The black sun hangs high

Chapter 172 The Hill of Strange Movements
This feeling of suddenly falling from noise into complete silence is terrible.

Hugh couldn't even tell whether the magical connection between himself and the magical rat swarm had been severed or "blocked".

Logically speaking, the family wills of Alexandra and Bernhardt are now "bound" to their metal discs. If these magical rats were to dissipate due to an external attack, they would immediately return to the metal discs themselves, just like the previous running rats.

But now, the rat hole in the metal disc was empty, and Hugh could only see Sniggy squatting blankly beside the rat hole.

As the power carrier of the magical rat swarm, it also sensed this strange situation. However, the mind of the running rat was obviously unable to understand the complex principles involved, so all it could do now was stare blankly and scratch its head.

Sensing Hugh's gaze, the running rat immediately raised its head. It pointed with its tail to the empty rat hole, then looked at Hugh seriously, its face full of confusion, its green eyes filled with bewilderment.

It's clear that it really wants to get an answer from Hughes.

"Don't look at me, I don't understand either!"

Hugh frowned, pulling his attention away from his mental world and looking toward the shadows of the hill ahead.

At this moment, Vilin also noticed the anomaly in the hill area, because just now, a blue-winged raven she had summoned using the bird skull medium suddenly lost control while flying towards Black Forest Fortress.

Almost everyone saw that the raven, which had been flying at high speed, suddenly dissipated into scattered magical light spots in the night, while the bird skull that served as the medium for summoning the blue-winged raven fell helplessly from the sky.

Other monks in the same group experienced similar situations.

Any magically summoned creature will immediately lose its magical connection with its summoner and dissipate upon entering the hilly area ahead.

This made Hughes uneasy. Although he didn't feel much belonging to the Ernst family, the family will of Alexandra and Bernhardt was now part of his power. If they disappeared so easily, the loss would be quite significant.

Fortunately, just as the spellcasters were discussing the matter, the magical connection with the rat swarm was suddenly re-established, and as the magic flowed, the voices of Alexandra and the other souls were intermittently transmitted back.

"By the goddess Mel! What just happened?"

The once-legendary countess seemed somewhat shaken: "I thought we were going to disappear because we lost our magic!"

Upon hearing this, Hugh quickly checked the location of the magical rat swarm and found that they had retreated back to the edge of the hill area. Clearly, after realizing the break in the magic power, these family wills immediately chose to retreat along the same route.

Fortunately, these magical rat swarms are different from ordinary summoned creatures. Although they also need a constant supply of magic to function properly, they can still maintain their existence for a period of time after the magic connection is severed by continuously reducing the number of rats to compress the magic.

It can be said that these family wills have once again ensured their continuation and existence through their keen judgment.

Alexandra, still shaken, explained about what happened inside the hill: “At first everything was normal, but as we got closer to the top of the hill, your voice became softer and softer. At first, everyone thought you weren’t talking to us, but soon, the connection between us and you completely disappeared.”

Bernhardt's voice came out: "So at that time, I gathered everyone together and we retreated back the way we came... Fortunately, we didn't go too deep, so we managed to get out in time."

"Thank you for your hard work, everyone."

Hugh breathed a slight sigh of relief. He had just glanced at the rat burrows inside the metal disc and found that although the number of these magical rats had shrunk drastically, there had been no serious loss of the family will itself. This meant that as long as he provided sufficient magic power, these rats would soon be able to return to their original state.

Now, the strange anomalies that have enveloped the entire hill have presented everyone with a dilemma.

You either continue forward despite the unknown risks, or immediately turn back the way you came.

Choosing the latter would mean the failure of their mission, the complete abandonment of the Black Forest Fortress, the soldiers stationed there, and the crystal cannons that would be crucial to the entire mercenary group.

Faced with the anomaly in the hilly area, Verin gave her initial assessment: "It's a magical disturbance... It's probably caused by some kind of large-scale magical ritual set up in the area ahead. It directly interferes with the operation of magic and thereby severs the connection between us and the summoned creatures."

Veraine paused briefly, then sighed and said, "It seems that someone doesn't want us to explore the interior using these methods; they'd rather we just walk in."

So a stream-level mage immediately stepped forward bravely.

He was of noble birth from the Votel family and had a deep love and loyalty to his country. So he selected a few equally fearless soldiers, mounted his warhorses, and set off along the road.

Hugh's gaze was fixed on the brave and fearless scout team. They advanced steadily and soon passed a guard post set up by the Jaeger Regiment at the foot of the hill. The guard post was empty, of course. Hugh could even see a Kalvan heavy machine gun placed behind a bunker. This weapon, which had shone brightly in the war, was now without its operator.

The members of the scouting team appeared to be in good health, and the leading noble mage even summoned the Mage Hand to greet the main force behind him, which was enough to show that he was still able to cast spells normally.

His composure and calmness relieved everyone slightly.

However, this ease did not last long. As the procession passed an ancient statue standing by the roadside, an unexpected incident occurred.

A soldier from the Jaeger corps, who was riding forward, suddenly slowed down. He swayed twice and then fell from his horse. At the same time, the others around him seemed to be experiencing different situations. Hugh saw one of the soldiers try to dismount to help his comrade, but after landing, he clearly lost his balance and fell to the ground after taking a few steps. He was not unconscious and continued to try to get up, but his limbs were clearly not obeying his commands, and no matter how hard he tried, he could not stand up again.

Another soldier lay down on the horse's back and began vomiting violently.

The brave council noble mage was in much better shape. He slapped his head twice as if to relieve the pain, then turned his horse around and, without bothering to help the soldiers, galloped back the way he came.

Some people instinctively wanted to rush over to help, but then came the mage's roar from ahead: "Don't come in! Don't come in!"

His shouts were so forceful, almost heart-wrenching, but after only a few words, his body collapsed onto his horse. His warhorse seemed to have fallen into some kind of abnormal state; white foam began to drip from its mouth, and its movements became contorted and deformed as if it were drunk. Instead of slowing down, it charged straight towards the main group at full speed.

Just as the maddened warhorse was about to carry the mage into the crowd, several jet-black tentacles suddenly swept out from the side. Under Hugh's control, they precisely and nimbly wrapped around the warhorse's body, forcibly stopping the horse with their own tenacity and explosive power.

At the same time, a gentle magical field was quickly constructed by Virin, which nimbly caught the mage who fell from his horse and gently placed him on the ground.

The warhorse continued to struggle. Hugh noticed that the horse's eyes were extremely dull, and its thinking and instincts seemed to have been severely disturbed. It was completely indifferent to the external pressure he had exerted and the threat of death posed by the Touch of Karron. It even dared to bite the black tentacles next to its head with its mouth.

The diagnosis for the monk was also quickly completed.

Vera stood up from beside the mage, her expression turning extremely grim: "The symptoms seem similar to 'magic breakage,' only the symptoms themselves have been greatly amplified... The pressure he's currently under is probably several times greater than that of a normal magic breakage. If this continues, his mind will completely collapse."

As she spoke, she looked at the ordinary soldiers who had failed to leave the hilly area. These brave men and their warhorses lay motionless on the ground.

"Moreover, unlike the usual magic break, now even ordinary people and animals are affected."

She narrowed her eyes: "There is a magical disturbance within the hill, and it should be targeting all living things."

Hugh approached the warhorse he had taken control of. This agile horse seemed to have gone completely mad, with white foam constantly oozing from its mouth and its eyes becoming bloodshot and red, as if blood would drip from them at any moment.

He tried to release his magical perception and envelop the warhorse. The next instant, an extremely chaotic and frenzied magical fluctuation emanated from the warhorse's body. Hugh could even feel that strange magical power constantly surging within the warhorse's body, and it was its presence that made the warhorse suffer and go mad.

After realizing the source of the problem, Hugh immediately went to the mage's side.

His condition was similar to that of the mad warhorse, except that because the spellcaster already possessed magic power within his body, he did not go mad due to the intrusion of that external magic power. However, because he had just escaped danger, his condition had not yet recovered, and his gaze appeared extremely unfocused.

When Hughes tried to further sense the characteristics of this strange magical power, the metal disc that had been rotating at a constant speed finally reacted.

It started to accelerate.

Although the increase in speed is limited, based on Hugh's past experience, this is indeed a change that only occurs when danger and hidden dangers are sensed.

As Hughes further activated his senses and tried to touch that strange magic, a very familiar yet extremely repulsive feeling surged up within him.

Hugh would never forget the feeling he had when he was attacked by the Dark Abyss Spawns in the sewers as he left the city of Seren. The sticky, cold, and malicious power was so unforgettable. And now, Hugh was sensing an extremely similar essence in this magical anomaly.

This force seems to feed on the will, thoughts, and power of living beings, and is constantly trying to grow stronger.

Hugh decisively raised his hand and placed it on the shoulder of the mage accompanying the army. The nauseating magical energy immediately flowed through him, causing the metal disc to spin at an all-time high. However, Hugh was no longer the novice spellcaster who only wanted to flee the city of Seren. Faced with this intrusion of external forces, he was able to fight back with his own will and spirit alone.

Just like crushing an insect that had accidentally crawled into one's room, the restless, cold magic was instantly extinguished under the surging tide of magic and spirit.

After completing this task, Hugh looked up at Officer Water and Virin beside him and said, "Let's go back. Black Forest Fortress is clearly not functioning properly. If we continue forward, we will not only be unable to bring out the crystal cannons inside, but we may also lose more men. Bringing this information back to the position and reporting it to Borden is the best option."

To the other mages and the officer, Hugh's words sounded like a reasonable suggestion, but to Verin, a scholar who already knew about the Black Sun Society, Hugh's words clearly indicated her judgment.

But just then, someone nearby exclaimed, "Look! They've woken up!"

Upon hearing this, Hugh quickly turned his head and saw that the soldiers who had fainted due to the magical disturbance ahead of him were now staggering to their feet. They quickly straightened up, as if they had regained consciousness.

However, the soldiers remained standing still, except for one who turned around and walked back the way he came with very mechanical steps.

Before long, he arrived in front of the group. Hugh saw that the soldier's eyes were flashing with a dark magical aura, and he had a smile on his face. He was almost identical to the corpse he had seen in the lake earlier.

The soldier spoke the next second.

“Mr. Hugh Ernst, we extend a sincere invitation to you... We very much hope that you can visit Black Forest Castle.”

(End of this chapter)