Hill looked up at the three towering main towers in the distance and frowned slightly.
The preparations Rute, the Kament Tower, and Nicholson had made recently clearly showed that they believed they still had some time.
Although Rute had seemed fairly tense, Hill had assessed his preparations and found that he had clearly planned around a year.
Hill had come to understand this Archmage somewhat. Given his cautious, methodical approach, he must have believed the Black Mystery Tower had at least another year—more, perhaps, but certainly not less.
So the Sia Tower's inexplicable decision to act ahead of schedule had clearly caught him off guard as well.
But although Rute had been a little stunned, compared with Gilbert's genuinely panicked senior fellow apprentices, his bewilderment had seemed more like... the shock of something he had already anticipated.
It had looked as though something he had long suspected had finally been confirmed by this incident... and that truth had dealt him a blow powerful enough to shake him.
But Rute had quickly concealed that brief lapse with his irritable manner, roaring at everyone to hurry back and pack.
If Hill had not been carefully watching his emotional changes all along, it would have been almost impossible to notice the uncertainty he had concealed in under ten seconds.
Of course, that was also because Hill had not been surprised by the news Rute suddenly announced... he had heard it long before.
The Soul Inheritance Book in Felis's possession had helped him a little, allowing Hill to use its close connection with the Black Mystery Tower to gain a little access.
Of course, because of Rommel's presence, Hill had been very cautious, merely tapping into a little of the signal.
It was rather like tuning his own radio to someone else's radio signal.