Bear School Astartes

Chapter 386: 386. Walking Together Again

Lann found nothing of value in the abandoned workshop of the hunters.

After tucking the old hunter’s leg bone inscribed with the ”Acceleration Spell” into his pocket, he placed the doll into the Alchemy Pouch.

Thanks to the doll’s easily foldable body, otherwise, the two cubic meters of the Alchemy Pouch would have been half occupied.

This doll was already a work of art.

While collecting weapons and equipment from foreign lands to satisfy his collector’s habit, art pieces were also a nice collection target for Lann.

Moreover, the manufacturing technique embodied in this doll could be called ’pioneering’ for the magic golem industry of the Magic World.

Although Lann felt he should not let those golem researchers dismantle her.

After all, she looked perfect, worth placing in a showcase for repeated admiration.

”Beyond this tower lies the territory of the Choir...”

Leaving the abandoned Hunter Workshop, Lann looked back at the entire tower.

Now the night sky of Yan’an had turned into a peculiar, swirling azure.

It was likely a phenomenon caused by the moonlight refracted through the swirling clouds.

At least, compared to ’being twisted by the power of the Ancient God,’ Lann preferred to believe it was this reason.

And the tip of the tower pierced straight into the clouds, the spire of the gothic architecture like a needle puncturing the sky.

According to Old Hunter Henrik’s introduction, the upper layers of Church Town had been occupied by the Choir.

The Demon Hunter turned and left, with no intention of heading further up.

At least Old Hunter said one thing right: he was a stranger bound to leave eventually, so unless necessary, it was best not to get entangled with the complex local powers, preferably not even remembering names.

That way, when leaving, he could do so without any attachments.

When Lann returned to Oton Chapel again, he saw Henrik once again fully attired and armed as a hunter.

He seemed ready for a big hunt.

”We agreed to hunt a beast together, you haven’t forgotten, right?”

The old hunter’s saw cleaver moved in his hands as if part of his limb, even rotating his wrist just to regain the feel seemed quite skillful.

Lann was not someone who would go back on his word, but now he crossed his arms, frowning as he looked at the fully equipped Henrik.

”If it’s just hunting a beast, I have no problem, but... your gear now doesn’t look like it’s just for dealing with one beast.”

Lann emphasized the ’one’ in his tone.

Henrik seemed much bulkier now, because underneath his ochre hunter’s coat were packed various trinkets.

Indispensable blood vials for the Yan Nan People, a bullet belt for holding quicksilver bullets, and some vials and bottles Lann was unfamiliar with for the time being.

This didn’t resemble the swift and agile Yan Nan Hunter, but more like a traditional hunter playing ’hide and seek’ with the prey in the forest for ten days or half a month.

”Once we clear the beast on the bridge,” Henrik adjusted the bullet belt inside his coat, while straightening his hat. ”I’ll head to Byron Vis with you.”

Lann frowned: ”Don’t joke, Henrik. You can’t leave this place.”

”Do I look like I’m joking?”

Henrik asked seriously.

”Gascogne is a good hunter, he can manage. Whereas you, unfamiliar with this land, are about to venture outside Yan City... do you know how difficult the roads outside Yan City are?”

”You want to explore knowledge about your ’Clairvoyance,’ but at least you need someone to guide you to Byron Vis, right? That place has been sealed for decades.”

Henrik didn’t know Lann was going to Byron Vis mainly to investigate the manipulations of the Ancient God on time, to make time flow again.

He only thought it was the novelty of ’Clairvoyance’ that drove the young man to explore further.

But regardless of whether Lann’s actions would help them, Henrik decided to lend him a hand.

The Old Hunter felt he owed Lann, so he was prepared to repay him now.

After all, in his eyes, the young man was a foreigner who would depart at dawn, perhaps never to be seen again in a lifetime.

Lann had no choice but to spread his hands. Having someone familiar to lead the way in the terrain of Yan An indeed made a significant difference.

The two navigated through the streets of Yan An.

With a local guide once again, Lann felt they moved exceedingly smoothly.

Soon, they stepped out of the Church Town from the cemetery of Oton Chapel and reached the stone bridge in front of Church Town’s gate.

This bridge, which witnessed riots and massacres at the onset of the night of the hunt, now had returned to a state of tranquility.

The torn bodies had been taken away by the various beast-infected patients.

And the four-wheeled carriages on the road were toppled, scattered with trunks and household belongings, untouched.

The horses drawing the carriages had their bellies torn open, exposing ribs and entrails.

However, the beast-infested patients seemed less interested in animals; they seemed more eager to spill the blood of Yan An’s humans.

The stench here was overwhelming.

The night of the hunt had kept Oton Chapel burning with incense blocks for over a dozen nights, meaning these bodies and the blood had lain on the outside for the same duration.

Henrik and Lann moved cautiously between the toppled carriages and luggage.

The decay level of these bodies clearly conflicted with his sense of time.

But due to the existence of that ’Consciousness Interference’ power, he merely felt something was amiss, without delving deeper.

Lann, behind an overturned four-wheeled carriage, suddenly pulled Henrik.

The young man faced the old hunter who turned around, without speaking, merely nodding his head, using his chin to gesture towards the tall pillar on the side of the bridge.

Through the slit pressed by the tricorn hat and mask, Henrik’s eyes bore a complex expression as he looked at the enormous beast crouched on the pillar.

That beast was almost the size of Amelia after her transformation, but without that sacred white fur, instead resembling an ordinary beast-infected patient more.

Its left hand grew abnormally large to the point of hampering its body’s balance.

The massive claws lightly swept over the stone pillar, leaving several deep scratches.

On its head were branching antlers.

Despite its massive size, standing above, an ordinary person without a demon hunter’s extraordinary senses, and without the subtle feeling brought by ’Clairvoyance,’ probably wouldn’t sense the huge beast watching intently over the bridge.

”Seems like you have some special connection with that beast.”

Lann said quietly, calmly from behind Henrik.

”Care to share? It usually feels better to vent, but if you don’t want to talk, that’s fine; we can get on with it.”

Henrik’s mask shifted with the slight movements of his mouth.

But in the end, the Old Hunter remained silent, merely sighing, his gaze turning cold again.

”Use fire paper, Molotov cocktails, and oil bottles. Let’s end this hunt quickly. He... is very afraid of fire.”

Hunters of Yan An have always been merciless in their hunts.