The black sun hangs high

Chapter 384 Dragged into the quagmire
Compared to the Black Sun Society gathering that Hugh had participated in before, the scale of this Society gathering in Watchtower was on a completely different level.

The gathering will be held in the government banquet hall of Watchtower City, which was once an important venue for the Kingdom of Saint Steel to hold important meetings or to award and confer medals to war heroes during wartime.

But now, the furnishings around this banquet hall have changed completely.

Despite the complete destruction of the dark dome that should have enveloped the area, the Black Sun Society has not given up on its idea of ​​influencing the local residents.

The removal of monuments and sculptures commemorating the "false gods," the erection of new rituals and statues symbolizing the lost gods, and the covering of various ceremonies that are constantly in effect, all contribute to a mysterious and bizarre atmosphere throughout Watchtower.

Under the influence of this overall atmosphere, the residents of Watchtower are leaning towards the Black Sun Society at an alarming rate.

Like others who chose to join the Black Sun Society and accept the so-called new faith, they initially made this choice simply to protect themselves. However, once they came into contact with those forces, their thoughts and will began to uncontrollably succumb to their power.

As Hugh walked the streets as a participant in the rally, he encountered many residents who wore Black Sun Society insignia and bowed to him. Hugh could confirm that these residents' behavior did not stem from fear or panic, but rather from a strange sense of respect and identification.

This is precisely what worries Hughes most about the current situation.

Submissions born of coercion and enticement are often temporary, but those invisible forces can have a profound and lasting impact on people's minds. They are like carving knives on stone, leaving the loyalty to the Black Sun Society and the faith in the ancient gods in people's hearts for a long time.

The growth rate of these effects is extremely alarming.

By infiltrating the Ernst family rat swarm inside Watchtower, Hugh successfully located some miners inside the Rock Lake Mine who had once succumbed to the Black Sun Society's beliefs. Hugh then discovered, to his dismay, that these miners and their families had now mostly become followers of an ancient deity.

It must be said that the Black Sun Society has done a very meticulous job in this regard.

They seemed to understand the special power of this folk belief, so these ordinary residents who had begun to follow a certain deity received their "special" care. The Black Sun Society provided these people with a lot of real help in their daily lives.

Even though the families of these people still harbor resentment towards those ancient beliefs, they must admit that their material lives have indeed improved considerably in the current chaotic environment.

And so the hostility began to dissipate.

Next came understanding, and as that understanding deepened, the roots of the Black Sun Society were able to penetrate even more firmly into the people of Saint Steel.

At this stage, their work becomes simpler.

Grant more rights to those who recognize and follow, and use a series of ancient rituals to allow them to personally experience and even control the extraordinary powers that have been monopolized by mages for thousands of years. In return, those who oppose should be suppressed and completely expelled and eliminated.

In these matters, the association doesn't even need to do it itself. They can delegate similar tasks to their new followers, which gives them the opportunity to "practice" while also achieving the most thorough division within the populace. Everything is spontaneous and resolved on its own "without external interference."

As for any bloody conflicts or accidents that might occur, they can boldly entrust them to a small group of professional members of the society and the ancient creations they have summoned.

Even if there are many opponents, they are no match for a professional army, and it would not be difficult to eliminate them.

"Baron Fiorlando! Is that you, Baron Fiorlando?"

A figure draped in the society's standard robes, shrouded in black magical light, raised his hand toward Hugh. His shout sounded like the afterglow of the black sun, and just hearing it sent a chill down one's spine.

"It's me, I'm here."

Hugh responded, "I'm not late, am I? Judging by the time, the gathering shouldn't have started yet."

As he spoke, Hugh had already walked up to the person who had called out his name. When the member of the society who had called his name looked up, the huge disc in Hugh's mental world immediately trembled slightly, and the magic flowing between the gears accelerated for a moment.

Moreover, the palace hounds and the mirror image also reacted at this moment.

The Messenger in the Mirror put down the equally black "book" in his hand. He stood up from behind the desk, his gaze piercing straight from the spiritual world to reality. The Palace Hound straightened up and carefully examined the Black Sun Society member before its dark red pupils on both sides of its head dimmed again.

Although the being before him seemed to have a close connection with his "hometown," he was clearly not enough to be a prey or target to be taken seriously. At best, he was just a side creation that was slightly better than the offspring of the Dark Abyss.

However, in the eyes of Hugh and other residents of Watchtower, the appearance of this member of the society was rather "unpleasant to look at".

He was clearly a participant and beneficiary of the previous series of Dark Abyss rituals. As the power of the Black Sun shrouded those towns in a massive dome, a remnant of its power also completely altered the physical forms of the ritual participants.

The guy in front of Hugh is a perfect example.

Most of his face had been completely transformed into a flowing shadow, yet within this shadow, many human facial features remained: eyes, nose, most of a mouth, and those fine lines that seemed to represent flesh and blood...

When such a person "speaks," the chaotic black shadows recombine into countless intricate patterns under the influence of his will. Subsequently, these patterns transform into words and sentences, which are then transmitted outward through sound.

Hugh was certain that the guy in front of him was no longer one of the normal races in the world of Vaan. His body had undergone a complete transformation under the baptism of the power of the Dark Abyss. Now he had become a new creation that was somewhere between a physical being and a Dark Abyss servant.

A message from the distant Rock Lake Mine entered Hugh's mind.

That was Justina. As an obedient and highly intelligent special creation, Justina was very interested in the being her father had encountered, especially the Abyss power emanating from this member of the Society, which aroused a very, very strong feeling in Justina…

Hunger.

"You can't eat this, Justina... at least not now."

Hugh reassured her in the mental world, "But if there's a chance later, I'll give it a try... You should go to sleep now, okay?"

And so that delicate and weak consciousness quickly faded away. She was an obedient child who always followed her father's orders one hundred percent.

Hugh suppressed his disgust and displeasure with the face in front of him and subtly revealed a hint of envy in his eyes.

This performance clearly pleased the other party, so the high-ranking member of the society smiled and said, "No need to be nervous, Baron Fiorlando... Many of us have heard about what happened at Rock Lake Mine. Although some people in the society are dissatisfied with it, no one thinks you have betrayed the society."

As he spoke, the member raised his hand, which had also turned into black chaos, and gently opened his collar. Hugh then saw a hidden emblem. Inside the emblem was a black sun that had been shrunk, and on its outside was an alchemical magnifying glass that served as the "frame".

Hugh quickly searched through Baron Fiorento's memories and then immediately confirmed that it was the mark of one of his "old acquaintances".

He became even more wary, a hint of fear showing on his face: "So... it was Mr. Kezlov who sent you to find me?"

"Mr. Kezlov asked me to tell you not to be nervous about the gathering... You are a colleague we can trust and a loyal member of the association, so what awaits you is not punishment, but an important honor."

As he spoke, a twisted smile appeared on that chaotic, shadowy face: "Go on, enter our venue, someone will take you to change your clothes... You look too disheveled right now, you even smell like that damn beer, this is not how a person of honor should look!"

……

Night fell completely, and the black night sky mingled with the deep shadows that remained above Watchtower.

The cold wind from the northern sea struggled over the high mountains north of Watchtower, carrying a large amount of moisture, and rushed straight toward the city that was about to become the focus of Vaan.

Meanwhile, in the grand banquet hall located in the center of Watchtower, an important gathering belonging to the Black Sun Society was taking place.

The vast majority of those attending the gathering were St. Steel officers who were active around Watchtower City and key members of the Black Sun Society. Among them, the highest-ranking were the second prince of St. Steel, Olsky, who represented the St. Steel royal family, and the "guide" Kzlov, who had a high reputation and real power within the society.

After the previous heir to the throne, Olsky's brother, died in the assassination, Olsky naturally became the new heir. Now, he is not only the prince of St. Steel, but also a full member of the Black Sun Society and a Black Sun scholar who is studying in depth under Kezlov.

His appearance symbolized the complete union of the Saint-St. royal family and the Black Sun Society, a union that would last forever. This also sent an important message to officials loyal to the royal family: opposing the Black Sun Society was tantamount to betraying the royal family.

Conversely, anyone who still wishes to remain loyal to the monarchy should proactively join the Black Sun Society's cause.

Having changed his clothes, Hughes was pulled into the front row seat and quietly watched the "performance".

Just as he and Verin and others had guessed, this gathering of the Black Sun Society was actually a mobilization meeting in preparation for the impending war. During the meeting, Kzlov, as the host, used a secret ritual to show everyone the defensive deployment plan on the border of the Kingdom of Saint Steel.

"It is regrettable that, in the Society's original plan, this place should have received the same powerful blessing and protection from the Black Sun as other cities. But unfortunately, as you can see, although the false god's foundation in Vaan has been shaken, she and her minions still exist."

As he spoke, Krzlov raised a hand and pointed towards the sky: "However, the strength of those traitors is far less than before, the false god Mel is heading towards extinction and decline, and her followers will also lose their own power as a result... Look, their power is limited to this, and they have no other way but to destroy the protection of Watchtower City."

"I am certain that the attacker who tried to steal the Dark Abyss's favor can only lie low now—the Eternal Black Sun will not allow him to continue his actions, and no matter what his identity is, he will surely perish in the endless hunt of the Dark Abyss."

"And we will follow the brilliance of the black sun, eliminating all the hidden dangers that have seeped into us, making them fertilizer to nourish our cause, and turning their corpses into graves to completely bury the false gods and those fools!"

Unlike other skilled orators, Kizlov's tone was not very varied when he spoke these words, as if he were simply reciting a manuscript. However, Hugh noticed that the magic surrounding Kizlov was subtly resonating with the occult throughout the venue.

As he spoke, this resonance spread outwards through the meticulously planned circuits, first to the venue, then to the people around it, and then further out into the distance...

It seems that Kezlov really wants to mobilize more than just Saint Steele and the Black Sun Society's officials and soldiers.

"Kizlov, do you intend to turn all the civilians around here into your soldiers?"

Hugh was pondering silently, but before he could reach a further conclusion, he suddenly heard someone on stage calling his current name.

"Fiorlando! Fiorlando! Come on, get on!"

Hugh looked up in surprise and saw that the second prince of the St. Steel royal family, Olski, was smiling at him with a kind of friendly expression that made Hugh feel nauseous.

It seems that the second prince is planning to put on a mushy display of family affection in front of everyone.

(End of this chapter)