The black sun hangs high

Chapter 340 Driver and Reader

In Merlinle, dawn breaks earlier than in other places.

When the light successfully fell on Hugh's window and pierced through the curtains, the vast city, which was always described by others as having all sorts of dreamlike names, also awoke.

The wide canal connecting the harbor and the inner and outer city is the city's backbone, the meticulously calculated and planned streets are its blood vessels, and the various workshops and laboratories that constantly shimmer with light and begin to slowly exhale magical steam are Merlinler and his steady and long breaths.

Aside from dreaming, Hugh's sleep was never very deep, so he felt like he had only been asleep for a short while before waking up again along with the vast city.

He yawned, moved Justine, who had turned into a "puddle" and was fast asleep by the bed, to the foot of the bed, then went to the window, pulled back the curtains, and opened the window a crack.

Heavy rain, strong winds, and snowfall have no effect on Merlinle and the inner city, but the morning breeze is an exception. After passing over the massive magical barrier, it also carries a bit of magic.

Therefore, when these breezes came to Hugh, he found that the magical power within him had become active, and his previously drowsy and drowsy mind had become clear.

"Is this considered a 'wake-up service' from Merlinler? How thoughtful..."

Hugh shook his head. He didn't particularly dislike the feeling. These days, all he needed was to ensure timely rest and relaxation for both his body and mind. Sufficient sleep wasn't a necessity. The situation where ancient creations were fighting in his head before was just an unexpected accident.

Before going to bed last night, Hugh had already received the schedule and notification from the Legal Affairs Commission. The formal meeting would begin in the evening, and there were no plans for the morning.

The main reason for this situation is that another group of officials and scholars attending the conference have not yet arrived in Mellinger, and their expected arrival time is noon today.

This means that Hugh and the others have complete freedom to use this half-day, and they can even visit some important figures in the Legal Committee in advance.

As early as last night, after receiving the schedule, the members of the Dawn Society had already formulated the visit plan.

Hugh and Vera are the most important representatives of the Dawn Society, and they are required to attend the most important meetings. The rest are left to Richard and other members.

Meanwhile, the screening work that Felix and his team had completed before setting off showed very good results.

After a quick allocation, the limited number of members of the Dawn Society were divided into different groups. Almost every visiting group had members who were good at official rhetoric and had relevant official experience. In addition, some Dharma Committee monks who had joined the Dawn Society earlier would also be visiting today.

Hughes held these comrades, who were extremely far from the Dawn Society headquarters but had always been silently providing support, in high esteem. Therefore, he arranged a meeting in the afternoon to express his sincere gratitude on behalf of Mayer and others to these supporters hidden in Merlinle.

Various detailed plans flashed through Hugh's mind, while in the distance, on the wide canal, an exceptionally large cargo ship was slowly moving along the waterway. Hugh had seen it yesterday. According to Verin, such large cargo ships were generally responsible for transporting important goods, materials and supplies between the inner and outer cities.

As for the transportation of goods...

I'm sorry, there are no shops in the inner city of Merlinle.

To be precise, the inner city only has a dozen or so places that look like shops, but are actually distribution points for supplies jointly controlled by the Legal Committee and several heavyweight merchant groups. For the mages living in the inner city, these supplies can be withdrawn after registration. Of course, the quantity and type of supplies withdrawn are related to the mage's level and status.

This is a very simple and straightforward resource management method, but it is only applicable to a small scope.

In this situation, all items naturally shed their commodity status and are measured purely as "materials".

If you want to shop or experience a glamorous lifestyle, it's naturally more comfortable to go to the outer city, especially to those commercial plazas jointly built by large chambers of commerce.

The more serious the surface tone of Merlinle and the more outrageous the hidden splendor beneath these squares.

If he had enough time, Hugh would have liked to go and "see" it, but under the current circumstances, such a playful idea was obviously not advisable. Rather than wasting time on these sensory stimuli, he would rather check on the progress of the experiments on "the color of life" and "community".

After sorting out his thoughts, Hughes settled everything in the room, changed his clothes, and then went out into the living room.

Many members of the Dawn Society had already gotten up. This was the Dawn Society's first real "diplomatic" activity, so most of them were quite excited. Even if they were a little sleepy, they forced themselves to suppress it with drinks or medicine—it was the first day in Merlinle, and everyone was ready to be in their best condition.

Upon further inquiry, Hugh learned that Vera had actually left more than ten minutes earlier. She seemed to be going to see her teachers. He wondered what the professors and scholars of the Legal Committee would think if they saw their student had taken such a path.

Everyone has their own plans, and Hugh is no exception.

However, compared to others, the people he visited were somewhat special.

Even among the locals and the people of Merlinle, the "Sword Hermitage," located on the outskirts of the inner city, was a notorious place that could stop children from crying at night.

"Cry again? If you cry again, the sword-wielding hermit will capture you and take you to his hermitage!"

This is a classic phrase that locals use to scare children.

In terms of inspiring fear and dread, the sword-wielding hermits truly embodied the principle of "inner and outer unity." Whether in Merlinle or elsewhere, the fear people felt towards these sword-wielders was consistent.

Although the Legal Committee has been trying to cultivate the image of the sword-wielders as “guardians” in front of people, especially in Merlinle and the residents, some things are simply too deeply ingrained to be changed. Moreover, the personality problems of a considerable number of the sword-wielders and their distorted and extreme behavior have made these problems even more troublesome.

Over time, the Legal Committee and the sword-wielding hermits completely gave up on this effort and attempt.

And then, things developed into what they are now. However, such rumors have absolutely no impact on someone like Hugh. After all, in Vaan, there are rare cases like him who have both personally killed sword-wielding hermits and shared life and death with some of them. He has long been immune to this special group. Let alone a formal visit to the sword-wielding hermitage, even if he were to stay there for two days, it wouldn't seem like a big deal.

not to mention……

Even if a conflict were to break out between the two sides and a fight were to break out, Hugh was confident that he could take on a large group by himself, given his abilities.

However, compared to his composure, Richard, who was traveling with him, seemed somewhat worried. As someone who had received basic training as a spies in the Waters, the various warnings and rumors about the sword-wielding hermits were already etched into his mind. These admonitions, which were used to deepen the terrifying image of the sword-wielders, were constantly reminding Richard that he was going to visit one of the most dangerous places in Vaan today!

And so, with trepidation, he followed Hughes onto the “crystallized carriage” sent by the Legal Committee.

This is a common mode of transportation in Merlinle and the inner city, with a very long history. In essence, it involves having a mage apprentice act as the driver, manipulating one or more specially made horse-shaped magical golems to pull the vehicle forward.

These vehicles have completely disappeared in most parts of Vaan, and can only be found in the inner city of Merlinle and a very few royal courtyards.

"You must be Mr. Hugh Ernst!"

As the Legal Committee apprentice drove the crystal carriage forward, he couldn't help but turn around to talk to Hugh. Although his mage level was only that of an apprentice, he was already close to thirty years old. After carefully observing Hugh's appearance, the driver's face revealed extremely complex emotions.

"You really are...so young, much younger than the legends say!"

The apprentice finally turned his head back, and while driving forward, he raised his voice and continued, "I've heard of your name a long time ago, but back then... back then I was just a reader of yours, and I read several of your works."

Richard, who was in the same car, naturally knew about Hugh's past experiences. Upon hearing this, he couldn't help but glance at Hugh a few more times.

However, Hughes did not show any particular expression because of his past "special works." He appeared extremely calm, as if the two were talking about a bland drink in an ordinary kettle.

"I didn't expect that... that the magazine from Seren would keep selling all the way to Merlinle and Lai?"

"Uh……"

Hearing this, the carriage driver was taken aback. He scratched his head and then said, "In fact, many storybooks sold in the outer city will... will 'publish' your work, so that they will sell better. As for magazines in Seren City... how can we buy them here?"

"I see."

Seeing that Hugh didn't seem to care about these topics, the driver added with a smile, "Sir, I'm not afraid to tell you, there are quite a few people in the inner city who collect your works, but they probably don't even know they are yours... After all, life in the inner city is very boring, and entertainment in the outer city is much more expensive, haha, you know what I mean!"

Upon hearing these words, Hugh suddenly burst out laughing.

For a fleeting moment, the memories and emotions of a certain "down-on-his-luck writer" that he had deliberately suppressed resurfaced, and Hugh felt as if he had returned to that completely destroyed border town.

In those years, Hugh Ernst was indeed often pulled aside by his readers to discuss these things while traveling.

For a long time, these somewhat awkward conversations and discussions were a crucial opportunity for that down-on-his-luck young man to find his value and sense of existence in this world.

The apprentice monk driving the carriage seemed somewhat moved as well. He drove the carriage through an intersection, showed his credentials to the monks from the Legal Committee in charge of the inspection, and then headed towards the other side of the city with Xiuge.

"However, Mr. Ernst... many of my friends have been saying in casual conversation that we probably won't see any more works from 'Midnight Dawn' in the future, since you're already a true legend!"

He said, half-jokingly and half-seriously, "Many people will have trouble sleeping at night from now on!"

Hugh chuckled twice, then suddenly asked, "So, do you think I'd be better off as 'Midnight Dawn,' or as 'Mr. Ernst' now?"

Upon hearing Hugh's question, the apprentice monk driving the carriage fell silent.

He remained silent for a long while, until the crystal carriage had passed two intersections, before saying in a low voice, "Of course, 'Mr. Ernst' is better, isn't he? After all, you have really saved a lot of people."

And so, the carriage passed through the central square of the inner city, where the towering statue of the goddess Mel stood and the enormous mage tower library was located. It passed the inner city docks where many magical golems were loading and unloading goods, and then drove onto the exquisite and sturdy canal bridge...

Neither the passenger nor the driver spoke again.

Half an hour later, the crystal carriage finally arrived at the other end of the city. It slowly stopped in front of a somewhat imposing pointed building. The mage apprentice took out his credentials and handed them to a tall figure carrying a giant sword.

This area was now under the jurisdiction of the sword-wielding hermits. Hugh and Richard took out their identification documents and showed them to the inspector.

Upon seeing the "Council of Mages' Certificate" in Hugh's hand, the sword-wielding hermit who stepped forward immediately revealed a hint of dissatisfaction and hostility. His small eyes flashed with a cold light that made it difficult for people to breathe.

Hugh raised his head, his gaze calmly meeting those cold eyes. The dark shadows deep within his pupils trembled slightly, and the invisible force that had been pressing down like a wall immediately crumbled.

He then stepped down from the carriage, took a magic crystal from his pocket as a tip, and handed it to the apprentice, a smile returning to his face.

"There's no need to be disappointed. Perhaps 'Midnight Dawn' and 'Mr. Ernst' can coexist?"

(End of this chapter)