Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 1889, 1861. Too extreme.
Gideon Ophniel stood by the fireplace, his helmet casting a dark shadow as he calmly looked at the two remaining Faded Ones in the round room besides himself.

Among them, Vic's reputation is the greatest within the entire Round Table Hall.

Because his title is "Dragon Lance," he is the knight most favored by the ancient dragons in Rodel City, and even within the Golden Dynasty.

Since the battle against the ancient dragons began during the War of the Giants, and the ancient dragons launched a surprise attack on Rodel, both the Golden Dynasty and the ancient dragons have suffered casualties.

The corpse of the Ancient Dragon Gransanx still lies atop the walls of Rodel, its natural rock form becoming part of the city's defenses. The ancient dragons have also significantly weakened Rodel's defenses.

Despite the prestige, power, and charisma of Prince Godwin, the ancient dragon and the Golden Dynasty were still able to turn enemies into friends in the end.

Not only did the Ancient Dragon War end as a result, but a dragon cult also arose in the royal city of Rodel.

Just like in the world of fire, even though the ancient dragons there have been wiped out by the gods of fire, later warriors are still captivated and mesmerized by the powerful figures left behind by the ancient dragons.

What's more, the ancient dragons in this border region are still alive.

Fulthances, one of the ancient dragons who fought alongside him against Rodel, became a close friend of Prince Godwin. Meanwhile, Fulthances' sister, Lancex, often took human form to maintain and spread the emerging dragon faith within the royal city.

[Dragonlance] Vic is the knight that Lance Sanx loves and values ​​the most.

Later, he was faded in his final battles following the First King, Gavriel, but was left at the border by Two Fingers. He was one of the original founders of the Hall of the Round Table.

Therefore, even after his image was faded, he remains the most exemplary knight in the royal dragon faith.

Another theory suggests that, in the traditions of the borderlands, ancient dragons are the most clearly wise creatures. Therefore, Vic, whom Lance Sanx favored, also possessed the qualities to become king.

Gideon Ofnier wasn't too worried about communicating with Vic.

Because this guy is a typical knight, so typical that he seems to have come straight out of a knightly tale.

Passionate, straightforward, brave, and righteous.

Perhaps this is why he was favored by Lance Sanx.

But another person...

Sir Hundred Wisdom shifted his helmet, which was adorned with ears, and looked at the man in black sitting at the round table with the sword.

Krepp, the "Two-Finger Spy".

They were called secret agents, but in reality, they were assassins at the round table.

The Elden Ring is the principle governing the world; once a certain law begins to operate on it, that law will naturally spread throughout the entire world.

However, changes to the law only take place within the border areas, and outsiders cannot interfere and can only accept them futilely.

Therefore, people outside the border region have greater faith in the eternal Golden Tree itself than in laws that are subject to change.

Two-Fingers, a figure whose status is even higher than that of gods within the Golden Tree system of the Dharma Ring, naturally has a large number of followers outside the border.

The "Two-Finger Spies" are the people from the Two-Finger Church outside the border who come to the border following the guidance of the Two-Finger.

Gideon Ofnier knew that Krepp's loyalty to Twofinger far surpassed that of the current Golden Dynasty.

Now, he is only in the Round Table Hall to listen to the instructions of the Two Fingers of the Round Table, unlike the others in the Round Table Hall who generally come from the Golden Dynasty.

"What exactly is going on, Baizhi?"

The straightforward knight asked.

Although his name is the very cool "Dragon Lance", he doesn't have any eye-catching ancient dragon designs on his body. Instead, he wears a very simple and sturdy set of knight's armor.

Krepp remained silent, but his eyes, hidden beneath the black hood, turned toward Gideon.

"This is no small matter." After confirming the two men's stances and personalities in his mind, Sir Bai Zhi spoke in his usual low voice. "Do you remember the new Faded One you heard about before?"

"The one who came with the [Royal Code], the one we've never met before?" A hearty smile appeared beneath the lifted visor of Vic's helmet. "Of course I remember! Having another companion with the [Royal Code] might make things a bit easier for me!"

If someone else said something like that, it would probably be sarcastic or ironic, and they would likely be expressing sarcasm and resentment.

But when these words came from Vic's mouth, neither of the two people present doubted whether he was sincere.

“Vic, you’d better not assume he’s an ally.” Krep was just adding fuel to the fire by pouring cold water on another aspect of his statement. “His origins are just too bizarre. A faded one who was stripped of his blessing and wandered to Rodel for hundreds of years? Ha.”

Regarding Lann's origins, Krepp, who was actually an assassin of the Round Table, did not believe such a bizarre claim, at least not before he witnessed it with his own eyes.

“But in any case,” Gideon Ophniel approached the round table with the swords, leaning on his cane, “we have all obtained from his actions the evidence we have been seeking for so long.”

"Wait!" Vic, who had just been about to joke with Krepp, suddenly turned serious and looked at Sir Hundred Wisdom. "You mean...?"

"Evidence of those demigod relatives plotting something sinister?" Krepp's gaze also turned towards him. Bai Zhi slammed the [Evil God's Flame] onto the round table with the sword inserted and relayed the report from the velvet ball to him.

The faded figures in the round table hall had been investigating these matters for a long time, at least a decade. It's easy to understand, since they were all on the front lines of the investigation, and all sorts of clues were kept in mind.

But now that Gideon Ophniel has presented concrete evidence, the purpose of his convening this meeting is self-evident.

"Are you considering what to do next?"

Vic became serious at this moment. He took off his helmet, sat down at the round table with the sword, and spoke directly.

“We should report to Twofinger and the Queen,” Vic said firmly, placing his helmet on the table. “Please order them to summon the demigod of the maternal relatives in Rodel. To hold them accountable.”

Sir Hundred-Mindedness appeared unmoved, but he knew in his heart that this was the most normal and prudent way to handle the situation.

The Golden Dynasty, after all, had Queen Marika, who held divine authority and reigned supreme. In terms of sheer power, the demigods were already incredibly strong in the eyes of the ordinary people of the Golden Tree.

However, in the eyes of the powerful who actually fought that 'war for divine right' during those giant wars, they were not considered much of a threat.

—We're still a long way from 'no one can control them'.

Normally, if Queen Marika gives the word, then no matter how intricate the web of intrigue the demigods have woven, if they want you to come to Rodel, you'd better come over right away.

Otherwise, no demigod could bear the title of rebellion.

“You’re too weak, Vic.” But on the other side, Krepp said in a low, cold voice, “In your mouth, genuine, irrefutable treason only results in being summoned by the Queen to Rodel for questioning and accountability?”

“Oh?” Gideon Ofnir turned his head, his back hunched. “So, Krepp, according to your opinion…?”

“They should all be put to death,” the assassin at the round table said casually. “Of course, the decision rests with the esteemed Twofinger. But we should at least offer our advice: for the sake of the Golden Law, they should all be put to death.”

"Execute a demigod?" Vic, who looked to be about thirty years old, was completely stunned.

During the Golden Law era, it was unlikely that even the idea of ​​'completely killing' a member of the Golden Trees was possible, let alone 'completely killing an immortal demigod'.

However, he was an ancient warrior who had faded from the ranks of the First King, and one of the founders of the Hall of the Round Table.

Vic's surprise at this statement was clearly different from that of the average Golden Tree people.

He wasn't surprised that it was possible; he was just surprised that Krepp would come up with such an idea where the potential gains and losses were so disparate.

These veterans of the Faded Ones all knew very well... Queen Marika's adopted brother, and also the shadow beast that Two Fingers bestowed upon her when she was still a god.

The mere mention of the Shadow Beast's name was enough to send shivers down the spines of all demigods.

After all, the name of that beast is equivalent to the 'death of a demigod'.

The so-called immortal demigods are merely a characteristic of the Golden Age.

The entire Golden Age of Law was established by Queen Marika and the powerful figures around her.

However, the Golden Age also had its problems and limitations.

The 'eternal life and stable cycle' of the Golden Law era was formed by the Golden Dynasty defeating the gods who controlled the power of the 'Law of Death' during the War of the Giants, thus banishing and sealing the 'Law of Death' from the world.

To 'completely kill a demigod' means to unleash the [Law of Death] from its seal and use it again.

To unseal the [Law of Death]... wouldn't that be directly tearing down the very foundation of the Golden Law?

Who knows what the consequences will be if the law of death is released now that the Golden Age of Law has been established?

Just for three demigods who could never cause any trouble? The Golden Dynasty brought about its own downfall?

Is it really necessary to inflict such heavy losses on both sides?

"Aren't you being a little too... extreme, Krepp?"

Sir Hundred Wisdoms remained silent, but even the usually friendly Vic couldn't help but twitch as he looked at the Two-Finger Spy opposite him.

But Krepp's expression remained unchanged, still cold and hard: "You think it's unacceptable to execute a traitor?"

“If it requires breaking the Golden Law,” Bai Zhi said coldly, “it is of course unacceptable.”

Vic chimed in, "We investigate traitors precisely to uphold the Golden Law. How can we accept it if we end up destroying it ourselves?"

“It’s just a matter of re-unsealing and using the [Law of Death],” Krep shook his head. “Everything is under control.”

(End of this chapter)