Sword God in a World of Magic

"Oh, hey! You're still alive!" One of the Peak Ancestral Mages shouted to a Mid Ancestral Mage with a smile.

The other Ancestral Mage floated over and nodded. "Yep, and I also made quite a bit this time. I completed three trials."

The first Mage let out an impressive whistle. "Impressive," he said. "Anyway, did you get Maruda?"

The second Mage slowly shook his head. "Couldn't find him."

"Huh, he's normally one of the first ones that return. I thought that you got him," the first Mage said.

"Nope," the second Mage said again. "It would suck if he suddenly dies. I wouldn't get my payment and his wealth."

"Speaking of," he added as he looked at the gathered Mages above the surface. "I also don't see my contractor."

The first Mage shrugged. "Maybe they're still in a trial?"

The other Mage just furrowed his brows. Then, he turned to Lucin, who was looking at the ocean. "Lucin, who are we still waiting for?"

"There's one more Peak Ancestral Mage. She's choosing her rewards right now. I don't think it will take longer than a couple of minutes," Lucin answered.

When Lucin said that, several other Mages raised their eyebrows in surprise.

Wait, basically everyone was already here?

They looked at each other and counted.

Twelve Peak Ancestral Mages.

Two Late Ancestral Mages.

Two Mid Ancestral Mages.

One Early Ancestral Mage.

Three Initial Ancestral Mages.

Clouds in total, and with the one they were waiting for, they

had started with 36, and

there would be about 30 left near the end,

was quite a devastating death

the deaths mostly focused on the first

80% of Early Ancestral Mages and 70%

What happened?

of the extremely rare group trials with a chance

kinds of trials were only open for Peak Ancestral Mages that had been in

left one

had killed a lot

But who?

three remaining Initial Ancestral Mages. After all, an Early Ancestral Mage couldn't possibly kill that

talked to each other via voice transmission, trying to find out who it could have

the three Initial Ancestral Mages had been at that level for quite a time to accumulate power, and

of money. She even had several deals with other Clouds. In exchange for her safety in the Wilderness

detrimental to her business, which was why everyone was quite

second Initial Ancestral Mage was a

first Ancestral Mage's biggest customer, and he specialized in a wide variety of

lot of

to find certain extremely rare materials in the right

to kill so many

auras of the first two Clouds, they were

third Initial Ancestral

light-blue

been the new Cloud that had asked the leading Bolt about the Deep Crevices on their way

that she had joined just a couple of decades ago and that

had an Ice Affinity, but

still held

had seen her

Initial Ancestral Mages also noticed all of this, and they moved

thankful that they had traveled mostly

earn more by combining