Sovereign of the Ashes

Chapter 19: Cruel and Ruthless

Creatures of Rank One or above held a lofty position regardless of the plane they inhabited.

Their immense power and capabilities could effortlessly lay waste to cities and nations.

Black mages, with their destructive potential surpassing that of other types of mages, were known for their unparalleled might.

While they might not operate as a cohesive unit like the mages from the divine towers, who could summon devastating spells capable of destroying an entire continent, their individual combat prowess was undeniably formidable.

Although the words of this black mage exposed his greed and irrationality, a glint of desire and ambition flickered in the eyes of the other black mage and Andes.

Nonetheless, it remained a mere pipe dream. How could a plane with well-established laws be stumbled upon so easily?

The divine towers and the orders of the knights in the Magus World were constantly exploring deep space, but such planes were either claimed by the Magus Civilization or already part of the Magus Alliance.

Locating an unexplored plane was a near-impossible task, let alone one that was a complete plane governed by well-established laws!

Even a demiplane rich in resources would be a significant find for the black mages in Mystralora City at this point.

The only concern was that the space-time rift could lead to a broken plane of little value, resulting in a fruitless endeavor.

In truth, the likelihood of such an outcome was quite high, given that broken planes were the most commonly found in the Astral Realm.

While the three black mages conversed quietly, about half of the assessments had drawn to a close.

The battles of the junior and fresh initiates had wrapped up on the training ground, leaving only a handful of intermediate and senior initiates still in competition.

The clashes between senior initiates created the biggest commotion.

Although the training ground’s structure was robust, the fierce engagements between the participants left large craters in the ground.

Elemental fluctuations surged through the air, caused by the collision between the magic spells released by senior initiates and the protective magic shields of the arena.

The three full-fledged black mages overseeing the assessment were busy talking rather than actively supervising the assessment.

In order to prevent senior initiates from causing excessive damage to the training ground or causing harm to innocent bystanders, a group of seven academy overseers vigilantly patrolled the area. The owls circled around the training ground, ready to respond to any potential accidents.

Up to this point, there were more than twenty casualties among the fresh initiates. Not only that, seven junior initiates had perished and two intermediate initiates had collapsed.

Although the senior initiates possessed greater strength and more potent magic spells, no fatalities had occurred under the watchful eyes of the academy overseers.

Rather than joining in the hushed conversation between the two black mages, Master Andes remarked coldly, “I think Lady Jeanne has been far too lenient with these youngsters. If we were to implement the elimination system of the Blackhaven in the Western Archipelago, we would have these initiates thrown into the Magic Beast Forest or the Catacomb Chasm for trials.”

“Only those who survive, gathering either ten skulls of other initiates from the same tier or cores of magic beasts would be deemed worthy of their rewards. This approach is far more effective than allowing these youngsters to pick who they want to challenge. What are they playing at, a game of make-believe?”

Andes’ words sent a chill through the air, making it even colder. Even the other two black mages were momentarily taken aback.

Unlike Andes, who hailed from the Western Archipelago and began his black mage journey as an initiate, both of them had a history of crimes and were fugitives wanted by a divine tower, which eventually led them down the path of becoming black mages.

After becoming black mages, they had gradually grown desensitized to the value of human life. In fact, many of the weaker initiates had met their demise at their hands over the years.

Nevertheless, they found the approach shared by Andes to be cruel and ruthless.

One of the black mages chuckled and said, “If we truly applied the elimination system of the Blackhaven, I doubt even one-tenth of these youngsters would survive.”

“Hmph, then what is the use of keeping trash like them alive?” Andes snorted icily.

His retort immediately drew a disapproving frown from the black mage. As a full-fledged black mage, he possessed a comprehensive understanding of the Magus World and the circumstances in Blackhaven.

He shook his head and explained, “The Blackhaven can implement such an elimination system because there are enough continental islands in the Western Archipelago to provide a constant stream of initiates. Even the smaller continental island is home to several human nations with sizable populations.”

“But when you consider Gloomhaven...” He let out a wry chuckle before continuing, “Despite its former glory, it remains a part of the Magus Continent. Moreover, the formidable Byrne Empire, reigning as supreme power in the Magus World, is right next to us. Even the surrounding divine towers and orders of the knights are forces we cannot afford to provoke.”

Surviving amidst the intricate web of powerful forces was no easy feat. Moreover, black mages were generally shunned by the major divine towers and orders of the knights in the Magus World.

Every venture to the surface in search of riches and lives to plunder was fraught with danger, despite its lucrative rewards.

The commendable efforts of the three vice deans were instrumental in maintaining the fundamental operations of the magic academy with its hundreds of initiates.

If they were to implement the elimination system of Blackhaven, it was likely that only two or three initiates would survive.

This went against the original intentions of the three vice deans. They believed that the initiates were valuable assets.

Andes narrowed his eyes in response to the black mage’s rebuttal. The icy glare from his eyes sent shivers down the spines of the two black mages across from him.

Any doubts they might have had about Andes’ strength before were now dispelled. They could tell that he was definitely a peak Rank One mage, on the verge of breaking through to Rank Two.

They were certain because only Rank Two mages could manifest the true characteristic of an element like that.

In some way, Master Andes was connected to Sein and Leena. Two months ago, Jack clashed with the two on Black Street partly because Jack was planning to secure an apprenticeship by catching Andes’ attention during the assessment.

Among all the intermediate initiates in the Black Magic Academy, Leena, who was both formidable and mentorless at the time, was his strongest rival.