Surviving The Fourth Calamity

Hilbert felt a bit bewildered.

The reason he wore earmuffs was naturally because he sensed that the energy arrow’s attack power was enough to penetrate the top of the Magic Tower and directly strike his Elemental Pool.

In this world, due to the singularity of the Energy Pool, the pinnacle of the Magic Tower is indeed the most vulnerable area to attack... Hilbert, of course, had made various preparations.

These included not only the Energy Absorbing Array at the base of the pinnacle and the coordination with the Puppet Bird Flock, but also the instant combustion of the Elemental Pool, and, more violently, a cry for help.

Otherwise, just a big explosion wouldn’t be enough to leave List, who had endured so much hardship, so moved.

The truly terrifying things must be those that he had created himself.

Yet the result shocked him... Hilbert never expected there would come a day when he was frightened because the enemy’s artillery was not as strong as he had imagined.

Fortunately, though a bit bemused, he still retained his pride as an Alchemist Master... He figured out who was the creator of that giant crossbow in Delphus’s hands.

Even if Gilbert and that Archmage of the Defense Tower were from different branches, their bloodline was still quite similar.

Firstly, in this world, there is no saying about marriage among close relatives, only non-intermarriage with the same surname and not marrying children from the aunt’s family.

After all, many female family members do not marry out, so their children often choose the same surname as theirs.

If you were to make a distinction between marrying out and not marrying out, it would lead to much confusion and disputes... All being mages, even the most powerful of the Great Nobility would not want to determine who was right or wrong or who gained more or less between these people.

So, maternal cousins are basically considered the same bloodline and fall within the range of non-intermarriage.

Plus, there is a habitual intermarriage with noble families that are mage families, so even after hundreds of years, even with different branches, the bloodline of legitimate line members would not diverge too greatly.

According to the Law of the Strange Objects Creator, if the large war machinery he created had a 100% immunity to his harm, it would increase by a percentage depending on the closeness of the bloodline.

Gilbert clearly belonged to the relatively close one.

The kill power of this Magic Arrow was probably reduced by at least 40%.

Hilbert finally completely understood why Delphus was relentlessly pursuing the Hainarson Family.

The mutated Cat’s Eye Mine was just an excuse.

He probably only recently discovered who made the war machine in his hands... Then, the strongest destructive weapon in Delphus’s possession must not be this Magic Ballista.

He couldn’t be unaware that Gilbert’s bloodline would weaken the destructive power of this weapon; Delphus was testing Gilbert’s quality!

Hill irritably squeezed his fingers: it’s fortunate that, for convenience, he let the true owner of this Magic Tower remain Gilbert himself.

Otherwise, today, he would have definitely exposed himself!

Though he knew in his heart that he had been forced onto the Liangshan and had to promptly go for a chat with Mr. Rommel... Whatever Glaysia was playing at, they had to find out the truth sooner rather than later.

Of course, Hill could also take this issue to ask the Red Dragon.

But Hill was just feeling grumpy; he was neither crazy nor foolish.

No matter how friendly the neighbor next door appeared to be, once normalcy was restored and the Multiverse reopened, they would only be in competition with Teraxil.

Distant diplomacy while attacking nearby is a principle ingrained in Hill’s bones since his ancestors.

As annoying and troublesome as Draculus was, he still hoped his homeland would grow stronger.

Hill knew the Archmage’s personality well enough to dismiss any need to explore whether he loved Teraxil most or not... As long as it didn’t affect his own future, Draculus’s home would always be Teraxil.

However, this kind of reluctantly forced action upset him considerably.

If only Lister were here now.

Otherwise, all those flags planted word for word recently would have come crashing down on Hill’s head.

Hill looked up at the seemingly real yet fake starry sky outside... He truly missed the Magic Tower within Purwell!

Especially the grand library, akin to a second Candlekeep.

As things stood, the only solace was that he hadn’t chosen to be lazy for his own convenience back then, avoiding transforming into his true form in public... Glaysia must be watching this place closely.

And those who had attacked the Defense Tower earlier would certainly know who crafted that Giant Crossbow, as would Glaysia with for Delphus’s hidden war machine.

The minimal weakening of Hilbert’s Magic Tower during this attack was still reasonable; no weakening at all would question if Gilbert still was that person willing to sacrifice his life for his family.

For someone like Gilbert, even attaching a identity like Felis’s to him would be impossible, it would expose him instantly.

Fidgeting with the Cat’s Eye Stone bracelet on his wrist, Hill glanced again at Delphus, flustered by the Puppet Bird Flock but still holding on, and felt a desire to intervene.

He was truly frightened; he had never suffered such grievances in his life!

Yet, there was always a strange feeling telling Hill that he shouldn’t go out.

Hill hadn’t felt such a sense of tension for a long time... Glaysia didn’t have the qualifications to make his hair stand on end like this.

He lightly pursed his lips, turned back to his desk, and quietly lay back in his recliner.

But this sudden calmness gave him another feeling: this Delphus he saw today seemed different from what he had felt before.

There was a kind of peculiar sense of dissonance.

No, that’s not it; rather, there was something unnatural about him.

Hill gently scratched the desk in front of him, then quickly smoothed everything out with his palm... Goddamn it, he really hated this cautiousness!

The devil-controlled world is really annoying!

The people are not that great, but the matters are full of circles within circles.

However, Hill gently rocked the recliner; he was even more unwilling to let this world’s self-rescue fail because of his interference.

Indeed, he could be the hero who turns the tide, but what Hill least wanted to be was someone else’s savior.

He always admired those who are self-reliant.

Besides, if someone was struggling, giving them a hand was his merit, but if he accidentally burned their lifeline, then pulled someone from the cliff... it seemed more like moral degeneration.

No matter how grateful others were, it absolutely wasn’t merit.

Although Hill didn’t understand many truths, he was a prudent person: if something felt off, he simply wouldn’t make a move.

As for that Asmodius who might have already arrived in this world, secretly observing everything... Hill wasn’t afraid, but he was somewhat curious about why the Lord of Hell had come.

Knowing that, at this time, if he had truly melded with the Greek Gods’ Primordial Power, his main target should be Heavenly Mountain.

Or he should be contacting the Bottomless Abyss, it shouldn’t be that he came to this world.

Even if Glaysia came up with some unusual big trick... hmm?

Wait!

Hill suddenly recalled something.

Asmodius wanting to collaborate with the Bottomless Abyss had always been something Hill anticipated. In the previous world, those two had more or less made some connections.

But regardless of whether it was the Bottomless Abyss or Asmodius initiating the contract, neither would likely trust the other.

Even though they both knew their agreement would ultimately lead nowhere.

But at least, when the battle with Heavenly Mountain began, it couldn’t be something that tears like paper.

Although the terms could leave room for backtracking, this backtrack should appear after completing their respective goals.

Whom could the Bottomless Abyss and the Lord of Hell find as an intermediary?

Could this thing called trust appear among any of their old pals?

Especially with the Bottomless Abyss, which doesn’t even have any cronies.

Without guarantees, this agreement would likely turn into scrap paper from the start; how could they then talk about attacking the top of Heavenly Mountain?

Did Asmodius change course after hearing about that dragon’s appearance?

Even if this dragon can’t represent the will of Styx, its appearance at least proves that Styx is paying attention to this world.

Compared to performing the wife resurrection ritual in other worlds, the current Lord of Hell would probably prefer to find the will of Styx to discuss matters.

However, the Will of Styx could be friendly towards Hill merely because Styx originally flowed from under the World Tree.

To it, Hill was just a mischievous little brat from the neighboring house, and although it didn’t pay much attention, it would still greet him when they crossed paths.

And casually remind him not to frolic in its river, much less use the creatures there to sharpen claws.

What kind of madness is it for someone like Asmodius who dared to cut off its tributary?

The Will of Styx has always been great at pretending not to exist.

Asmodius desires to communicate with it or even wishes to have it as an intermediary, which isn’t an easy feat.

So, Hill feels a bit puzzled; he can’t figure out what game the Lord of Hell intends to play.