Sovereign of the Ashes

“War is not the only answer, especially for you Klytherans. Heavy losses among your fighters would deal a devastating blow to your civilization. In that sense, maybe Karl has the right idea,” Sein remarked.

One’s view was often shaped by one’s circumstances. Sein’s words had little to do with Klytheran interests; he was speaking purely from his own and the Magus Civilization’s standpoint.

When he finished speaking, Kram gave him a conflicted look. She did not actually fully agree with Karl’s ideals, nor did she have any fondness for the Blue Star natives.

Even so, Sein’s sudden shift in stance puzzled her, though she could sense something deeper behind it.

Kram was far from a mindless fighter. Her instincts about people were often sharper than those of many seasoned schemers.

Meanwhile, Misori abruptly raised her head to look at Sein.

She strongly agreed with him; prolonging the war would not benefit anyone.

Karl had been one of them; why could they not just sit down and talk things out peacefully?

“I’m going to speak with Elder Karazo!” Misori declared before hurrying out of Sein’s laboratory.

After she left, Kram hung around Sein’s worktable for a bit longer before finally heading out too.

Sein’s later experiments were focused on a deeper analysis of Klytherite.

He discovered that the Klytherite formed within the Klytherans contained far greater and more profound power than the ordinary Gray Quartz found on Blue Star...

***

Peace talks between the Klytherans and the Blue Star natives concluded just before the war was about to break out.

The Blue Star Civilization agreed to hand over two life planets to the Klytherans. They also gifted the Klytherans massive quantities of Gray Quartz.

In truth, the inert crystals held little use for the Blue Star natives. The Klytherans, though, had an almost “pathological” dependence on it.

Without enough of these crystals, their bodies would weaken, and even their ability to reproduce could be affected.

In recent years, this had been the main reason behind the Klytherans’ persistently low population.

A fragile peace, no matter how tenuous, always benefits the weaker side more than a so-called just war.

This was especially true for the creatures of Blue Star.

After claiming victory, the Klytherans quickly occupied the two life planets ceded to them.

Special inert minerals like Gray Quartz were not exclusive to Blue Star. They could also be found, though in smaller quantities, on several nearby complete planes and even a few resource demiplanes.

Of course, the output of those ordinary worlds could not compare to Blue Star’s production.

Aside from Gray Quartz, Blue Star also produced higher-grade variants known as Gray Quartz Essences.

Karl’s successful advancement to Rank Five years ago was thanks not only to the blessing of Blue Star’s planar will but also to the rare crystals gifted to him by its inhabitants.

Two and a half years later...

“When do you guys plan to go back and fetch the rest of your kin?” Sein asked Kram in the laboratory one day.

The plain-looking Klytheran woman with the mushroom-shaped bob had become Sein’s closest confidante over the past two years. She dropped by often and talked with him more than anyone else.

At one point, Sein had even offered to run a physical assessment for her so that he could design a more effective training regimen for her.

However, Kram had refused.

Her reasoning was that she had not found her partner in life yet. Even if she ever did, she would never agree to Sein’s request, unless that partner happened to be Sein himself.

The Klytherans held cautious and idealistic views toward love. The vast majority of them accepted only one partner in their entire lifetime.

However, over tens of thousands of years, their fertility rate had plummeted, likely due to disruptions in certain hormone production.

The chance of conceiving a child through natural means had become extraordinarily low, so most Klytherans remained single until death.

New generations of Klytheran children were now born exclusively through genetic banks—a reality that even Rank Five beings like Karazo and Karl could not escape.

Sein had learned from Kram that Karl and Misori had been born from the same batch. Even their serial numbers were consecutive, and they had shared a deep bond since childhood, training side by side.

The uneasy peace between the Klytheran Legion and the Blue Star natives had been achieved largely through Misori’s mediation, along with a small group of other Klytherans.

Kram, who had been shaking a vial of body-tempering potion, stared at the red test tube for a long moment before responding to Sein’s question.

“You don’t seriously think Karazo has actually given up, do you?”

“You’re saying that the war will continue?” Sein raised an eyebrow as he took the vial from her.

“Of course. Karazo won’t feel safe bringing our non-combatants over until Blue Star’s resistance is completely wiped out,” Kram replied.

Sein’s frown deepened at her words.

He did not want to waste any more time on Blue Star. His main priority was returning to Magus World as soon as possible to report everything to the Magus Alliance.

But how was he supposed to return? He had no idea. He could not even determine the general direction or coordinates of the star domain where the Magus Civilization was.

Karazo was the only one who knew the approximate location of Magus World.

Even the news about the ongoing war between the Magus Civilization and the Gallant Federation had come from him through secret channels.

If Sein wanted to make his way back to Magus Civilization’s territory, he would need Karazo’s help.

“When will the war start?” Sein asked.

“When Karazo and the rest of our fighters have mostly recovered their strength,” Kram replied.

Up until recently, most of the Klytheran fighters had not been in their peak condition.

But over the past two years, the massive amounts of Gray Quartz extracted from the two life planets given to them had greatly enhanced the legion’s overall strength.

Sein had not seen Karazo in quite some time. If he were to meet him again, he would likely notice how much younger Karazo looked now.

That was the remarkable effect Gray Quartz had on the Klytherans.

Sein glanced at Kram from head to toe. Other than noticing that her rear had grown a bit perkier, he did not observe any major physical changes.

Perhaps he would only see the difference when she was fighting on the battlefield.

He picked up a dark red demonic potion, then handed it to Kram, and said, “Try this one. It should be good for your body.”

Kram eyed the dark liquid for a moment. Having spent enough time with Sein, she trusted him and downed it in one go.

A small burp escaped from her lips as a faint wave of fiery energy rippled from her body.