Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 1914, 1886. The Crack
“Of course.” Faced with Ditika’s rebuttal, Lann had no intention of arguing with her. “Of course, Lord Lakad’s identity is self-evident, we all know that.”

"But he is, after all, the Grand Justice. He can't just ignore legal restrictions and send people to Rodel on his own, can he? Is that good for Lord Lacard's reputation?"

The witcher's expression was sincere, as if he truly cared about the demigod's reputation.

Lan En understood from the beginning that although Lakad wanted to control Rodel's defenses, it didn't mean he dared to use force or openly cause trouble.

After all, the strongest fighting force in the border region right now is still just a handful of people, with Queen Marika at its core.

Since Laqad couldn't handle these top combatants, he wouldn't dare to openly rebel.

Otherwise, if he raises his flag today, tomorrow Queen Marika's sworn brother, the one in charge of guarding the [Death Rune], will bring his head to his sister's doorstep.

Laqad's main goal now is to maintain control of the Golden Dynasty after the incident, and he also believes that the Black Knife conspiracy night did not expose him.

No one suspected him, so he could go to the capital and appear calm and credible in front of the king and queen after the sudden change.

Therefore, Laqad is now afraid to relinquish his position and authority as Grand Justice. This forms the basis for him to later use this upheaval to gain a higher status and more power.

This point had been made very clear to Ditika before she arrived.

So after only a moment's thought, Titika nodded.

"The law is the foundation of justice and prestige." She began with a beautiful statement before declaring, "My lord will immediately bestow the appropriate status upon his subordinates upon receiving the news, and then rightfully help the capital restore stability."

“That would be perfect.” Lann nodded in agreement, seemingly deeply impressed by Rajard’s understanding and righteousness. “However, this matter involves another matter.”

"what?"

Ditika felt exhausted.

"The Volcano Mansion is located within Rodel City, where those Iron Maiden dolls were placed earlier," the Witcher casually mentioned.

"Since Lord Lacard is going to reorganize and assign titles to his subordinates, the equipment that was originally assigned to various places in Rodel will, during this brief but truly awkward period of time, be completely stripped of its rightful name."

"Perhaps, for the sake of Lord Lacad's reputation, we should first redesign the patrol routes of those Iron Maiden dolls, have them gather and remain stationary, and then rearrange them once someone from the Volcano Mansion has moved into Rodel. What do you think?"

They seemed to know that what they were saying was indeed contrary to common sense, but it was necessary from a legal perspective.

So Lan En had a look on his face that said, "Is this absurd or not?"

"Hmm...no problem." Ditika agreed readily.

After all, she felt very fortunate to have come all this way and learned about the attitude of the Faded Ones and their promise to move into the city.

Although there will be some legal procedures involved, this is because Laqad himself held the position of Grand Justice in the Golden Dynasty.

He couldn't very well take the lead in implementing any 'expedient measures' during this period of sudden upheaval.

If he starts resorting to expedient measures, then the other demigods who are wary of Raccard will have even more reason to do something under the guise of expediency.

Whether the other demigods will do anything is another matter. But judging others by his own standards, Raccard is now wary of all the demigods except himself.

Lann looked relaxed, as if he genuinely believed that the Grand Justice was suggesting that troops be stationed in Rodel, and thus relaxed after Ditika accepted the suggestion.

But in reality?

The legal and administrative systems of the Golden Dynasty were completely transparent to Lann; the Witcher simply gave Mentos a quest while browsing Gideon Ophniel's library.

The task of clarifying the political system of the Golden Dynasty was completed in two minutes and uploaded to Lan En's brain, where he quickly reviewed it and then archived it.

In just a few hours, Lan En managed to pull out a flawless mixed-race perfumer engineering team in the inner city of Rodel, a city with virtually no disaster relief capabilities.

This means he has completely figured out the operating procedures of the Golden Dynasty, or at least the royal city of Rodel.

His current administrative abilities within the Golden Dynasty are such that he can handle everything quickly and efficiently.

But it is precisely because he has this ability to get things done that he is even more capable of making certain things impossible within the Golden Dynasty's system.

Ditika fully believed that this was just a matter of Laqad signing a few documents and patching up a few legal loopholes in his capacity as Grand Justice.

But in reality, if Lan En wants to stall them, then go ahead and try to patch things up. Let's see who can patch up more or who can expose more holes.

Therefore, Ditika's self-righteous belief that "it won't take much effort" is completely unfounded. Her return to the Volcano Mansion will only lead to more legal procedural errors, causing Lakad a lot of trouble.

This fully meets Wang Fuladagan's requirement to maintain a generally calm situation.

In fact, if this strategy were applied elsewhere, Lan En would most likely think that the person who assigned the strategy was too lucky, or too weak to face the problem or ignite a situation that was already beyond saving.

However, in the Golden Dynasty, Lan En could only say one thing: the King's Consort was indeed steady. After all, with just the Queen, the King's Consort, and the Queen's sworn brother, Maricus, these three were practically demigods.

The three of them stood among the demigods, and anyone who dared to cause trouble would be considered brave!

power.

At the beginning of the Golden Dynasty, they were enemies of all the forces on the border.

It was a real and undeniable power that crushed all enemies and shaped this divine dynasty.

Why is it that while many technologies and wonders in the borderlands have reached the pinnacle of magnificence, the social structure still appears primitive in the eyes of Lan En, who has traveled through many worlds?
It's still because of power.

The formation and stability of a society require someone to control the decisive forces.

In the Golden Dynasty, it was crystal clear who held this power.

However, as society develops, power, one of the fundamental attributes that sustains the existence and development of society, should have been obscured by the increasingly complex and differentiated social phenomena.

They've decorated it as if it no longer exists or has been rendered harmless.

But at the borderlands, in the Golden Dynasty, precisely because this power was so immense and undisputed, its presence was always too strong, too strong to be concealed.

It is precisely because these primitive and fundamental social attributes are always on the surface that the social structure of border areas remains primitive.

It wasn't until Radagan became the king consort that, under his leadership, his series of reforms seemed to have the momentum to conceal the fundamental attribute of power.

The ritual of offering one's life and fighting to the Golden Tree has been cancelled.

The positions of kings and gods, which were previously determined by mutual elimination through battle, are now inherited according to law and bloodline.

Now that Godwin has been assassinated, the Golden Law appears calm on the surface, but is actually in grave danger.

However, the undeniable strength remains the greatest ballast of the Golden Dynasty.

When someone in power says, "Let's stabilize the situation first," no one can call it indecisiveness or timidity, but rather foresight and composure.

By this time, after a conversation, the sun, which had been somewhat inconspicuous under the glow of the golden tree, had risen high in the sky.

Judging by the time, it should be around 10 a.m.

Ditika was in a hurry to leave, so she returned to the volcano mansion to inform Lakkad and point out the legal loopholes so that they could be filled and the operation could proceed quickly.

And those who have faded away have no intention of trying to keep them.

So, as the breeze of the plateau carried the scent of the golden meadows, the two groups parted ways in the square behind the gate of Rodel.

As Ditika was leaving, Lan En still wore a captivating smile, bidding farewell to the chief interrogator who had no idea how long she would be tormented in Lan En's legal trap.

However, at this very moment, which seemed quite ordinary to the common people of the Golden Tree, and to the high-ranking officials of the Golden Dynasty, when the aftermath of the assassination of the demigod was about to subside!
"Crack!"

A sudden, crisp sound rang out in the ears of every creature at the border.

It is unknown where the sound originated, or whether the sound has actually spread throughout the entire border area.
But amidst that crisp sound, as if something had shattered, the entire boundary fell silent for a moment.

The golden leaves, like a shower of golden light, were still falling; the water in Rodel continued to flow into the huge depression created by the stroll through the shrine; the wind on the Altan Plateau was still blowing through the gaps in the leaves of the golden grass... but there was no sound.

The ground trembled only once, but even the rumble of the earth was absent at that moment.

Only at this moment am I fortunate enough to face the direction of the golden tree.

Or like the faded ones, who have long since lost the blessing of gold and are therefore less affected, still having time to turn around.

Only then can they see clearly what is happening right now!
—The trunk of the golden tree, which seemed to fill the sky and the earth, ... cracked open!

The Golden Tree, which should have been an energy body composed of golden light, did indeed have bark-like textures on its trunk, which is why Lan En regarded it as half energy and half matter.

But now, it's like the wood couldn't withstand the internal pressure, and the wood burst open with a crack!
From the base of the Golden Tree, which was hidden by Rodel's building, a vertical mark appeared, and the golden light of the Golden Tree faded, turning it into solid wood!

Just as the breaking of a normal piece of wood would bring flying wood fibers and splinters, the cracking of the golden tree suddenly burst out with thousands of golden rays!
These golden rays burst forth and shot across the border! Trailing golden streaks, they almost turned the sky into a vast net!
One of the golden rays landed precisely in the center of the plaza behind the west gate of Rodel, where Lan En and his group were located.

As soon as it landed, a phantom, energy-based, golden sapling, about half a person's height, appeared in the center of the square.

From this, Lan En immediately understood—those that burst out from the Golden Tree were the seeds of the Golden Tree!
After the golden seeds fell to the ground, it seemed that the minds and bodies of the people of the Golden Tree were only just beginning to realize what they were going through!
"what!!!!!"

Tens of thousands! Hundreds of thousands! Millions! Even the entire world beyond the border!
A deafening roar of screams and wails erupted simultaneously in an instant! Soaring straight into the sky!
(End of this chapter)