Surviving The Fourth Calamity

Chapter 738: Chapter 537: Lynn’s Gold Elf Cousin Brother

The springtime in Agleya Town always arrives a little earlier than in other parts of The North.

The girls have already started gathering in groups, carrying baskets to the woodlands east of the town to pick the first batch of wild vegetables and fruits of early spring.

The Great Plague of The North is still spreading, and some of the Wise Ones from Deepwater City have taken it upon themselves to walk to Hill’s town, using the method of attempting to enter the commercial streets to judge whether they are carriers of the disease.

All the inns in town are fully booked.

Even the two small houses next to the Agleya Temple are rarely filled with people.

Lynn was well-prepared; after consulting with Hill, he allowed some refugees to set up tents on the open ground between the harbor and the Harpist Building.

These people are truly pitiable.

The guilty Nobles have their grand mansions, and even in the face of plague, they have their own places to hide.

And those who know that the treasures might be problematic but are still overcome by greed are not so innocent. At this point, they’re even less likely to leave those cities.

Only by staying there, the high and mighty can maintain their rule and find a cure for the disease.

Once they leave, they’re likely to be quietly executed.

Only those who don’t know what to do, who have no place to hide, and can only hope for nearby town lords to show some kindness are at their wits’ end.

Hill may have turned away those desperate people shrouded in black mist, but he still agreed to let the innocents in.

However, he could no longer offer the same compassion and care to these newcomers as he did in the past and could not afford to continue allowing refugees into the town.

They could only wait in agony for the outcome.

The sole consolation is that Agleya Town’s food and some living supplies are still available for them to purchase freely, without any price increase.

The Arcane Wizards from Naesreiel didn’t wait long; upon discovering that the Elves had begun to excavate and repair the buildings in the city, Shade Soul City, which had just returned from the Shadow Plane two years ago and had been hovering over the Thirsty Continent, charged directly towards the edge of the desert. Its destination seemed very much like Mistral.

Though the Elves and Fairies were somewhat panicked, they did not feel this would be a battle of life and death. They assumed that Shade Soul City was likely looking for a good place to settle, and that if they defeated them, they would leave.

Indeed, the twelve Archmages of Shade Soul City were formidable, but neither the Fairies nor the Elves were afraid. Who doesn’t have a Level 20 master?

Especially the Fey Demons; they dared to confront the demon-siphoning Felin Magic Mallow precisely because of the inherent Demonslayer power they possess.

And these Arcanist from Naesreiel were utterly devastated by the Felin Magic Mallow back then, leaving behind only these Shadow Souls who survived by hiding in the Shadow Plane.

Mistral swiftly entered defense mode, readying many Giant Crossbows that could shoot directly into the sky, powerful weapons capable of easily piercing Ancient Dragons.

They simply didn’t understand the real reason behind the sudden offensive preparedness of these Arcane Wizards.

Shade Soul City wouldn’t tell them the reason; until they found the Nyscroll, they would kill all the informed.

No one knew why there was a Nyscroll in the Elf Sorcerer Tower, or who passed the information to Shade Soul City, whether it was some Evil God stirring up chaos, but the war was inevitable.

Hill, as an outsider, could only sigh and await the outcome.

The sole obsession of the black Dark Mages in Shade Soul City, who had lived for thousands of years, was the Nyscroll stolen by Mistral back in the day.

Regardless of whether it was the Elves who did it or if it was stolen goods they purchased later, to these remnants of the Eternal Color Era, it could only belong to them.

They could not possibly reveal the fact: Shade Soul City was indeed very powerful, but Toril had no shortage of forces that could contend with them.

Toril’s Archmages were plentiful, including the Chosen of Mystra, who would definitely not give up the pursuit of the Nyscroll, an artifact sought after by Mages from the past to the future.

Only after obtaining the Nyscroll and leaving Toril to re-enter the Shadow Plane could the twelve City Lords of Shade Soul City rest easy.

The consequences of asymmetrical knowledge are grave indeed.

Lynn, who usually ignored the hot-blooded Elf Crusaders of Mistral, had been repeatedly approaching Hill lately to inquire if there was any news. After almost burning with anxiety upon receiving negative responses, he was almost ready to take up residence at the Harpist’s place.

Although Lynn was unaware of the sources of Hill’s information, he knew that most of Hill’s network was on the divine level, where some news was absolutely inaccessible to him but definitely real.

He had nearly taken up residence at the Harpist, anxious to find out whether Shade Soul City’s target was indeed Mistral and how many days it would take to arrive.

He also sent letters frantically every day using the post office now established on the commercial street; the recipients were Elves from Mistral with the surname Gaul.

Although Hill was a bit curious, he still did not pry, simply hoping that Lynn’s relatives could be persuaded by him.

Having known Hill for so long, Lynn had learned that the best way to rally support was to play the victim.

While it might saddle Hill with a bit of a harsh reputation, it didn’t matter, as Hill wouldn’t care anyway.

To those indifferent, playing the victim comes off as mere lip service, a sigh; but for Lynn’s cousins, who had always felt close to him, it was bound to be effective.

Lynn insisted on bombarding them with letters, hoping that those relatives, driven by passion, would have a little more water in their brains.

The same elves he had once scoffed at as part of the Elf Crusade, when Lynn found out his cousins were also fervently heading to Mistral, it was incredibly frustrating for him.

Could it be because they were naval bred, having drunk too much seawater since childhood, that they lost their minds?

Standing on the tall tower at the harbor, Lynn greeted the Gold Elves approaching quickly from the wilderness with a hypocritical smile, curious to see how he would handle these relatives who gave him no peace.

When Lynn asked Marsha to inform Hill that he would have guests staying at the Mayor’s Mansion, Hill was truly startled.

It was a mystery how Lynn had managed to call over a fully-formed, six-member Elf squad.

If it were not for a significant event, the Gold Elves seldom mobilized so many members, especially considering that the lowest Level among them was 17.

When Hill agreed to Lynn building the Mayor’s Mansion, he allowed his relatives to stay whenever they wanted. In fact, there was no need for Lynn to inform Hill, but Lynn had always been one to follow the rules.

This was very different from the elves who upon meeting him would mess with his head, strip his clothes, attempting to see where their Half-Elf cousin had been injured.

Lynn had to roar in anger to bring his fussing cousins back to his home from the main road.

Hill, leaning on the balcony, laughed with rare joy.

”Marsha,” Hill ordered Tower Spirit to deliver some of the fruits and vegetables he had grown and the fruit wine he had brewed to Lynn’s place, and also to tell Terry to either return to his own Dragon Nest or the Floating Castle tonight, and not to stay at Lynn’s.

Unfortunately, the cousins’ joyful reunion did not last long.

The very next day after these elves arrived at Agleya Town, the Harpists brought news that Shade Soul City had reached Mistral directly through the Shadow Plane.

Although the Elves and Fairies had managed to repel the last Floating City from the Eternal Color Era and the numerous Arcanists controlling it, the hasty defense resulted in heavy casualties.

Lynn’s Gold Elf cousins prepared to set off without hesitation, even attempting to ask Hill whether there was a Portal they could use.

Lynn’s attempts to stop them were futile, as to him, what mattered was his relatives surviving; but to those Gold Elves, the elves whose fate in Mistral was uncertain were also their comrades-in-arms.

Some were even peers with whom they grew up and played on Eternity Island; they couldn’t just ignore them.

Even those fools who had fought with Lynn because of their disdain for him were adversaries with feuds spanning hundreds of years; how could they just die like that!

Hill watched silently for a while, realizing that Lynn had shifted from desperately trying to prevent his cousins from marching to their deaths, to resolutely joining them.

In the eyes of these elf brothers, Lynn was the little brother they needed to protect; no matter how sternly he spoke, these stubborn, long-eared ones would never listen to him.

Additionally, for these Gold Elves, not being able to fight alongside the legion made them feel like deserters.

Hill had realized they were aware of the risks, as when Lynn decided to join them, they actually tried to stop him.

Unfortunately, Lynn was adamant, and he planned to rush out the door without even putting on his equipment.

”Lynn,” Hill flew directly above the Mayor’s Mansion, ”although I don’t approve of your impulsiveness, if you truly have to go, I can’t stop you from sacrificing yourself for your kin.”

The faces of the Gold Elves paled; they desperately signaled Hill with their eyes, hoping he could restrain Lynn.

”But I can’t just watch you go meet your death.” Hill took out a multi-mast sailing ship, enlarging it and letting it hover midair, ”My finished Magic Ship has room for hundreds. Its protection isn’t bad either, so take it.”

”I’ve ordered the ship’s Core to temporarily follow your commands. You can tell it what to do directly.”

Lynn blinked and then nodded, accepting Hill’s kindness.

”A Space Gate is impossible,” Hill looked at the elves, ”Shade Soul City has very strong control over space, and the area around Mistral has been completely sealed off. You’ll have to travel by ship.”

He then said to Lynn, who was about to jump aboard the vessel: ”Take your weapons and gear! Please protect yourself. I still hope that you can come back safely, my friend.”

Lynn’s eyes moistened for a moment, and he nodded vigorously.