Sovereign of the Ashes

In the second year after the conclusion of the academy war, Sein personally met Finn—the initiate who had stood out most during the trials.[1]

Finn had not caught Sein’s attention for his sheer strength.

In the final, grueling six months of the war, Finn had rallied the remaining Divine Tower of Dark Flame initiates and successfully defended their resource points against relentless attacks from other divine tower academies.

Without Finn’s efforts and his role as the initiates’ pillar of support, the Divine Tower of Dark Flame would not have been able to secure second place in the overall standings of this regional academy war.

They would likely have been overtaken by the Divine Tower of Ripple Wheel, which was led by a formidable Despairer.

Sein remembered Finn well.

More than thirty years ago, Finn had been an eight-year-old boy, brimming with curiosity about magic and the unknown.

Now, Finn was in his forties and even had a child.

Sein could not fathom how Finn had managed to raise a child while navigating the fierce competition of the academy.

Finn’s daughter bore a striking resemblance to him.

Her features were more delicate, and her complexion was fairer than Finn’s rugged appearance, but her fearless eyes, filled with curiosity, were unmistakably like his in his youth.

When they met, the five-year-old girl, Gloria, lifted the hem of her dress and curtsied politely to Sein in greeting.

Sein chuckled and gifted the little girl a magic hairpin.

He had crafted the hairpin during his early Rank One years, originally intended for Leena.

Somehow, it had been forgotten and buried at the bottom of his belongings, only to be rediscovered recently. It seemed like the perfect gift for an adorable child like Gloria.

Though it was an item crafted in his early years, the hairpin was still a ranked magic artifact.

Finn and his wife were visibly flattered and tried to refuse the generous gift.

Gloria, however, had no such reservations. She clutched the hairpin tightly in her small hand, refusing to let go no matter what her parents said.

“Hoho, let the child keep it. She seems to love it,” Sein said with a smile. “Consider it my reward for you, as a key contributor to this regional academy war.”

He paused briefly, then continued, “Are you all planning to take a leave of absence from the divine tower for a while?”

Finn had only recently advanced to Quasi Mage and was still far from reaching Rank One.

His wife, meanwhile, was merely a senior initiate at the Divine Tower of Dark Flame Academy.

Since both had signed long-term contracts with the divine tower, they would need to submit a formal application to leave the divine tower temporarily.

“Yes, both of us have been away from Alveroth Empire for thirty-six years. Now that the regional academy war is over, we’d like to take our daughter back to meet her grandparents,” Finn replied respectfully.

Finn and his wife were initiates who had been smuggled out of the Alveroth Empire.

With the vast distance between the Divine Tower of Dark Flame and the empire, such journeys had been difficult for these initiates in the past.

Even now, with the war concluded, they could only make the journey by paying magicoins to secure passage on an airship.

Sein had no concerns about them deserting the divine tower.

Decades of studying at the divine tower academy had instilled in these initiates a deep understanding of the strictness of magic contracts and the unyielding laws upheld by the divine towers.

Upon hearing Finn’s response, Sein looked at the couple and then at their wide-eyed daughter, still clutching the magic hairpin tightly in her little hand.

He smiled and said, “Of course, I’ll approve your applications.”

“Thank you, Dean!” Finn replied quickly, expressing his gratitude.

Sein’s thoughts wandered as he watched the couple leave. He thought of House Grantt as well as Selina, and the others far away in the Divine Tower of Verdant Spring.

Thankfully, his life level and the conveniences of magic communication allowed him to easily stay connected with his family despite the distance.

For now, Sein had no intention of returning home. Aside from his responsibilities as the dean of the Divine Tower of Dark Flame Academy, he felt this was only the beginning of his exploration of the Magus World.

The meeting with Finn and his family left a smile on Sein’s face.

From the subtle details of their interaction, it was clear to him that Finn’s wife likely came from a noble background, while Finn himself was born a commoner.

While stories of a noble youth and a commoner girl falling in love typically existed only in novels, the reverse—young noble ladies falling for commoner guys—had been far more common throughout history.

Perhaps it was because women, especially unmarried maidens, tended to follow their hearts more than men.

Of course, another explanation could be that these sheltered noble maidens were more easily deceived by commoner boys.

Love is blind.

As an “old man” who had lived for hundreds of years, Sein found himself wondering how Finn would handle his noble in-laws.

It likely would not be too difficult. Nobles were often snobbish, but with Finn’s Quasi Mage status, marrying into a noble family should not be a problem.

Besides, the couple had already consummated their marriage and even welcomed an adorable child into this world.

Snapping out of his idle musings, Sein shook his head with a faint smile.

While others’ lives unfolded in their own ways, Sein remained devoted to his pursuit of magical truths.

With the academy war recently concluded, he finally had some precious free time again.

“Maybe I should start with an alchemy experiment. I still haven’t replaced the magic robe that got damaged during the last Gumo Plane War,” Sein mumbled, rubbing his chin thoughtfully.

***

Alchemy experiments demanded more than just advanced skill; they also required a vast array of rare and precious magic ingredients to be prepared beforehand.

Even with Sein’s exceptional alchemy techniques, he could not achieve anything without high-quality raw materials.

This time, Sein’s goal was to produce a brand-new magic robe.

Though he lacked high-end materials at the moment, Sein was not worried. He had more than enough money at his disposal.

With the wealth he had accumulated over the years and the tens of thousands of magicoins he had earned during the Gumo Plane War, Sein could afford to splurge.

As dean, his allowances, benefits, and privileges far surpassed those of ordinary divine tower mages.

The sheer abundance of resources available through the divine tower left Sein dazzled.

Additionally, he had access to the Magus Alliance’s supply channels, enabling him to acquire any magical ingredient he desired.

In this world, the lack of an ingredient was never a problem—because with enough money, anything could be bought!

1. Translator’s Note: There was also another character named Finn mentioned in Chapter 760 during the Wild Gorilla World War, but he was a Rank Six Geomancer from the Pyro Secret Society. ☜