Sovereign of the Ashes

Among the over five hundred full-fledged mages of the Divine Tower of Ashes, more than a hundred were recruited in recent years.

About seventy or so were raised in the Divine Tower of Ashes over the past two hundred years.

Because of their humble origins, these full-fledged mages were required to serve the Divine Tower of Ashes for at least three hundred years after signing their contracts.

There was no way around it—effort and reward go hand in hand.

The Divine Tower of Ashes had invested vast resources into cultivating these mages, so it was only natural that they repay the tower's investment.

That said, these mages were not treated as free labor after signing a contract with the Divine Tower of Ashes; they also received proper salaries from the tower.

The overall benefits provided by the Divine Tower of Ashes were actually quite good.

A divine tower grew and strengthened itself through these small yet important details.

The young mages trained by the divine tower academy often developed a stronger sense of belonging to the tower.

Even if they traveled across Magus World in the future, many of them would still keep their registered status with the Divine Tower of Ashes.

Perhaps one day, Sein's divine tower could even produce a demigod-level mage.

Sein and Marie'sconversationeffectively silenced Crist.

Just as Sein had suspected, Crist had no direct evidence linking him to the poaching of initiates.

In fact, it would be hard to convict Sein of such an offense.

Some high-ranking officials in the Alveroth Empire did not want to get involved. With the 25th Magus Alliance Conference around the corner and the Clash of Civilizations about to break out, who had time to worry about where a few initiates ended up?

The Alveroth Empire was vast and powerful. The initiates who ended up at Sein's Divine Tower of Ashes were just a drop in the ocean.

If it were not for the empire conducting a nationwide case review ahead of the 25th Magus Alliance Conference, they would not have uncovered the shady dealings at the Divine Tower of Ashes at all.

Crist did not come to seek justice for the commoner initiates who had been poached. He only wanted to confirm whether Sein was a black mage.

If Sein turned out to be a Rank Four black mage, that would have been a major problem.

Not only the Alveroth Empire, but the Magus Alliance would also send powerful enforcers to take action against Sein.

If it were ever proven that Sein was a Rank Four black mage brazenly poaching initiates on the Magus Continent, a private suite in the deepest part of Atlan Interstellar Prison would be reserved for him!

And he would not be getting out for at least ten thousand years.

Violating the laws of the Magus Alliance was a serious crime!

However, since arriving in Ashenreach, Crist's view of Sein had changed a lot based on what he had seen and heard.

This might be a Rank Four mage who had exploited the Alveroth Empire to gain initiates, but Sein was definitely not a black mage.

Besides, the crackdown on black mages in Ashenreach was clearly still underway.

Based on the Alveroth Empire's investigation, along with divinations from several astrologers, Sein was not a Rank Four black mage.

He was part of a legitimate faction, had a legitimate status, and had even received a wisp of plane light back when he was an initiate.

A Rank Four mage like that was seen as exceptional, which was why the higher-ups in the Alveroth Empire had no interest in pursuing the matter further.

Inspector Crist did not take up much of Sein's time. Once he got permission for enforcement and investigation in Ashenreach, he and his team departed right away.

That group of about two hundred inspectors would likely stay in Ashenreach for several decades, working to uncover the initiate smuggling network and track down the Rank Two mage named Bousse, who was the main suspect in the case.

Sein nodded in agreement and made a reasonable request of Crist.

"If you don't mind, could you help clean up the black mages around here? I'm sure you know the guardians forbid Rank Four and above from openly fighting in the Magus World. Since your team has enforcement authority, you should be able to step in, right?" Sein asked.

"Of course. If we happen to run into those troublemakers, we'll gladly help clean them up for you, Master Sein," Crist replied with a hint of resignation.

After watching Crist and his team leave, Sein stood quietly, watching their figures fade into the distance.

Only when they had disappeared from sight did he lift his right hand and whisper something to the silver spider ring on his finger.

Soon, the divine tower masters gathered around. The Tower Master of Lava Volcano asked, "Is everything alright?"

"Yes, they're just investigating some black mage activity. You know how chaotic Ashenreach can be," Sein replied.

The others nodded. The Tower Master of Crimson Golden Dragon clicked his tongue and said, "These folks from the Magic Empire sure like to meddle in everything. Master Sein is already dealing with the black mage activity in Ashenreach. Why are they sticking their noses in?"

"If they really hate black mages that much, why don't they clean up the outskirts of Blackhaven first?" he added.

The Tower Master of Crimson Golden Dragon came across as a blunt, straightforward type, but the other tower masters agreed with what he said.

The powerhouses of the Byrne Empire had always had a strained relationship with those of the Alveroth Empire, probably because of the long-standing rivalry between the two empires.

The Byrne Empire was the closest to Ashenreach, yet even its top factions had not interfered much in the Darwell Region. So why were those from the Magic Empire sticking their nose into the business here?

"It's just a routine investigation, no need to worry about it. Let us continue observing this year's regional academy war," Sein suggested with a smile.

While talking with the other tower masters, he shot a reassuring glance at Marie, who stood beside him.

***

This Regional Inter-Divine Tower Academy War lasted a total of three years and four months.

There were no major surprises and no emergence of Despairers.

The so-called Despairers were initiates capable of fighting at a level beyond an ordinary initiate, powerful enough to threaten even Rank One or higher creatures.

Such talents were incredibly rare, with maybe one appearing every few hundred years. So it was no surprise that none showed up in this academy war.

That said, there were plenty of phenomenal initiates. Surprisingly, many of them came from Sein's Divine Tower of Ashes.

As a first-time participant in the regional academy war, the Divine Tower of Ashes definitely made waves.

In terms of total points, the Divine Tower of Ashes ranked second, just behind the Divine Tower of Lava Volcano.

But when it came to average score, the Divine Tower of Ashes claimed first place!

Their performance easily outshone that of the Divine Tower of Hosta, which was also competing in the academy war for the first time.

The Tower Master of Hosta, wearing his signature noble perfume of the Byrne Empire, looked rather dismayed when the results were announced.

After all, his divine tower academy had placed at the bottom of the rankings in both categories.

The individual with the highest score was a Cryomancer from the Divine Tower of Flowlight Waterfall.

But second and third place both went to initiates from the Divine Tower of Ashes.

Marie's foresight before the war proved spot on—Kayne and Emia took those two top spots.

Despite being a senior initiate and missing an arm, Emia outperformed dozens of Quasi Mages during the war.

Her talent and combat skills were truly outstanding.