Sovereign of the Ashes

Chapter 101: Bandits

The surface world flourished in comparison to the underground world, boasting an abundance of diverse species that far exceeded the Underworld by an immeasurable degree.

In the underground world’s sinister environment, the flora and fauna all shared one similar characteristic—either highly resistant to extreme cold or possessed formidable combat strength.

Mild and weak living beings were virtually non-existent.

The surface, however, presented a stark contrast.

In the first three days after Sein departed from the Underworld, he indulged in a feast of numerous peculiar creatures.

They were mostly ordinary animals, with only a few magic creatures and even fewer magic beasts.

Magic creatures and beasts tended to gather in deep mountains and dense forests, which were often referred to as “magic beast forests”.

Sein had been journeying across plains and hills since he arrived at the surface, so he did not stumble upon powerful creatures as the forests he traversed were not dense.

“Gloomhaven is much larger than I anticipated. It seems like Mystralora City only occupied a corner of Gloomhaven’s underground space,” Sein commented after consulting the magic map left by his mentor for direction.

Despite three days of continuous travel, Sein had covered only a small portion of Gloomhaven’s vast territory.

At this rate, reaching the northern part of Gloomhaven would take at least half a year.

"Unfortunately, black mages are still active in this region. The mages from the Divine Tower and knights from the surface are likely continuing their search and elimination efforts in the neighboring areas. If only I could ride on Seven, my progress would be faster,” Sein lamented.

Although the map indicated a considerable distance to the north of Gloomhaven, Sein continued on, appreciating the scenery along the way.

Gloomhaven, being a no-man’s land, was less densely populated than other regions in the Magus World.

The constant disturbances caused by the black mages and poor security led to frequent population losses and migrations.

***

Sein pressed on and even passed through several human cities.

These cities appeared to be self-governing, each with districts overseen by nobles who either identified themselves as the city lords or held significant positions.

Sein could not confirm whether these nobles had actual connections to mages, but he did sense the subtle fluctuations of magic elements within these cities.

Given his unique status, Sein refrained from approaching those suspected of being spellcasters, and opted to bypass the cities instead of entering them directly.

As expected, full-fledged mages were rare powerful beings, both underground and on the surface.

Despite a month of continuous travel, Sein encountered not a single of them in his journey.

Even within the human cities, the magic ripples he detected were only on par to an initiate’s levels, possibly not surpassing his own strength.

“I wonder how powerful the normal mages from the surface are. The Divine Towers are gathering places for all sorts of spellcasters, so the initiates there are likely more powerful than the Black Magic Academy I attended,” Sein mused as he walked along the main road.

His thoughts were abruptly interrupted by a loud shout.

“Hey, Kid! Hand over everything you have!”

Five menacing men armed with axes and long swords and wearing unbuttoned leather shirts appeared before Sein.

Three others had quietly positioned themselves behind him, cutting off his escape route.

Gloomhaven, as a no-man’s land with no country claiming jurisdiction, lacked security.

This marked the third robbery Sein had encountered in a month.

The areas near human cities offered slightly better security, as the city lords and nobles would deploy their own private armies to clean up the neighborhood from time to time.

Yet, troubles multiplied once he ventured away from those cities.

Bandits and robbers were rampant in this region, and his mentor had once mentioned the connection between the organizations operating in Gloomhaven’s gray areas and the black mages of Mystralora City.

Sein looked at the men before him and shook his head, dismissing the notion that these bandits were the ones his late mentor referred to.

Those connected to the black mages were likely larger syndicates.

With the recent catastrophe among the black mages of Mystralora City, Sein anticipated that these syndicates would become prime targets of the powerful Divine Tower mages.

During this period, Sein had encountered only bandits, presumably because the larger syndicates had been eliminated by the formidable Divine Tower mages.

Sein’s contemplative silence in this moment puzzled the five bandits confronting him. The situation felt subtly off.

Those who could traverse the mountain trails of Gloomhaven alone were generally not ordinary individuals.

These eight bandits had collaborated for a few years, initially as a group of twelve.

The comrades lost during their endeavors were those who faced formidable targets in the course of their robberies.

Despite these setbacks, the remaining members persevered for various reasons, managing to accumulate a small fortune.

A thin and shrewd bandit approached the strongest among them and pointed at Sein. “Big brother, look at what he’s holding!”

Sein was still wearing his usual attire from the Underworld—a tattered black magic robe, giving him a somewhat ragged appearance.

He kept his Acid Wand close to his chest.

Despite the bandits’ years of experience, they could not decipher Sein’s situation.

The mages they had encountered before were usually well-dressed, a stark contrast to the disheveled young man before them.

Not only that, those mages were usually older.

While the leader of the bandits was still thinking, Sein took action.

Most of the bandits in front of him were ordinary people, like the residents of Mystralora City who harbored a deep-seated fear of black mages and the black magic initiates.

Sein surmised that only ordinary people would dare to rob a magic initiate in the surface world.

As soon as three slightly smaller Minor Fireball spells appeared, the faces of the bandits in front and behind him changed drastically.

Before they could plead for mercy, Sein unleashed the fireballs.

Sein did not wish to create a commotion.

His weaker Minor Fireball spells served more as a deterrent and dispersal, lacking any real intent to kill.

Even in his prior encounters with bandits, Sein chose to drive them away rather than inflicting harm.

To Sein’s surprise, he discovered that one of the bandits among this group of unremarkable-looking men, actually possessed battle qi.