Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 2072, Section 2044: Proof of Kinship
Messermo's words were a clear signal to Lann.

He began to investigate the truth of the whole thing, instead of believing that it never happened at all.

“I am just a mortal,” Lan En said modestly, stepping back to the side as he spoke. “But I think it would be more credible for your blood relatives to speak to you.”

Lann stepped back to the side, revealing Melina standing behind him.

Because it had been agreed upon beforehand, and Lan En had encouraged her to stand up and face her brother.

So Melina actually knew what Lan was going to do when he was halfway through his sentence.

Although the girl's breathing was now somewhat deep, and her hands, which were hidden under her cloak, unconsciously clenched into fists.

But in the end, he closed his eyes, pursed his lips, took a deep breath, and stepped forward with an indifferent expression almost identical to that of Messermo.

When Melina and Messermo met directly without any further obstacles between them, they were both taken aback.

Although the Golden Clan all possess excellent bloodlines, this is essentially a genetic advantage, rather than an inherent mutual understanding or connection.

Because they are twins, Malenia and Michaela might have some feelings for each other, but these feelings aren't strong. Otherwise, Malenia wouldn't have needed Lan En to help her find her brother back in the Yatan Plateau.

So when the two meet, it would be too forced to say something like "a throbbing in their blood".

However, it wasn't their shared bloodline as members of the Golden Clan that made them sense each other; rather, it was the eye contact that caused them both to pause slightly.

They themselves were somewhat unsure why.

Melina had only one eye open, her left eye remained closed, and there were three-toed bird claw marks on her left eyebrow and eyelid.

While Messermo has both eyes, the right eye, which bears the personal emblem of Marika, is clearly not the original.

But apart from that, the two of them didn't have any other feelings.

"What do you mean?"

Seeing Lan En step aside to let a young girl out, Messer looked at him with a questioning gaze.

“I’ve already said,” Lan En said, crossing his arms and extending one hand in a gesture of invitation, looking on with an air of anticipation, “your blood relative.”

"Are you trying to fool me?" Messermo's cold face revealed no emotion. "Shadowlands has been isolated and sealed for so many years, and now, besides my brother Michaela, I also have a sister here? What a coincidence."

Lan En shrugged: "Actually, you also have a younger sister here, named Marlenia, but she and Michaela are twins, so they're obviously on the same side."

Messermo turned to look at Melina, but said nothing more.

But his furrowed brows indicated that he was waiting for Melina to prove their relationship, and that he was losing patience.

Melina didn't dwell on it any longer, and she raised one hand from under her cloak.

Messermo was initially showing signs of impatience, but his eyes widened noticeably the moment his gaze swept over Melina's hand!

"call out!"

Melina brought the perforated ring on her hand close to her cherry-colored lips and gently blew on it.

With a crisp sound, the spirit horse was summoned.

Without Melina saying anything more, Messermo looked at the spirit horse and murmured its name: "...Toret".

Torret flicked the mane of his bangs that covered his eyes, and the spirit horse with bull horns seemed completely unconcerned about its current environment.

Lann didn't know what relationship Torret had with Queen Marika, but there was no doubt that most of Marika's children recognized the spirit horse and even regarded it as proof of their relationship.

“You…” Messermo looked at the spirit horse, then at the girl, and hesitated before saying, “When and with your mother… no.”

Halfway through his sentence, Messermo stopped himself, and his expression returned to calm.

"If you don't want to talk about it, then just forget what I just said, my... sister."

“Very well, you have now proven that I do indeed have relatives who have come to the Shadowlands. I can also say that Michaela exists. But you say that Michaela is prepared to abandon her own body to enter the Spiral Tower.”

At this point, Messermo shook his head.

“You don’t understand. If he enters the Spire in spirit form, it will be even more difficult to stop him. Even with the seal I have placed, I cannot reach Enil Ilim in the shadows. To stop him, I would have to release the Spire back into the material world… You cannot imagine the price that would be.”

“I need concrete information.” Messermo looked at Lann. “Evidence that he abandoned his body, and how far he has gone. I need everything.”

"The Gate of God... This is a path that should have been sealed away. Following Mother's command, it must never be reopened, especially not by a god."

"Once you accomplish this, I will show you the way out."

Messermo's words were calm yet carried an undeniable authority.

"I'll go with you, as fast as I can! Laylana, please keep an eye on Shadow City for me."

Although they are husband and wife, Messermo and Lelana are both very polite when they talk to each other.

Their feelings for each other had already been tested by the Shura Field of the Shadow Land for who knows how long, and their depth was undeniable. This was probably also their way of getting along as a couple.

"Nanxis City..."

As a knight, Leilana also felt a sense of responsibility for her original duties.

But then, Messermo said bluntly, “Ensis City is no longer important, Leilana. Or rather, nothing in Shadowlands is more important than the Gate of Gods right now. That tyrannical dragon, your reclusive magical advisor… their affairs are not urgent.” “I understand.”

The Knight of the Twin Moons nodded to her lord and husband.

So, the group that originally wanted to get information about the exit from Shadowlands from Messermo ended up leaving Shadowlands together with Messermo.

As the unicorn trotted along the road, carrying people, its large, ruby-like eyes gazed with a bewildered look at the tall, slender figure not far away.

"Huff?"

What's going on?

Lan En patted the Qilin's head, dispelling any doubts about the ancient dragons of the new continent.

Under the perpetually gloomy sky of Shadowlands, Lann, Margarita, and Velvet Ball sat on the back of the Qilin, while Melina sat alone on Toret.

The land around Shadow City seemed to be a dark, gloomy expanse.

The spirit horse lowered its head, tearing at the sparse grass on the ground. Apart from the horns on its head, it looked no different from an ordinary domestic animal or mount.

But Messermo watched it eat grass with rapt attention.

It took me a while to snap out of my daze.

"We need to act quickly. If the soul is truly free from the ties of the body, it will be easy to reach the top of the Spiral Tower!" Messermo looked at Qilin and Lan En with suspicion. "You were so confident before, you should know where Michaela's abandoned body is, right?"

The Qilin immediately tried to kick him.

Messermo first said, "Be quick," then looked at it suspiciously. The Qilin wasn't stupid! Of course it knew this was a questioning of its speed!

Being suspected by strangers is nothing to worry about; Qilin isn't short-tempered.

The key question is, why doesn't this person even glance at that spirit horse, but only looks at me? How can I tolerate this?!
The Qilin's four hooves thrashed restlessly on the black earth, kicking up mud, but Lan En managed to keep it from causing any trouble.

As Lan En tugged at the Qilin's pale white mane, he glanced at the void beside him.

“I think his abandoned body might be scattered throughout the Shadowlands, since he only knew about this place through hearsay before coming here. If he were to do something this big, he would definitely need to investigate the situation on-site after arriving. But searching around aimlessly now would just be a waste of time.”

"There is a definite location, but it's quite far away, on the Blue Coast."

The Shadowlands are divided and sealed, making it virtually impossible to distinguish directions. If forced to be precise, Shadow City is located in the upper right corner of the Shadowlands, while Azure Coast is at the very bottom, a considerable distance away.

“I never take chances with the Azure Coast,” Messermo said decisively. “Let’s go now!”

“We’ll be there soon,” Lan said, patting Margarita’s arm that was wrapped around him from behind.

The roaring bear head pendant bounced up on its own, while a wind-breaking barrier made of chaotic magic floated half a meter in front of the Qilin.

The Qilin doesn't need to break the wind; this is to reduce the pressure on the passengers on its back and provide protection.

The winged serpent hissed softly, coiling and swaying around Messermo: "You'd better be quick enough."

Having said that, Messermo himself almost instantly transformed into a black and red afterimage, flying close to the ground into the distance!

Just as Lan En had guessed when they first met, his slender body possessed extreme speed and agility.

Lann had never seen how fast Marlenia, a demigod of the same type, could go at full speed. But he figured Messermo wouldn't be any less powerful than her.

The red and black afterimages didn't care about anything else and rushed straight towards the Azure Coast!
Messermo's body stirred up a whirlwind, so strong that even the air didn't have time to react before a dull roar erupted after his figure flashed past.

The wind he whipped up carved a jagged clearing out of the dense forest in the Shadowlands!

Wherever it passed, trees were uprooted and soil was blown away, leaving a scene of utter devastation!
Behind him, the Qilin, clad in a white robe, had its long, azure crystal horns exposed, crackling with electric arcs.

Torret's steps were light, and he looked like an ordinary horse running, yet he was able to keep up steadily with the speed ahead.

They headed straight from the Shadow Altar, where Shadow City is located, to the Azure Coast. Along the way, they passed through Ensis City and the Elak River, and even grazed the edge of Tower Town, which Lan En and his group had not visited before.

After crossing the vast cemetery plain, they followed the flow of the Airak River and arrived at the foot of a huge natural stone ridge.

The roar of speed followed behind, and where Messermo stopped, a large, spiderweb-like indentation was left in his feet, making the stone look as if it had been hit by a meteor.

Following closely behind, Lan En and his group also arrived here.

The scenery of the Azure Coast is very different from other parts of the Shadowlands.

The entire Shadowlands was very gloomy and somber, a feeling determined by the sky.

But once you reach the Blue Coast, it's as if you've stepped into a tranquil night.

The boundless ocean surface was calm in the distance, and from where they stood all the way to the sea, the ground was covered with the same kind of flower.

A flower with blue petals that also emits a faint fluorescent glow.

These flowers swayed in the wind, creating a dreamlike effect. But they also looked like the blue specks of light that appeared when Melina or Torret appeared.

“We’ve arrived,” Lan En said, glancing at the sky, “but it’s getting dark.”

Messermo glanced back to see if Melina had followed: "Let's search first and prepare for the night. The nights in Shadowlands are not suitable for activity."

(End of this chapter)