The black sun hangs high

Chapter 277 The Bleeding Sky

While the Dark Abyss descendants within Seren City were consciously constructing battle lines and making final preparations for the all-out offensive, the Emergency Committee headquarters near Seren City presented a completely different picture of chaos and urgency.

The evacuation order came too hastily.

The ordinary members of the emergency committee had no idea how these orders were issued.

A significant portion of them were busy with the evacuation of Seren one moment, and the next moment they inexplicably received the evacuation order without any specific reason or explanation.

Those officials and high-ranking mages who were aware of these decisions remained silent on the matter. Their actions were even more swift and rapid than those of ordinary personnel. Within half a day, apart from the surveillance towers and observation balloons that were still in operation, most of the emergency committee facilities had ceased operation. A large amount of data and information related to Seren City, the Rift, and the Dark Abyss Spawns were prioritized for transfer to the rear.

The workers who were conscripted were naturally happy to see this development. They were all ordinary people, and they would naturally fear danger and instinctively crave a stable environment and life. No one wanted to walk alongside danger in the late winter. Everyone hoped to return to their homes and stay with their families.

Among the emergency committee's headquarters, the "ordinary people" closest to the truth are none other than the observers who are still monitoring the movements within Seren.

In their view, the situation in Seren is now more terrible than ever before.

They couldn't understand why half the city was covered by that flowing, dark light and shadow. They didn't even know how to report what they had seen. All their past experience and training were meaningless at this moment.

"Half the city is accumulating silt!"

This is the conclusion they finally reached.

As night once again engulfed the city of Seren, the observers on the balloons saw countless dark green lights emerge from the deep "mud"—eyes that grew from within them.

As this change began, the Dark Abyss offspring, who had been united, began to rapidly divide into their own groups, just as they had done when they had hunted down Hugh in the northern city—these chaotic and viscous gels quickly split into individuals of various sizes.

Under the command of the already sufficiently intelligent main body of the race, the "walls" used to protect their kind and carry out continuous advance appeared first. Then, a large number of Dark Abyss Spellcasters who maintained basic humanoid forms appeared, followed by many smaller raiders with various predatory creature characteristics.

Behind this first batch of "army", more strange shapes that even Hugh had never seen before gradually emerged. In addition to the "slime hills" that were directly integrated with the entire crystal cannon, there were even humanoids that directly held crystal guns, as well as twisted beasts that resembled horses. This was an imitation of infantry and cavalry by the Dark Abyss offspring through the memories of the victims.

Although somewhat clumsy, the sheer number of them piled up creates a sense of oppression and impact that is enough to make people tremble.

At seven o'clock in the evening, just as the observation balloon was preparing to land, the earth in the distance began to tremble once again. A magical disturbance powerful enough to engulf the entire Vaan erupted once more, and this time, the strange disturbance even triggered a dramatic change in the celestial phenomena.

The survivors in Seren looked up at the sky.

To their astonishment, the darkness that was gradually deepening was now shrouded in an unusual dark red light, as if the sky itself had been slashed open by a giant blade, from which thick blood was constantly flowing.

Having received prior warnings and made ample preparations, the survivors in the camp were not overly panicked by the sudden tremor. Moreover, all the fortifications, important ritual implements, and supplies had been adequately protected beforehand, so the mutated magic did not have a significant impact on them.

The concentration of magic in the environment has increased once again, and it is changing in a more disordered and chaotic direction.

In the room where the secret instruments were stored, Violet, who had just finished communicating with the Dawn Society, silently calculated the remaining time and then immediately began a conversation with the Emergency Committee.

Due to the magical fluctuations, communication between the occultists was always unstable, but even with the other party's voice severely disturbed, Verin was still able to pick up the chaotic and noisy sounds from the Emergency Committee's headquarters.

"The initial screening of the survivors has been completed, and it can be confirmed that no members of the Black Sun Society or those monsters have infiltrated. The adjustment of the Selen City lockdown ritual has also been completed. I am now applying to the Emergency Committee to open the south gate ahead of schedule so that survivors who are not capable of fighting can begin to evacuate."

“Ms. Ernst, this is not in accordance with the original plan…”

"However, the emergency committee's evacuation also did not conform to the pre-planned schedule, as did the insufficient supply of vehicles and personnel."

As Vilin uttered those words, the magical light on the ritual instrument flickered slightly, but no sound came from it. It was unclear whether this was due to interference from the magical fluctuations or whether the other party had truly fallen into silence.

Vera waited for two seconds before speaking, “I know why the Emergency Committee made this decision, and I can understand it. If Vaan is going to face an even greater crisis, we really can’t afford to waste important manpower in Seren City. Those important records and related scholars and mages must also be protected accordingly.”

“However, just because I understand doesn’t mean these survivors who are about to escape can… Of the entire city of Seren, only these people remain. They’ve already been abandoned once, and now they have to face it a second time? Do you intend to use everyone here as bait to delay those monsters? Do you really think that magical flames and a sealed ritual site alone can stop their advance?”

Valery, who was also beside the occult, was already struggling to control his expression.

He knew that the person speaking with Vilin was just an ordinary mage in charge of controlling the ritual, and that there must be many more high-ranking officials from various countries beside him.

As a spellcaster who had grown up honestly within Mellinger and the Legal Committee, Valery had never imagined that anyone could speak to such a group of people with such tone and attitude.

After a moment of silence, the mage responsible for speaking with Verine seemed to have received instructions and spoke up: "Ms. Ernst, are you threatening the committee?" Upon hearing this, Verine couldn't help but chuckle. She was genuinely laughing, and her clear laughter even traveled through the secret ritual into the emergency committee's meeting room, echoing above the heads of all the attendees.

Then, Verin stopped her sarcastic laughter and said, "Yes, I am threatening you all, so what are you all thinking? Are you thinking of negotiating with the monsters in the city and the black sun that is about to rise? Or are there members of the Black Sun Society among you who hope that the city of Seren will be destroyed according to the society's prophecy and that the 'Son of the Abyss' you envision will be realized?"

At this point, a series of violent explosions suddenly rang out in the city of Seren. The sound was so astonishing that the communication device fixed to the ground trembled violently, and the ritual site that sealed off Seren also shook slightly.

Once the communication device had stabilized, Vilin continued, "Gentlemen, just now, the high-explosive munitions we placed in the city have detonated. This means that the monster army has officially begun its advance towards us. I'm sure you can see what's happening through the balloons and watchtowers... So now I want to ask, will the committee's plan change? Can the survivors in the city begin to evacuate?"

After Verin raised these questions, the communication device was temporarily interrupted, and the room fell silent. Neither Verin nor Valery made a sound.

A few minutes later, the faint light on the occult instrument began to flicker again, and then a somewhat old and tired voice came through.

“Alright, Miss Verin, I am Vika, the head of Merlinler and the Public Magic Affairs Office. I will speak with you now.”

“Yes, Professor Vickers, I have attended two of your classes.”

“I’ve also been very impressed with you, Miss Vera… but let’s talk about the rest another time when we have the chance.”

Mage Vika chuckled softly twice, then said, "I heard what you said earlier. After discussion, the Emergency Committee has decided to revise the original evacuation plan. We will open the south gate as you wish."

At this point, Mage Veka paused slightly: "But at the same time, you must maintain the defensive line to ensure that we can implement the 'scorched city strategy' against Seren. Once the defensive line collapses, we will also close the entire ritual site again. At that time, everyone left in the city will be completely abandoned."

"In addition, we will provide one-third of the vehicles for transporting personnel as planned. I'm sorry, we don't have the ability to find that many volunteers."

"This is better than I expected. Thank you, Professor Wekka."

"Please wait a moment, Miss Veraine, I have another question for you... From what standpoint and angle did you make those remarks earlier? The Legal Committee? The Council? Or perhaps the royal family and nobility of Walter?"

“I speak to you as a follower of the goddess Mel and as a mage of Vaan.”

……

As Vilin ended her "negotiations" with the Emergency Committee, the tricolor Brotherhood bandits who had managed to escape from the city center finally arrived at the front line of the survivors' defenses. Faced with these Brotherhood members who were fleeing in panic and carrying various weapons, the soldiers and mages stationed behind the fortifications did not give them any chance to argue or explain.

Following their previous orders, they gritted their teeth and pulled the triggers of their weapons.

In fact, almost all the defenses were sealed off using permanent rituals and reinforcement magic. There were no stairs or passages on them at all. Instead, there were magical rituals hidden inside the fortifications that could be triggered by magic at any time. Once the defenses were on the verge of collapse, these bunkers and fortifications would immediately burst into flames or explode, providing a final bit of help to hinder the Dark Abyss Offspring.

All those involved in the battle have been told that they will face a test far more brutal than the battlefield outside, and that every action they take, every shot they fire, will directly affect the lives of themselves and their loved ones.

A sorcerer from the Legal Committee calmly pulled the trigger. With the help of magic, he accurately struck a bandit who was trying to beg for mercy in the head. The impact of the metal bullet caused the body to fall to the ground.

However, in the next instant, the seemingly ordinary "corpse" suddenly trembled violently. Then, something tore the bandit's body apart from the middle, and a clump of black "sludge" quickly crawled out of the crack in the corpse. Countless green eyes and sharp insect limbs grew out of the deep mucus. In just two breaths, a terrifying beast appeared before everyone.

"boom!"

Before the Dark Abyss Child, who had blended into the crowd of refugees, could make any further moves, the mage quickly turned the wheel and pulled the trigger once again.

This time, the bullets fired were replaced with high-powered crystalline ammunition. The surging light instantly tore the "mud" apart, and the violent magical explosion completely erased the life force contained in those fragments.

Similar scenarios occurred simultaneously on multiple lines of defense.

Seemingly realizing that these remaining survivors did not intend to let their "kin" pass through the defenses, the Dark Abyss offspring who had successfully infiltrated the refugee ranks immediately changed their strategy. Following the will of their master, they emerged from their hiding places and began a merciless slaughter of the remaining Brotherhood members around them. This scene terrified the armed defenders.

Now, no one dares to question that "cruel" order anymore.

The dazzling flames stretched out in a long, intermittent line within the city of Seren. The high-explosive munitions that had been deliberately detonated successfully created several shocking gaps in the advancing line of the offspring. However, they did not last long—the slowly rolling black tide quickly engulfed the flames.

The increasingly restless magic is urging them ever forward.

(End of this chapter)