Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 2028 2000. Disappearance
Marlenia's figure was as light as a water bird or a swallow, while her swordsmanship was as sharp as an ice blade!
With Marlenia's speed and skill, she could easily cross the city wall. And behind the wall, does Rodel now have a strong enough expert to deal with this Valkyrie?
This type of speed-type enemy is terrifying. Anyone who can keep up with her speed will basically be unable to defeat her, or even be able to engage in prolonged combat.

Those who might be able to spar with her are basically unable to catch up with her.

If Rodel still had any demigod in charge, Malenia would probably still have some reservations.

But now, the Blessed King, sitting on his throne, doesn't even show his face to the public, let alone let anyone know how powerful he is!
Therefore, all things considered, Malenia's fighting style allows her to unleash a massacre within the walls of Rodel when there is no one to restrain her!

This only takes into account her own skills and swordsmanship, without taking into account the power that the world fears and dreads most—that deep-rooted crimson corruption!
Putting everything else aside, just the fact that Marlenia broke into the city walls with her speed and then began to unleash her crimson, corrupting power without any regard for consequences means that the royal city of Rodel can no longer be expected to be habitable for some time.

It can be said that the pressure from just one demigod like Malenia is greater than that from Lacad and Gevya in the previous demigod alliance!
By this time, Sir Hundred Wisdom even began to miss the demigod alliance.

After all, if Lakad and Gavya were also here, then the three demigods outside the city could actually form a mutually restraining structure.

Let them fight amongst themselves first; three of them are easier to deal with than one right now!
"What's going on now?"

Just as Gideon Ophniel was thinking, the hero who had prevented the Valkyrie from joining the demigod alliance arrived.

The wind was stronger on the city walls than on the ground, making the military flags and the ornaments on the knights' helmets flutter loudly.

Bai Zhi patted the perfume ballista mounted on the city wall to make sure it wouldn't malfunction and then turned to look at Lan En.

“I don’t know, nobody knows,” Gideon Ophniel said in a deep, bubbly voice. “Marinia suddenly set up her troops outside today. But instead of making a move, she just watched as Rodel’s gates closed again.”

Lan En didn't comment on this: "The height of the city wall can't stop her. The same goes for the people on the city wall, it's meaningless."

“I know,” Bai Zhi nodded, “but it’s an attitude. An attitude that she and Rodel don’t have to fight.”

“Last time, she was willing to watch as an observer as Rodel and the demigod alliance fought to a draw, and that was thanks to your persuasion. You seem to be very good at this kind of thing.”

The supernatural darkness beneath Gideon Ophniel's helmet faced Lann.

The Witcher waved his hand: "Speak plainly."

"I would like to ask you to go to the front lines and ask her what she is trying to do now."

Lan En nodded, and without saying much, turned and walked towards the elevator on the city wall that connected to the outside of the city.

He had always felt that this was something only he could do.

But as he walked toward the elevator, Gideon Ofnier was still calling to him from behind.

"Ride the Qilin together, Lan En. And make it ready to go at top speed at any time."

"Is this necessary?" Lan En didn't stop walking, but turned his head and replied to Bai Zhi, "This is not good for the negotiations."

If Lan En were riding a Qilin, his overall height would be greater than Marlene's. Such a posture during negotiations would appear arrogant and would be detrimental to subsequent communication.

But Gideon Ophniel insisted on this suggestion.

“She’s Malenia, she’s capable of anything, Lann. Don’t think you know her just because you’ve managed to persuade her once.”

"It's not that exaggerated, is it?"

“That’s how exaggerated it is.” Gideon Ofnir bluntly cut off Lann’s question. “Just thinking about why she might be standing in front of Rodel’s gate makes my heart tremble.”

“If that’s really the reason… she’s capable of anything, Lan En! She’s capable of anything.”

Bai Zhi seemed to be speaking with a deeper meaning, and at the end, to emphasize his tone, he repeated it twice.

Lan En stopped walking, turned around, and carefully examined Bai Zhi with his amber cat eyes.

After a long while, Lan En nodded: "Qilin, come along!"

"Whoosh!"

The sound of horses' hooves clattered on the walls of Rodel.

As the elevator descended, Lan En mounted his horse, and Rongbuqiu also jumped onto the horse's back, ready to go.

The winch gradually stopped working. Lan En patted the Qilin's neck, urging it to walk forward toward the forefront of the army formed by the corrupted knights.

Marlenia's esteemed knights claimed to be blocking the city gate, but in reality, they were several hundred meters away from the city wall.

Qilin trotted a few steps and stepped on the obsidian to reach Marlenia's side.

"We haven't seen each other in a long time, have we?"

Lan En bowed to the Valkyrie from horseback.

He was impeccably courteous and handsome, and although he was on horseback, no one could point out any discomfort he might be experiencing.

Because they were closer, Lann was able to observe Marlenia more clearly.

This demigod was even more formidable than during the time they had spent together before, or rather... his murderous aura was becoming uncontrollable.

Her flowing red hair didn't exude warmth; instead, its crimson, decaying color made her seem dangerous and repulsive.

The prosthetic arm, made of pure gold, still had its elbow blade retracted. The long, slender blade gleamed with a sharp, cold light, just like Malenia's current demeanor.

The winged helmet that covered the upper half of her face couldn't hide her full expression.

Although Marlenia usually doesn't show much expression or emotional fluctuations.

But with the keen senses of a demon hunter, Lann could still tell that she was in a terrible mood!

As expected, the sense of familiarity that had been built up over the previous few weeks vanished completely at this moment.

“Quiet, Faded One.” Marlenia’s voice was actually quite good, but perhaps because her tone was too crisp, calm and composed, it had a somewhat androgynous style. “I came to the outskirts of Rodel City to ask just one question.”

"My brother, Michaela. Was he kidnapped by you?"

Marlenia's calm tone could easily lead one to misjudge the situation and assume that she didn't actually care much about her brother Michaela.

However, Lann will not make such an error.

The moment Marlenia asked the question, the Witcher felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end!

It felt as if the blade of a knife was already pressed against my skin!

But the more they danced on the edge of a knife, where a single misstep could trigger a massive chain reaction, the more their exceptional diplomatic skills enabled the sons of emperors to think calmly and comprehensively.

Michaela... has been kidnapped?
The information they received from Malenia was quickly and repeatedly considered and analyzed by Lann and Mentos.

That's not quite right. Marlenia came to question Rodel, which means she doesn't actually know the specifics either.

Rather than saying 'Michaela was kidnapped,' it's more accurate to say, 'Michaela is missing,' to be more conservative.

"From my personal perspective, I am unaware of this."

Amidst the Valkyrie's subtle yet ever-present murderous intent, the Witcher's tone remained calm and unhurried, even revealing genuine concern.

“Marinia, we’ve had some good conversations before, and you can tell from the timeline that I wasn’t involved in this at all. You shouldn’t be directing your hostility at me, should you?”

Having understood what had happened, Lann now completely agreed with Baizhi's statement on the city wall.

Marlenia would do anything for Michaela!

Lan En already knew a little about her extreme feelings for her brother when they talked before.

But precisely because he knew the seriousness of the situation, Lan En no longer sat on the Qilin's back.

Amidst the scraping of armor, Lann dismounted and walked directly opposite Marlenia, looking up at her.

"Tell me what happened, and we can figure it out together."

"A solution?" Marlenia's tone carried a slight sarcasm. "To consult with a Faded One?"

She doesn't usually like to talk much, nor does she show her emotions much, so this slight sarcasm is actually quite a strong expression in Marlenia's case.

Among the knights behind him, Finley even looked at his lord with surprise.

"You might not believe it, but I'm quite good at investigations and finding people."

Lan En ignored the sarcasm in Marlenia's tone and continued to look at her seriously.

Beneath the winged helmet, Marlenia's thin lips twitched as if she wanted to open them, but then closed them again.

Looking down into the sincere eyes of the faded man, she couldn't bring herself to utter the cold words of rejection she had initially intended.

“The messenger from the sacred tree brought news,” Marlenia continued after a long silence, “my brother has disappeared inside the sacred tree. When the servants went to his usual prayer room, they could only find traces of burning.”

【Sacred Tree】Abrefil is indeed a giant tree, with its super-giant wooden branches and stone used to construct a town.

Marlenia said: Michaela's prayer room was inside the sacred tree, a kind of large tree hollow. There, the burn marks were very conspicuous; you couldn't mistake them.

"Could it be that Lakad is trying to use Michaela to drag the Holy Tree down with him?"

Lan Enming's speculation was blatantly biased, but Marlenia couldn't say anything.

The traces of the flames were too obvious.

Just a few months ago, the border region was a prosperous divine dynasty with countless powerful forces and strong individuals.

But precisely because they are so powerful, the strong control their power very strictly.

The entire world's [death] has been sealed in the hands of Maricus alone.

While the power of [Flame] might not warrant such a targeted attack, it was still considered a forbidden and blasphemous power by the Golden Dynasty. Very few people had any means to master it.

Therefore, Lann's suspicion of Rakad, although it was clearly to get involved with the enemy, seemed quite reasonable due to the power of fire.

(End of this chapter)