Sovereign of the Ashes

When Sein finally remerged after secluding himself in the laboratory for six months, the Verdant Leaf World War had taken a new turn.

As expected, the tide of the conflict had steadily turned in favor of the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring, whose legion boasted a growing advantage.

Gone were the days of devastating losses.

Now, under the overwhelming force of the Magus World Army, the elite troops of the Verdant Leaf World had been decimated several times. The native creatures in the western part of the main continent had largely been subdued and posed little threat to the advancing forces of the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring.

In a bold move, the centaurs deployed an additional one hundred thousand centaurs and two hundred thousand minotaurlings from their ranks, staking their entire tribe’s fortune on the conflict.

In a strategic escalation, the Centauri clan drew an additional 100,000 centaurs and 200,000 minotaurling slaves from their ranks—a gamble that risked their entire fortune but ultimately proved to be the right move, yielding substantial profits.

This gamble ultimately proved to be the correct decision, and also a highly profitable one!

Recognizing the contributions of the centaur tribe, Lorianne promised the Maya Tribe a greater share of the post-war spoils.

Although the tribe had indeed brought significant reinforcements, there had been no further intense battles to be fought.

The only major conflict occurred when they faced an army of one million Bamboo Leaf Dragonflies upon their initial descent into Verdant Leaf World.

Due to the presence of the three demigod-level Sea Kings in that battle, the Maya Tribe suffered minimal losses.

To prevent the divine tower from going back on their word and to secure their position, the centaurs and minotaurlings of the Maya Tribe were now actively engaged on the front lines, contributing the best they could.

Their efforts allowed the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring Army to press forward.

Of course, Sein knew that the divine tower would not retract their terms. After all, a Rank Four tower master should not go back on their word so easily.

The true value of the Maya Tribe’s entitlement did not lie in the extent of their contributions to the Verdant Leaf World War, but rather in their steadfastness and resolve.

At a critical juncture, they wisely aligned their entire tribe’s fate with the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring, betting everything on this alliance.

Regardless of the post-war gains, the Maya Tribe’s sacrifices and actions justified their rewards.

The Maya Tribe had compelling reasons to persevere.

Having committed hundreds of thousands of centaurs and minotaurlings to the early stages of the Verdant Leaf World War, they faced dire prospects. Withdrawing now, after such heavy losses and potentially ending up with nothing, would spell disaster for their tribe.

In such circumstances, their only viable option was to continue fighting!

The Maya tribes had quite a number of enemies in the Centaurworld. On top of that, the Rank Four centaur god supporting them was relatively weak.

Hence, both the tribe and the centaur god hoped to gain the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring’s support.

After leaving the magic tower, Sein’s new assignment was to join the eastern battlefield, participating in the campaign against the Bamboo Leaf Dragonflies and other native creatures of Verdant Leaf World.

By coincidence, as Sein headed to the command center to accept his mission, he bumped into his mother-in-law, Sia, who had just returned from her assignment.

Though Natalya lacked the delicate beauty of Selina and others, she was a decent-looking woman. Otherwise, she would not have earned labels like “flower in the Order of the Steel Fist” or “a rose with thorns”.

In terms of personality, Natalya inherited her mother’s carefree and straightforward nature.

Conversely, Sein’s father-in-law, Wilson, was a refined man with a handsome face.

It was clear that Natalya had inherited part of her father’s genes as Sia’s beauty paled slightly in comparison to that of her daughter.

Moreover, Sia was not as toned as her daughter and exuded a mature allure distinctive of her age.

Throughout Sein’s engagement, Sia proved herself both capable and reliable.

However, Sein discovered that she could also be surprisingly unreliable in certain respects.

He had learned from Natalya her mother had been the mastermind of those terrible schemes, and she even encouraged her daughter to take advantage of Sein on multiple occasions.

Natalya had essentially exposed Sia by revealing these secrets to Sein. When it came down to choosing between her husband and her mother, Natalya decisively chose Sein.

This decision might have also been influenced by the timing of Sein’s questions, posed during their intimate moments in bed.

Unaware of her daughter’s betrayal, Sia greeted Sein with a forced smile at the command center, inquiring about his recent health.

Over the past year, the Rank Three Sky Knight had been awkward around her son-in-law due to guilt.

Should Sein reveal the past incident, her reputation within the order could be jeopardized, and others would perceive her differently.

Sein returned Sia’s greetings with a roll of his eyes.

Although he never directly confronted her, he consistently maintained a cold demeanor toward her.

Sia had a rounder and perkier rear compared to Natalya, likely a result of her age or perhaps motherhood.

The size of her chest was difficult to gauge, but the ample fit of her silver armor suggested it couldn’t be too small.

Sein felt a sudden urge to kick Sia in the ass. Perhaps it was a fleeting impulse ignited by his recent verdant flame body tempering experiment.

Under normal circumstances, Sein would have controlled his irritation and resisted the urge to roll his eyes at her.

Clearly perceiving Sein’s visible displeasure, Sia found herself at a loss for how to repair the rift with her son-in-law.

While Sein continued to stare at her silently, Sia awkwardly said, “Uh, I just remembered that Master Archimedes is looking for me, I’ll take my leave now.”

With that, she hurriedly left, swaying her rear slightly as she moved out of Sein’s sight.

Sein took a deep breath, repressing his anger before flying eastward.

***

Meanwhile in the Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly Royal City...

The Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly King, having assumed his role only six months prior, visited its ancestor, Lantz, in their ancestral lands.

This was its fourth visit in half a year.

With the frontlines of Verdant Leaf World in disarray and Lantz nursing his severe injuries, rest was a luxury.

Two months ago, Lantz had summoned his strength for another direct assault, repelling a charge led by one of the demigod-level Sea Kings.

However, this effort merely delayed the inevitable, doing little to shift the overall tide of war.

“The guardian has sent two more drops of its heart essence, but it also spoke of something more pressing,” said the Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly King, its voice tinged with unease.

“What is it?” Lantz asked, lifting its head in the stone hall.

“The guardian reported a disturbance in the north,” the Bamboo Leaf Dragonfly King replied, quivering slightly.