Sovereign of the Ashes

Chapter 88: Evacuation

It was a three-story stone building. As Sein ascended to the third floor with the silver-armored knight, they were greeted by a scholarly-looking male mage. He had short platinum blond hair and was dressed in white robe.

Through the windows of the third floor, Sein could catch a glimpse of the Black Magic Academy at the heart of the city.

The fierce battles persisted, marked by elemental explosions and bursts of fire.

The Black Magic Academy stood as the final bastion of resistance for black mages from Mystralora City.

Under the control of black mages for an extended period, the academy had become a formidable stronghold, with its densely covered prohibition arrays and magic towers.

As Sein’s gaze drifted toward the distant black magic academy, he could not help but wonder about the ongoing situation there.

It seemed the silver-armored knight had concluded his telepathic communication with the white-robed mage, a privilege of being a Rank One or higher expert.

“Concerned about what’s happening there?” the white-robed man suddenly inquired.

Unlike the typically cold and unpredictable full-fledged black mages from the Black Magic Academy, the powerful Divine Tower mage exuded warmth.

“My friends might still be there,” Sein replied softly, deliberately avoiding mention of his mentor.

Revealing his mentor’s status as a black magic initiate could bring unwarranted trouble.

The white-robed man nodded and continued, “Baldor mentioned that you are a black magic initiate with a good heart, demonstrating integrity, especially when you once saved numerous civilians in Mystralora City.”

“Though I may not hail from the ranks of commoner knights like Baldor, I greatly appreciate these qualities and practices of yours,” the white-robed man expressed.

His words suddenly stirred a memory in Sein, taking him back to an incident two years ago near the spatial passage in the Sand World.

During the clash between two peak Rank Three grand mages on the other side of the passage, a Divine Tower mage had expressed concerns for the well-being of black magic initiates like Sein.

The voice of that individual bore a resemblance to the white-robed mage standing before him.

A beam of white light shot out from the mage’s fingertips. It was a healing spell.

Under its effect, Sein felt the scars on his skin and the numerous internal injuries within his body heal significantly.

The healing effect of this spell surpassed the Flesh Regeneration spell stored within Master Morsidor’s magic rod.

“It seems like you have been through a lot in the Sand World. Tell me, what exactly did you find in that world that you need to report to our Divine Tower?” the white-robed mage asked, fixing his calm gaze on Sein after stowing away his rod.

The demeanor of these knights and mages from the surface differed starkly from the black mages in the underground.

Licking his slightly dry lips, Sein began recounting his discoveries in the Sand World.

He initially intended to inform his mentor or the vice deans about the Sandworm King’s existence.

However, the current circumstances dictated that he present all the information to the mages from Divine Tower first.

Then again, the Sandworm King had specifically tasked Sein with reaching out to the Divine Towers.

As Sein recounted, the expressions on the faces of the white-robed mage and the silver-armored knight shifted between surprise and excitement.

Sein was sure that these were not expressions the Sandworm King hoped to see on the faces of the experts from the Magus World.

“It seems our intel was incorrect. The news from the Byrn Empire mentioned a fallen Rank Four creature in that broken plane, not a living one. I need to report this matter to Lord Rhomwald and the Tower Master promptly,” the white-robed mage said.

“Yes. Sir Franz and Sir Johnson accompanied the dean, Lord Rhomwald, to the underground half a year ago in pursuit of that peak Rank Three black mage. I will try my best to contact the two Sky Knights and swiftly report this information to the Order of the Land Sword,” the silver-armored knight affirmed.

The two Rank Two experts openly conversed in Sein’s presence.

The moment Sein presented the sandworm specimens and eggs in his space ring to them, the two Rank Two experts harbored no doubts about the authenticity of Sein’s account.

The unmistakable aura of otherworldly creatures, coupled with the inhospitable nature of the broken plane for nurturing native living creatures, indicated the presence of something else breeding them in the Sand World.

The white-robed mage followed up with a question. “Did that Rank Four creature not attempt to make a pact with you?”

Sein shook his head and replied, “No.”

The white-robed mage exchanged glances with the silver-armored knight before saying, “The Rank Four creature might be attempting to escape. Its current state could be weaker than we anticipated, or it wouldn’t have hesitated to make a pact with you.”

The white-robed mage sneered coldly and continued, “As for its supposed desire to join the Magus Alliance... I suspect it’s merely a ploy to distract us as it lacks the confidence to escape successfully. After causing chaos and turmoil within the Magus World, it still aims to join the Magus Alliance? It should consider itself fortunate for surviving the Summer Guardian!”

The sudden revelation of the Sandworm King’s potential escape seemed to inject a sense of urgency into these the knight and mage.

With no further instructions on what to do, the white-robed mage simply instructed Sein to stay put and avoid wandering around then hastily exited the stone building with the silver-armored knight.

Before leaving, the white-robed mage quickly put up a prohibition array, a precautionary measure beyond Sein’s capabilities as an initiate to overcome.

For the next three days, Sein found himself confined to the stone building, with no sign of the white-robed mage and the silver-armored knight.

Three days later...

Explosions and elemental shockwaves violently shook the Black Magic Academy in the heart of Mystralora City.

From the third floor of the stone building, Sein witnessed flames engulfing the south and west sides of the academy. The magnitude of the explosions surpassed anything he had witnessed in the preceding days.

Flap! Flap! Flap!

The sounds of creatures flapping their wings reached Sein’s ears.

Amidst the thick smoke and flames, Sein spotted around two dozen academy overseers and about a dozen flying dark creatures carrying several black mages and a group of black magic initiates as they ascended into the air.

Among them was a bald mage in white robe. Sein was able to recognize him right away.

It was Martin, the vice dean, whose strength in the academy ranked second only to the mysterious dean!

Surrounded by the owls, Martin waved his hand, summoning diamond-shaped meteorites to plummet from above.

These meteorites were from the lumenstone vein above Mystralora City.

A large number of blazing orange meteorites descended, accompanied by scorching fire.

A meteor shower was sweeping across Mystralora City!

This was an indiscriminate attack launched by the person who built up Mystralora City.

Before the knights and mages from the surface could bring the city to ruin, he was going to be the one to ruin it with his own hands.

Yet, the primary objective of his action was to facilitate the evacuation of himself and the others.