The black sun hangs high

Chapter 99 The Abnormal Rat Swarm

Hugh placed the young girl who lived in room 519 on the bed.

Although she was completely naked at the moment, Hugh was unable to think of anything—she was badly injured. Her legs were covered with horrifying scars, marks left by countless rats that had gnawed at her. Perhaps because their teeth contained toxins that could numb human nerves and senses, the girl felt no pain, and there was no bleeding from those wounds, as if the flesh had completely died.

Hughes is currently unable to help the girl.

He hurriedly opened the magic book and tore out a page.

That was the only stream-level healing spell he had previously inscribed in his spellbook, "Magic First Aid." Its name was very simple, and its effects were extremely straightforward. It was widely used in the field of battlefield medicine and was the easiest healing spell for spellcasters to learn and one that almost everyone needed to master. It could temporarily relieve pain and stop bleeding, and also boost the life force of the recipient through the power of magic.

Hughes didn't know if this magic could alleviate the girl's injuries, but it was the only healing method he currently possessed.

Before the "magic first aid" light could even envelop the girl's severely gnawed legs, a dark shadow flew out from the direction of the bathroom, almost grazing Hugh's head as it crashed into the wall behind him.

That was Sniggy the Runaway Rat.

It looked like it had been hit hard and almost slammed into a "rat pancake" against the wall.

Based on the information Sniggy relayed, Hugh learned that the rats in the bathroom were not afraid of his corrosive magic, so he quickly disbanded his summons and instead summoned more of Calron's Touch.

At the same time, the figure formed by the surging swarm of rats emerged from the bathroom. It was so tall that it was even taller than Hugh. Yet, this burly "giant" was covered in the shadows of rats that were constantly moving around. This bizarre scene was enough to terrify any ordinary person who witnessed it.

Xiuge is naturally not among ordinary people.

I've seen similar scenarios many times, both in my dreams and in the shelter.

So now I've naturally gotten used to it.

"You were deliberately avoiding me before... how come you have the guts to launch an attack now?"

Hughes scrutinized the eerie figure he had previously shot with a rifle. He now understood why the creature was still able to move after its skull was shattered by a solid metal bullet. It was not a true humanoid being; it had no brain or facial features. The skull was merely a part of its "structure." Although the tiny mice that made up the skull would disintegrate due to the physical impact when hit by the bullet, this was not enough to cause them real damage.

Given time, they will naturally return to their original state.

The later creation of magical bullets proved that magical attacks could have a highly effective, even fatal, effect on them...

However, these discoveries were still not enough to answer Hugh's many questions about the manor hotel. Facing the black humanoid figure rapidly approaching him, Hugh slightly moved his left hand, and a large number of black tentacles that had been waiting nearby immediately swept out, and the arthropod blades mixed with magic fell like sharp and precise butcher knives to various parts of the humanoid body.

In an instant, the burly figure was cut into pieces of varying sizes.

At first glance, the black rat swarm that could coalesce into a concrete form seemed to have something in common with the offspring of the Dark Abyss. However, shortly after the battle began, Hugh discovered obvious differences between the two.

They were so weak that Hugh even began to question the meaning of their existence.

He felt that such an enemy was not only no match for professional mages of the Raindrop level or above, but even a few soldiers wielding the Demon-Slaying Silver Sword could easily wipe them out on the spot.

Hugh had prepared himself to join the battle and even use the special bullets from Hound's Fang to eliminate the threat, but now, his enemy's performance was really... lackluster.

"What is the purpose of these things? Besides being able to resist toxins and corrosion, what else is special about them?"

Hugh gently raised his finger, and a black tentacle immediately curled back, defeating a small group of black rats that were trying to force their way to him. He saw the rats, cut in two by their sharp limbs, instantly turn into invisible magical mist and vanish in no time.

Moreover, Hugh was equally baffled by the behavior of these rats.

"These rats could have used their numerical advantage to attack or harass from all sides... but now it seems they're fixated on forming a concrete human shape and using this near-human form to fight. What's wrong with that?"

Hugh carefully recalled what the rats had done in the past two days, and his confusion and bewilderment grew even stronger.

Just as he was hesitating whether he should use violence to get rid of the rats, his senses told him that someone was approaching in the hallway outside the room.

Hugh's expression turned solemn, and he immediately dispelled and withdrew all of Calron's Touch.

He didn't want too many people to see the "evil magic" he used, as it could easily cause unnecessary misunderstandings and trouble. After all, the visual impact of the Touch of Calron was quite strong for ordinary people.

A dark green mage's hand appeared beside the bed. Under Hugh's control, it quickly picked up two pieces of clothing, just enough to cover the young girl's body on the bed. Then, Hugh once again opened the spellbook and, relying on the combat memories of the spellcasters accumulated in his mind, tore off two pages of the spellbook one after the other.

Just then, the door to room 519 was pushed open forcefully, and the two young ladies who had appeared in the corridor earlier, along with a group of guards, appeared at the door.

To their horror, they saw a large swarm of rapidly crawling black rats in the room coalescing into a towering humanoid figure. Opposite this monster, a young member of the Ernst family was confronting it. As for the occupant of room 519, he was lying motionless on his bed, his fate unknown.

"Take her away!" The young man's voice rang out, not loud, but with a commanding authority. Two guards immediately stepped forward, rolled up the bedding, and carried the young girl outside.

Just as the large swarm of black rats was about to take shape, the thin, pale-faced young man suddenly raised his right hand quickly, and two pages of a magic book were flung out, drifting down towards the terrifying black figure under the influence of magic.

The first page of the magic book shattered in mid-air. Amidst a series of dark magic runes, the Stream-level "Oil Production" quickly took effect, and a large amount of black, viscous oil poured down, drenching the humanoid figure above it.

Immediately afterwards, a bright red light shone on the second page of the magic book, and a very ordinary "Invoke Flames" spell erupted from the flammable grease. The intense flames immediately illuminated the entire room and enveloped the dark figure.

In an instant, a series of piercing cries emanated from the pitch-black figure. These were the mournful screams of countless rats being burned. The originally formed, burly figure rapidly disintegrated in the flames. Those individuals ignited by the flames quickly broke away from the rat swarm and rapidly turned into invisible mist as they burned.

The speed at which the rats scattered and fled exceeded Hugh's expectations. He had just clearly seen that his magical flames had only ignited and eliminated the individuals on the surface of the swarm. But strangely, these rats did not seem to like being exposed. Using the firelight, they began to flee rapidly, rushing towards every corner where they could hide at an astonishing speed...

A lone black mouse was caught, so Hugh immediately bent down, and the magical mist of the Mirror Messenger appeared in his palm.

Previous experiences had proven that the power of the Mirror Messenger was a natural shackle for magical creatures. Therefore, Hugh quickly reached out and his misty hand precisely grabbed the panicked little black rat. The light mist immediately transformed into layers of shackles, locking the rat in his palm.

……

Perhaps because someone had already given prior notice, Hugh was not questioned for "trespassing" into the lady's room. His official mage status also came into play at this moment. After witnessing Hugh's battle with the terrifying monster, the two young ladies from the family who had brought the guards regarded Hugh's act of breaking down the door of room 519 as a righteous act by a qualified spellcaster.

Needless to say, this will be another significant chapter in Mr. Hugh Ernst's return to the family.

However, Hugh is not in the mood to think about these issues right now.

He was sitting in a chair, examining the glass jar in his hand.

The mist of the Mirror Messenger continued to overflow from Hugh's palm, transforming into a misty shackle that was directly applied to the entire glass jar. Inside the jar, the black rat that Hugh had caught was wandering around aimlessly.

Circle after circle.

This blind mouse looks very strange, not only because it has no eyes, but also because of its deformed limbs.

Its forelimbs are very slender, and each "palm" has five fingers with sharp claws, making it look more like a human hand with sharp nails.

Its hind limbs are even more twisted and bizarre.

Those were "flesh tendrils" growing directly from their bodies. These tendrils were flexible and powerful. They could simulate thighs that could support the body's jumping and running, or they could intertwine and bind each other like ropes... Hugh suspected that the reason these rats were able to move together was because of this strange body structure.

Now, the blind mouse seemed very confused. It was as if it had no will to live. After its initial struggle, it fell into a state of near-sluggishness. It did not struggle or run, but just crawled along the edge of the glass jar again and again at a constant speed. No matter how much Hugh tried to stop it, it did not stop its movements.

It's like executing a pre-written program.

"A thing that looks like this must be related to those ancient creations without even thinking about it..."

Hughes picked up his teacup, watching the rat circling in the jar as he slowly drank the invigorating herbal tea: "Its behavior is quite interesting. Although it has an appearance similar to a rat, it doesn't seem to have individual consciousness. Instead, it's more like a component of the so-called swarm consciousness."

He carefully recalled all the relevant clues and tried to arrange and organize them in his mind.

"It's the same problem as before... These rats clearly have more efficient and quicker ways to kill, but they always insist on doing things that only humans would do, such as trying to drown their victims in the bathtub or trying to throw them out of the hotel. In comparison, what happened in room 519 tonight seems like an accident."

"The occupant of room 519 was gnawed by them, which is unprecedented, but it also reveals a potential possibility."

"These strange magical creatures actually possess certain instincts. They will instinctively gnaw on the living things around them, just like hunting. But most of the time, they do not show their instincts. Instead, they are restrained... The force that restrains them prevents them from tearing and devouring their prey and enemies like real rats, and they do not choose to flee after being injured or frightened like real animals."

Hugh shook the glass jar, and the strangely shaped blind rat immediately rolled around inside. It quickly got up and then repeated the same action.

Looking at this absurd and bizarre scene, Hugh suddenly remembered what Zeke Ernst had told him before.

"That manor hotel is actually the family's original residence. According to the society, the will of the Ernst family resides there... When the old and new generations change, all young people who are candidates for succession will move in there and be selected by the family's will."

"The will of the family... resides... is it a selection process?"

Hugh uttered the words haltingly, looking at the rat in front of him, and combining that with what he had seen and heard at the manor hotel that evening, Hugh suddenly had a very bad feeling.

He couldn't help but mutter to himself, "I say, old man, the will of your Ernst family, and those deceased 'ancestors,' won't all end up..."

(End of this chapter)