Sovereign of the Ashes

If the failure of the first expedition to Athena World could be attributed to the Magus Civilization’s overconfidence and the enemy’s luck, then the failure of the second expedition required a better explanation.

When faced with a medium-sized planar civilization that had successfully repelled two invasions, the Magus World had two options.

The first was diplomacy—to attempt to make the Athena Plane an ally.

After all, a civilization capable of defeating the Magus Civilization twice, even if left heavily damaged and on the brink of collapse, was undeniably formidable.

Such strength made Athena World worthy of friendship and inclusion in the Magus Alliance.

The second option was annihilation—to send overlords or overmages to obliterate this medium-sized plane.

Critics might call this bullying or an unfair use of overwhelming power, but the Magus Civilization’s perspective was pragmatic.

If a plane refused alliance after two invasions and continued to resist, a demonstration of dominance became necessary.

Without such action, the Magus World risked being undermined in the eyes of surrounding star domains.

The fact that Athena World still existed, thriving as a member of the Magus Alliance with a robust economy, was thanks to the decision Empress Athena made back then.

After the second war, the Magus Civilization sent an envoy to Athena World.

It was Empress Athena’s resolute decision to lead her people into the Magus Alliance that saved her homeplane from annihilation.

At the time, many of the ordinary inhabitants of Athena World naively believed that under the leadership of their great and invincible empress, they could repel a third or even fourth invasion attempt from the Magus Civilization.

However, Empress Athena, who had traveled through neighboring star domains and ventured as far as several medium-sized ones, understood the real might of the civilization they were up against!

A frog at the bottom of the well could never comprehend the vastness of the Astral Realm.

Only by venturing beyond their plane could one truly understand how small they were in the grand scheme of things!

Empress Athena was undoubtedly the strongest individual in this medium-sized realm.

Despite her unparalleled strength, she demonstrated a level of humility and respect for greater powers that far surpassed that of her fellow Athenians, whose strength paled in comparison to hers.

Her willingness to bow before stronger forces, coupled with the acceptance of a series of contractual obligations that seemed burdensome at the time, brought much-needed peace to Athena World after centuries of relentless war.

A key factor in the Magus Civilization’s willingness to accept Athena World’s defection was Empress Athena’s restraint during the second war.

She had the opportunity to kill a Rank Six Magus World powerhouse but chose instead to show mercy, inflicting only severe injuries.

This intentional act of kindness paved the way for life and survival—not just for herself but for the civilization she led.

Had she slain a Rank Six knight or mage, even if the upper echelons of the Magus Civilization ultimately allowed Athena World to join the alliance, its people might have lived in constant fear within the Magus Alliance.

Empress Athena was undeniably a legendary foreign powerhouse.

Even Sein and Reina, creatures of Magus World newly arrived in Athena World, could not help but feel deep respect for this top Rank Six empress after learning about her extraordinary deeds and the wars that shaped this plane’s history.

In recent years, Athena World had experienced a rapid recovery with the Magus Alliance’s deliberate support and allocation of resources.

It had only been seven thousand years since the war, yet every trace of it had vanished from Athena World and its surrounding territories.

As a reward for Athena World’s unwavering loyalty over the years, the Magus Civilization assigned it control over several small star domains that had already been conquered.

Rumors suggested that a Rank Six Knight of the Ylli Knight Alliance, who had once faced Empress Athena in battle and been spared by her mercy, played a significant role in advocating for this reward!

Without his influence, Athena World might not have achieved its current level of development or integrated so smoothly into the Magus Alliance.

As an allied medium-sized world led by female warriors, Athena World—and its legendary empress—quickly became sources of inspiration for Reina and Natalya, the two Rank Two female knights newly arrived in this realm.

Given Athena World’s profound respect for martial arts, Reina and Natalya seized the opportunity to challenge its warriors on numerous occasions.

During her time here, Reina challenged two of Athena World’s Rank Three female warriors and emerged victorious in both battles.

Her strength left the Athenian female warriors, adorned in their colorful feathered armor, deeply impressed.

Natalya followed suit and challenged a Rank Three Athenian female warrior. The outcome was unsurprising—she was defeated.

Athena World did not appear to have developed an advanced alchemy or blacksmithing system.

The only items that briefly caught Sein’s interest were the metal saw wheels wielded by the Athenian warriors.

To Sein, the feathered armor they wore warriors seemed more decorative than practical.

To ensure fair competition, Natalya refrained from wearing her luxurious equipment during her duel.

Relying solely on her own strength, it was no surprise that she was defeated by a Rank Three Athenian female warrior.

It was worth mentioning that a rather amusing incident occurred during this time.

Sein, driven by an intense curiosity about the Athenians—especially their strong female warriors—developed a desire to study the muscle cells beneath their feathered armor.

When he mentioned hiring a Rank Three Athenian female warrior for some simple specimen collection experiments, his request was met with blatant rejection.

Even when he raised the compensation to an astonishing one thousand magicoins, not a single Athenian female warrior agreed.

It was not that these women were not interested in money; rather, their civilization held their bodies in the highest regard.

In Athena World, the only person permitted to remove a female warrior’s feathered armor and touch her body was her husband or the victor who had defeated her in battle.

With no other options, Sein had to step onto the arena stage himself to face a Rank Three Athenian woman.

On the vast stage made of golden wood, Sein demonstrated the capabilities of a formidable Magus World mage.

Special verdant green, dark violet, light blue, pale gray, and crimson red pyro elemental particles of powerful spells lit up the stage in a dazzling display of explosive power.

Sein was not like Natalya.

To achieve his research goals, he saw no reason to set aside his magic rod or magic equipment.

After all, equipment was an integral part of his strength. These tools, crafted through his own research, were a testament to his abilities—so why couldn’t he use them?

The outcome of the battle, as expected, was a foregone conclusion. Sein effortlessly defeated the Rank Three Athenian female warrior, who had only recently ascended to that rank.

What left both Sein and Natalya speechless was discovering Athena World’s peculiar tradition—when a male defeated a more powerful female in combat, he was allowed to make unlimited demands of her.

Even the most outrageous requests could be granted, as long as they did not violate core principles.

“You can do me,” the Rank Three Athenian female warrior said bluntly, now stripped of her feathered armor in Sein’s laboratory.

“You are strong. If we copulate, we could produce an extremely powerful warrior. I hope it’ll be a baby girl,” she added.

The vastly different worldviews, life philosophies, and cultural values between the Magus World and Athena World often led to moments of miscommunication.

The Magus World was largely a male-dominated society, where many powerful knights maintained harems, and polygamy was commonplace.

In contrast, Athena World was a female-dominated society. Though monogamy was the norm, it was not unusual for powerful wives to seek affairs outside their marriages—much like the men of the Magus World who indulged in clandestine escapades.

However, in Athena World, only those stronger than the women could hope to catch their attention.

Weak men were dismissed outright, often without a second glance.

The female warrior’s proposition, though seductive in nature, was delivered with a tone that made it seem as though she were the one gaining an advantage, while Sein was the one making a sacrifice in the arrangement.

“Lie down properly now. If my experiment goes well, I’ll make sure you’re rewarded,” Sein said, his fingers tracing along the female warrior’s slightly rough yet well-toned waist.

A soft, ticklish giggle escaped the warrior as she lay on the experimental table.

The Athena World’s natives were not the most cooperative experimental subjects—but, at the very least, they were not particularly noisy.