The black sun hangs high

Chapter 51 The Eve (Seeking First Subscription)

The effects of "Sea God's Roar" have begun to subside, causing temperatures in Seren to drop once again. Before long, people going out at night will have to wear heavy windbreakers.

At this moment, old Schubert resembled a bamboo pole shivering in the cold wind, and his baggage looked like a tattered sack hanging in the cold wind.

“Sally…”

"Stop talking, Uncle Schubert! You've already repeated that so many times along the way!"

Young Sally was also in a state of high tension; she felt even her breath was trembling.

Making such a choice is not easy. Everything old Schubert had was in this city of Seren, and once this choice was made, it meant that he would most likely have to say goodbye to everything he had worked hard for for most of his life... Not everyone can make this decision.

Fortunately, old Schubert was timid enough. Although he was greedy, he was even more afraid of death, and in this respect he shared some common ground with the giant-eared goblins.

"But we're already here, and there's nobody here."

Old Schubert stomped his foot hard. This "Earring Lane" was already very inconspicuous, and at this time it was even more deserted and frightening. Coupled with the psychological trauma caused by the commotion at night in the past two days, he felt that robbers might jump out of the darkness around him at any time.

Sally was equally uneasy. Her courage and boldness were limited, and the only reason she was able to persuade her uncle was because a series of events in the city in the past two days had shaken his idea of ​​keeping the beer hall. As for the letter she received and the familiar handwriting in it, she dared not tell Schubert at all. Although the girl was young, she had read many novels and stories related to adventure and secret agents. In these stories, once the characters' whereabouts were exposed, they would often be killed.

The events at Ernst's old house were already shrouded in mystery, and the appearance of that letter ignited a spark of hope in Sally's heart. She didn't want to cause her friend any new trouble because of her oversight.

"Perhaps we should wait a little longer..."

Sally looked at the empty path, hesitant as well, but just then, a soft rustling sound came from the side. She turned her head and saw green eyes shining in the darkness not far away—it was a mouse, a mouse that was clearly different from others.

"Gods above, how can it have three tails!"

Old Schubert swallowed hard. He reached out and pulled his niece behind him, wanting her to hide behind him. Any magical creature was dangerous, and it was always best to stay away from them.

To their surprise, the strange giant rat did not attack them. Instead, it raised its three long tails and waved them twice in the air, as if it were waving.

After that, it ran a distance and stopped to wait quietly for the two of them.

"It's calling us over!"

Sally's eyes lit up, while old Schubert hesitated, feeling uneasy about being led by such a strange creature.

However, at this moment, they didn't have many choices left. In the end, the two followed it from a distance, and under the guidance of the strange mouse, they successfully emerged from the other end of the path and returned to the relatively spacious main road.

Sally and Schubert breathed a slight sigh of relief, then mustered their courage and followed the rat onward. Finally, they arrived at a huge mansion.

The gate was open, and a figure that the two of them recognized was quietly waiting in the courtyard behind it.

Sally stood outside the gate, somewhat stunned, and a little hesitant to believe her eyes.

The three-tailed rat that was leading the way was now pawing at the young man's trouser leg with its claws, looking as if it were asking for credit.

Hughes slightly raised the magic lantern in his hand, and smiled at the same time: "Miss Sally, Mr. Schubert, please don't stand outside anymore... it's not safe yet."

Once the two still bewildered individuals entered the courtyard, Hugh closed the gate, and the protective ritual activated again, isolating the inner and outer worlds.

"You... Mr. Hugh, you're really not dead?"

Schubert unconsciously changed his way of addressing and treating Hughes; Hughes's current demeanor made Schubert dare not address or treat him as he had in the past.

Hugh smiled and nodded to Schubert. He turned around and saw that Sally was still in a dazed state, somewhere between excitement and confusion. So he sighed and took Sally's luggage: "It's a long story. I'll explain slowly after we go inside."

Perhaps it was the shock of "resurrection," or perhaps it was the natural deterrent power of magical power and the spellcaster's identity, but Hugh didn't spend much time or effort to convince the two new visitors to House 37 of the danger that Seren City was currently facing. The shapeshifters active in the mansion further added credibility to Hugh's words.

After listening to Hugh's account, Sally asked in a low voice, "So there's another mage here? A lake-level magic advisor?"

"Yes, a real magician... She is working hard to find a way for us to pass through the city gate sealing ritual, and according to her calculations, it will be completed by tomorrow morning at the latest."

Schubert seemed somewhat worried, but the influence of the mages' extraordinary status and power was deeply ingrained, and since a magic advisor had already said such a thing, he naturally could no longer question it.

After overcoming the initial panic and tension, Sally had regained her energy. This lively and innocent girl didn't have any complicated thoughts or ideas. She followed her intuition and instincts, giving her complete and thorough trust to the young man in front of her who already carried her goodwill and affection. She didn't ask in detail about what had happened these past few days, nor did she inquire about why Hugh possessed magic and became a spellcaster. Instead, she talked about the current changes and situation in Seren City.

Before they knew it, the two were talking about Putlin.

The fact that Putrin was not present here says a lot.

"Will you... blame him?"

"What's there to blame him for?"

Hugh shook his head: "He simply made his own choice. He has complained to us about those things more than once in the past... Moreover, many of those situations are objectively true. You must have seen them these past few days, right? There are many, many people in Seren City who have similar thoughts. Even without Putrin, someone else would definitely take his place."

Sally glanced at Hughes cautiously, then said, "Actually, Putling came to the beer hall the day the old house caught fire. He was very sad and thought... he thought it was your status as a member of the Ernst family that caused all of this."

Hearing this, Hugh's expression stiffened slightly. He gently put down his water glass and sighed in the almost dimly lit living room: "This time, perhaps he's right."

Hughes now harbors little goodwill towards the Ernst family. Like most families that have long established themselves in the world, the Ernst family are purely profit-driven; they consider the family's development and survival paramount, and all members within their sphere of influence are expected to willingly become fuel to sustain the flame of Ernst's glory…

If anyone is unwilling, then naturally others will take action and stuff this worthless firewood into the fire and furnace.

"Even if I were to make a sacrifice, it certainly wouldn't be for the Ernst family."

Hugh said to himself silently.

And so, time passed slowly amidst anxious waiting and quiet conversations between Hugh and Sally.

Finally, as dawn broke, Hugh, in his half-asleep, half-awake state, suddenly felt a surge of magical energy sweeping down from above, followed by a crisp, resounding crack!

Hugh immediately snapped out of it. He jumped up from the sofa in the living room and ran quickly towards the second floor.

The loud vibrations echoed continuously in the second-floor corridor. The sound seemed to possess a vibrant life force, pulsating in every corner of the enclosed environment. Under its influence, Hugh even felt that the magic power within his body had become more active.

"Oh!"

The tightly closed door opened, and then a young female mage with a pale face, dark circles under her eyes, and disheveled hair stepped out. In her fingers, she held a magic crystal that was constantly emitting a bright light. Hugh saw that the iris emblem, symbolizing the Kingdom of Delan, was clearly engraved on the surface of the crystal.

At this moment, Weilin was clearly in a state of extreme exhaustion. After leaving the room, she leaned against the wall and took a few heavy breaths, but then a rather attractive smile appeared on her face. A strong sense of accomplishment and satisfaction flowed from the corners of her mouth.

Seeing her like this, Hugh finally breathed a sigh of relief: "Thank you for your hard work, Miss Vera... I wonder how it went now?"

"Perfect."

She said in a very confident tone, "It took me quite a bit of time to transplant the emblem onto a complete magic crystal. To be honest, it was a bit risky, but thankfully it was successful."

It was only then that Hugh noticed that Verine's hand, which was holding the magic crystal, was covered with many wounds, some of which were still bleeding. Clearly, the situation was not as easy as she made it out to be; it certainly shouldn't just be "somewhat risky."

Hughes respected all those who put in effort and achieved results. Seeing that Vera looked like she might faint at any moment, he quickly brought her a teacup and teapot—it contained flower tea from the Lovi Plateau. This kind of flower tea is often served with a lot of dried fruit and even sugar cubes. Although it tastes a bit sweet, it is very suitable for soothing the mind and body and replenishing energy.

Vera took the teacup from Hugh's hand as a matter of course. After taking a small sip, her eyebrows relaxed. Just then, footsteps came from the direction of the stairs. The two turned to look and saw Sally cautiously peeking her head out from the bottom of the stairs.

Vera smiled kindly at the girl she had met once before, then asked, "Looks like everyone's here?"

"Yes, the route has been chosen, and we can set off at any time."

Vera nodded, picked up her teacup and took another sip, then looked at the magic clock hanging on the wall: "It's already five o'clock? Okay... give me three more hours, no, two hours will be enough... I need to quickly recover some magic power and condition, otherwise it's easy to make mistakes when operating the magic insignia."

Hughes nodded: "I will keep a close eye on the situation outside. If there are no unexpected events, we will leave before eight o'clock."

……

The morning sunlight streamed through the window and shone on the wooden floor.

Temperatures on the Lovi Plateau have begun to drop rapidly. Just last night, the royal city of Wotel welcomed the first snowfall of the year 2699 of the Kal'tel calendar. Although its scale was limited, it was a symbol that the Goddess of Winter and the God of Cold Wind were once again embarking on a long journey together.

A wrinkled hand pushed open the glass door to the study balcony, and the room immediately became bright and airy. In the cold, light breeze, "Three-Clawed Falcon" Zeke Ernst stepped onto the balcony.

A huge raven seemed to have been waiting for this moment. It eagerly flapped its wings and landed, standing steadily on the armrest of old Zeke's wheelchair.

The old man chuckled twice, then stretched out his finger and slowly ran it over the raven's head and back. Its feathers were very beautiful and neat, even faintly reflecting light.

However, just as the raven was busy enjoying the grooming service provided by humans, a hidden magic within its body suddenly began to take effect. The raven's gray eyes immediately changed, its pupils filled with golden yellow, and even revealed a hint of emotion unique to humans.

The old man stopped what he was doing and watched the raven quietly. After a moment, the raven opened its beak and made a sound like a human woman's voice.

"Teacher, you woke up very early today."

"I can't sleep well after it snows."

Zeke chuckled, tugging at the blanket around him, and gazed at the boundary formed by the earth, mountains, and sky: "Today is an important day. If I get up too late, you young people will laugh at me, won't you?"

The voice responded softly, "No one will laugh at you."

"Wrong... They just don't dare to, but that doesn't mean they don't have the idea."

Zeke Ernst maintained his smile as he saw a powerful, enormous shadow sweep across the distant sky—a giant eagle of the highlands, a totem revered by the Votel people.

Rumor has it that when the world is about to undergo new changes and upheavals, this terrifying predator will become incredibly excited...

"Kid, you should get excited."

he murmured.

...

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(End of this chapter)