Sovereign of the Ashes

“Huh? It worked? That went smoother than I anticipated,” Sein murmured as he approached Yuri, examining the pattern on her forehead, then glanced at the leftover magic materials.

At this point, Sein felt a connection between his mental focus and Yuri’s soul.

He could vaguely detect Yuri’s emotions and her discomfort at being made a soul slave.

Yet, the resistance within her seemed to have dissipated significantly due to the newly established bond between them.

It made sense, as the soul binding spell would not have succeeded otherwise.

The soul master-servant bond between Sein and Yuri was nascent, and his understanding of the Soul Enslavement magic was only at the surface level.

In time, as their soul bond solidified, Sein would be able to understand Yuri’s innermost thoughts with greater clarity.

Unfortunately, the bond was unequal, and this meant Yuri would not be able to read Sein’s thoughts.

The power dynamics were clear—Sein wielded control over her soul with his mental focus, rendering her completely subservient.

Sein could even decide Yuri’s fate with his thoughts alone.

From today onward, Yuri was his unequivocal possession. This dynamic was both peculiar and novel to them.

Sein attempted to manipulate Yuri’s actions through the soul binding spell, and was extremely pleased with the result.

Yuri found herself unable to defy Sein—she was completely dominated on a spiritual level. This realization caused her face to flush.

To others, they might have thought that Yuri was flushing with anger.

However, Sein, now intimately connected to Yuri through their soul bond, recognized it as a tangled web of emotions—a blend of shame, resignation, despair, anger, and oddly, elation!

“Mirage’s soul binding spell reportedly induces a sense of joy in the enslaved. We’ve only just established the soul master-servant bond and she’s already showing such a reaction? Well, I expected nothing less of work that cost me over seventy Arcane points. I better study that almanac further when I have the time,” Sein murmured to himself.

He beckoned Yuri, and the once haughty engineer came over with a mix of reluctance and shyness.

Sein noted a distinct scent emanating from Yuri.

Through his earlier research, he uncovered that virgins of the Neisse Civilization would secrete a unique scent through their sweat glands when they were under stress.

It was presumably a vestigial trait from their evolutionary past intended for mating and courtship.

As the Neisse Civilization advanced, this once-crucial evolutionary trait seemed to have diminished in significance since it had no relation to one’s capabilities.

“Can you still pilot a mecha?” Sein asked, pulling Yuri from her swirling emotions back to the present moment.

Her response was tinged with uncertainty. “It’s been nearly a decade since I’ve been in one. I’d need some time to reacquaint myself.”

It had been over four years since Sein brought Yuri back to the Magus World, marking a total of ten years since Yuri’s capture in the Viridian Venom Flame World and her last time piloting a mecha.

Sein nodded in understanding then asked, “Is that pink mecha of yours still operational? What’s the maximum number of mecha units you can control when you’re in your peak condition?”

“The Burning Flame Unit sustained heavy damage in the last conflict. Though it can still be powered on, its combat capability has been significantly reduced,” she replied.

“While I’m piloting it, I can still control either another three T-Type Combat Units or over a dozen Civilian-Type Units,” she continued.

The Burning Flame Unit was none other than the pink mecha Yuri used to pilot. It had been severely damaged, largely due to Sein’s actions.

The Neisse Civilization had produced many types of combat mecha. The T-Type Combat Unit was the type that Yuri was most familiar with due to her former extensive experience with them.

This diverse and advanced mecha arsenal showcased the Neisse Civilization’s glorious achievements as a major civilization.

As for the Civilian-Type Units... They made up over seventy percent of the two million-strong mecha army in the Viridian Venom Flame World war.

After suffering large-scale defeats and annihilation at the hands of the Magus World over millennia, the main military strength of the Neisse Civilization had been declining.

Deploying Civilian-Type Units was a desperate measure by the Neisse Civilization, driven to the brink as their resource-rich planes were seized and their manufacturing facilities were destroyed by the Magus World Army. The once-thriving mecha factories across the Neisse Star Domain now lay in ashes.

Nevertheless, the resilience of the Neisse Civilization, maintaining its existence amidst overwhelming odds, was nothing short of miraculous.

The Magus Civilization’s repeated attempts to assimilate them were actually motivated by a recognition of the Neisse Civilization’s unparalleled talent.

Sein gained a comprehensive overview of the Burning Flame Unit, T-Type Combat Units, and Civilian-Type Units from Yuri.

He also learned that the Burning Flame Unit was a mecha specially produced by the Neisse Civilization for Yuri. This was a privilege afforded to engineers who had achieved a life-level of Rank One and above.

The T-Type Combat Units, while mass-producible and equipped for battle, were the most inferior in terms of combat power.

Aside from engineers who had just been freshly promoted to Rank One, they were seldom the choice for more seasoned engineers.

As Sein had evaluated, Yuri’s combat power was on a par with those of peak Rank One or Rank Two, considering her ability to control three T-Type Combat Units while piloting her Burning Flame Unit.

However, her life level remained Rank One, and her constitution was far weaker than Sein’s.

The Neisser Civilization had its own promotion system and titles for engineers, yet Sein found it too cumbersome to delve into the specifics.

In an effort to diminish Yuri’s ties to the Neisse Civilization, he mandated that her engineer rank should directly correspond with her life level.