Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 1934 1906. A joke?

Over the next few days, Lan En made many trips and finally managed to gather all the Faded Ones who were originally scattered in different places and busy with their missions in the Round Table Hall at Rodel.

These people were all powerful warriors or mages, and their arrival gave the crumbling capital of the Golden Dynasty a renewed sense of confidence.

Fortunately, the next group of people weren't as troublesome as Baglem, who also had to run into a demigod along the way. They were simply there to pick people up.

Within Rodel, the Golden Tree still stood majestically, its golden light showing no sign of waning.

It appears perfectly normal. Just like the Golden Age of Law at its peak.

The blessings of the Golden Tree continue to surround and benefit all the people of the Golden Tree. Its roots are strong and spread deep into the earth, and its leaves are abundant and drift to the horizon.

Rodel remains sturdy and majestic, its white walls unwavering, its golden roofs gleaming, and even the corpses of ancient dragons have become part of it.

But only...

"what!"

"Ah!! Let me die! Please... let me...!"

Screams.

Although the screams were already very faint, they still echoed intermittently throughout the magnificent city.

The voices were faint because, tormented by their injuries, the corpses had been in a state of mental collapse over the past few days.

Some people have even lost their ability to speak, and can only wail and mutter meaninglessly.

It wasn't that the pain made them unwilling to speak; rather, they were truly tormented to the point of forgetting all the knowledge in their minds, including language.

The faint screams seemed to emanate from the city's eerie corners and cracks in the walls.

It's even hard to tell whether the auditory hallucinations are caused by one's own psychological problems or whether those people are actually still screaming.

The faint, ethereal screams and breaths sounded even more eerie and tragic in this magnificent and sacred city.

Just as Lann had predicted, once people could no longer die, the rate at which medical resources were consumed was far less than the rate at which people caused harm.

Perfumers, being medical professionals in the royal city of Rodel, took the opportunity to utilize the organizational structure that Lan En had previously used to clear the ruins.

That organization has now been incorporated into the Perfumers' Association to provide medical support.

They used all sorts of fragrant powders and medicines, and they were indeed able to revive those who couldn't die. However, the cost was too high.

The perfumers' stock of medicinal herbs was already running low, so much so that everyone could clearly feel the heavy atmosphere. Rodel's city defenses were becoming increasingly stringent, and perfumers still had to be sent out of the city to collect raw materials and bring them back.

As for the more immediate effect of the Red Dewdrop Grail Bottle... precisely because the defenses of Rodel are becoming increasingly stringent, those who possess such a Grail Bottle are all important combat forces in the army.

Although the elixirs in the Holy Grail bottle replenish themselves automatically every day, under strict orders, only a small portion of these elixirs can be used to treat the wounded. The rest must remain in the bottle to maintain the combatants' condition.

The streets were deserted except for the Knights of Rodel's patrol.

And in this once magnificent and bustling, now empty, desolate and eerie Rodel.

"You really don't plan to come in with me?"

Lann, who had finally brought the last of the Faded Ones back to Rodel, spoke to the bowing 'Little Wood' at a corner near the Round Table Hall.

"Little blockhead," was Lan En's inner monologue and teasing of Melina.

She looks like a beautiful young girl, but her temperament and daily activities are so calm that they don't match her age.

Although everyone knows how long the Golden Tree People live, Melina's contrast is quite striking even in the entire border region.

Lan En thought to himself that although he wasn't very old, he had seen a lot of ups and downs. But at this moment, he was still quite cheerful.

Melina is like a piece of wood.

“No,” Little Wooden Head said calmly, “I don’t want to go to the Round Table Hall with you, not even as a spirit.”

"Hey, I got this outfit from Dolores." Lann shrugged and joked, but the teasing faded and his expression became serious and concerned.

"Are you really planning to be alone? It seems you really dislike the round table hall. Did something happen to you in your past life?"

Melina had changed into a well-fitting and neat outfit, looking like the attire of a traveler who frequently lived in the wild. She, however, still wore her hooded cloak.

“Nothing happened,” Melina calmly denied. “I just…don’t want to get close, that’s all.”

As she spoke, she unconsciously turned her face to the side, looking towards the street corner in the distance.

That is the independent fortress with the round table hall. If you extend your field of vision further, you can see the Golden Tree Cathedral located high up, and even higher up, at the foot of the Golden Tree, is the Royal Palace.

The eye with the three-toed bird claw tattooed on her eyebrow and eyelid remained closed, with a slight flicker of emotion in her remaining eye.

Her cherry-colored lips pursed slightly.

Lan En looked at Melina, his brows furrowing slightly.

Honestly, this was one of the few times she had shown her emotions since she met Lan En.

And this emotion means...

"Okay, do whatever makes you comfortable."

Lann suddenly shrugged and said nonchalantly. This made Melina turn her face back to him and look him in the eye.

“I can see you really dislike the round table setting. You can stay outside by yourself then, but you need to be careful. The world is different now than before; it's not peaceful anymore.”

Lan En's understanding attitude, which indicated he wasn't going to delve into the matter, prompted Melina to nod silently. Then she whispered, "...Thank you."

After speaking, Melina fell silent again. After seemingly thinking for a moment, a barely perceptible smile appeared on her lips as she spoke again.

"To be honest, if I actually walked into the Round Table Hall, I might scare people."

Her tone remained calm, as if she were talking about a stranger, but when she looked up, she saw that one of Lan En's eyebrows was raised, and he was looking at her without saying a word.

"..." Melina asked, puzzled, "What's wrong?"

Lan En didn't answer, but simply raised an eyebrow and nodded: "Were you... joking with me just now?"

The Witcher's tone still carried a hint of uncertainty.

But his question confused Melina as well. She blinked her eyes, seemingly unaware of what she had just said.

Lan En didn't expect to get an answer from her, so he simply tapped the velvet ball that was always next to him with his toe.

"Hmm..." The kitten stumbled after being pushed by Lan En, but quickly understood what its boss meant. It scratched its whiskers with its little paws and thought for a moment, "It seems like, it really was joking, meow?"

Then, the velvet ball looked up at the unicorn that had stretched its head over.

The ancient dragon from the New World didn't say much, it just shook its big head up and down, and the sharp spike on its head made Lan En dodge it a little.

Melina's expression remained stable; she simply looked with her right eye at the three men opposite her who had all nodded in unison.

Lan En keenly noticed that the girl opposite him had a delicate neck that was faintly turning red, hidden beneath her light reddish-brown flowing hair.

Realizing that this blockhead might be at risk of exploding, Lan En shook his head and chuckled.

He slapped Melina on the shoulder.

The contrast between the witcher's large hands and the girl's slender shoulders is striking.

"Don't overthink it. Even if you're dead and just a soul, you can still joke around, right? Haha!"

With that, the Witcher grabbed the velvet ball by the back of its neck, flipped over, and jumped onto the Qilin's back. The three of them dashed off towards the independent stronghold of the Round Table Hall.

Only Melina remained, her expression unchanged.

She watched the three men's backs as her hand, bearing burn marks, touched her cheek strangely.

Finally, he bowed his head, and amidst a flash of light, his entire being became a spirit, vanishing into nothingness.

After Lan En and the others entered the round table hall, the velvet ball and the Qilin ran off separately, while Lan En went directly to the hall where the round table with the sword was placed.

Along the way, when I encountered several people who had faded from the face, regardless of their personalities, I at least nodded and greeted them.

When Gideon Ophniel wanted to gather all the Faded Ones back to Rodel, he immediately thought of Lann.

It's possible that on one hand, Qilin's speed is indeed useful, and on the other hand, it's also to let Lan En, who joined the Round Table halfway, get acquainted with the Faded Ones first.

Besides the few Faded Ones who had already rushed back to Rodel because of the news of Black Knife Night, there are now only two more Faded Ones.

One of them was covered in heavy armor, the armor decorated with many animal patterns. The wearer had the face of a mature man, who looked reliable and charming.

This is [Gathering Beasts] Bernal.

It is said that he once gathered many wise beasts around him, though none of them held particularly high positions, they were still quite famous. This beast-gathering armor truly lives up to its name.

He stood against the wall of the round table hall and nodded to Lan En as he entered.

The other person was a magician, who was sitting at a round table with Baglem, and the two seemed to be having a pleasant conversation.

This mage's attire was unlike that of most mages Lann had encountered in the Lienia region; it adhered to a very simple and durable style.

The clothes were made of sturdy cloth, not silk.

His face, covered in a mottled beard that was half white and half black, gave him a very approachable look.

However, the so-called 'having a pleasant conversation' means that most of the time Baglem was the one talking, while the mage was just listening and occasionally nodding in simple agreement.

He looked calm and quiet.

However, since they can continue to chat happily in such an atmosphere, it means that this is how these two people usually get along, and they seem like old friends.

This is the "Rogue Magician" Viherer.

Lan En heard him say that his isolation seemed to stem from problems with the school of magic he practiced, but when asked to delve deeper, he just smiled and remained silent.

Lan En didn't care. If he wanted to know, he could ask 'Little Wood'.

However, Viherer was the one he had just taken in today, and he hadn't had time to ask Melina any questions yet.

Baglem gestured for Lann to sit down next to him, and Viherer smiled back at the Witcher.

Outside the hall, the clanging of Xiu Gu's blacksmithing seemed to never change. The large door behind the hall was tightly shut, and Shuangzhi stood within it.

But just then, the sound of a metal cane striking the wooden board rang out rapidly.

The faded ones turned their heads in unison and saw Sir Hundred Wisdom walking in hurriedly.

"Ladies and gentlemen," before the Faded Ones could ask any questions, Bai Zhi spoke first in his deep and serious voice, "Now, we're in trouble!"

(End of this chapter)