terms of treatment in interplanar war, Rank One mages and Rank Two mages were on entirely different levels.

Since Sein had been promoted to Rank Two, it was both to his advantage and in the interest of the fortress to assign him war missions that better matched his capabilities.

Therefore, it was crucial for Sein to report his breakthrough to the fortress command center.

Additionally, many terms of the magic contract he signed before the war needed to be updated.

In this regard, the Order of the Steel Fist demonstrated commendable fairness to external support mages like Sein.

After all, if their reputation were to falter, no one would be willing to participate in the interplanar wars organized by their knightly order in the future.

Before leaving, Jeremy called out to Sein once more.

He seemed eager to share something, yet his expression was complex and troubled.

“What’s wrong?” Sein asked.

“Uh...” Jeremy hesitated for a moment, then with a decisive stomp of his foot, he revealed, “Your fiancee is here. She’s been at the Thunder Marsh camp for almost two months now, clearly looking for you.”

“Although both of our families have agreed to this marriage, your fiancee didn’t seem too pleased about it. She even had a heated argument with Cleona upon her arrival,” Jeremy confessed, spilling all the beans.

Jeremy’s revelation took Sein by surprise.

He paused, racking his brain before he finally recalled who his “fiancee” was.

Over the past year, Sein had immersed himself so deeply in breaking through to Rank Two that he had almost forgotten about this fiancee of his.

Now that Sein thought about it, he did not even know her name.

He only knew she came from the House Ernst and possessed the strength of a Rank Two Land Knight.

With an impassive expression, Sein nodded calmly and responded, ”Got it.”

He was unfazed by the female knight’s displeasure; after all, he had no intention of marrying a stranger, even if she was a Rank Two knight.

Nevertheless, Sein needed to finalize the establishment of the interplanar spatial passage with Leena as soon as possible.

Once that was done, and he brought Leena to House Grantt to meet the elders, perhaps they would stop with the marriage arrangements.

Unbeknownst to Jeremy, Sein was planning to introduce his wife to House Grantt.

Seeing Sein’s overly calm demeanor, Jeremy decided it was time to share what he had heard, to prepare Sein for potential issues.

Jeremy had a responsibility to protect the younger members of his family.

Moreover, House Ernst was clearly at fault in this matter.

“Ahem, there’s something else I need to tell you about your fiancée,” Jeremy began softly.

Sein raised an eyebrow, curious about what Jeremy would reveal next.

“Uh... that female knight doesn’t have a very good reputation. Someone also heard that she was involved in a scandal, with another woman on top of that,” Jeremy added, blinking at Sein nervously.

Sein blinked back at him speechlessly.

***

The fortress command center at Thunder Marsh camp was pleasant to deal with.

Upon confirming Sein’s promotion to Rank Two, they quickly agreed to modify his contract.

The only major change was the number of years Sein had to commit to the war in the Thunderfall World.

Initially, upon arriving in Thunderfall World, Sein signed a ten-year contract, a standard duration for interplanar wars.

Despite achieving a life level of Rank One or beyond, mages were human and susceptible to fatigue if a conflict extended beyond a decade.

Moreover, Sein was not registered with the Order of the Steel Fist. Unbound to this knightly order, he should be entitled to breaks and rotation out of combat.

This time, the Order of the Steel Fist proposed a fifteen-year contract for Sein.

Including the last two years he had already served, this meant Sein would need to stay another thirteen years in Thunderfall World.

In response, the official representative from the Order of the Steel Fist extended his apologies and offered Sein a significantly improved deal on many terms.

This adjustment clearly showed the order’s desperate need for external supporting knights and mages in the ongoing war.

The extension of the contract duration likely also reflected the order’s grim outlook on the future of the Thunderfall World War.

Given that Sein had spent the past year secluded in the laboratory, striving for a breakthrough without success, he nodded and readily agreed to the extended term of the war contract.

Unlike Sein, the three knights from House Grantt—Julius, Jeremy, and Kelman—were not allowed to leave the war after a set period.

They were bound by the duration of the war as registered knights of the order, tied to this low-level plane until the end of the Thunderfall World War.

The contract negotiations on behalf of the Order of the Steel Fist were handled by a blond Rank One knight.

After Sein affixed his magical seal to the document, the knight extended his hand with a sincere smile and said, “Thank you, Master Sein. Let’s continue to give our best in this war.”

“Likewise,” Sein responded, shaking hands with the knight.

The handshake, a common courtesy among knights, remained an awkward formality for him. As a mage, he preferred bowing.

After departing from the fortress command center, Sein planned to visit his father before exploring the fortress market.

He was eager to discover if any new materials or biological specimens from Thunderfall World had appeared over the past year.

However, before Sein could take to the skies, a massive sword with a chilling, black-striped blade hurtled down from above and impaled itself in the ground right in front of him.

BOOM!

Smoke and dust billowed from the impact site.

The sword, measuring about three meters in length—taller than even Sein—was a formidable magic weapon.

Its blade, half-buried in the hard floor, caused the ground to tremble upon impact.

“Are you Sein?” an androgynous voice called from above.