Sovereign of the Ashes

After the battle concluded, Sein and the others had captured over three hundred cryo elemental native creatures.

Though individually weak, their capture was still a notable gain.

Turning them over to the witches at the fortress base for branding as slaves would earn each participant in the skirmish a share of rewards.

This battle had practically been a one-man show for Sein and Yuri.

However, as a Rank Three grand mage with considerable wealth, he had little interest in the minor profits these low-level native creatures could bring.

Aside from keeping two Edelweiss Spirits for himself, he allocated the rest of the captured creatures to the two witches and the group of knights.

His generosity instantly earned him goodwill from them, despite being an “outsider”.

These knights were Land Knights of the Northlands. If Sein found it difficult to win the trust of the witches, these knights would be his next best source of study.

In any case, he had no intention of walking away empty-handed!

Compared to all the participating witches, Veyle was definitely a complete novice.

Having just been promoted to a full-fledged witch, she likely had very few extraplanar biological specimens for research in her laboratory.

Sein’s generous gift brought a rare change in the witches—after receiving nothing but icy stares from them since his arrival, he finally saw a warm, genuine smile.

Even the Rank Two witch named Berlitan acknowledged his gesture with a formal magus salute.

The capture of a Rank Two Ice Bear ensured that Berlitan had a steady supply of essential ingredients for her ice sorcery potions for the foreseeable future.

Contrary to common perception, witches were not emotionless spellcasters devoid of feelings or desires.

Years spent in the frigid Northlands had simply conditioned them to be reserved and aloof.

An icy stare from a witch was not necessarily a sign of hostility—it was just their natural demeanor.

If a witch truly disliked someone, she would make her feelings unmistakably clear.

Yet, for all their coldness, witches were also among the most sincere. Once they accepted someone, their loyalty was unwavering.

In the Northern Witches Council, the word “betrayal” did not exist.

For this reason, many who took the time to understand them found witches to be highly trustworthy friends.

The difficulty lay in earning their trust in the first place, as they did not easily grant their friendship.

Additionally, there was a unique practice among witches—those who fell in love or started families would automatically leave the Northlands and join the external councils.

As a result, the witches who resided in the Northlands were all single women.

This also meant that there were no so-called “prestigious magic families” in this part of the Magus World.

***

Upon arriving at the fortress base, Sein and his group were not immediately deployed into battle.

Since they had already fought one before reaching the base, they were granted a half-day of rest.

Due to the cooperative structure between witches and knights, the northern Land Knights assigned to Sein also decided to set up their camp close to his tent.

It was clear that the war in Edelweiss World was reaching a critical point.

Despite reports stating that the Rank Four native god had suffered severe injuries at the hands of Magus World’s witches, the Magus World forces largely remained on the defensive in the lower-rank battlefields.

Around the icy fortress base, Sein observed numerous magic towers radiating elemental light.

However, he did not see any space fortress—the ultimate war platform often used by Magus World’s Rank Four and above powerhouses.

He assumed that such fortresses had been deployed to other battlefronts.

Instead of using his downtime to rest, Sein immediately immersed himself in research.

His subjects were the Rank One and Rank Two Edelweiss Spirits he had captured earlier.

As elemental creatures, Edelweiss Spirits did not possess distinct genders.

From a distance, the two beings resembled snowflakes of different sizes, crystalline and ethereal in their beauty.

Their method of combat, however, was far from ordinary.

Unlike most creatures that relied on their own strength to fight, Edelweiss Spirits had the ability to “integrate” into the bodies of other ice and snow creatures.

In the previous battle, Sein had seen firsthand how these two Edelweiss Spirits had merged with a Rank One Ice Eel and a Rank Two Ice Rhinoceros, respectively.

Once fused, the combined combat strength of the spirits and their hosts far exceeded a simple sum of their individual powers.

What intrigued Sein even more was that once the battle ended, the Edelweiss Spirits would leave their hosts’ bodies intact and unharmed.

Moreover, the ice and snow creatures did not reject the Edelweiss Spirits—in fact, they seemed to welcome them.

This phenomenon likely explained why, despite their small size and limited individual combat capabilities, the Edelweiss Spirits had become the dominant race in Edelweiss World.

Studying them only deepened Sein’s fascination.

If he had more time, he would have been sorely tempted to dissect one to uncover the internal structure of this peculiar species.

Half a day later, Veyle appeared outside Sein’s tent to summon him for assembly.

Since Sein had already set up a magic doorbell outside, he quickly answered her call.

Outside, the sky was gray and cloudy.

Edelweiss World had distinct day and night cycles, but with the plummeting temperatures at night, the native creatures became significantly more challenging to deal with.

When Veyle saw Sein again, her attention was clearly drawn to Yuri, who followed closely behind him.

At the moment, Yuri did not deploy her mecha. Standing quietly behind Sein, she appeared almost indistinguishable from a human woman, aside from a few distinct features.

Veyle’s repeated glances back at Yuri as she walked ahead caused a smile to appear on Sein’s face.

Seizing the moment while no other witches were around, Sein started a conversation with her via mental focus.

“I’m quite interested in the sorcery spell you used during the battle earlier. Would you be open to discussing it sometime?”

Veyle’s eyes widened slightly in surprise, her delicate hand moving instinctively to cover her mouth.

A Rank Three grand mage requesting to exchange magic with a mere Rank One witch...? That was practically unheard of.

A hint of color crept up her cheeks, a mixture of shyness and disbelief.

Sein, of course, had seen a similar reaction countless times before.

Having served as a dean for two hundred years, he was well acquainted with the thoughts of newly promoted full-fledged spellcasters.

Before Veyle could stammer out a response, Sein continued smoothly. “I can lend you my companion for a period of time—you can even study her mecha. We could also trade some of our collections.”

“I’ve traveled to many foreign planes. I could give you specimens of extraplanar creatures I have no use for, and in return, you could share some of your sorcery knowledge with me.”

Sein smiled as he made the offer.

It was the same smile that Bousse of the Alveroth Empire had once described as “the smile of a devil”.

Now, it seemed to be working its magic on Veyle as well.

She glanced around, ensuring that no one was around to eavesdrop before replying via mental focus, “I can share some of my basic sorcery knowledge with you—but anything related to the core knowledge of our faction is strictly off-limits.”

“That’s perfectly fine. I’m only interested in how the Northern Witches Council channels their power,” Sein said with a grin.

Veyle knew she was straying from the strict teachings of her mentor and seniors, but the irresistible allure of knowledge ultimately led her to nod in agreement with Sein.