Sovereign of the Ashes

"What do you want now?!" the Spider Queen snapped impatiently.

But before Sein could respond, she sensed something and immediately conjured a flash of golden light in front of him. In the next moment, her divine clone materialized before him.

Being able to summon a clone so effortlessly came down to two key factors: first, they were inside the Magus World; and second, her temple was nearby.

If they had been on a foreign plane, even with the Silver Spider Ring, summoning a divine clone would have taken a considerable toll on the Spider Queen.

Once she appeared, the Spider Queen grabbed Sein's arm.

Closing her eyes, she focused for a few seconds, then opened them in surprise. "You've already advanced to Rank Four?"

Of course, she had not seen through the concealment of the Faceless Mask to figure this out. Rather, she sensed it through the Silver Spider Ring on Sein's hand.

The ring was no ordinary piece of jewelry, it was more like a living spider clinging to his finger.

Back when it was first forged, it had even bitten Sein, taking in a portion of his blood.

Because of the ring's real-time link and memory functions, the Spider Queen could more or less piece together what Sein had been through over the years.

However, when it came to his time on the Knight Continent, she could not see into it at all. Some special force had severed the connection between her and the ring at that time.

That also included the period when Sein entered the Faceless Secret Realm—those memories were missing from the ring's memory.

Sein's promotion to Rank Four had already left the Spider Queen astonished, but what puzzled her even more was that even while standing face-to-face with him, she could not sense the aura of a Rank Four being.

As sharp as ever, the Spider Queen immediately realized that something was off about the mask he was wearing.

Never one to hold back, she reached straight for Sein's face, trying to pull off the mask for a better look.

Her bold move ended the same way Lorianne's had years ago.

A streak of purple lightning instantly struck her hand.

Since Sein's ascension to Rank Four, more functions of the Faceless Mask had been unlocked for him, and the lightning it unleashed was far more powerful than before.

The Spider Queen's pale arm was charred black in an instant.

Things were different these days. Sein was no longer the insignificant figure the Spider Queen could push around.

Unless she descended in person, a single divine clone was no match for Sein while he wore the Faceless Mask.

No matter how powerful the Spider Queen's clone might be, it could only be as strong as an ordinary Rank Four being.

Even if she managed to tear off the Faceless Mask, there was nothing she could do to Sein from such a distance.

Watching her take a hit, Sein said innocently, "That wasn't me, it was the mask protecting its master on its own."

As a mid-tier world-class secret treasure, the Faceless Mask's internal energy was not infinite.

The purple lightning that had struck the Spider Queen's arm earlier had already drained a considerable portion of the mask's reserves.

In actual combat, the destructive spells Sein cast through the mask mostly relied on his own mana.

The Faceless Mask primarily served as a guide and amplifier for his spells, consuming only a small amount of its own energy.

Its energy could be replenished either with energy crystals or by drawing elemental energy from the surrounding environment.

Despite owning the mask for so long, Sein had never replenished it.

The mask's self-recovery function had always been enough.

That, of course, was partly because he had not yet experienced a prolonged, intense battle since acquiring it.

The mask reacted violently to the Spider Queen because it recognized her true form as that of a powerful Rank Six being.

After being electrocuted mercilessly by the mask, her divine clone had clearly sustained serious injury.

But she did not seem the least bit bothered by it. Holding her charred arm, she looked intrigued.

"Looks like you've been through quite a bit since leaving Blackhaven, haven't you?" she said.

Sein had indeed gone through a lot, but he had no interest in discussing any of it with the Spider Queen.

She had been eyeing his mask the entire time, but Sein had no intention of explaining anything about the Faceless Mask to her.

In his mind, the Spider Queen and Lorianne were two completely different kinds of women.

Skipping the small talk, Sein went straight to the question that had been weighing on him in recent years.

"Why Alveroth Empire? Shouldn't you consider Western Archipelago instead so you can stay closer to your little lover?" the Spider Queen teased, licking her scarlet tongue.

Rather than saying it was closer to Leena, it would be more accurate to say it was closer to the Spider Queen.

If Sein were to establish a divine tower within the Western Archipelago, the Spider Queen would definitely be a frequent visitor.

"Or you could go to the Darwell. That's a good option too. The faith I've spread there has grown quite well over the years," the Spider Queen continued.

"And it borders the Byrne Empire, with the relatively free southern coast to the south. If you set up a divine tower there, I could lend you a hand," she offered.

This time, the Spider Queen sounded more sincere.

Of course, no one should mistake her for someone who helped others out of kindness. She was only offering to help because she expected something in return.

Even after all this time in the Magus World and within the Magus Alliance, she still had not found a suitable spokesperson among the knights or mages of Rank Four or above.

Sein had been groomed as her aide since he was still Rank Three, and by now, she knew just about everything there was to know about him.

The better he fared, and the higher his status rose, the more it would benefit her.

It was a win-win situation.

Now that Sein had reached Rank Four, he had finally stepped into a position where he could stand on more equal footing with her.

Still, he did not make a decision right away after hearing her suggestion. He had only called her to hear her opinion to help him weigh the pros and cons.

In the end, the decision would be his alone to make.

Building a divine tower was no small matter. Even a minor misstep could lead to lifelong regret.

Some Rank Four mages had traveled the Magus World for centuries or even millennia before choosing where to build their divine tower.

That included Sein's mentor, Lorianne, who visited countless regions before finally settling in the Viridescent Land.

After spending so many years with him, the Spider Queen had come to understand his personality well.

Faced with his stubborn silence, she could only roll her eyes.

"By the way, didn't you say you'd give me a demigod-level Dark Elf Queen? Can you fulfill that promise now?" he asked

Sein was not asking out of lust. He was genuinely interested in the Dark Elves—a variant of the Elf race—and especially in a demigod-level Dark Elf Queen.

His research desire was practically boiling over.

"Once you've built your divine tower, I'll send her over. I'll even throw in a full squad of Dark Elf maids," the Spider Queen said smoothly.

"And if you are obedient enough—say, by letting me take a look at that mask—I might have anothernice giftfor you," she added with a chuckle.

Another empty promise. Sein had heard plenty of those from her before.

He just rolled his eyes at her.