Chapter Summaries

After Brandt became legendary and the Spirit of the Stag vanished forever, Ryan organized the cleanup of the remaining Orcs across the Northlands. He left the story directing military patrols and farming reforms as his prestige grew and the war’s dangers receded.

• The Spirit of the Stag’s will dispersed, Brandt became legendary, and the Stag Legion’s knights received the Eternal Burning Life Spark.
• The human army celebrated its victory while the Demigod warthog secretly fed on Orc corpses and residual divine power.
• Ryan reviewed his greatly increased spirituality and explained that he would spend two months clearing the land rather than continuing the main fighting.
• Ryan ordered armies to hunt Orcs in the Gerald Noble Territory and Sera Kingdom, using Werewolf cooperation, Griffins, and Blood Hawks to prevent them from regrouping.
• Ryan directed the Northern Military Council to keep legions on border defense and cultivate reclaimed land, while his prestige rose and people praised him.

Ryan managed the Wild Orc war from Andara Royal City, negotiated troop movements with the Sera Kingdom, and decided not to intervene in the southern noble territories while the Abyssal Faith spread. He then met the Andara Royal Family and offered to break the Bloodline Curse for every member, leaving the family to consider a chance at renewal.

• Ryan ordered troops to withdraw from the Griffin Mountains, proposed having a Legendary dragon drive the orcs north, and arranged for adventurers to clear the mountains while Sera's troops went to aid the Corland Kingdom.
• Ryan continued issuing orders to contain the orcs around the Gerald Noble Territory and reflected on the Northlands' looming calamity and the readiness of his troops.
• Brandt told Ryan that his Legendary power was steadily growing and that he might reach peak Legendary strength within ten years.
• Ryan decided not to send troops into the southern noble territories before the Empire–Church war reached a clear turning point.
• Ryan met Andara's nobles and reassured them about the orc threat, then told the king and royal family that he could free every member from the Bloodline Curse.

Ryan negotiated with the Andara royal family to rebuild the Paladin Knights in exchange for political influence, authority over Kingdom Avenue, and the Crown Prince as his student. After signing an alliance, he began cleansing the royal bloodline’s curse and organizing a new legion, leaving himself one month to consolidate his power.

• Ryan offered to fund the Paladin Knights’ restoration and demanded that its commander bear the Giant Mammoth Legendary Boon, that Andara support him unconditionally, and that he share authority over Kingdom Avenue.
• Ryan became the Crown Prince’s teacher and Imperial Tutor, and he and the King signed an alliance contract.
• Ryan bestowed Spirituality Blessings on the royal family to dispel the divine curse in their bloodlines.
• Ryan ordered Darryl to train the royal knights, remove those who failed the standards, and expand the Paladin Knights to three to five thousand members.
• Ryan planned to bless every Paladin Knight with unified power and noted that one month remained in his effort to unify and consolidate the land.

Ryan supplied the Andara Kingdom with resources to rebuild its Paladin Knights, then visited Dawn City and Gerald Noble Territory as he pursued influence over the region’s military and politics. He ended by demanding that the Gerald Army remain under Kemon Gerald’s command, despite the Counts’ objections.

• Ryan left the Andara Kingdom after seeing its royal family begin rebuilding the Paladin Knights and traveled to Dawn City.
• Queen Leta told Ryan that Grand Duke Leta resented the new royal army, and Ryan warned that the Leta family should not seek military authority against him.
• Ryan reviewed Cleric Sven’s report of Dawn Believer wealth and considered how the Church’s landholdings in the Corland Kingdom should be handled.
• Ryan entered Gerald Noble Territory to oversee the beastmen purge and urged Dark-Eyed Count and Golden-Eyed Count to preserve the Gerald Army.
• Ryan declared that he wanted Kemon Gerald to command the army and hoped the two Gerald Count Territories would eventually unite.

Ryan secured Tiffany’s support for unifying Gerald’s armies and began pushing for broader central control. In Corland’s capital, Ryan used lethal force against the nobles who had obstructed supplies to the orc war, and the chapter ended with a noble accusing Grand Duke Gailan of directing them.

• Ryan persuaded Tiffany to combine Golden Eye Territory’s and Ink Eye Territory’s armies, while proposing that Gerald reclaim land held by knights.
• Tiffany told the two Counts that Gerald needed powerful allies and a stronger army as the world changed, and Ryan promised to help Kemon reach Legend.
• Ryan announced annual military exercises and plans for a Northlands Knight Academy in Frozen Earth Territory.
• Brandt incapacitated Grand Duke Gailan’s soldiers, and Ryan killed the Saint Domain who had stood beside the Grand Duke.
• Ryan killed nobles in the capital and ordered their dispatched soldiers killed before confronting the nobles gathered at the Royal Palace.
• Ryan questioned the nobles about obstructing war supplies, and one noble blamed Grand Duke Gailan.

Ryan helped the King of Corland crush Grand Duke Gailan’s noble allies, then married his interests to the kingdom through an engagement to Princess Gwendolyn and returned to Rhino Horn Mountain. There, he received reports of the Empire’s victories against the orcs and the Church of Dawn, though he remained uncertain how the Church had failed to resist.

• Ryan killed nobles who had violated the covenant, while the King backed him and announced Ryan’s marriage to Princess Gwendolyn.
• Grand Duke Gailan returned to his territory weakened, and he sent Garick to lead the Kingdom Army south against the Abyssal threat.
• Ryan traveled to the Corland Kingdom’s southern lands with Gwendolyn and discussed the Abyssal Faith and the limits of the Church of Dawn and the Empire.
• Ryan returned to Rhino Horn Mountain after nearly two months away and reported the Northlands victory to Emperor Florian.
• Emperor Columbus IV announced humanity’s victory over the orcs, while Ryan received reports of the Empire’s attacks on the Church of Dawn and questioned its apparent inability to resist.

After the Empire’s army killed two Cardinal Archbishops, Floyd ordered the campaign to continue toward the Dawn Holy Mountain. Aatrox learned that the Emperor’s inquiry about casualties was part of a political struggle, and wondered whether Floyd would truly attack the Holy Mountain.

• Belain and Pat reunited after a battle and learned that Aatrox had killed Cardinal Archbishop Niles Shaw while Legion Commander Chrysus’s forces killed Cardinal Archbishop Quiedy.
• Floyd and the other commanders discussed the two dead Cardinals, and Floyd declared that the army would fight its way to the Holy Mountain if the Church refused to surrender.
• The Church sent no surrender, and the Emperor’s inquiry about likely casualties arrived without an order to retreat; Floyd consequently led the army south.
• Aatrox read Count Clayton’s message explaining that the Emperor was using concerns over casualties to pressure the Council of Elders and weaken Floyd’s political standing.
• Aatrox burned the letter and watched Floyd ride beside him, wondering whether he intended to attack the Holy Mountain.

Ryan’s preparations in the Northlands gave way to an Imperial army’s confrontation with the Church of Dawn at the Morning Radiance Holy Mountain. The Pope ordered Cardinal Archbishop William to attack, and Floyd killed him after a battle that exposed the Pope’s possible betrayal.

• Ryan secured alliances among the Northlands, brought the Werewolves under his authority, and judged that the Church of Dawn’s losses had weakened its willingness to wage war.
• Chrysus led an Imperial army into the Holy Mountain’s territory, where believers watched them pass under orders from the Pope.
• At the mountain, Floyd presented the bodies of Cardinal Archbishops Niels and Quiedy, while Chrysus questioned whether Saint Charles was the Pope’s son.
• Floyd accused Pope Solarion of conspiring with a foreign deity to assassinate Columbus III, and the Pope denied the charges before ordering Cardinal Archbishop William to kill an Imperial royal family member.
• Floyd fought Cardinal Archbishop William alone, broke through his divine art, and ran his sword through William’s chest.
• As William died, he glared at Pope Solarian, believing the Pope had betrayed Dawn’s oath and weakened him.

After the Empire’s expeditionary army fought its way from Holy Mountain, Pope Solarian used the deaths of the Cardinal Archbishops to consolidate his power over the Church of Dawn. Floyd then led the army on an enormous detour instead of returning through Carlos Province, and Ryan learned their route would take them along Northwind Avenue.

• Aatrox challenged the Dawn Saint, but tens of thousands of enraged clergy, monks, and nuns charged the Empire’s army, forcing it to fight its way off Holy Mountain.
• Solarian told Charlie that avoiding a battle with Aatrox had prevented an Abyssal invasion, then instructed him to choose new Cardinal Archbishops.
• After Charlie left, Solarian revealed that he had maneuvered to have powerful Cardinal Archbishops killed and planned to replace them with candidates dependent on his authority.
• Floyd ordered the returning army to avoid Carlos Province and take a long route so nobles across Norris Continent could witness the Empire’s strength.
• Ryan read the Empire’s letter in Frozen Earth Territory and realized Floyd’s proposed route would lead along Northwind Avenue.

Ryan learned that Floyd’s returning army would pass through the Northlands, forcing him to conceal how thoroughly the region had come under his influence. As Floyd’s forces encountered Abyssal activity and reached the Corland Kingdom, they discovered the kingdom’s troops training under Borgeld.

• Ryan read Count Clayton’s account of the Imperial Capital’s power struggle and learned that Floyd was being kept from taking up his post in Carlos Province.
• Ryan decided to hide the Northlands’ true situation from Floyd’s army, which reached the region sooner than expected.
• Floyd and his companions sensed Abyssal nests in noble territories and chose to leave them to the Church of Dawn rather than risk unrest.
• Floyd’s army reached the Corland Kingdom, where Brutus’s mages hardened a muddy riverbed so the troops could cross.
• Garick confronted the Imperial Army at the border, then ordered his soldiers to lower their weapons as they watched Borgeld’s brutal training exercises.
• Borgeld rode over and roared at the Corland soldiers to obey Garick and put down their weapons.

Ryan welcomed Floyd’s returning noble army to Zero Crossing City and explained why he had sent Armored Bears to the Corland Kingdom. The nobles’ visit brought business and attention to the city, especially as they bought weapons from Frozen Earth Territory, and they eventually departed for the Imperial Capital.

• Floyd’s army passed through the Corland Kingdom and Andara Kingdom, where the nobles noticed new roads, prosperous activity, and changes in the region.
• Ryan greeted Floyd and Aatrox at Zero Crossing City, then explained that he had sent the Armored Bears to help the Corland Kingdom and secure opportunities for the Northern Kingdom’s Braveheart Guild.
• The returning nobles stayed in Zero Crossing City for several days, where Ryan arranged transfers of weapons and armor from Frozen Earth Territory.
• Brandt examined the southern weapons brought back by the noble knights, and one knight traded a damaged sword to Brock for a Frozen Earth Territory greatsword.
• The noble knights left Zero Crossing City for the Imperial Capital, leaving the city’s residents reminiscing about their lavish spending.

Ryan opened a Planar Gate and sent Heilrik and one hundred Stag Legion knights to explore another world. Heilrik emerged over a vast, wind-swept ocean, where intelligent ravens of Miklagard rescued him and invited the others to come ashore.

• Ryan inspected the Stag Legion and selected one hundred knights, led by Brandt, to enter the Otherworld.
• Ryan opened a Planar Gate, and Heilrik went through first.
• Heilrik fell into the ocean and struggled to stay afloat in his heavy armor.
• An enormous raven rescued Heilrik and carried him to floating trees occupied by intelligent ravens.
• The ravens identified themselves as natives of Miklagard, revealed that no humans remained in their world, and formed a patch of land from roots and vines for Heilrik to stand on.

Ryan and Brandt met the Witch Crows of Miklagard, who explained how their world became the first to suffer the Northlands’ winter and shared their ancient understanding of wizards and magic. Ryan told them what had happened after the War of the Deities Across Planes, but Kledar’s final question turned to the Great Beings of the Old Days.

• Heilrik was forced through the Planar Gate by a crow, and Brandt arrived to speak with the six Witch Crows of Miklagard.
• Ryan crossed the sea with his attendants, met the island villagers, and learned that six Witch Crow communities survived across the islands.
• Kledar explained that the Witch Crows were human souls dwelling in vessels transformed from deities, and that Miklagard had been the first World Tree leaf struck by the Northlands’ winter.
• Kledar described how ancient wizards had studied many kinds of transcendent power before mages and other specialized paths emerged.
• The Witch Crows said they had anticipated the Planar Gate and asked Ryan what had become of the world after the War of the Deities Across Planes.
• Ryan described the fallen worlds, the Abyssal Deities, and the slumbering deities, and Kledar asked about the Great Beings of the Old Days.

Ryan learned that the Witch Crows inhabited half of a deity’s body and awaited the return of the deity’s lost Authority, while their own souls maintained the body’s vitality. Kledar explained that complete spirituality came only from human souls, then warned Ryan that pursuing too much knowledge could overwhelm his mind as Ryan confronted the Witch Crows with his Legendary pressure.

• Ryan asked the Witch Crows about the Old Days, but they warned him not to invoke the names of sleeping deities and said winter remained fierce.
• Ryan learned that the Witch Crows would eventually give him the villagers, and Kledar explained that their bodies had been formed from half of Miklagard’s deity, whose lost Authority might return through Ryan’s Space Gate.
• Kledar said the Witch Crows’ immortality came at the price of a future Raven Offering, since their wizard souls sustained the deity’s half-body.
• Kledar revealed that spirituality was the origin of the soul and that only humans possessed complete, independent spirituality, while other life held fragmented spirituality.
• The Witch Crows warned Ryan that pursuing knowledge could overburden his soul, and Ryan used his Legendary pressure to challenge them about their wisdom.

Ryan learned that a god’s chosen pirate captain sailed the Blue Sea Archipelago, and the Witch Crows lent him their living Crow Ship so he could find her. As he set out with Furia and his attendants, a storm rose over the sea after Ryan caught a valuable Crystal Shell Squid.

• Ryan questioned Furia, a village blacksmith, and learned that a lone pirate crew led by a woman had raided the islands for supplies.
• Kledar revealed that the pirate captain was a Child of God who wielded the power of storms, and Ryan asked for help finding her.
• The Witch Crows lent Ryan the Crow Ship, and he hired Furia and other villagers to sail with him.
• Ryan caught a Crystal Shell Squid with his dragon-shaped blood and qi and recognized its body as valuable Magic Crystal and Obsidian.
• Ripples appeared on the previously still sea as a storm arrived.

Ryan captured Liv and repeatedly let her go in exchange for treasure as the two ships fought across the Dead Silence sea. Liv kept returning with stronger sailors and more payment, while Ryan’s wealth grew and he learned she salvaged relics from the seabed.

• Liv attacked Ryan’s ship, but Brandt and the Knight Retainers defeated her pirates, and Brandt stopped and sank their ship beneath the sea.
• Ryan accepted gold, gemstones, and Magic Crystals from Liv as payment for her freedom, then followed her trail using the Crystal Shell Squids.
• Liv salvaged ancient armor for her crew and attacked again, but Ryan’s forces defeated her, and she paid for her release with more treasure.
• Liv paid Ryan ten copper coins for a grilled fish, and Ryan questioned her about the relics and equipment she had salvaged from the seabed.
• Liv angrily insisted the treasure Ryan had collected still belonged to her.

Ryan confronted the Witch Crows over the force assisting Liv and fought them when Kledar suspected Ryan had drawn a Great Being’s attention to Miklagard. After Ryan and Brandt forced the Witch Crows to stand down, Kledar revealed that another deity’s projection had intruded into the world.

• The Witch Crows discussed Liv, Ryan, and the missing divine authority, then chose to wait for it to return to Miklagard.
• Ryan asked Kledar why Miklagard actively helped Liv, arguing that a dead world could not have a living will of its own.
• Kledar grew hostile and suspected Ryan’s arrival had attracted a Great Being’s gaze, so Ryan attacked and Brandt joined him against the six Witch Crows.
• Kledar withdrew the wizard formation rather than risk a battle with Ryan and Brandt, and Ryan insisted that Miklagard’s deity concerned him.
• Kledar admitted that another deity’s will existed in Miklagard as a projection, not its true body.

Ryan established his forces in the Blue Sea Archipelago, learned that the deep sea held monstrous dependents, and set out again. Liv returned wielding the divine spoil Naglfar, but Ryan’s knights defeated her summoned army, leaving her with the ocean as her last possible bargaining chip.

• Ryan camped in the Blue Sea Archipelago, exchanged goods with the Witch Crows, and learned that scaled monsters infested the deep sea.
• Liv sailed to an underwater palace and claimed Naglfar, the skull of a divine being’s favored child, as a weapon against Ryan.
• Liv summoned a storm and used Naglfar to unleash the Son of Hymir and an army of dependents against Ryan’s Crow Ship.
• Ryan’s Stag Attendants defeated the dependents, and Brandt reduced the Son of Hymir to its skull.
• Ryan spared Liv again and told her that the ocean was her last chance to pay for her freedom.

Liv entered the Chaotic Sea and agreed to a soul-bound contract with a Great Being, who then attacked Ryan’s ship with enormous tentacles. Ryan summoned the Witch Crows, who destroyed the tentacles and discovered their enemy had stolen knowledge and wielded a trace of Miklagard’s authority; Ryan warned them that their world’s missing Divine Essence might already have been devoured.

• Liv sailed into the Chaotic Sea, followed a distant call, and contracted with a Great Being for power and wealth in exchange for her soul.
• Liv returned to Ryan, and the Great Being’s tentacles attacked the Crow Ship as Ryan confronted her about the power she had gained.
• Ryan opened a Planar Gate to evacuate the sailors and called the Witch Crows to battle the tentacles.
• The Witch Crows unleashed their stored magic, roots, and island beasts to destroy the tentacles after hours of bombardment.
• Kledar said the Great Being had stolen knowledge and possessed wisdom, and Ryan warned the Witch Crows that their deity’s missing Divine Essence might have been devoured.

Ryan learned that the Great Being’s projection in Miklagard was a corner of its Divine Kingdom and that the Witch Crows planned to join forces with Kael against it. After Liv’s trade with the projection failed, she became Ryan’s sailor and vowed to earn enough to buy back her freedom.

• The Witch Crows sailed toward Kael, hoping to unite Miklagard’s wizards and learn their chances of defeating the Great Being’s projection.
• Kledar explained that the projection sought to devour Miklagard and its Witch Crows, while warning Ryan that learning the Great Being’s name could summon it.
• The Witch Crows reasoned that the projection had gained some of the deity’s authority from the half of its source that had left Miklagard, though an accident had prevented it from obtaining all of it.
• Ryan asked about the war’s odds, and Kledar said they would know after meeting Kael, a wizard guilty of blasphemy against deities.
• Liv told Ryan she could not complete her trade because the projection had failed to fulfill its agreement, and Ryan took her on as his sailor.
• Liv accepted Ryan’s offer and promised to earn enough money to buy back her freedom.