Sovereign of the Ashes

None of these extraplanar deities was easy to deal with.

The Goddess of Doom and the Succubus Queen were no exception.

Sein had long suspected that Anastasia had been using him in some way.

Yet, in the end, he had undeniably gained significant benefits from both her and the Purgatory demons.

For now, at least, he felt no substantial harm from their association.

Both Anastasia and Morvanya seemed to have been severely weakened by the Avatar Crisis.

Otherwise, with Morvanya’s original strength as an intermediate deity, a mere Rank Three being like Sein would never have been able to perceive her actions so clearly.

After their brief exchange, Anastasia suggested that Sein accompany her to the first floor of Purgatory in the near future.

Sein nodded and agreed without much thought.

“Oh, by the way, another batch of members from the Godslayers will be sent here,” Anastasia informed.

“This time, the Justice League and Wings of Nature seem intent on wiping them out. Their purging efforts are far more extreme than anything they’ve done before,” she added.

Sein gave no visible reaction, merely nodding in acknowledgment.

“Actually...” she trailed off deliberately, drawing out her words just enough to pique his curiosity.

When Sein finally turned to look at her, she smiled and continued, “Morvanya has wanted to meet you for quite some time. Even when you first arrived in Purgatory, she was already watching you closely—though this is the first time you’re meeting face to face.”

“Is that so?” Sein shifted his gaze to the Goddess of Doom.

Morvanya met his eyes calmly.

“It seems you’ve encountered others like me before. I once attempted to divine the state of your Magus Civilization,” she said.

“Oh? And what did you find?” Sein asked casually.

A trace of helplessness and bitterness flickered across Morvanya’s face.

As an intermediate deity, what meaningful insight could she possibly gain by trying to divine the fate of a top-tier civilization?

It was a good thing she had not forced the divination—otherwise, she would have lost more than just a few strands of hair.

It was precisely because she had sensed that Magus World was an extremely powerful world, far beyond Purgatory, that Morvanya had taken such an interest in Sein.

The fact that he was treated with such privilege in Purgatory made it clear that he was no ordinary Rank Three creature; he represented Lorthisra and the Magus Civilization behind him.

The Succubus Queen’s efforts to build a relationship with him were likely, at least in part, influenced by Morvanya’s prophecy.

The look on Morvanya’s face was enough for Sein to guess the outcome of her divination.

Sein saw no reason to flatter the two goddesses just because they were Rank Five beings.

By now, he was growing accustomed to encountering high-ranking creatures.

After a brief exchange with the two goddesses, he instructed Yuri and the fox maiden to entertain them in his stead, then turned and headed back to his laboratory.

Morvanya, meeting him for the first time, blinked in mild surprise at his indifferent attitude.

On the contrary, Succubus Queen had already gotten used to it and even instructed the fox maiden to pour her a cup of her favorite Swirling Verdure Tea.

In Sein’s castle, Anastasia was as comfortable as if she were in her own home.

Aside from Sein’s private laboratories and collection rooms, she had already explored everywhere else.

***

The relocation of the castle went smoothly and swiftly.

With the assistance of the Purgatory Princess, Sein did not even have to lift a finger.

Of all the Rank Four and above beings he had encountered so far, this Purgatory Princess was by far the “nicest” toward him.

Not only did she rarely ask for anything in return, but she also went out of her way to provide him with whatever he needed.

Sein had only ever experienced this level of generosity from Master Lorianne and Tourmaline, but they were his mentor and a dear friend, respectively.

Anastasia, however, was neither.

For her to give so freely, there was no doubt she would eventually demand something in return.

What that might be, Sein had yet to determine. But according to the principle of equivalent exchange upheld by mages, it was an indisputable fact that he owed her a favor.

As for the exotic delicacies and trinkets she occasionally received from him, Sein did not consider them remotely equal to the financial and material support she had provided.

Of course, to a princess who enjoyed the highest privileges in Purgatory, the resources she granted him were likely as insignificant as the so-called exotic specialties she received from him.

In the end, both sides were making an investment—Anastasia was simply the more generous party.

With that thought, Sein could not help but compare the Spider Queen to the Succubus Queen.

Lorthisra had also provided him with immense benefits.

The Silver Spider Ring, knowledge of umbra elemental magic and necromancy, the secrets of array arts, and even the corpse of a God of Brute Force—all of it was invaluable, far exceeding anything the Succubus Queen had offered.

Yet, in the end, it was Anastasia who earned his favor because, unlike Lorthisra, she never used her power to threaten him.

Instead, she always indulged his requests without hesitation.

The difference between the two was night and day.

With a quiet sigh, Sein let the thought pass.

***

After arriving on the first floor, Sein, now somewhat less affected by the Purgatory’s environment, resumed his experimental research.

For most mages, this was simply the way things were.

Sein had been in Purgatory for decades now, yet he had engaged in little else beyond his research.

With demon specimens and experimental materials constantly delivered to his doorstep, he had rarely left his castle.

Flynn had officially become his lab assistant twenty years ago.

His magical aptitude was decent, and his comprehension skills were solid, but in Sein’s eyes, he still did not qualify as a genius.

After all, true geniuses were rare in the world!

Sein’s assessment was that Flynn had a high likelihood of advancing to Rank Two, but reaching Rank Three would depend on his own efforts.

The first ten years of Flynn’s training had been spent reinforcing his foundation. Only after that did he gain enough competence to work in Sein’s laboratory.

However, his life level was still too low, and his fundamental knowledge across various fields remained weak.

More often than not, his role in the lab was no more significant than that of Yuri.

Yet, Flynn was a humble initiate with a relentless curiosity and eagerness to learn.

Whenever Sein was unavailable, Flynn would often seek out Yuri for guidance.

At times, he would even approach the fox maiden, Azelia, for basic lab knowledge.

Though Azelia was a shaman priestess, she had spent years cleaning Sein’s laboratory. Just by observing his work, she had managed to pick up a considerable amount of knowledge along the way.

Unlike Yuri’s cold demeanor, Azelia was more approachable. In Flynn’s early days at the laboratory, she had been a crucial source of help.

Simply reading and memorizing knowledge was not enough—true understanding required hands-on practice.

Sein had brought Flynn into his laboratory precisely for this reason: to train him through practical experience.