Chapter 664 - 662: On Purpose?
"Are you saying that if I find the relic, I should bring it back, and if there’s some blessing from the Gods inside, I should pass it on to you?"
Looking at the serious Phil in front of her, Hilia was bewildered.
She thought of the time she entered the ancient castle maze with Elina and found the relic of the Elf God, and she shook her head.
"Items of the Gods aren’t things you can just give away. If a God chooses you, it means that thing is only usable by you, right? So why have you started thinking this way? It’s an opportunity to enhance your competitiveness."
"I..."
Phil wanted to say that she was already ’unclean’ and unfit to compete for the title of Holy Daughter, but ultimately, she kept silent.
She had doubts about whether Hilia’s received blessing from a God was also Rose’s blessing, but based on Hilia’s behavior, it didn’t seem like it.
After all, the characteristics of the blessing she exhibited — proficiency in magic arrays and runes, and the purification skill — were proper for a follower of the true gods, unlike those of the Evil God.
Phil reflected on her blessing situation; the rune that Rose embedded in her body was related to pollution, and each time Rose appeared, he genuinely hoped for her swift transformation into an Abyss Princess...
So, things like the relics of the Gods should be left to the true Holy Court Saintess. I might become an Abyss Princess in the future, so I should refrain from taking them.
Phil thought, hesitated for a moment, and said, "I just think Hilia is more suited to possess the divine relic."
When she spoke, Phil’s eyes flickered, indicating a lie.
Hilia noticed Rose smiling beside them, had a flash of insight, and immediately understood.
Although she wasn’t certain about Phil’s thoughts, it was highly likely related to Lord Rose!
Hilia looked at Rose with a slightly peculiar gaze.
Rose simply smiled without saying a word.
"It’s too early to discuss this now; divine relics aren’t so easily obtained," Hilia said helplessly.
Phil replied, "It seems quite easy for Miss Elina from the Elf Royal Court."
That’s because Mr. Rose helped. Hilia thought.
Wait, isn’t Mr. Rose helping now too?
No worries then.
Hilia decided not to dwell on this and directly asked, "Did you come to this city just to deal with the beast tide, or is it related to the divine relic?"
Phil said, "There is some connection. The area I sense... is within the Elf Royal City. From what I’ve felt, the Gods told me that among the four cities surrounding the Elf Royal City, there are conditions to unlock the relic. Once these conditions are met, one can enter the divine ruins beneath the Royal City and obtain the divine relic."
"Four cities? Which four?"
Hilia opened a map, and Phil pointed out four cities. These cities were all within the Elf Forest area, surrounding the Elf Royal City like stars encircling the moon.
Hilia compared them with the routes Rose previously sent her on and found they didn’t overlap.
"Have you found the prerequisites?" Hilia asked.
"Not yet, still looking," Phil shook her head.
Hilia glanced at the tall giant tree in the center of Forest City.
"Could it be that tree?"
"Well, shouldn’t be, right?"
"It’s possible. All four satellite cities around the Elf Royal City have such a large tree in their center. It’s said to be grown from the seed of the Holy Tree. Although not the Holy Tree itself, it has some attributes of the Holy Tree. What if these small sacred trees are exactly what you’re looking for?"
Hilia blinked and asked softly, "Do you know which God it is?"
Phil hesitated slightly and whispered, "It’s Lord Haroldias."
"God of Life and Death... The elf sacred trees represent life..."
"Ah... so if you put it that way, it might really be possible."
Phil looked at the towering tree, lost in thought.
Hilia smiled faintly, "I’m just saying casually, since I’ve never gotten a divine revelation before."
She added silently in her heart:
Maybe my knowledge is vague, but when it comes to telling me what to do or find, the divine revelations are quite clear.
Riddles are the most annoying.
After thinking for a long time, Phil stood up.
"Let’s go check it out; maybe we’ll find something."
The large tree, possibly a small sacred tree, was situated in the area where the City Lord lived and worked. As contributors to resolving the beast tide and known Holy Priests, Hilia and Phil could freely visit most of the areas, naturally with company; doing so privately was not allowed.
The two visited the small sacred tree, where Bastuya personally hosted them, not only leading them through publicly accessible areas but also allowing them to see some not-so-easily-opened places.
After the visit, the two returned to the appointed inn, where Hilia disabled the recording arrays in place and asked:
"How is it? Did you find any clues?"
Phil pondered and said, "It seems there are some leads, but like a divine revelation, it simply feels that way."
"... Then let’s explore more tomorrow."
"Alright."
The beast tide hadn’t ended.
After the first wave was eradicated, not long after, as dusk approached and the soldiers were somewhat relaxed, the urgent alarms sounded again.
At this moment, Hilia was engaged in nighttime meditation.
The alarm prompted her to open her eyes from the meditation, quickly rise, put on her mage robe, and leave the room.
Phil also came out from another room.
The two exchanged glances and then headed to the city wall.
In the distance, faintly, it seemed there were countless demons surging towards them.
The City Lord had arrived, seriously ordering the charging of the magic cannon.
A moment later, a brilliant light streaked across the sky, illuminating the scene over there as it exploded.
It seemed like an endless wave of demons, breaking through the forest and rushing towards the city.
Rough estimates indicated there were at least ten thousand of them.
Seeing the magnitude, Bastuya’s face turned green.
"Why are there so many demons coming through? Where’s the Royal Court Guard? Aren’t they holding them back?"
The angry Bastuya directly contacted personnel related to the Royal Court Guard.
Unfortunately, he reached someone in the rear, unable to get in touch with the frontline, which seemed very busy.
Hilia also found it strange.
"With this number, the pollution waves are so intense, logically speaking, the Elf Royal Court should have noticed. Why is it almost at the city gates, yet the Royal Court Guard hasn’t intercepted them?"
"Letting them through is one thing, but why not even notify us?"
Hilia looked at Phil, who also seemed puzzled.
Other Tier Four Mages and those who understood the circumstances had very unpleasant and confused expressions.
Hilia couldn’t resist voicing a bold guess.
"Could it be that the Elf Royal Court saw Forest City easily handling thousands of demons, so they deliberately let them through for me to help them resolve the issue?"
She didn’t try to hide her voice, which directly reached Bastuya.
Bastuya’s expression changed, fists clenched. In the end, he didn’t say anything. He merely looked at the numerous soldiers.
"Keep charging!"