Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 1797 1769. 'Swordfish'

As a fishing spot for fishermen, it is normal to have the smell of fish, sea, and even blood.

The Aegean Sea is a sea after all, and Greek fishermen also catch large fish such as sharks and swordfish.

When at the port, people often see fishermen using nets on both sides of their boats to catch sharks that are almost as long as the boats and bring them back with ease.

These days, there are more wild animals in the mountains than people, and even more big fish in the sea than people.

To catch these big fish, fishermen have to kill them at sea and then bring the carcasses back to port.

So it is normal to smell blood near the fishing spot.

But Lan En could clearly distinguish the smell of fish blood and human blood.

In Yharnam, the rich and sticky smell of human blood can almost cover one's nasal cavity, and the demon hunters remember it vividly.

Coming down the high slope with a good view, Lan En walked straight towards the direction of the pointer.

The direction lights of this era are no different in principle from those in the magical Middle Ages.

A four- or five-story tower stands on the edge of a cliff by the sea. The rammed earth exterior is painted with blue and white plaster, which is a typical Athenian color scheme today. But it has begun to peel off under the wind and sun.

Someone had placed a small altar under the tower, probably to worship Poseidon.

The lighthouse keeper had lit a fire on top to provide guidance for fishermen and ships catching the night fish.

But Lan En just looked up and paid no more attention.

Instead, he walked to the edge of the cliff next to the lighthouse, stepped on the edge and looked down.

The moonlight was very poor tonight, and the sky was overcast. The only light source was probably the tiny flame of the lighthouse overhead.

But this is more than enough for Lan, who has achieved low-light vision through surgery and optical therapy.

"Tsk."

Lan En, looking down, let out a sound of astonishment.

"This scene... I thought this world was full of metaphysics."

The waves of the Aegean Sea beat against the cliffs on the north coast of Crete, but amid the surging waves and the white foam they stirred up, in Lan's dim vision.

The area directly below the cliff where the lighthouse is located has a clear color difference from the rest of the sea water.

Different shades of red float on the blue sea.

The source of these different shades of red is obviously not the dye that fell into the sea, but human blood.

Human body parts and internal organs were floating nearby, and the smell of blood attracted all the sharks in the sea within a radius of fifty miles.

The fins and sleek bodies of these beasts loomed above the waves, tearing at the remains of the sea, shaking their heads and tearing them into sizes suitable for the entrance.

During this process, the blood that had not yet leaked out of the stumps dyed more of the sea water.

According to Mentos' analysis, the amount of limbs and blood was at least enough for ten people.

Lan looked at the scene below the cliff, then looked back at the lighthouse.

It is unlikely that such a sacrificial ceremony was held in such a place, because the lighthouse itself is of no importance.

In the eyes of locals like Andros, this thing is just a road sign mentioned by the way when giving directions to Lan En. There is no additional introduction at all.

Since they didn't 'select a special location intentionally', then it's probably because it's 'conveniently nearby'?
The witcher retracted his steps from the edge of the cliff and came to the base of the lighthouse.

[Eagle Eye Vision] unfolded in his perception, just like a radar. Even if there was a wall blocking his view, the situation inside the wall was still visible in Lan's eyes.

The base of the lighthouse can be seen as a small bungalow where the lighthouse keeper lives and works.

But in Lan En's quick perception, he found that there was an underground passage under the floor of this bungalow?

"Oh!"

[Eagle Eye Vision] The moment he saw something strange, the demon hunter immediately kicked open the door!

The keeper who was watching the flame on top of the lighthouse heard the noise, looked down from the tower, and when he realized what was happening, he shouted loudly in an attempt to scare away the thief or robber.

But Lan turned a deaf ear to it.

After entering the house, Lan went straight to a wool carpet on the floor.

The floor in the lighthouse room was different from the common loess floors in Greek homes at that time. It was paved with marble.

It's similar to the courtyards of rich people.

Lan squatted on the largest marble floor slab. Below this was the tunnel that the Eagle Vision had seen.

He put his ear to it and could already hear sounds that ordinary people could not perceive.

"It's not enough... The shark needs more, I need more! It's not enough... It's not enough..."

The demonic and paranoid whispers continued. The demon hunter had a calm expression. After raising his head from the floor, Lan clenched his hands into fists and slowly pulled them up to his head.

"Boom!!!"

"Boom!"

The ten-centimeter-thick marble floor was hammered into shattered pieces!
Lan En fell down along with the fragments.

The entire vertical tunnel connected by vertical ladders is more than ten meters deep, but the witcher was extremely stable after landing. He slightly bent his legs to relieve the force and then walked straight forward.

With a bang, another door was kicked open, and what finally appeared before his eyes was an underground cave.

This cave should be right under the cliff where the lighthouse is located, and there is a place in it that is connected to the sea.

Here you can even hear the sound of the waves crashing.

A few torches and braziers lit the place.

There were artifacts made of dried human and animal bones hanging on the walls, and underneath was a mess, like a butcher's workbench. There was no doubt that these things were made here.

Lan En stepped on the ground and lifted his foot to confirm the texture and smell of the mud - the source of human blood was also here.

From the time Lan En broke the marble floor above to the time he landed and kicked the door, it took less than two seconds in total.

The man who was still mumbling to himself in a daze two seconds ago, was already in fear and close to rage two seconds later. He now struggled and roared angrily.

The sound of the stone slab exploding and falling just now made him subconsciously turn around suddenly. He almost lost his balance and had to hold on to the table to avoid falling.

"Demos!" He uttered a name that surprised Lan En, "I knew you would come to find me!"

"Dog! A running dog trained by the God of Order! Are you going to bite me now!?"

The man in front of him was wearing armor, but his body and armor were stained with blood. He had a big beard and a crew cut, and looked tough and dangerous.

The words he shouted in fear and rage clearly exposed his identity.

He should be the Swordfish in the Cult of Kosmos, but surprisingly, he seems to have conflicts with the Cult of Kosmos? A big conflict?

Lan En thought to himself, but his steps kept getting closer to the other party.

"I'm not Deimos."

"Huh? You think I'm crazy enough to believe your lies, [Demigod]?!"

Lan En only responded calmly with one sentence, but then Swordfish seemed to have been holding it back for a long time and could no longer hold it back, and roared out a lot of hostility and resistance.

"I won't go back! No matter what you promise me, I will never go back!"

"I don't care if I owe the Divine Church anything or not! I want to leave the Divine Church! You want that artifact? Then go get it yourself!"

Go back? Go back to where? And...what is 'that artifact'?
Without showing any emotion, Lan En looked at the other party's crazy and furious expression, and was sure that the other party had never participated in the internal meetings of the Church of Order, and had never even seen the "Chosen One" in the Church, but had only heard of it.

So Lan En changed his tone and continued speaking in line with the other party's fear.

"Once a member of the Cult, always a member of the Cult, Swordfish." The demon hunter crossed his arms, and his words seemed to be mocking the other party's naivety, "You have the support and funding of the Cult."

"The Church of God has made you the secret controller of Crete. Do you think you can get away with it just by shouting a few times? Why didn't you be so passionate before the funding arrived and before you succeeded?"

Lan En tilted his head, his expression almost ridiculous: "In your eyes, we are such an easy-to-talk-to group of people?"

"But I've already risked my life for you!" Unfortunately, Swordfish is now in a state of madness on the verge of collapse. "What else do you want me to do, Demos?"

He held his shaved head and paced back and forth in front of Lan En with hurried steps.

"An answer," Lan En responded, and he was absolutely sure that the other party would do as he said, "and you will give me that answer."

"You hide from people and never attend the meetings of the Church of God. Everyone thinks you are disrespecting the Church of God."

The witcher opened his mouth and looked around in a playful manner.

"So you're hiding here? Are you so fascinated by a slaughterhouse that doesn't even take care of hygiene? This is not a secluded place that matches the identity of the secret controller of Crete."

"In order to avoid unclean things, I can only hide among unclean things." Swordfish said coldly, "I can no longer show my face, but Crete is still mine! All the fish! All the people! They are all mine!"

"Oh?" Lan En looked around, his expression unremarkable, "Now you don't deny that you got something from the Cult."

Human remains and wild animal remains, it seems these are the unclean things in the mouth of the Swordfish.

He turned the culvert where he was hiding into a slaughterhouse because he thought that this would deceive certain things that frightened him and prevent them from looking for him.

"These are all what you promised to give me!" Swordfish's emotions suddenly got out of control again, "But you didn't tell me there was a Minotaur in the maze! Not a word!"

"Even Nikios is dead! If I hadn't acted quickly, I would have died too!"

The swordfish's carnival roar made Lan's eyes light up slightly.

He captured the key he needed.

(End of this chapter)