The black sun hangs high

Chapter 266 Late Winter Late Winter
Over the past few days, strange thoughts about "fate" have been relentlessly haunting Hugh.

Theseus brought it up again and again, and Hugh himself kept touching on this ethereal proposition.

If he were still the ordinary internet worker who commuted between the company and his home every day, he would probably be extremely disdainful of this concept. However, since he came to Vane in his current identity, everything has changed.

Now, Hugh can indeed perceive that there is a close connection between his body and the elusive concept of "fate" that is difficult to explain.

He felt like a small boat adrift in a chaotic sea, with no idea where the waves of fate would take him.

Under Theseus's hints and guidance, the newly acquired roots of destiny seemed to have fitted his tattered little boat with a seemingly unreliable sail. Although this sail was not enough to allow Hugh to completely control his course on this boundless and treacherous ocean, it did allow him to take the first step from nothing to something.

As someone who used to make a living by writing screenplays and structuring stories, Hugh is no stranger to this.

However, he remained skeptical and cautious about the future he glimpsed in Justine.

He did not doubt the loyalty and abilities of the Roots of Fate, but he was not sure about this impending yet ever-changing illusion. As someone who had a thorough understanding of the Black Sun Society, Hugh knew that if he blindly believed in and relied on this guidance of fate, then he would essentially be no different from those in the Black Sun Society who followed the footsteps of prophecy.

Moreover, this approach clearly contradicts the advice given by Theseus.

After several conversations and the Black Sun Society gathering, Hugh, while not entirely trusting Theseus, believed that the man would not do anything to harm him.

Under these circumstances, he believed that the warnings and suggestions given by this strange deity should be taken seriously.

Therefore, Hugh ultimately decided to only make limited interventions in the future fate of Justina and others—he did not intend to completely cut off the progress of those important experiments concerning the offspring of the Dark Abyss, but instead set a bottom line that was absolutely not allowed to be crossed.

"If all the planned experiments fail, and Mage Justina still insists on pushing forward with other plans, you don't have to reject them outright. You can offer appropriate support. However, if Justina then asks for more mage manpower and goes to collect weapons and other magical equipment, you must be on high alert... Once her experiments go wrong, or if she tries to use the survivors in Seren as the price for her experiments, then you should fulfill your duty as a sword-wielding hermit."

Before leaving the Legal Committee's headquarters, Hugh told the Gent Hermit these words with unprecedented seriousness: "But I need to remind you that Mage Justina is not our traitor. On the contrary, she may be the key to completely eliminating those monsters. However, I cannot predict what price her methods will bring or what kind of impact they will have."

"But if you do accept her proposal and decide to make some unavoidable sacrifices, please be sure to notify me in advance with a magic signal."

This was a rather risky decision, and also a compromise that Hugh made regarding the visions of the future he had glimpsed.

Just as Hugh was reviewing the arrangements he had made, the temporary meeting within the Fate Roots finally came to an end, and the Roots leader, acting as the spokesperson, once again appeared.

It slowly said to Hugh: "Master, we have gathered the revelations that all individuals in our race have received from the 'Supreme Destiny'... We are certain that after three to five cycles of day and night, the black shadow we are familiar with will break free of its shackles and return to the sky."

Hugh was a little confused: "Break free from restraints?"

"Yes, just like animals escaping from a trap."

The root leader explained, "From a human perspective, they can also be seen as prisoners who have escaped from their cages."

Hughes frowned and said, "You mean... the black sun will rise in three to five days, but until then, it will actually be bound and imprisoned somewhere?"

"exactly."

The roots of fate swayed gently: "In those revelations, we also saw the earth torn apart, the enormous wounds that would remain forever on the surface... Everything around us would fall into the abyss, and the city you are in now would also be affected, its walls and buildings would collapse completely, and the cage that bound everything within the city would crumble."

After speaking, the root leader slowly lowered its tentacles: "I'm sorry, master... we didn't receive any hints before. Perhaps it is because that important moment is about to arrive that the god of fate has bestowed these important revelations upon us."

"Well, I see."

Hugh waved his hand, dispelling the slightly frightened roots of fate. They were quite intelligent, and after witnessing the catastrophic scene, they began to fear that Hugh would blame and punish them. This was a small commonality among highly intelligent beings and magical creations.

In the darkness, Hugh's expression was somewhat distorted.

Based on the clues given by the Roots of Fate, and combined with the important information collected over the past few days, Hugh has come to an extremely terrifying conclusion: the so-called Black Sun has probably been hidden beneath the surface of Vaan all along. The previous earthquake and the strange crack that is being investigated by the Legal Committee and the Council are both signs of the Black Sun's 'awakening'.

Even that great rift that people talk about is actually a deadly road leading to that black sun!

At that moment, Hugh couldn't help but shiver. He slowly turned his head and looked at one wall of the cramped room, where a dusty portrait of the goddess Mel was hanging. In the portrait, the great and loving goddess held out her arms, as if she was about to embrace all life that appeared before her.

So Hugh murmured to the wall, "What exactly did you do back then?"

Before he could finish speaking, a series of warning signs suddenly struck Hugh's mind.

The metal disc began to accelerate inexplicably, causing the inhabitants inside to become restless and tense. Hugh immediately steadied himself and rapidly expanded his magical perception outwards. However, he then noticed that the Dark Abyss offspring crawling through the streets and buildings were also beginning to panic and become tense. They even grew mouths from their bodies and, like humans, emitted cries and screams symbolizing fear.

Hughes sensed that the frequency of magical vibrations in the air was constantly increasing! In just a few dozen seconds, these vibrations went from being so slight that ordinary spellcasters couldn't detect them to a level that could be detected by magical instruments. Under this intense interference, Hughes even had to suppress his magical perception to avoid damaging his mind.

After that, the walls and ground of the building began to shake.

It was as if some enormous entity beneath my feet had gently stretched its body.

Dust fell, and debris rolled across the floor of the room.

Faced with this series of strange occurrences, the Dark Abyss offspring on the street let out shouts one after another.

Hugh carefully maintained the protective ritual within the room, preparing for the possible collapse at any moment. However, the earthquake did not continue to escalate. After causing considerable chaos, the tremors quickly subsided, and the chaotic shouts in the streets ceased as the tremors subsided.

The metal disc gradually slowed down, and Hughes breathed a sigh of relief.

A muffled thud came from inside the room. Hugh turned his head and saw that the wall where the portrait of the goddess Mel had been hanging was now torn open by the tremors that had just ended, and the portrait that had been fixed to the wall had fallen heavily to the ground.

The glass covering the portrait shattered, and the goddess in the frame fell to the dust. She still maintained her original pose, but now she looked somewhat disheveled.

The end of the year 2699 in the Kal'tl calendar.

As this cold and cruel winter draws to a close.

The magic within Vaan has finally begun its complete transformation, and now, no one, no country, or organization can hide these things anymore.

……

In Vanne, "late winter" is a word that evokes warmth.

It symbolizes the end of the cold winter, the arrival of spring, and the beginning of another cycle of life's revival.

The inhabitants of the Love Plateau and the Goddess Plain were hoping that the arrival of the late winter festival and the temporary ceasefire agreement would erase the pain caused by war and turmoil. However, on this very day, another sudden shock swept across the entire world.

This time, all the social celebrities who had previously dared to give speeches in public or publish articles in magazines and newspapers to refute the existence of the "Black Sun Society" have quietly shut their mouths. Occasionally, a few brainless people would jump out, but they would be immediately gagged by angry and terrified people.

People are tired of listening to these guys' nonsense.

The effects of the magical anomalies and tremors are obvious.

A large number of vehicles and large machines powered by magical crystals and relying on intricate rituals and crystal parts were damaged in this sudden anomaly. Explosions of magical crystal warehouses also occurred all over the world, and the crystals that exploded were those of extremely high quality and relatively fragile.

Without the protection of a corresponding ritual, they were simply unable to withstand this level of mutation. In the midst of the turmoil, these crystals transformed directly into the purest magical bombs, instantly blasting their own storage room and its guards into the sky.

Countless magical crystal mines collapsed. Although the crystal veins being mined did not explode, the magic contained within the crystals resonated due to the sudden change in the environment. This magical resonance caused severe damage to many temporary mine shafts and tunnels, trapping a large number of miners working in the mines, and some were even buried alive on the spot.

On a continent far from the Goddess Plains, the old emperor of the ancient Eastern Empire breathed his last amidst this sudden upheaval. Before his will could be announced, enraged ministers and warlords stormed into the palace and beat to death the eunuchs who were said to have secretly supported the Black Sun Society and believed in the Black Sun prophecy.

Meanwhile, across the empire, several rebel armies organized by the Black Sun Society, operating under the banners of bizarre deities such as the "Sun-Eating Serpent Mother" and the "Dark Abyss Grand Duke," began their activities in earnest, plunging the aging empire into turmoil.

In the cold of Saint-St., however, the scene is quite different.

This vast northern kingdom has entered a state of utter tension. Gatherings of people are absolutely forbidden, especially among miners. Large numbers of workers are imprisoned in the mines under the supervision of the royal army, and the collapses in the mines have caused heavy casualties. Under these circumstances, no one can endure it any longer. Faced with the royal guards and officials who are unwilling to offer any help, the miners, who have reached their limit, spontaneously began a brutal and bloody resistance without any organization.

The deep-sea mage Yetvich, who has close ties to the Kingdom of Saint Steel and the faith of the God of Life, made a rare appearance. He attempted to use his prestige and status to appease the common people and eliminate the conflict between the people and the royal family and government. However, when a lonely woman questioned Yetvich from below the podium about where her miner husband and soldier son had gone, the learned deep-sea mage was speechless for a moment.

The woman was a devout believer in the God of Life, and she trusted Yetvich. However, when she excitedly questioned the Deep Sea Mage, hoping he could explain the matter between the royal family and the Black Sun Society, the royal guards, who had completely begun to believe in the lost gods, rushed out and tried to arrest the woman on the grounds of slandering and offending the royal family.

They have done this countless times during this period.

In their minds, these civilians dared not make a sound when faced with swords and guns; they would only submit.

However, this time, the emotions of the Saint Steele people had reached their limit.

Someone in the crowd seemed to shout something, and then, as if a flame had been dropped into a pot of boiling oil, the crowd exploded. The shouts and screams of the people instantly drowned out Yetvich's voice, which was amplified by the magical loudspeaker. They raised their fists at the royal guards.

(End of this chapter)