Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 1891 (1863). News about the statue.
Generally speaking, the velvet ball from the New World knows how powerful the ancient dragons are.

But knowing this is one thing, but to convince the plush ball of Qilin's reliability... well, Qilin is quite reliable when he gets serious.

I just don't know if it's serious or not.

"Um... don't be nervous, meow!" While communicating with the Qilin through its guardian spirit, the plush ball waved to the two noble girls who had just been startled, "It won't hurt you!"

The velvet ball patted the unicorn's back for the noble girls to see.

The Qilin's sudden movement was a bit frightening, so much so that the two noble girls took two steps back, while the two soldiers behind them stepped forward with their hands on their swords.

The atmosphere became a little tense for a moment.

Fortunately, the Palico was friendly and kind. It just smiled and waved its little paw at the two noble girls, and the atmosphere became harmonious again.

After the plush ball shook hands with them, satisfying their curiosity about seeing the wise beast, that was the end of it.

But on the other hand, after greeting the tourists on Rodel Street a few times, the little velvet ball's face still wrinkled up.

"Did you sense anything else just now, Kirin?" the fluffy ball asked Kirin through its guardian spirit, "Like direction or something, meow?"

"I just felt something brush past me." Qilin replied as he strolled through the streets of Rodel, his footsteps crunching on the golden fallen leaves. "If I had to pinpoint a direction... it was probably over there?"

The Qilin was a little unsure, but it still turned its hooves around, making the sharp horn on its head rotate at a different angle.

The plush ball sat on its back, and the kitten's mouth slowly opened wide: "...Wow!"

Because the Qilin's crystalline horn was pointing directly at the center of the golden tree's base!

"This..." Fluffy Ball straightened his little helmet, "...Should we get a closer look?"

To be honest, although I haven't been at the border for very long.

However, the velvet ball also roughly understood what a heavyweight the Eternal Queen was, who founded the Golden Dynasty and ushered in the Golden Age of Laws.

It really didn't think anything could happen right under the golden tree where the queen was.

However, just to be on the safe side, after discussing it, they decided to get closer and take a look.

Although they probably wouldn't be allowed to enter the proper palace grounds anyway.

After they discussed it, the Qilin changed direction and trotted forward on Rodel's Avenue with its hooves clattering.

"That is..." Halfway there, the velvet ball suddenly turned its head on the back of the unicorn, craning its neck to look across the street, "Is that the royal sculpture that Milie mentioned?"

In the Church of the Bond in Lienia, the giant tortoise Milie once told a secret about King Flårdagon.

It is said that the royal sculptor who created the statues for Rdagan discovered a secret and hid it in the sculptures he supervised.

Right now, Roderick Street, built upon the roots of the golden tree, is actually undulating like a mountain range thanks to the thick roots of the golden tree.

Climbing up the street, you reach a position even higher than the corpse of the ancient dragon. Deep within the platform, there stands the statue of Radagan.

The statue was pure white, sculpted to depict the king's handsome face and strong physique. The surrounding flowerbeds and small trees also displayed golden leaves under the influence of the golden tree.

Wang Fu himself stretched out his arms straight, with his personal emblem behind him: gold interwoven like a net.

'What secret could there be?'

Qilin didn't understand this, nor could it comprehend it; the velvet ball was similar to it.

So they simply noted the location of the statue in the city and continued uphill along the terrain of Rodel.

The pavilions and towers of Rodel are architecturally beautiful. The wealth of the Golden Dynasty made these buildings magnificent and spectacular, all with white walls and golden roofs.

The border is a continent in the sea, and the golden tree rises straight up to the sky from the cliffs by the sea.

In reality, given the size of the Golden Tree, it's hard to say whether it was the growth of the Golden Tree that created this cliff, or even this continent.

Anyway, Rodel, which was built at the foot of the tree, is now adjacent to the cliff coast.

Tree roots, as thick as the mountain itself, emerge from the cliff face, intertwined and twisted. Apart from the lack of any protection, they are even wide enough to allow a horse-drawn carriage to run across them.

Velvet Ball and Qilin stood on the edge of the cliff and looked down. They both concluded that the ancient trees of the New World were far inferior to the Golden Tree.

Ancient trees have extensive and widely distributed root systems, while the Golden Tree grows violently directly on the Elden Ring, which is the 'material manifestation of the principles governing the world'.

If I say you can grow taller, then you can grow taller. Why do you care so much about 'physiological limitations' and 'material limits'?
However, the velvet ball and the unicorn were still a little confused, since the golden tree, which seemed to connect heaven and earth, presented itself as a radiant and dazzling energy body.

But why are the huge root systems that grow out of the cliff face made of wood and other materials?
Can something like a golden tree be restricted by the land?
Is the land above an energy body, and the land below a materialized root system?

After thinking for a long time, neither of them really understood, so they could only continue going up.

Continuing upwards from that Radagan statue is the Golden Tree Cathedral.

This church is not only as magnificent as ever, but it also contains many huge tree roots that extend from the cliff face.

The tree roots blend seamlessly with the architecture, seemingly showcasing the inseparable connection between the Golden Tree and faith. Above the Golden Tree Cathedral lies the royal palace complex, the two directly connected, perhaps representing the inseparable bond between the Golden Law faith and the Golden Clan.

Regardless, the Golden Tree Cathedral is still a public area. It is now the deepest part of the night, and the moon is high in the sky. Inside, there are forty or fifty pilgrims, nobles, and out-of-town lords bowing their heads in prayer.

This church is arguably the closest to the Golden Tree, and it's often the final destination for pilgrims from the border region.

But if you want to go further up, that's the palace, an area not open to the public.

Velvet Ball and Qilin walked to the end of the Golden Tree Church and arrived at the gate that connected directly to the palace, where they were indeed stopped.

Two tall Rodel knights held shields that covered their entire bodies, leaving no skin exposed.

It seems that even among the Knights of Rodel, there are positions.

While wise beasts are indeed highly respected and admired in the customs of the border regions, the palace guards prioritize official business over personal matters.

Things that are similar to folk customs are not considered.

The velvet ball, with its hands tucked inside, opened its mouth as if to say something but then closed it again at the door.

There was no need to negotiate with the two Rodel Knights guards; it knew it couldn't enter the palace.

So they decided not to ask any more questions and just wandered around the Golden Tree Cathedral with Qilin. After all, this was the closest they could get to the foot of the Golden Tree.

The plush ball is fine; anyone can tell at a glance that it's a wise creature.

But when the Qilin is wrapped in magical horse gear, it looks just like an ordinary horse.

Several nobles and clergy members from the church came to inquire, and Qilin was only allowed to stay after personally negotiating with them.

After all, even a wise beast cannot ride a horse into a church.

But if the horse itself is an intelligent animal, then it's a different story.

While the two of them were dealing with the people, another group of people arrived at the Golden Tree Cathedral. And they recognized them.

"Your Excellency Velvet Ball? Your Excellency Qilin?"

The helmetless Knight Rodel approached from the other side of the Golden Tree Cathedral.

A church clergyman, dressed in clothes adorned with gold decorations and patterns of gold trees, appears to be explaining scriptures to a noble family.

He was squeezed through the crowd by the helmetless Rhodes Knight, and the group glared at him angrily.

The knight was only interested in getting a straight-line distance, so he gave them an embarrassed smile and then ignored them.

Amidst the angry glares of others, the knight reached the position in front of the Qilin.

"Are you here to report with me?" Sir Rodel's face was filled with relief and enthusiasm. "That's wonderful! I knew Sir Hundred Wisdoms wouldn't send such a minor figure as me to the palace to see the King Consort... I mean, Your Majesty!"

He scratched his head and pulled the cloak that had been hanging on his shoulder when he squeezed through the crowd down.

But while a relieved smile remained on his face, he had already noticed the gazes of a horse and a cat opposite him.

"Tsk tsk tsk." Qilin smacked its lips.

The plush ball looked at him with a very regretful expression: "But, we just wandered around here while shopping, we didn't receive any missions."

The relieved smile on Knight Rodel's face immediately froze.

“I say,” the plush ball encouraged him, “Sir Hundred Wisdoms only sent you to report a message, it shouldn’t be anything serious, right? Don’t worry, meow!”

The velvet ball didn't think much of it. After all, there was only the Knight Rodel who was originally on duty in the Round Table Hall. He didn't seem qualified to deliver evidence of a demigod's rebellion.

It may be another connection between the Round Table Hall and the Golden Family.

However, what the Palico didn't know was that within the Round Table Hall, there were internal disagreements among the Faded Ones about who was more loyal to Twofinger and who was more loyal to the Golden Dynasty.

That's why only one knight on duty was sent to the palace to report at this time.

Unreasonable behavior often has its underlying reasons.

Whether Knight Rodel received any encouragement or not is another matter, but he headed towards the palace with a long face and a tense expression.

The two Rodel knights acting as gatekeepers stopped him for inspection. Qilin and Rongbuqiu could only see the knight's back and could not see his whole face.

All I know is that he seemed to show something, and then he was allowed to pass.

Beyond the entrance was a wide staircase leading upwards, where another knight from the palace descended.

Although this knight was wearing the same armor as a normal Rodel knight, for some reason, both the velvet ball and the unicorn could immediately sense that he was different.

(End of this chapter)