Sovereign of the Ashes

At the end of the teleportation passage stood a magnificent, pitch-black palace that exuded majestic grandeur.

Sein had visited many knightly orders led by Rank Four or higher knights, but none of them came close to this one in terms of atmosphere.

The massive dark hall was nearly empty at this hour.

Other than Sein and his group, hardly a soul was in sight.

Mayne led them deeper into the hall, clearly familiar with the place.

Sein lost track of how far they walked or how many towering metal doors they passed, but eventually, they reached their destination.

“My grandfather is inside. Follow me,” Mayne said before pushing open the heavy door ahead and stepping through.

Sein, Tourmaline, and Leena followed closely behind.

As they entered, the first thing that greeted them was a spacious chamber. At its center, seated on a raised platform, was a middle-aged knight who immediately drew their attention.

He carried himself with a calm composure. One look at his features made it clear that he must have been quite handsome in his younger days.

Sein was handsome as well, though in a different way—his charm came from his intellect, his scholarly demeanor, and the faint trace of aristocratic grace he carried.

He was a completely different type from the man before them.

The moment Sein saw this middle-aged knight, he instinctively lowered his head in respect.

Sein had met many powerful figures before. Levon Thorstein, the Bloodwar Monarch of Purgatory, for example, exuded such overwhelming pressure that it was hard to lift one’s head in his presence.

This middle-aged knight was likely even stronger, and yet, strangely, Sein did not feel crushed under any suffocating pressure.

That could only mean one thing: this man was even more powerful than Thorstein, or at least so far beyond Sein’s current level that Sein could not even sense his true strength.

An overlord!

That was the first thought that flashed through Sein’s mind the moment he saw the man.

After bringing them in, Mayne quietly stepped aside, taking his place beside the middle-aged knight.

Sein, with Leena and Tourmaline standing close behind, remained at the center of the hall, facing the quiet, assessing gaze of the Magus Civilization’s knight overlord.

Strangely, even knowing the man’s status, Sein did not feel overwhelmed. It was as if the overlord had a natural warmth and approachable aura that softened his immense power.

Sein lifted his head, quietly studying the man.

This is a meticulous knight, Sein thought to himself.

It was not long before the knight overlord in front of him finally spoke.

“I saw what all of you accomplished in Bouldrak World. Well done,” the knight overlord said.

“We were just doing what we should have,” Sein replied respectfully.

“What do you think of the half-beastmen?” the knight overlord asked curiously.

Sein lowered his head, considering for a moment before answering. “They have a large population base, and because of their mixed bloodlines from beastmen and other planar races, they hold considerable potential...”

Eugene had fought for his ideals and the rise of his people. But as a mage of Magus World, Sein could not afford to be sentimental.

Faced with that question from a knight overlord, Sein leaned toward reason, offering a thoughtful analysis of the half-beastmen.

In truth, one of the reasons the Magus Civilization’s leaders had turned their attention toward the half-beastmen was because they recognized their value.

The knight overlord, seated high above in the great hall, gave small, approving nods from time to time as Sein spoke.

But his expression remained calm and unreadable, making it impossible to guess what he was truly thinking.

Come to think of it, this was probably the first time Sein had spoken directly with an overlord.

Yet, for some reason, standing in the middle of this great hall, he did not feel the usual insignificance one might expect when facing someone so powerful.

If anything, Sein felt a surprising sense of affinity toward the man.

He shared everything he could—insights on the half-beastmen’s potential, their diversity, and possible evolutionary paths.

Only when he had nothing more to add did the middle-aged knight finally nod and say, “So, you believe that’s the full reason why we, the Magus Civilization, chose to support the half-beastmen?”

“More or less,” Sein answered with a slight nod. He kept his words measured; mages rarely felt the need to overstate.

The middle-aged knight smiled faintly and said, “Actually, you left out the most important reason.”

Sein gave him a puzzled look.

“The reason the half-beastmen have earned a certain amount of support from us is because a significant part of their bloodline comes from us—Magus World humans,” the knight revealed.

The number of planar races controlled and subdued by the Magus Alliance numbered in the hundreds of millions.

There were plenty of groups, like half-beastmen, who were exploited and oppressed. Many likely had just as much potential—so why did the Magus Civilization not care about them?

When it came down to it, affinity played an important role here.

On some level, the half-beastmen were seen as distant bloodline kin to the native peoples of Magus World.

Every year, at least seventy percent of the beautiful maiden slaves exported from Beastmen World ended up in Magus World.

The knights were the main buyers, but truthfully, even mages like Sein did not mind having a few lovely, charming beastwomen assisting in their laboratories.

And it was not just the half-beastmen; the number of “demihumans” across the entire Magus Alliance was also rising.

In his younger years, Sein had once traveled to the Athena Plane, where the native warrior women were especially eager to procreate with the strongest Magus World powerhouses.

This spread of Magus World bloodlines across other planes reflected something deeper about the planar centripetal forces.

The rise of the Magus Alliance had funneled resources from countless worlds into Magus World while reshaping the values of many allied planes.

For many lower-ranking creatures on those worlds, falling in love with a Magus World powerhouse came with countless benefits.

And if they managed to have a child together—well, that was even better.

The knight overlord’s words caught Sein slightly off guard, but only for a moment. He quickly caught on to the core of what the man was saying.

What Sein did not expect, however, was the next question and the next request that followed.

“What’s your opinion on demihumans?”

Without giving him much time to reflect, the knight overlord continued, “At the next Magus Alliance Conference, I plan to have you propose that all extraplanar creatures with Magus World bloodlines be officially classified under the demihuman race.”