Sovereign of the Ashes

After Sein sealed his "friendly" deal with Reina, Natalya came over.

The female knight gave him an eager look as if silently asking, "Where's my gift?"

Of course, Sein had prepared one for Natalya. He promptly took out a pair of combat boots.

Her full body armor and heavy sword—both high-quality equipment—required no immediate replacement.

Wilson and Sia had certainly invested heavily in their only daughter.

The boots crafted by Sein had many engravings of aero and pyro elemental magic arrays. These could enhance flight speed and provide short-term bursts of power, perfect for a knight like Natalya.

Having explored every inch of Natalya's body, Sein naturally knew the exact shape of her feet.

Since the boots could fit adaptively, they would still function as intended even if Natalya activated her bloodline transformation during combat.

Natalya was visibly delighted to receive the boots. This was also the first meaningful gift Sein had given her.

Unlike Reina, who had to agree to assist in Sein's body tempering experiments for her shoulder armor, Natalya received her boots without any conditions.

While the two knights reveled in their new gear, Sein approached his mother-in-law and took out a large red cloak from his spatial storage equipment.

"Ah, you made something for me too?" Sia asked, her eyes sparkling with pleasant surprise.

"The primary material for this magic equipment is the demigod-level molt you provided. I did promise you a gift in return. This is a flame cloak," Sein explained.

Sein's words were respectful, but his tone suggested he viewed Sia not as his mother-in-law but almost as an equal, reflecting his unresolved views about her.

Although Sia was aware of this, she chose to feign ignorance.

"Aww, you shouldn't have. We're all family now. Besides, I told you that demigod-level molt was a gift; I expect nothing in return," Sia said with a chuckle after receiving the cloak.

"By the way, your new magic robe looks nice," she added with a smile.

While the other two knights were still fascinated by their gifts, Sia was more observant and noticed Sein's new robe first.

Sein smiled and replied, "Yes, this robe is made from that demigod-level molt too."

"Wow! Your new magic robe is pretty, let me look at it!" Natalya exclaimed, rushing back to Sein.

Sia watched her daughter and Sein bantering playfully, a smile curling up on her lips.

***

Not long after the battle in the Verdant Leaf Forest concluded, Sein learned the location of the Inextinguishable Meteorite from Master Lorianne's elemental projection.

It had descended upon the Verdant Leaf World hundreds of years ago and was now sealed deep in the West Ocean, at a naturally occurring oceanic trench.

The enormous meteorite, containing inextinguishable pyro elemental particles, lay beyond the reach of a typical Rank One and Two creature as it was buried ten thousand meters deep in the ocean.

For this reason, Sein sought the assistance of Tourmaline, who had been playing in the Verdant Leaf World for nearly three years.

But lately, she had grown bored of this microplane.

"Sein, when are we leaving this place?" Tourmaline asked as she swam up to him.

"It's so cramped here, and the water doesn't even feel as good as it does in the Magus World," she whined.

"Help me retrieve that meteorite from the ocean's depths, and then we can leave. There's nothing else left for us to do here in this microplane," Sein replied, gently stroking Tourmaline's head.

"Sure." Tourmaline nodded vigorously, causing her dragon horns to bob up and down. With that, she turned and dove into the ocean.

***

The Inextinguishable Meteorite retrieved from the depths of Verdant Leaf World's West Ocean was larger than Sein had anticipated.

This enormous meteorite, measuring over a hundred meters in diameter, assured Sein that he would have enough materials for studying inextinguishable pyro elemental particles for centuries to come.

Following the recovery of this meteorite, Sein promptly terminated the ongoing gathering quest that he had issued through the command center with the help of Master Archimedes.

Sein had allocated more than seven thousand magicoins as rewards for gathering these special purple meteorites.

Over these years, half of his funds had been spent, leaving about four thousand magicoins.

Had Sein known about this enormous Inextinguishable Meteorite in the West Ocean earlier, he could have saved many magicoins.

Then again, such foresight was not always possible.

Sein had only learned about this meteorite through the native creatures of Verdant Leaf World following the surrender of the demigod-level Blazing Sunflower.

His investment of more than three thousand magicoins had yielded many fragments of the Inextinguishable Meteorite, but Sein knew that not all the collected materials had been turned over.

While the centaurs and knights, less interested in the properties of the purple meteorite fragments, might have submitted their entire haul for magicoins, mages driven by a passion for uncovering truths likely retained some materials for further research and observation.

It was conceivable that some of these mages, well-versed in pyro elemental mysteries, had also recognized the properties of the Everburning Violet Flame from the purple meteorite fragments.

However, their progress likely did not rival Sein's exploration of the Everburning Violet Flame, especially now that he had secured the main body of the Inextinguishable Meteorite.

Sein was extremely curious about what other mysteries it might hold, beyond the Everburning Violet Flame he had already discovered.

Amidst these contemplations, Tourmaline burst forth from the ocean's surface with a cheer.

The purple meteorite she dragged behind her colored the surrounding ocean a deep violet, with faint pyro element particles flickering amidst the waves.

As a result, the temperature of the nearby sea rose noticeably.

***

In the fifth year of the Verdant Leaf World War, Sein departed from the microplane with Tourmaline and the three Sea Kings.

The prolonged presence of these otherworldly demigod-level beings had placed an increasing strain on the microplane.

Moreover, Tourmaline had grown weary of its limited expanse.

After several years of frolicking in the Verdant Leaf World's ocean, she wished to return to the Magus World for a good nap.

While the three less intelligent Sea Kings had not yet grown bored of this world, their primary mission had been to protect Tourmaline.

With her impending departure, it was only logical for them to return to the Magus World as well.

"How about you guys settle in the Jewel Sea from now on? I can provide you with this life juice to drink every once in a while," Lorianne suggested as she entertained the three Sea Kings within her temporary fortress on the demiplane.

She presented them with her specially concocted green plant potions, enticing them with the offer.

The three creatures exchanged looks.

Eventually, the Land Crab took the initiative. It scratched its head thoughtfully with its pincers, then extended its mouth toward the giant basin containing the life juice Lorianne had prepared.