The black sun hangs high

Chapter 271 "Observing the Ceremony"

The sky was filled with dark clouds at the end of winter. Although winter was about to end, it seemed that a huge snowfall was brewing in the sky.

Under the oppressive dark clouds, in the square in front of the royal palace, the spectators who were forced to participate in this ceremony of the Flame of Life either trembled or glared angrily at the royal guards and mages present. Of course, there were also a few who still held onto a last glimmer of hope for the mage Yetvich.

Over the past few decades, Yetevich has accumulated immense prestige among the people of Saint Steel. Residents of some remote villages or towns within the Kingdom of Saint Steel may not know what the royal family looks like, but they will certainly know what Yetevich looks like. As the high priest of the Church of the God of Life, the mage's portrait always appears in many places related to the Church of Life's beliefs. In more extreme cases, some elderly people who are not very bright may even confuse Yetevich with the God of Life.

Although outrageous, this is a true reflection of Yetevich's status among the common people.

Therefore, even though the people present were already in despair, they still had some hope for this legendary deep-sea mage.

But Yetvich clearly ignored the gazes of the others, and he spoke those blasphemous words to the spineless goblin merchant.

"Uh... eh?"

The giant-eared goblin seemed shocked by Yetvich's words. He trembled violently in his chair, his large ears drooping on his head swaying slightly. Then he asked cautiously, "Honorable, great Yetvich, if I agree to your conditions, will you really spare me?"

"Whether you can join the Black Sun Society is not up to me."

Yevgeny shook his head indifferently, then turned to look at the Black Sun Society's top leader who was standing not far away.

At this moment, Novi was intently watching the cluster of magical flames protected within a giant crystal container. In legend, this eternally burning flame was the first miraculous fire that the goddess Mel and the god of life sent warmth to people in the cold. It once saved the lives of a weak tribe during an extremely cold winter, and that tribe was the common ancestor of the later Saint Steer people.

As a true master of magic, Novi could certainly see the special nature of this flame.

It is completely different from other fire magic. The flickering flames do not make its magic chaotic or agitated. On the contrary, it appears extremely stable. All the magic is bound in an extremely stable and flawless perfect model. Under its influence, even the magic around it that is constantly changing has become stable again.

This made Novy very unhappy.

Hearing Yetvich's voice, he turned his head, his gaze lingering on the giant-eared goblin's face for a second, before he leaned on his cane and stepped forward with a smile: "Goblin... Hmph, giant-eared goblin, your race has an equally long history, even longer than that of elves and humans, because you have always been clever enough."

The giant-eared goblin twitched his lips. He wanted to flatter the other party, but he didn't know how to start.

Novi continued, "However, your people always seem to use their wisdom in ways that don't make people happy..."

He approached the goblin, tapping his staff lightly on the ground. Visible magical disturbances emanated from the tip of the staff and slowly spread outwards: "When our great gods ruled Vaan, you were their most loyal believers and kin. But when the gods were betrayed and began to lose their power and territory, you immediately chose neutrality... Heh, and when the traitor who usurped the gods' authority and power, attempting to erase all traces of the gods, gained the upper hand, you directly chose to support her."

"And now... you've chosen to join the Black Sun Society?"

As he spoke, the staff slowly rose, its end resting on the goblin merchant's forehead. A terrifying surge of magical energy completely enveloped his head, and the water-like power caused the goblin's large ears to tremble and the skin on his face to shake.

An immense sense of oppression had completely enveloped the giant-eared goblin who had surrendered first. The magical restraints on his body had been broken without his knowledge, but the fear of death rendered him unable to move.

His trousers were soaked with sweat as he trembled, yet there was no unpleasant smell in the air—the disturbing magic had completely enveloped his body.

The next instant, everyone in the square saw that the aura surrounding the giant-eared goblin merchant gradually revealed its own colors. In mid-air, it formed countless constantly twisting, pitch-black light and shadow like metal chains. Then, these light and shadow began to shrink rapidly, binding the goblin's head, body, and the chair beneath him together.

A sickening, nauseating sound briefly echoed in the square.

Ambassador Muller saw that the giant-eared goblin, who had been trembling just moments before, was instantly "strangled" into countless fragments by that strange and inexplicable magic. Before the remains and flesh even hit the ground, they vanished into nothingness in the dim light and shadow. Then, Novi's cane swayed gently, and a tiny black sun appeared beside his body. The black chains that had just been executed quickly returned to the shadow of this sun.

After finishing these tasks, Novi resumed his usual leisurely demeanor. He smiled at the others and said, "Don't be nervous, everyone. I can assure you that what just happened was just an isolated incident... What the Black Sun Society needs are sincere comrades, more believers in the true God, and companions who are willing to fight for that new era, not these self-proclaimed clever opportunists."

Novi looked at Yetvich: "Continue, dear Yetvich. Ask everyone here for me who is truly willing to join the Society. I'll leave the cane here; it will help you make the judgment."

Having said that, he took out his pocket watch and looked at it, then loudly addressed the crowd: "Ladies and gentlemen, time is of the essence. The ceremony will begin in half an hour. Before the arrival of the esteemed Royal Family of Saint Steel, I hope you will make the most correct choice!"

……

While the capital of Saint Steel was plunged into silence due to the Black Sun Society's open actions, members of the Black Sun Society, dressed in black circular robes, arrived at the most crowded places in Hein, Delan, Walter, and the Eastern countries.

Panic spread, and public speeches about the black sun and lost gods took place throughout Vaan.

The vast majority of these Black Sun Society members are either mages of the Stream level or higher, or fully armed soldiers. They use magical tools and rituals to display strange images from ancient times to fearful crowds, propagate talk about "false gods," and wantonly destroy and desecrate various images and sculptures of gods in public places. They seize opportunities to deliver pre-prepared speeches to those already dissatisfied with their country, publicly exposing truths and facts concealed by the state or officials that are enough to provoke public anger.

Ultimately, everything they did led to that true purpose.

That is, to proclaim the rise of the black sun.

It heralds the end and demise of the "old era".

The message is that the great and real beings who once left Vaan are about to return, and everything will be rewritten.

Meanwhile, even more astonishing events erupted in Merlinle in the North, Borden on the plateau, and Alice, the capital of the Kingdom of Delan. Several members of the Black Sun Society, who had been secretly embedded within the municipal bureaucracy or the mage system, launched their operations at the same time. They briefly seized control of key areas within the cities by force and used esoteric rituals to reveal to everyone what was happening in the capital of Saint Steel.

Although these Black Sun Society members were wiped out by the well-prepared Legion and mages in the first instance, the scene of the so-called Ritual of the Flame of Life, which was in progress, was directly displayed before people's eyes.

Walter's three-clawed falcon had left the family estate for the first time.

Accompanied by his students, he arrived at the square where the announcement of the establishment of the Highland Alliance had been broadcast to everyone. There, the remaining magical images continued to change. In the images, he saw the Deep Sea Mage Yetvich receive a robe symbolizing the identity of the Black Sun Society from a middle-aged man. He saw people in the square surrendering to the Black Sun Society and being given the clothes of ordinary society members. Of course, some were also identified and executed on the spot.

"In just six months, I've started to not understand the changes in the world."

Old Zeke leaned back in his wheelchair, feeling a decaying, lifeless air in his breath. Watching everything unfold, he felt a profound sense of helplessness for the first time. He turned to his student beside him, the noble princess who had completely taken over the Waterl military system: "Sophia, the war will not end; it will continue forever. However, what we gain and lose from the war will be completely different from what we have in the past."

Sophia gripped the armrests of the wheelchair tightly. In the changing magical images, she saw the ambassador of Walter. Even at this moment, Muller still showed the resilience of the Walter. Although he was also shrouded in fear, he never yielded to the Black Sun Society.

"It seems that the royal family of Saint Steel has made its final choice..."

Sophia watched as the Northern nobles emerged from the screen. They had completely abandoned the traditional noble attire of Saint Steel and uniformly donned the clothing of the Black Sun Society. Sophia noticed that the over-sixty-year-old King of Saint Steel was not present, and the crown symbolizing his status was placed on the head of his son.

Zeke Ernst said slowly, "Right now, they seem to be on the opposite side of everyone, but that won't be the case for long..."

“I have already given the order, teacher.”

Sophia said coldly, "Within the territory of Water, any individual or organization that supports the Black Sun Society in any form or promotes their views will be dealt with in the most severe way, including officials and nobles."

"It's good that you can think of these things."

Old Zeke took a breath, then said, "But this is only temporary. Right now, the vast majority of people are on our side, so our decision seems justified, but..."

He raised his hand and pointed to the flashing images in the sky: "We cannot guarantee that every person and every family in the country can escape their influence, especially in the near future, when the black sun they speak of really rises, people's thoughts will soon begin to change... The Ernst family is ultimately just a lucky family that has escaped their control by chance."

In the magical image, the leader of the Black Sun Society is giving a speech. The middle-aged man's target is clearly not just the "spectators" in the square. He is declaring to the world that Saint Steel will henceforth become the first "nation of believers" under the Black Sun to follow those so-called true gods. All past covenants are hereby declared terminated. Any nation that still worships false gods such as the Goddess Mel will also become an enemy of the Black Sun.

After these words were announced, Novy, leaning on his cane, came to the vessel that protected the eternal flame of life. He knelt down on one knee and cut open his forehead and cheek with a sharp blade.

Blood gushed out, but the wound healed instantly under some kind of force.

Blood began to flow on the ground, and the massive ceremony that had been buried beneath the Royal Plaza began to unfold. Then, the light in the plaza suddenly dimmed, as if some being had devoured all the light. Above the flame of life, a huge and blasphemous sculpture appeared.

Under the gaze of a miniature black sun, the Black Sun Ritual, radiating a dark light and instilling endless despair, slowly pressed down on the Flame of Life. The expensive and sturdy crystal container collapsed in the blink of an eye, and the flame, now unprotected, appeared exceptionally weak, yet it remained completely undisturbed by the changes in its surroundings.

It still beats strongly and slowly.

However, the Black Sun Ritual ultimately crushed it. Everyone saw that the ancient flame, which served as the spiritual anchor for the believers of the God of Life, was completely dissipated under the crushing force of the blasphemous sculpture made up of countless severed limbs of gods. Immediately afterward, countless chains with sharp ends emerged from inside the black sun that hovered atop the sculpture. They swirled rapidly in the air for a while before pointing at the "observers" who had never chosen to join the Black Sun Society.

The iron chain pierced through, and blood splattered everywhere.

The old man, curled up in his wheelchair, sighed. He stopped looking at the horrific scene, tilted his head back, and closed his eyes.

It's night.

(End of this chapter)