Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 1918, 1890: The Shattered Magic Ring
Lan En's stomp was incredibly fierce.

The lower half of the Furnace Knight's body was hammered into the ground like a nail in order to block his initial [Aerial Charged Slash].

Then, the upper body of the Furnace Knight was stepped on and lay flat inside, just like a folding chair.

The earth and rocks, under this impact, seemed to turn into a liquid, and waves rolled outwards.

Lann pulled the [Turbid Stream Annihilation] from the shoulder of the Furnace Knight, who was already powerless to resist.

When it was pulled out, there were still a few bloody streaks on the gluttonous blade.

The bloodline only broke when Lann pulled him completely away. Only then could the blood flowing from the wound beneath the Forge Knight's armor finally gush out normally.

The Witcher's deep eyes looked down at the Forge Knight.

With a 'whoosh', Lan En calmly held the massive sword blade horizontally in front of him.

The fingers encased in armor gently traced the pale blade, especially the section that had just pierced the Furnace Knight's body.

"呲~"

The friction between the fingertip and the blade wiped away the last trace of mottled golden light remaining on the surface of the greatsword.

[Turbid Stream - Annihilation] has an unexpected fondness and excitement for the flesh and blood of the Forge Knights.

This doesn't seem to stem from a simple fondness for their flesh and blood, but rather... a greater fondness for the residual power of the [Primordial Golden Tree] life furnace within their bodies.

'The power of the Primordial Golden Tree.' Lann pondered to himself. 'Perhaps...interesting.'

The Witcher used his greatsword to carefully and cautiously move aside the shields and longswords around the defeated Forge Knight.

Footsteps sounded behind them; it was Alperish, dragging the still immobile Ditika with one hand, walking over on the gravel.

At this moment, the square behind the once flat and sturdy Rodel Gate was transformed.

The two bursts of power from the Forge Knight shattered two fan-shaped areas.

Under Lann's bombardment, a large spiderweb-like dent was smashed into the location of the Forge Knight.

It looks as if an abstract geometric shape has been carved out in the entire circular plaza.

Alperish walked over carrying the person, but did not get too close.

And judging from the expression under his wide-brimmed pointed hat, Lan En seemed to be somewhat wary.

"What is that?" He cautiously pointed his wand at the greatsword in Lan's hand. "What power did you unleash with that sword just now?"

He asked the question with emphasis and seriousness.

【Destined Death】, another name for 【Death Rune】. All the names ultimately point to the same power—that is, 【Death】 itself, which was sealed away from the world after the establishment of the Golden Dynasty.

The fact that such power could appear in the hands of black-knife assassins is already an astonishing leak.

But if it were to appear in the hands of Lan En, the one who has faded away... could it be that all the situations where he has completely disappeared in the Golden Law era and has never caused anyone to die are just illusions?
Alperish was absolutely certain that they had sealed away all of death in the world back then.

Otherwise, the Golden Age would never have been able to begin.

What's going on here?
If the power emanating from that terrifying greatsword is truly "Destined Death"... then who is Lan En? Is his true identity just a Faded One?
【Turbid Stream - Annihilation】Because it has ingested nutrients, it secretes extremely destructive and corrosive dragon-attribute energy.

However, the outward appearance of the dragon-attribute energy has led Alperish to a series of doubts and reflections.

Fortunately, Lan En is a man of integrity who has nothing to fear in this regard.

“It only looks like it, Alperish,” the Witcher said calmly. “You can take a closer look.”

As he spoke, he slammed the heavy black sword into the ground in front of him with a loud 'bang'.

Alperish stepped forward with a skeptical look in his eyes, staring intently at Lann.

But he grabbed Ditika's arm and slashed it towards the blade of [Turbid Stream Annihilation].

The flesh and blood of Ditika provided a small wisp of dragon-attribute energy at the edge of the blade.

Alperish was not intimidated. After slightly lowering his head to observe the external manifestations of the dragon attribute energy up close, he reached out and touched it.

A soft 'sizzle' sound.

Just like the scene of sulfuric acid corroding flesh, a small area on his hand was immediately charred black.

The one whose face had faded didn't change his expression at all. He just frowned and, after savoring the pain for a moment, looked at Lan En with less suspicion than before.

It is corrosive, and doesn't seem to target the soul much, nor does it evoke the terror of facing death directly.

These are not characteristics of the power of [Predestined Death].

Furthermore, in terms of energy representation, the power of [Death Rune] is more like a red and black flame. Dragon attribute energy is a black mist with flashing red arcs of electricity inside.

“At first glance, it does indeed look like [Death Rune]. But how can it be? How can the appearances of two powers be so similar?” Alperish frowned in confusion, while still maintaining a cautious attitude.

"I will report your power to Baizhi and the Queen when I meet them."

“I understand.” Lan En nodded. “And I’m also certain that this won’t be the [Death Rune].

The forces at the border are diverse, and the technological development appears to have reached a very profound level.

However, as Lan En analyzed before, beneath this flourishing technological advancement lies a still very primitive social hierarchy.

At least on this borderland, the color, emblem, and other appearance of the power when it is released cannot be altered or concealed.

Stances and origins can be clarified through these things.

That's why the Forge Knight's first reaction upon seeing dragon-attribute energy was "destined death."

That's why Alperish had his doubts.

After all, in the border region, you can roughly understand what a person has learned and practiced just by looking at the power aura they release during a battle.

The misunderstanding came and went quickly. Lann grabbed the Forge Knight by the back of his breastplate and pulled the prisoner of war, just like Ditica in Alperish's hands, toward the carriage.

The horses of the Golden Dynasty were indeed extraordinary; the battles between heroes did not faze them at all.

As long as there were no actual injuries or deaths, Lan En saw no signs that they had been frightened away by the battle just now.

"Close the gate first!" Lann threw the Forge Knight into the carriage and shouted towards the gate of Rodel, "No one is allowed in or out! Nobody is allowed! We need to figure out what happened first!"

Outside the city gate, the tree guardian recovered relatively quickly from the pain of the change in his body.

The sudden and dramatic turn of events caused them to slump off their horses. They were now shakily trying to stand up, using their golden halberds for support.

The Faded Ones did not actually have the authority to directly command the Great Tree Guardians, such high-ranking knights of the Golden Dynasty.

But a change was about to happen, and if the tree guardians weren't all blockheads, they wouldn't argue about any procedural issues at this moment.

At the same time, the two tree guardians, struggling to close the gate that their bodies, writhing in pain to the point of near-uncontrollable convulsions, exchanged a glance through the narrow observation slit in their helmets.

The Golden Prince was just assassinated, and now this earth-shattering event has occurred... Has the dynasty, which was as stable as gold just a few days ago, now fallen into such a precarious state?
A sense of restlessness and unease spread like a contagious disease among the people of Rodel.

They remained loyal to the perfect and eternal Golden Law, praising the era of the Golden Law and the Golden Dynasty. However, they were no longer so sure that this glorious era could truly last as long as gold.

Lann and Alperish rode in a carriage back to the inner city of Rodel.

At this moment, the leaves of the golden tree continued to fall, and their density was visibly increasing!
Within the already golden royal city, it became even more magnificent and dazzling. Even the sky was tinged with a hazy yellow.

Upon entering the inner city, the population density increased, and the agonizing cries of those whose blessings had been shaken resounded even more loudly.

However, as time went on, most people recovered somewhat from the deep-seated emptiness and panic and stopped shouting.

After all, their blessings are not like those of the faded ones, which completely sever ties, but merely dim.

The carriage wheels rolled over the stone slabs, and even Ditika, who was being suppressed by Alperish, went limp from the pain and lay in the carriage like a dead fish, breathing quietly.

However, as the carriage passed through a certain area, the wailing there did not diminish at all... and even became more piercing.

The Witcher peered out of the car window toward the direction from which the sound came—it was the construction site where he had previously cleared the ruins in the city!

To be precise: it was that large flat area on the construction site specifically used to place corpses!
“It seems like this is a big deal,” Lann frowned and reminded Alperish in the carriage, “Let’s prepare ourselves mentally.”

"I'm neither deaf nor blind." The Faded One, known as the "Raging Tongue," spoke with a somber expression, his words as unpleasant as ever, "The Golden Tree has cracked open; this is certainly a momentous matter!"

Lann didn't say anything more. It was certainly right that Alperish, with the habit of people from border areas, was first concerned about the changes embodied by that towering tree.

But that's not what Lan En meant just now.

The avenues of Rodel were filled with bodies that had been stiff with pain and then detached from their paralysis, after the sudden, world-shattering sound had previously resounded.

Lann and Alperish walked upwards until they reached the location of the Golden Tree Cathedral before stopping.

Gideon Ofnier, meanwhile, had already been standing at the door with the Faded Ones and were already engaged in a heated argument.

Apart from Sir Hundred, who always wore a helmet, even Vic had taken it off.

These seasoned veterans, now bearing the marks of time, look like new recruits, their faces filled with unease, disbelief, and panic...

They seemed to be arguing about something.

As soon as Lann and Alperish walked over, they heard the news that made [Raging Tongue] freeze in place.

That's what Baizhi said.

"No matter what you say, the Elden Ring is broken! That's an irreversible fact!"

(End of this chapter)