Chapter 322: Who is Nicolea, Town-wide Evacuation

Gray Rock Town.

For an entire week, the abnormal closure of the “Rusted Stone Echo” Underground City had the entire Adventurer’s Guild, from its top executives to its clerks, working around the clock.

Necros had not only mobilized his staff to inquire about the situation from the garrisons of other nearby Underground Cities,

but had even used the emergency communication channel to directly request specialized aid from the Guild headquarters in White River City.

In the Guild’s logistics archive, Nia was pacing back and forth in a narrow aisle, clutching a stack of documents.

Her face was pale from her prolonged worry.

Her leather boots made a frantic, chaotic CLACK CLACK CLACK on the floor.

“You haven’t slept a wink this entire week.”

Just then, Judith’s voice suddenly rang out in Nia’s mind.

Her voice was laced with obvious exhaustion, and even punctuated by a long yawn.

Because her spiritual state and sleep cycle were forcibly bound to Nia’s, when Nia didn’t rest well, she naturally suffered along with her.

‘How could I possibly sleep!’

Nia shot back anxiously in her mind, unconsciously wrinkling the documents in her hands.

‘That fool is trapped in the Underground City, and not a single piece of news has gotten out!’

As the two were communicating in her mind, the wooden door to the archives was pushed open.

Nia’s uncle, Guild Vice President Homman, emerged from the adjacent meeting room with huge, dark circles under his eyes.

He had been in charge of coordinating efforts to console the families of the townspeople, and he was every bit as mentally and physically exhausted as Necros.

“Uncle!”

Nia rushed toward him as if grasping at a lifeline.

“Is there any news about Lance… about the Underground City?”

Seeing his niece’s anxious expression, Homman’s heart ached. He could only shake his head helplessly.

“We still can’t establish a communication link.”

He sighed and rubbed his temples.

“However, according to the headquarters’ analysis, the Underground City’s sudden lockdown was most likely triggered by the descent of a rare Heroic Spirit Species.”

Not wanting to completely crush his niece’s spirits, Homman forced himself to sound more optimistic and offered a few words of comfort.

“Even if the situation is at its worst, the Summer Crown will be over by tomorrow night.”

At this, Homman’s expression grew complicated.

“I may not usually be fond of that brat,”

“but…” Homman paused, his tone tinged with a hint of apology, “I’ve also been praying to the gods for his safe return.”

RUMBLE!

The moment Homman finished speaking,

an incredibly violent tremor struck without any warning!

The entire Adventurer’s Guild building began to shake violently.

Documents scattered from the shelves, falling to the floor.

However, this first wave of tremors, though intense, passed quickly.

When the second wave hit, its intensity had clearly diminished, but it felt deeper, more muffled.

Moreover, the tremor had a clear direction.

The epicenter wasn’t Gray Rock Town itself, but rather some distance away…

The “Rusted Stone Echo” Underground City!

Before Nia could even steady herself from the sudden earthquake, Judith’s voice exploded in her mind, laced with urgency.

“Nia! Snap out of it! Go, now!”

“Leave this town! Now, immediately! Run toward White River City! The farther the better!”

“This is… this is the fluctuation of Faros’s Divine Power!”

Judith’s voice echoed rapidly in Nia’s mind, thick with undisguised disgust.

“His greatest domain is theft! A disturbance of this magnitude means He’s definitely after something inside the Underground City!”

“Listen to me, you have to leave quickly!”

Hearing Judith’s frantic urging in her mind, Nia, though filled with questions, reacted on instinct.

She grabbed Homman’s arm.

“Uncle! This earthquake isn’t normal! It was caused by the Evil God ‘Faros,’ and it’s definitely connected to the sealed Underground City!”

Nia spoke rapidly, pushing Homman forcefully toward the main hall outside.

“Go report this to the President!”

Homman, being pushed forward, looked completely bewildered.

His mind was reeling with questions.

He couldn’t understand how his own niece, who wasn’t even considered a Professional, had suddenly come to know such vital information.

Moreover, he had never even heard the name “Faros” before. ℴ

While pushing her uncle out, Nia quickly questioned Judith in her mind.

‘Who exactly is Faros? Why have I never seen that name in the scriptures of any True God Church?’

“Of course He’s not in the Sequence of True Gods.”

“He is a hidden god. The domains He holds are illusion, disguise, theft, flesh, and alteration.”

“Before ascending to His divine throne, He was an abandoned infant, born with a congenital defect that left Him without facial features. He was later found and raised by a mad doctor.”

“Because of this twisted upbringing, His mind remained extremely warped and perverted even after His ascension.”

“Of all the gods, He is the one I despise the most!”

Growing more agitated, Judith’s speech quickened.

“Nicolea! You absolutely cannot be lovesick this time! After you warn everyone, we must evacuate this place immediately—”

“Wait!”

Nia suddenly cut her off in her mind.

‘What did you just call me?’

The abrupt question brought Judith’s incessant tirade to a screeching halt.

A strange pause fell over her mind.

After several seconds, Judith’s somewhat awkward voice sounded again.

“Nia… I apologize.”

“I wasn’t paying attention just now… It seems I truly haven’t fully recovered. I often mix up present memories with people from the past.”

Nia fell silent at this feeble explanation.

Then, she forced a smile.

She replied softly in her mind, ‘It’s alright, I understand.’

Just then, the old Guild President, Necros, who had been in his top-floor office, descended to the second-floor landing with heavy steps.

He stood on the stairs and looked at Homman, who was being pushed toward him. Before Homman could speak, Necros uttered four words.

Those four words made the color drain from Homman’s face.

“Activate the ‘Firewood Bill’.”

Hearing those four words, even Nia, who was following behind, froze for a moment.

In White River Province, any town resident living near an Underground City

was systematically taught about the “Firewood Bill” from a young age.

It was an evacuation protocol that the Iris Kingdom would only initiate when facing a full-scale Underground City rampage, where the official crisis level was assessed as “indefensible.”

Once the bill was activated, it meant the town would be completely abandoned.

However,

the greatest crisis facing Gray Rock Town at this moment was…

According to the regulations of the Firewood Bill,

the moment the bill was activated, all local registered Adventurers would be automatically drafted into the Kingdom’s temporary defense sequence, responsible for reinforcing the defensive lines and protecting the town’s ordinary residents during the evacuation.

But!

Because of the Summer Crown a few days prior, the vast majority of Adventurers in Gray Rock Town were currently trapped inside that sealed Underground City.

The remaining defensive force in the entire town was so pitiful it was despairing.

Aside from a few low-to-mid-Level Professionals from the Patrol Bureau, there were only a few dozen Ordinary patrolmen left.

With such a meager fighting force, escorting tens of thousands of townspeople across dozens of kilometers…

Necros didn’t even dare to imagine it.

He didn’t dare to imagine how many people in that massive column of refugees would still be alive by the time they reached White River City.

But no matter how difficult, the evacuation had to be carried out immediately.

Necros turned and led the way with steady steps.

The three of them hurried to the top of the Guild hall’s highest tower.

A giant bronze bell hung there.

Necros grabbed the heavy mallet.

DONG! DONG! DONG! DOOOONG—

Three short rings and one long one, repeated nine times.

According to the Firewood Bill, from the moment the bell tolled,

Necros, as the highest-Level combat representative in the area, would automatically strip the town mayor of all administrative authority, take over all government affairs, and assume compulsory military command.

During the evacuation,

the Patrol Bureau had the authority to execute on the spot anyone caught looting, inciting panic, or disobeying orders—

no trial necessary!

“Town-wide announcement!”

Necros walked to the amplification Array, his voice deep and authoritative.

“All residents, cease your work immediately! You are permitted to carry only a few essential items and four days’ worth of food! Assemble in the central square as quickly as possible!”

Just as the echoes from the amplification Array faded,

a sight the townspeople would never forget unfolded.

The serene night sky cracked open.