Sovereign of the Ashes

As a low-level plane, the Mirage Wurm World possessed unique characteristics in its planar laws and the domains wielded by its Rank Five native creatures.

However, this plane was not known for its defensive strength.

In that regard, it could not compare to Radbow World, which was protected by three planar rings.

Sein had spent a total of five years in the Mirage Wurm World.

With his Faceless Mask, he was able to shatter the Mirage Wurm King’s illusions and assist the others in gravely wounding the king.

After securing victory for the Magus Civilization on this front, he was nearly ready to depart.

Jimmy and the others seemed especially interested in the origin laws wielded by the Mirage Wurm King.

They could have easily killed the creature, yet they chose the far more troublesome approach of capturing it alive.

Sein had provided considerable assistance during this time.

Jimmy had explained that conquering the Mirage Wurm World was merely to pave the way for an assault on the medium-sized Sapphire Scorpionfly Plane.

But it soon became clear that he had his own personal motives as well.

The Clash of Civilizations was public business, but the private ambitions of these law-wielding knights and mages were personal matters.

Yet when all those ambitions came together, they turned into the Magus Civilization’s public affairs.

Sein, too, had his own ambitions, so he did not mind Jimmy pursuing his personal goals amidst the chaos of war.

Besides, Jimmy was not a man who kept everything for himself. Coming from a renowned merchant family within the Magus Civilization, he understood the importance of “sharing the spoils”.

By joining the battle in the Mirage Wurm World, Sein not only earned his due rewards from the Magus Alliance but also received an additional gift from Jimmy before his departure.

Inside a room specially reinforced by magic wards, Sein saw the Mirage Wurm King, restrained by countless chains of elemental energy.

Despite its name, the creature looked nothing like a wurm. In fact, it looked more like a colossal clam.

Its two enormous crimson shells were clamped tightly around its body.

After enduring relentless bombardment from the Magus Civilization’s powerhouses, its carapace was left riddled with scars.

Jimmy’s gift to Sein was a single Mirage Pearl, carefully extracted from the body of the Mirage Wurm King.

The pearl was golden, with faint crimson veins occasionally pulsing across its surface. It looked as though it had just been gouged out from the belly of the Mirage Wurm King.

Since the Mirage Wurm King possessed no divine relic, this pearl served as the very essence of its being, holding an incredibly dense concentration of illusion laws.

What made it even more remarkable was that this Mirage Pearl was a renewable resource!

As long as Master Jimmy could keep the Mirage Wurm King alive and well-fed, it would keep producing Mirage Pearls indefinitely.

The Mirage Wurm King had three pearls within it.

Only the one gifted to Sein had fully “matured”. The remaining two, as Master Jimmy put it, still needed more time to grow.

“I had my eye on it since the 24th Magus Alliance Conference, but the creature refused my trade offer back then. Now look at it—completely at my mercy.” Jimmy said, sneering coldly at the bound Mirage Wurm King.

Sein could not help showing a hint of surprise.

So Jimmy had been after this creature for a long time.

It made sense. The Mirage Wurm Plane had once been a member plane of the Magus Alliance, attached to the Grand Eye Demon World.

The Grand Eye Demon World had joined the alliance during either its 22nd or 23rd session.

By the alliance’s own rules, member planes were granted certain protections, so Jimmy could not simply force the Mirage Wurm King into a trade.

Sein had no interest in digging into Jimmy’s old grudges with the creature.

After receiving the valuable Mirage Pearl, he took his leave.

“The Magus Civilization will be waging war against the Sapphire Scorpionfly World next. Master Sein, you may lead your Divine Tower of Ashes legion to take part,” Jimmy suggested.

“The Sapphire Scorpionfly World is an excellent plane for producing enslaved creatures. Those flying scorpions fetch high prices in the Alveroth Empire. On top of that, it’s a prosperous medium-sized world, rich in energy gems.”

He paused before adding, “Of course, both the Gallant Federation and the Grand Eye Demon World have strong garrisons stationed there as well.”

The more Sein interacted with Jimmy, the clearer it became that the man was a merchant at heart rather than a mage devoted to the pursuit of truth.

Master Jimmy placed great emphasis on mutual benefit.

It was not that Sein disliked people like him; he simply found they did not share much common ground.

He held far more admiration for friends like Grimm and Angreas, even if their strength, status, and influence were far inferior to Jimmy’s.

Facing Jimmy’s invitation and goodwill, Sein replied calmly, “Whatever task the Magus Civilization assigns me, I’ll see it through.”

“My cooperation with you has been enjoyable, Master Jimmy. I look forward to fighting alongside you again someday,” he said.

Jimmy gave a slow, thoughtful nod in response.

***

After leaving the Mirage Wurm World, Sein brought Yuri straight back to Radbow World.

He did not apply to join the Magus Civilization’s next campaign against the Sapphire Scorpionfly Plane.

Instead, he remained in Radbow World, quietly awaiting new orders from the Magus Alliance.

Honestly, Sein was pretty exhausted. Since arriving on the battlefield in the star domain where the Grand Eye Demon World was, he had only rested for three years in total.

The grueling defensive battles that had stretched over two decades had drained him mentally.

And after fighting another five years in the Mirage Wurm World, his fatigue only deepened. The illusion laws wielded by the Mirage Wurm King had been formidable.

Tychus and Martini, the two knights who had guarded Radbow World alongside him, had both rotated out within the last two years. Rumor had it they had returned to Magus World to recuperate.

The mages of the Deep Blue Summoning Divine Tower had departed even earlier.

According to Marie, Grand Summoner Barron had personally visited Radbow World three years ago, hoping to thank Sein for taking care of his tower’s mages during the previous war.

Unfortunately, Sein had not been in Radbow World at the time.

Master Barron could only express his regret and promised to visit the Divine Tower of Ashes in person when the chance arose.

Among the other Rank Four beings who had once fought at his side, the Frost Crystal Silkworm had been reassigned to a demiplane in the rear. The Magus Civilization had also tasked it with recruiting a new legion from its homeplane.

The Huusians had yet to depart and remained stationed near Radbow World.

Aside from the Divine Tower of Ashes legions, another Rank Four knight had arrived at Radbow two years ago, leading his own forces.

It appeared he had been assigned as the replacement for Tychus and Martini.