Published at 8th of September 2026 7:19 am

Chapter 1085: Zero

This chapter is updated by JustRead.pl

Asher’s figure appeared within an alley in the Wargrave Territory. The moment he appeared, he tapped into the photons in the air and disguised himself, as if he didn’t, people would simply rush towards him like they did back at the Raymond Territory.

Stepping out of the alley, Asher’s eyes fell on a statue of himself that had been built by the people of the Wargrave Estate during the Inter-Empire tournament. He gazed at it for a moment, his head turned towards his Father’s, then he shook his head and walked away.

The Wargrave Territory was as peaceful as ever, still the same old, same old, children running around, carriages passing endlessly, sellers chanting the names of their goods and prices. After gazing around for a moment, Asher decided to leave. He had nothing to do here; he was merely looking around since the Star Academy Teleportation Scroll had brought him here, that was all.

His body lifted off the ground as he shot into the sky, his body streaking towards the Wargrave Estate. As he got close, he sensed a Knight sitting on a cloud who simply bowed lightly at him. The Knight seemed to be in charge of aerial defence.

Asher flew over the gates and landed within the compound. With that, he walked up to the main building. As he approached, he saw Malrik leaning against the entrance door as though waiting for him or someone else.

"Congratulations, Youngest," Malrik spoke with a calm smile.

"Thank you, brother," Asher replied as he came to a stop. "I thought you already left," he added.

Malrik nodded as he spoke, "Indeed, I already did, but I only came to say congratulations. After all, you are the first person in history to graduate so early, and in your first year at that." A proud smile appeared on his face.

Asher smiled as he stepped into the building. Malrik turned and followed him as they walked side by side.

"So, do I get any gifts for graduating early?" Asher asked.

Malrik stayed silent for a moment, then shook his head with an amused smile as he spoke, "Graduating is expected of every Wargrave. We can’t reward basic things, can we?"

Asher tilted his head to the side as he replied, "But I graduated early, though."

"And this is where I say I’m not your Father, so I’m not obliged to give you anything," Malrik replied with a shrug.

Asher simply laughed it off, as he wasn’t expecting anything from anyone. He already had everything he could ask for in life; what more could he possibly want?

"Anyway, I will be leaving soon," Malrik continued as they both climbed the staircase.

Asher arched an eyebrow as he asked, "Already?"

Malrik nodded and replied, "Yes, I only came here to say congratulations." He paused for a moment, then added, "Besides, I can’t stay too long even if I wanted to. At my Outpost, I’m the only Crownstar Life Ranker there, and unlike Monsters and Beasts that get to the peak rank and immediately turn lazy by going into hibernation that spans decades, Emovirae are the complete opposite." He paused for a moment, then added, "And the Emovira I’m chasing is simply too slippery." A sigh escaped his lips.

Asher listened as he processed everything Malrik had said.

’It seems Outposts are more dangerous than I thought,’ he thought to himself as he walked.

"But weren’t you at the Thalvorn Empire for almost a month?" He asked, "Doesn’t that sort of contradict what you say about you not being able to stay for long?"

Malrik’s blue eyes shifted to his brother for a moment, then he shook his head as he replied.

"There wasn’t any pressing matter at the time that Conrad couldn’t handle. Since he is a Crownstar Life Ranker, I made him stay at my Frontier," he explained as he walked. "Besides, the Emovira I’m hunting at the moment wasn’t active and, like I said, was too slippery, so I had nothing to do back then." He paused for a moment, then continued, "But it seems it had grown bold or bought courage somewhere... I personally think it received an order from a Sinvaira or something," he stated in finality.

What Malrik didn’t say was that this particular Rank 10 Emovira had suddenly become overly active since Asher won the Inter-Empire tournament.

But it didn’t matter to Malrik what the Sinvairas and this Emovira were planning. He had already killed one Emovira without going all out; what was there to be afraid of if a few ganged up on him?

Asher stayed silent for a moment, then asked, "How is it at the Frontier? Are there battles every day?" His tone was curious.

Malrik was tempted to answer, but he shook his head as he replied, "I won’t be giving you any spoilers, Youngest. When you get there, you will see it for yourself, just like the Star Academy."

Asher couldn’t help but roll his eyes. What was so amazing about the Outpost and Frontier that couldn’t be said? Well... not that he really cared. It didn’t change the fact that he was going to the Frontier soon, so whether he was told anything or not, he would still head there.

But as he thought that, another question flickered across his mind.

"How many men have you lost at your Frontier?" He asked, as he wanted to know how deadly a Frontier truly was.

A smirk appeared across Malrik’s lips as he answered, "Zero."

Asher was stunned as he asked, "Zero?"

He had imagined that there would be immense battles that piled up corpses and stuff like that, but zero? That seemed too unrealistic.

Seeing Asher’s reaction, Malrik replied proudly, "Who do you think you are talking to, brother?" he asked. "Before you became famous, I was the most famous and talented person on the planet." His tone was a bit proud of his achievements.

"I was just surprised, that was all," Asher replied as he shook his head, as he knew Malrik had always been confident and proud of his own power and talent.

But the man was never arrogant or prideful, though he did indeed rub it in his siblings’ faces once in a while.

Malrik decided to explain, as he didn’t want Asher to misunderstand. "At the Frontier, there are always dead soldiers, the numbers varying from how large the Frontier is to how large the scale of battle is," he began to speak. "A large-scale Frontier could have millions of people in it, and a single large-scale battle could cost thousands of lives, so make no mistake, there are mountains of bodies." He paused as though he was allowing Asher to understand and imagine the scene.

"I lost zero soldiers simply because in whatever battle that happens, I’m always there, hiding to see if the other side deployed some unknown powerful enemies," he continued. "So whenever any of my soldiers are about to die, I simply intervene without them knowing it," he answered. "But make no mistake, I don’t pamper or pet my soldiers. They still face life-or-death battles. I only interfere in cases of certain death, that’s all," his tone calm and explanatory.

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