Chapter Summaries

Key plot points and events

• During a three-day ceasefire, Duke reflects on how individual strength can seem insignificant in a vast war, yet a powerful enough fighter can determine the fate of entire planes. The absence of a Level 6 fighter on the Devourer Plane had allowed the Allied Legion to advance, while even Sage Malagon had been forced to accept Ocevia’s terms.
• At dawn, the ceasefire ends with a carefully concentrated barrage from the Allied Legion’s warships and Arcane Cannons. The attack destroys key fortifications and opens several gaps in the Indigenous Coalition’s defenses.
• The Allied Legion launches a coordinated assault, combining slave creatures, Golems, Orc squads, warship guns, and floating airships. Their refined tactics and fresh reinforcements overwhelm the defenders.
• Indigenous Coalition troops and Awakened resist fiercely, but their counterattacks fail and casualties mount. As the line breaks, panic spreads, and the army collapses into a rout.
• Duke watches from high ground as the Allied Legion secures the battlefield. Malagon and the Coalition’s other powerful fighters do not intervene, recognizing that doing so would not reverse the defeat and could provoke devastating retaliation.
• The Allied Legion raises its banners over the ruins, while the survivors flee deeper into the Brunn Continent. The route to its interior is now open.

Character developments

• Duke has gained a broader understanding of war and high-level power. Watching the Coalition’s collapse reinforces his sense that courage alone cannot overcome overwhelming resources and force.
• Sage Malagon remains absent from the battle, honoring—or submitting to—the agreement with Ocevia. His restraint reflects the Coalition’s lack of viable options.

Significant themes

• Individual strength versus collective force: One person may be powerless amid a great army, but a sufficiently powerful individual can change a war’s outcome.
• The cost and limits of courage: The defenders’ sacrifice cannot compensate for the widening gap in strength and resources.
• Technology, preparation, and coordination: The Allied Legion’s precise bombardment and combined-arms tactics turn its material advantage into decisive victory.
• Defeat and despair: Once resistance appears futile, fear spreads quickly, transforming an orderly defense into a rout.

Character interactions

• The Allied Legion coordinates its weapons and forces: Level 3 slave creatures work with warship guns, Orc squads advance behind Golems, and airships suppress counterattacks.
• Indigenous Coalition soldiers and Awakened fight together in desperate defense, but their efforts are broken by the Legion’s overwhelming assault.
• Malagon’s side refrains from confronting the Legion’s powerful fighters, avoiding a retaliation that could make the defeat even worse.

Key plot points and events

• After the main legion force continued its pursuit, Duke’s squadron was ordered to secure and help clear the battlefield.
• Duke walked through a landscape buried in bodies, wrecked equipment, destroyed Golems, fallen Orcs, and crashed airships. Wounded survivors and trapped enemy groups were dealt with harshly.
• Magical devastation and mass death had warped the battlefield: unstable energy, dangerous remnants of spells, and newly forming undead posed additional risks.
• Legion logistics teams methodically salvaged weapons, armor, Golem parts, and useful biological materials. Most enemy bodies were burned or buried.
• After a day of clearing and guarding the area, Duke’s squad moved on. The battlefield was to become another forward base for the legion’s advance.

Character development

• Duke remains vigilant and observant, recording the dangers and details around him, but the scale and brutality of the aftermath weigh heavily on him.
• Confronted with war’s lack of glory and the legion’s impersonal efficiency, he resolves that only overwhelming power can keep him from becoming a helpless victim and give him the freedom to choose.

Significant themes

• The cost of war: The battlefield reduces soldiers, creatures, and machines alike to wreckage.
• Industrialized violence: The legion treats death and destruction as logistical problems, extracting value and converting the battlefield into infrastructure.
• Power and agency: Duke sees strength as the only safeguard against being swept up by forces beyond his control.
• Survival without triumph: Victory brings no celebration—only survivors, casualties, and preparations for the next campaign.

Character interactions

• Duke’s squad works under orders to guard the battlefield and monitor its dangerous energies.
• Legion personnel show little mercy to wounded enemies, while valuable injured slave creatures are removed for salvage.
• A newly risen undead attacks a skeletal laborer but is swiftly destroyed by a guarding Green-skinned Orc, illustrating the continuing hazards even after the battle ends.

Plot points and events

• The Allied Legion advances across the Weeping Blood Plain, finding signs of a panicked retreat rather than only battlefield devastation. Captured coalition soldiers are sent to prisoner camps, and the legion pushes inland without serious resistance.
• Ashen City, a farming and trading center, has been abandoned by its defenders. The gates are open, buildings are looted or burning, and the streets contain the dead—soldiers and civilians alike.
• Legion forces enter cautiously, then rapidly take control. Knights and wizards secure key locations while skeleton laborers and slave creatures search and clear the city. A command post and temporary Wizard Mark Tower are established in the central square.
• Duke patrols the streets, using his mental power to detect hidden people and lingering energy. He recognizes that many residents fled before the army’s defeat, while those left behind hide in fear.

Character development

• Duke’s role is both practical and reflective: he monitors for threats but also considers the human cost of conquest. The abandoned bakery and ruined streets make the city’s former life—and its destruction—especially vivid to him.

Significant themes

• Conquest as more than military victory: The legion takes over the city’s defenses and infrastructure, imposing a new order on its population.
• War’s civilian toll: Fear, flight, looting, and scattered bodies show how conflict devastates ordinary life beyond the battlefield.
• The illusion of safety: Ashen City appears less ruined than the plain, but its apparent calm conceals a population living in terror.
• The collapse of community: Prosperous streets have become a hollow shell, suggesting that the legion’s advance may bring the same fate to other regions.

Character interactions

• Duke works alongside the wizard squad and the legion’s occupying forces, while soldiers and support creatures carry out the takeover.
• The remaining residents do not confront the invaders; they watch from hiding with fear and bewilderment, underscoring the distance between the conquering army and the conquered population.

Key events

• Duke and Vivian abandon their assigned patrol route and head north through Ashen City, hoping to reach its legendary underground vault. The Allied Legion’s assignments keep outsiders away from valuable spoils, but the rules do not specify fixed patrol boundaries.
• The vault is reputed to be vast, heavily fortified, and divided into levels that require separate keys. The city’s retreat was too hurried to remove all its contents.
• In the northern square, Duke and Vivian find the vault’s massive entrance under Thorn Holy Tower’s control. Its wizards are studying the runed metal door and trying to breach it, while armed guards keep others back.
• Silver Hand challenges Thorn Holy Tower’s exclusive control and invokes wartime rules granting others a share. Thorn’s leaders brush them off. Silver Hand’s protest also lets them observe the entrance and gather information.
• Other outsiders, including Duke and Vivian, watch from farther away, aware that Thorn Holy Tower currently has first claim on the vault’s contents.

Character developments and interactions

• Duke and Vivian show initiative and shared ambition: rather than accept a marginal role, they exploit the flexibility of their orders to seek a chance at the vault’s riches.
• Thorn Holy Tower’s wizards act confidently and defensively, asserting their advantage as the first faction on the scene.
• Silver Hand’s wizards openly contest Thorn’s control, but their challenge appears partly strategic: they hope to pressure Thorn and learn how to open the vault.
• The exchange between Silver Hand and Thorn highlights the mistrust and rivalry among allied factions, despite their cooperation in the war.

Significant themes

• Self-interest amid alliance: The Allied Legion may fight together, but access to spoils drives competition between organizations.
• Power and privilege: Connections and rank determine who gets opportunities; junior outsiders like Duke, Vivian, and Catherine’s squad members have little influence.
• Ambition and maneuvering: Characters look for loopholes and leverage rather than passively accepting their assigned place.
• Uncertainty and opportunity: Whoever can open the vault may gain priority, leaving room for the balance of power to shift.

Key plot points and events

• Duke and Vivian assess the sealed underground vault in Ashen City’s northern district. Its massive gate seems impossible to breach, and the vault’s Magic Metal shell is reinforced by flowing energy.
• Duke considers bypassing the gate by traveling underground. Vivian worries about the risk but agrees to watch for danger while he investigates.
• They leave the crowded square and reach a ruined, lightly guarded section of the city wall.
• Using his exceptional Earth Element Affinity, Duke sinks into the ground and moves through soil and rock, carefully concealing his passage and avoiding unstable areas and old pipes.
• Though the journey drains his magic power and demands precise control, he reaches a point beneath the vault and begins examining its enormous structure.

Character developments and interactions

• Duke shows ingenuity, patience, and confidence in his specialized abilities, while proceeding cautiously rather than attempting to force his way inside.
• Vivian demonstrates concern for Duke’s safety and practical support: she stays above ground to keep watch and urges him to turn back if he encounters danger.
• Their quiet, coordinated exchange reflects mutual understanding and trust.

Significant themes

• Ingenuity over force: Duke seeks an overlooked route when the obvious entrance proves inaccessible.
• Skill and discipline: His underground movement depends on finely controlled magic, mental focus, and sound fundamentals.
• Trust and caution: Duke takes a calculated risk while Vivian supports him and remains alert.
• The unknown beneath the surface: The vault’s formidable structure and Duke’s concealed approach build suspense about what lies ahead.

Plot points and events

• Duke uses the Yellow Sand Crystal to slowly erode the underground vault’s Seaheart Iron wall, taking care not to alert the wizards attacking the main entrance.
• He makes a narrow opening into the vault’s lowest level and checks for traps before slipping inside.
• The chamber is vast, stark, and almost empty. At its center, a plain stone pedestal supports a small, ordinary-looking wooden box that Duke suspects is the vault’s true treasure.
• An invisible Rule Barrier blocks him about ten meters from the pedestal. Neither his magic nor mental power can penetrate it, and he senses immense, ancient power within the box.
• With the wizards above likely to breach the entrance soon, Duke calls on the being connected to him through the Messenger Contract. Space bends, and a formidable, elegant woman with black wings and horns appears.

Character developments and interactions

• Duke demonstrates patience and caution, choosing slow, quiet excavation over speed and carefully checking the opening for defenses.
• When he cannot overcome the barrier himself, he adapts quickly and seeks help rather than wasting time. He reaches out through the Messenger Contract, summoning the mysterious woman.
• The woman’s arrival establishes her as powerful and otherworldly, but her intentions and response to Duke’s request remain unknown at the chapter’s end.

Significant themes

• Patience and stealth: Duke’s careful approach lets him enter without alerting those outside.
• Appearance versus significance: The vault’s most important object looks plain and unremarkable, while the chamber itself is unexpectedly empty.
• Limits of individual power and reliance on allies: Duke reaches a point where his abilities are useless and must turn to someone stronger.
• Ancient, incomprehensible power: The Rule Barrier is presented as a fundamental prohibition, beyond ordinary magic or energy.

Key plot points and events

• Duke is unable to break the Rule Barrier protecting a small wooden box and summons Albedo for help.
• Albedo offers to bypass the barrier in exchange for a future favor. She swears the task will not kill Duke or force him to violate his core principles, though the agreement remains deliberately vague.
• After weighing the risk against the box’s potential importance, Duke accepts the bargain.
• Albedo easily crosses the barrier, retrieves the box, and returns it unopened.
• Inside, Duke finds a single ordinary-looking green seed, far less impressive than he expected.

Character developments

• Duke shows caution and resolve: he recognizes the danger of bargaining with Albedo but accepts because the box may contain something crucial. He also notices that Albedo’s interest in him seems like an investment in his future potential.
• Albedo is playful, seductive, and intimidating, but she honors the bargain and gives Duke the box without claiming its contents. Her interest in the seed—and in Duke—remains unexplained.

Significant themes

• The cost of power: Duke gains access to the box but takes on an uncertain future obligation.
• Unequal bargains and ambiguous promises: Albedo’s assurances sound reassuring while leaving room for interpretation.
• Appearance versus significance: The protected treasure looks like a mundane seed, raising questions about its true value.

Character interactions

• Albedo teases and intimidates Duke, while Duke keeps his composure and negotiates directly.
• Their exchange establishes a bond of obligation: Albedo provides immediate help, and Duke owes her a future service.

Key plot points and events

• Duke discovers a small, warm green seed in Ashen City’s treasury. Its restrained but ancient, exceptionally pure life energy surprises him.
• Albedo identifies it as a World Tree Seed—a treasure capable, if it grows, of strengthening a plane’s rules and energy and eventually helping a lower plane rise to a higher one.
• Albedo warns that the seed could attract powerful enemies and that its presence in the treasury suggests hidden connections beyond Duke’s understanding.
• Duke stores it in the Light Divine Court, a developing Plane Embryo, where it will be safer and might help the plane grow.
• When Duke asks how to cultivate it, Albedo describes methods far beyond his reach: nourishing it with a powerful Plane Core or legendary primordial treasures. She then proposes Faith Power as a more attainable source of nourishment that might awaken the dormant seed.

Character developments and interactions

• Duke moves from bafflement to awe, then quickly recognizes the danger and strategic value of the seed. He is cautious, ambitious, and eager to learn how it might advance both his own power and the Light Divine Court.
• Albedo teases Duke about his discovery, then becomes serious as she explains its significance and risks. She acts as a knowledgeable guide, laying out the seed’s immense potential and the challenges of using it.
• Their exchange shifts from Albedo’s playful mockery to a focused discussion of cultivation, with Duke relying on her expertise.

Significant themes

• Power and responsibility: The seed could transform a plane, but Duke is currently too weak to protect or use it safely.
• Ambition and long-term growth: Duke sees the seed as a way to raise the Light Divine Court’s potential and eventually draw on its power himself.
• Faith as creative force: The chapter presents collective belief as a potent life-giving resource, potentially capable of awakening the World Tree Seed.

Plot points and events

• Albedo explains that Faith Power can nourish the World Tree Seed, but Duke’s current supply is far too small to revive it anytime soon. She leaves him alone in the vault’s sealed lowest level.
• Duke examines the vast chamber, built from energy-conducting Seaheart Iron. Its defenses make it isolated and difficult to detect; the only other object is a plain gray-white stone pedestal.
• Though he suspects the upper vault contains valuable treasures, Duke decides not to explore. Breaking through could trigger defenses, alert the wizards above, and expose the World Tree Seed.
• He leaves through the small opening he made, carefully allowing the self-repairing rock to close behind him. Using his Earth affinity, he travels back toward Ashen City’s ruined outskirts, where Vivian is waiting.

Character development

• Duke shows restraint and strategic judgment, resisting greed despite the vault’s potential riches. He recognizes that protecting the World Tree Seed matters more than pursuing lesser rewards.
• His caution also shows greater confidence in survival: he values knowing when to abandon an opportunity rather than taking needless risks.

Significant themes

• Prudence over greed: A tempting reward is not worth jeopardizing what matters most.
• Secrecy and survival: Duke’s careful entrance and exit protect both his identity and his prize.
• Power and patience: Faith Power may sustain the World Tree Seed, but its revival will require far more than Duke currently possesses.

Character interactions

• Albedo offers Duke information but leaves the decision and its risks to him, emphasizing his independence.
• Duke’s thoughts remain focused on the wizards above and Vivian, whose presence awaits him beyond the vault.

Plot points and events

• Duke quietly emerges from underground after discovering something valuable, carefully restoring the ground so there is no trace of his passage.
• Vivian is relieved to see he is unharmed. She reports that two patrols passed while he was below and that the guards are still struggling to open the treasury gate.
• Duke refuses to reveal what he found, and the pair return to the Seventh Squadron’s quarters with their slave creatures, appearing to have completed an ordinary patrol.
• Soon after, word arrives that the underground treasury’s entrance has been opened. Duke and his squad have little chance of access: control lies with the Thorn Holy Tower’s leadership and other powerful factions.
• The first wizards enter the treasury, finding an ancient seaheart-iron passage decorated with murals, then a vast, spatially expanded hall filled with stored supplies, weapons, armor, herbs, metals, and coins. A more heavily sealed gate at the back suggests the treasury continues deeper.

Character developments and interactions

• Duke shows caution and control, concealing both his movements and his discovery. His guarded response reflects how important the World Tree Seed is.
• Vivian balances concern for Duke with practical discretion. Once she senses he has found something, she urges him not to tell her, recognizing that secrecy is safest.
• Their unspoken understanding allows them to leave without attracting attention. They also recognize that the opened treasury is effectively beyond the reach of minor wizards like themselves.

Significant themes

• Secrecy and survival: Valuable discoveries must be protected from scrutiny, even from trusted companions.
• Power and access: Great wealth may be uncovered, but authority determines who can claim it.
• Ancient legacy: The murals, preserved stores, and immense underground architecture reveal Ashen City’s former wealth and history, while the deeper gate hints at further mysteries.

Plot and events

• After order is restored in Ashen City, the Allied Legion advances into the Brunn Continent’s interior. The Seventh Squadron is assigned to eliminate the Mountain People, an isolated tribe whose Awakened warriors have been attacking legion supply lines.
• The operation is intended as a relatively safe combat exercise for the squadron’s inexperienced young wizards. Captain Catherine oversees it, while Level 2 allies and slave creatures provide backup rather than routinely fighting.
• The squadron establishes a forward camp near the Blackwind Mountains. Catherine assigns Duke and Vivian to lead Group Three in searching Valley Three and destroying any enemy outpost.
• Duke’s seven-member group finds a small Mountain People outpost: about fifteen defenders, including five Level 1 Awakened. He stays cautious and prepares a coordinated assault with fifty Green-skinned Orcs, whose training and equipment give them a decisive advantage.

Character developments

• Duke is increasingly recognized as a capable combatant, not merely a privileged heir. He remains practical and cautious, taking responsibility for the mission while avoiding unnecessary authority over his inexperienced teammates.
• Catherine trusts Duke’s demonstrated ability, placing him in charge of a group and providing experienced Orc support.
• The young wizards are still tense and inexperienced. Even after witnessing earlier battles, they have yet to develop the practical skills expected of combatants.
• The Green-skinned Orcs are shown as disciplined, calm, and reliable under Duke’s direction.

Themes

• War as training and reality: The Legion frames the mission as controlled practice, but it remains a lethal operation against a real community.
• Experience versus privilege: Status and magical rank do not automatically translate into battlefield competence.
• Organization and technology: The Legion’s coordination, equipment, and numbers contrast with the Mountain People’s terrain-based guerrilla tactics and primitive arms.
• Caution in combat: Duke does not underestimate even a small force, reflecting the risks of unfamiliar terrain and ambush.

Character interactions

• Catherine assigns Duke and Vivian to lead Group Three; they accept together.
• Duke tells the other five wizards to stay together rather than trying to impose strict commands, reflecting his low expectations of their combat readiness.
• Duke coordinates closely with the Green-skinned Orc scouts and squad, relying on their discipline to surround the outpost before attacking.

Key plot points and events

• Duke rejects involving the five inexperienced wizards in the assault, assigning them to guard the rear and watch for reinforcements. He and Vivian join a squad of fifty Green-skinned Orcs to attack a Mountain People stronghold.
• The Orcs launch a coordinated ambush, blasting through the entrance, suppressing defenders with sustained fire, and flanking the stronghold to block escape routes. Duke’s sand shields protect the Orcs, while Vivian attacks with Wind Blades.
• The Mountain People’s resistance is overwhelmed within minutes. Fifteen enemies are killed, none escape, and the Orcs suffer no casualties. Duke orders the troops to collect useful items and intelligence before withdrawing.
• Duke’s success impresses Catherine, who learns that his team is the first to complete its mission. In the following days, the Seventh Squadron systematically clears outposts and small strongholds around the Blackwind Mountains.
• Other teams suffer losses as inexperienced young wizards make poor decisions. Enslaved creatures bear most of the casualties because they must obey even dangerous or ill-considered orders; one young wizard also dies, and others are injured.

Character developments

• Duke demonstrates calm leadership, tactical planning, and strong control of elemental magic. He treats his Orcs as valuable forces to protect rather than expendable servants.
• Vivian works effectively alongside Duke, supporting the assault with precise magical attacks.
• The five young wizards are nervous and relieved to avoid the frontline, underscoring their lack of combat confidence.
• Catherine is surprised by Duke’s rapid, casualty-free victory.
• The wider group of young wizards is shown to vary greatly in judgment: some command recklessly, exposing themselves and their enslaved forces to danger.

Significant themes

• Preparation and discipline: The Orcs’ planning, coordinated roles, and use of an ambush make the battle decisive.
• Leadership and responsibility: Duke’s attention to protecting his forces contrasts with other wizards’ careless commands.
• Power imbalance: Superior weapons, magic, and tactics reduce the Mountain People’s resistance to a one-sided defeat.
• Inexperience and its cost: The later casualties show how poor judgment can turn dangerous terrain and capable opponents into deadly threats.

Character interactions

• Duke gives the five wizards a defensive assignment, then coordinates the attack with Vivian and the Orc captain.
• The Orc captain reports the victory to Duke, who praises the squad and directs its next steps.
• Duke’s mental communication lets him and the Orcs understand one another despite speaking different languages.
• Catherine receives Duke’s report through the Wizard Mark and recognizes his team’s exceptional performance.

Key plot points and events

• The Seventh Squadron reaches Giant Rock’s Grip, the Mountain People’s defensible homeland. The tribe has evacuated its vulnerable members, leaving young warriors determined to fight rather than surrender.
• Though seven powerful Level 2 slave creatures accompany the wizards, they are meant to stay out of the fighting unless necessary. Catherine must balance protecting the inexperienced squad with giving them real combat experience, especially after a previous mission resulted in a death.
• The Mountain People strike first, hurling boulders and using earth-based powers to rupture the ground and raise stone spears.
• Duke takes the lead. His magically empowered metal sand turns the ground into quicksand, swallows charging Level 1 warriors, pierces them through vulnerable openings, and neutralizes incoming boulders. With support from the slave creatures, he breaks the defenders’ line and drives them back into the valley.
• The attackers push through the entrance. The Mountain People’s leader—a towering Level 2 Awakened warrior—emerges and targets Duke, recognizing him as the greatest threat. Duke has shown his strength despite knowing it will draw attention because he expects support.

Character developments

• Duke demonstrates exceptional battlefield control, using his sand for both defense and devastating area attacks. His confidence suggests he trusts that backup will prevent him from being overwhelmed.
• Catherine is under pressure from her superiors and feels responsible for both the squad’s safety and its progress. The earlier death weighs on her as she tries to manage the risks of combat.
• The Mountain People’s leader is introduced as a formidable defender who responds directly to Duke’s breakthrough.

Significant themes

• Resistance and sacrifice: The Mountain People are prepared to die defending their ancestral home, even after sending away those least able to fight.
• The dangers of battle: Catherine cannot control every outcome, and the chapter stresses that anyone on a battlefield may face death.
• Power and tactical advantage: Duke’s specialized magic overwhelms the Mountain People’s less-developed earth techniques, showing how a decisive ability can shape an entire battle.
• Training through real conflict: The mission is meant to test the young wizards, creating tension between gaining experience and avoiding casualties.

Character interactions

• The Mountain People confront the Seventh Squadron with immediate, organized violence; the wizards and slave creatures respond with a coordinated assault.
• Duke becomes the focus of the fighting, drawing the Mountain People’s leader’s attention after tearing open their defenses.
• Catherine’s role remains supervisory: she must allow the squad to fight while ensuring powerful backup is available.

Duke fought through the Mountain People's defenses and discovered a Coldwater Pool whose water carried life energy. He took the crystal and bronze pedestal at its bottom, hid the discovery, and returned to battle without learning what the emerald liquid was.

• Two Level 2 slave creatures and Catherine pinned down the Mountain People's leader, allowing Duke to move past him.
• Duke killed a Mountain People warrior, and the collapsing rocks exposed a crevice that released an unusual water-element energy.
• Duke opened the crevice and found the Coldwater Pool, whose water contained life energy and nourished the Mountain People.
• Duke descended to the pool's bottom and found an emerald-glowing crystal embedded in a bronze pedestal.
• Duke removed the pedestal and crystal, stored them in the Light Divine Court, sealed the crevice, and rejoined the fighting.

After the Seventh Squadron defeated the Mountain People at Giant Rock's Grip, Duke and his comrades returned to Blackiron Fortress and continued fighting across the Brunn Continent. Over eight months, the Allied Legion crushed the continent's organized resistance, and Duke was left with no further role in the coming campaigns on other continents.

• After the Mountain People's leader fell, Catherine ordered the Seventh Squadron to take its prisoners to Blackiron Fortress.
• Duke and the squadron arrived at the reconstructed fortress, where they rested for one day before receiving another mission.
• Duke and the other young wizards fought in assaults on city-states, raids against Awakened squads, and battles in the wilderness, gaining combat experience.
• The Allied Legion isolated and conquered the Brunn Continent's city-states, enslaving those who surrendered and devastating those that resisted.
• After eight months, the Legion eliminated all organized resistance and began reorganizing for campaigns on other continents, while Duke had no further part in them.

The war on the Brunn Continent had largely ended, and Duke prepared to return to the Wizard Plane with the Seventh Squadron. He left Hill City with valuable spoils and new questions to investigate, while the war continued on the other continents.

• The Allied Legion stabilized the Brunn Continent, while Sage-level Awakened made its campaigns on other continents more difficult.
• Vivian told Duke that the teleportation array was ready and that several teams would return with the Seventh Squadron.
• Duke reviewed his gains from the war, including the World Tree Seed, an unknown crystal, and a Level 2 black longsword.
• Duke and the other returning wizards gathered in Hill City's Central Square and prepared to teleport back to the Wizard Plane.

Duke and the others returned from the Devourer Plane to Ryan City, where Vivian relaxed and spent a peaceful hour with him before he departed for Harbor City. Vivian was left determined to improve while Duke returned to handle his reports and other formalities.

• Duke, Samuel, Vivian, and the others arrived at Ryan City's teleportation square, where members of the Crawford Family came to escort Samuel.
• Samuel left with the Crawford Family members, while Duke and Vivian explored Ryan City and Freya followed them.
• Vivian regretted that the Thorn Holy Tower was closed to visitors because of the war, and Duke reassured her that they could visit another time.
• Vivian admitted she wanted to catch up with Duke, and Duke hugged her and urged her not to put too much pressure on herself.
• Duke said goodbye to Vivian and Freya, then teleported from Ryan City to Harbor City.