Sovereign of the Ashes

Of the twenty-seven Star Cores, Sein ended up with at least four or five!

In the Clash of Civilizations, nothing was more thrilling than dividing the spoils and claiming rewards for one’s merits.

Since the surprise assault on Nocchi had been Sein’s idea, it was only fair that he received part of this supply transit hub’s wealth and resources.

On top of that, he had completed the mission assigned to him by the higher-ups of Magus World.

He would also receive his mission reward once he reported it in.

After back-to-back battles and constant dangers beyond his control, Sein could finally let his tense nerves unwind and let out a sigh of relief.

The Clash of Civilizations still raged on, but after all he had endured and contributed, asking for leave to recover in Magus World for a few centuries, or even a millennium, would not be unreasonable.

***

Once the battle for Nocchi ended, Sein did not bother joining the scramble to loot the supply transit planet.

Instead, after securing a war airship, he flew straight to the safe zone behind Magus World’s frontlines.

Like Welks, who had not rushed to claim the wreck of the Rank Five mobile suit destroyed on Black Tide Plane, Sein was in no hurry to secure his share of the spoils.

He knew it would come to him in due time. Every contribution he had made was already recorded in the battle logs and his crystal ball.

When it came to spoils and profit-sharing, Magus World always prided itself on fairness, justice, and transparency.

That was the strength of a thriving, ever-rising top-tier civilization, one whose potential for growth was still vast.

For now, Sein’s priority was to board the war airship and report back to the rear base in Magus World. He needed to deliver a full account of his infiltration into the Gallant Federation and submit a complete record of his mission to the Magus Alliance’s high command.

As for the Huusian King and the federal scientists bound by his soul control, Sein left them in the care of Clint and the others for now.

The only one he brought along was the Rank Four intelligent robot, Sky Tyrant.

After fighting side by side for so long, Sein had grown much closer to these Magus World powerhouses.

That was how networks were built—through time and shared experience.

He believed that by the next Magus Alliance Conference, he would not be standing there barely knowing anyone like he had the last time.

And if by then he had juniors or apprentices of his own, it would be the perfect chance to introduce them to the network he had built.

***

With war airships for transport and the Magus Civilization’s long-range teleportation arrays deployed across the star domains, Sein made it back to the deep rear of Magus territory with ease after passing identity verification.

It was clear that Magus World had prepared extensively for this Clash of Civilizations.

Those cross-star domain and cross-planar teleportation arrays saved him a tremendous amount of time and trouble.

On his way back to the Magus Civilization’s rear base, Sein saw more than once the backup legions and allied forces being deployed.

Space fortresses and prism forts filled the skies of Magus World’s territory, most already bound for the frontlines against the Gallant Federation.

The sheer volume of supplies being pushed forward was staggering. Compared to that massive logistical effort, the resources taken from Nocchi suddenly felt insignificant.

It was also during this journey that Sein picked up some intel.

Back on Black Tide Plane, all he had cared about was escaping alive and then saving Sky Tyrant. He had not bothered to ask Clint or the others about the broader state of the war between the Magus Civilization and the Gallant Federation.

Now that he was safe, he could finally breathe easier and pay attention to the bigger picture.

Even so, the tension hanging over the entire Magus Civilization was undeniable.

This was, after all, a clash between two top-tier civilizations, and victory was anything but certain.

Sure enough, not long after his return, Sein heard two pieces of bad news.

The first was about Netherworld’s rebellion!

The Magus Civilization’s deployments in that star domain had collapsed completely, with many allied legions wiped out.

Now the Magus Civilization was being forced to set up a second defensive line in the Sanoras Star Domain to block the Gallant Federation’s vanguard fleet, all because of Netherworld’s betrayal.

The second was the rebellion of the Grand Eye Demon World.

The Rank Seven overlord, the Evileye Tyrant Monarch, had led it into open defection, catching the Magus Civilization completely off guard.

Although the Grand Eye Demon World was not directly on the frontline with the Gallant Federation, it was still an allied plane relatively close to the front.

The Magus Civilization had stored massive reserves of supplies and stationed legions there.

While the Grand Eye Demon World’s rebellion did not cost the Magus Civilization hundreds of millions of allied troops as the disaster in the Netherworld Star Domain had, its defection and the betrayal of its Rank Seven overlord still threw the Magus Civilization’s entire strategic balance in that star domain and its surrounding regions into chaos.

Even so, millions of elite Magus World troops had been lost in the early stages of that rebellion. Several Rank Six knights and mages had fallen as well, and rumor had it that the Evileye Tyrant Monarch’s sneak attack had left an allied overlord gravely wounded.

The pain inflicted by the Grand Eye Demon World’s betrayal cut deeper than even the staggering losses in the Netherworld Star Domain.

On the Netherworld front, the worst casualties had been borne by billions of lesser allied creatures deployed as expendable cannon fodder.

Their loss stirred little grief within the Magus Civilization.

But the situation around the Eye Demon World was different. The forces destroyed there were not expendable legions, but the Magus Civilization’s own elites.

It was rumored that several powerful Magus World overlords had sworn openly to wipe out Eye Demon World in vengeance.

The Eye Demons reacted quickly. While bracing against Magus Civilization’s furious counterattacks, they also reached out to the Gallant Federation, seeking aid from its frontline fleets.

For the Magus Civilization, the defected Grand Eye Demon World had become a tough, rotten nut to crack.

Sein, however, believed retaliation against the Eye Demons could wait. The more pressing concern was their defeat in the Netherworld Star Domain.

That battlefield was one of the main fronts against the Gallant Federation. Allowing the federation’s main forces to advance unchecked there would spell disaster.

He understood this, and so did every other high-ranking leader of Magus World.

Thus, while Magus World hurled threats and promises of vengeance at the Grand Eye Demon World, its real focus remained on Netherworld.

Word soon spread that Odin, the mightiest extraplanar overlord of the alliance, worshiped in Titan World as the “God of Gods”, had already marched toward the Sanoras Star Domain with tens of millions of titans behind him.

Odin had no choice but to step in.

Titan World lay just behind the Sanoras Star Domain, and he preferred to keep the war contained outside his home star domain.

Clad in his Thunder God Armor and wielding Gungnir, Odin swore to Lady Bev—host of the 25th Magus Alliance Conference and one of Magus World’s high command—that the Federation’s vanguard fleet would never push past the Burning Sanoras Star Domain!

Many of the Magus Civilization’s Rank Four and above knights and mages felt reassured by his vow.

The loyalty of Titan World and its role as a core beneficiary of the Magus Alliance stood in stark contrast to the treachery of Netherworld and the Grand Eye Demon World.

In terms of strength, that Evileye Tyrant Monarch was not even fit to shine Odin’s boots.

If Odin himself had been stationed near Eye Demon World at the time, the Evileye Tyrant Monarch would have thought twice before attempting a rebellion.