Bear School Astartes

By noon, Lann’s clothes and the items he poured out from his alchemy pouch that required drying were finally completely dried again.

”The Grandmaster’s suit uses more steel, and it surprisingly dries more easily than my previous equipment.”

After all, steel neither absorbs water nor retains it.

Lann grumbled as he put on his heavy armor once more.

This gave him a renewed sense of security.

After carefully tidying up Cassandra’s courtyard, Lann turned around to leave.

They had provided him with a place, so after using it, he had to restore it to its original state. Lann was a person with good manners.

In this era, stepping out of the courtyard was akin to stepping into the wilderness.

As it approached noon, the temperature was steadily rising. Lann crossed a field filled with violets, the air thick with the fragrance of oregano and wild lemon trees.

If it weren’t for Lann’s exceptionally high tolerance for heat, his current armor would have been enough to give him heatstroke and dehydration in this climate.

The armor used in Mediterranean civilizations, with very limited body coverage, was a result of adapting to the local climate.

The generally high temperatures here could not support people wearing more protective gear for movement.

As Cassandra said, the island of Kefalonia is indeed small and impoverished.

The island’s port and small town are called Sami.

This small town has no walls, with open shelters and simple white houses everywhere, surrounded by a cluster of raised marble villas. The wealthy wearing Greek robes chat and drink on the rooftops and balconies. Horses and bare-chested, sweaty workers labor in narrow alleys and bustling markets, dragging olive produce and pine logs to the docks.

The sound of bells ringing, the crack of whips, the melodic music of a lyre, the faint scent of roses, and the curling smoke from temple kitchens.

A corner of the renowned Ancient Greek Civilization is presented before him, making Lann, a former history enthusiast, feel a little excited.

Meanwhile, his appearance also caused quite a stir among the townspeople.

Just like how Phoebe reacted the first time she saw Lann.

Though they hadn’t witnessed his miraculous emergence from the seam of the celestial sphere to determine he was a Demigod descending from Mount Olympus,

his height nearing 2.2 meters, perfect physique, and the incredibly thick and comprehensive armor that the locals had never seen before... anyone could tell that this guy was an odd outsider.

First, it was the workers on the docks who were unable to move at the sight of Lann.

Then this silent observation spread like sound waves, and later, even the wealthy chatting and enjoying on the balconies of marble villas poked their heads out over the edges, hoping to catch sight of something novel.

Lann quickly sensed the stir he was causing and decided not to enter the town, swiftly leaving the area with his agility.

”Are they really that surprised?”

From a distance, watching the crowd in the market yet to disperse, Lann scratched his head.

Mentos then said, ”That’s quite normal, sir. Consider that even though Ancient Greek Civilization is a maritime civilization, most people never set their sights beyond a few dozen kilometers. To them, you really are a ’rare sight’ right in front of them, something they’d be losing out by not seeing.”

”...”

Lann was speechless, choking on his words.

In the Magic World, even if a Demon Hunter entered the city, most often people would just spit twice at a distance to ward off bad luck.

He had never seen a situation like this.

”Alright, alright, it seems I need to get used to the identity shift from ’Plague God’ to ’Star’? How interesting...”

”Sir, it seems you should indeed.”

Within Mentos, there was some content from ancient Greek history books Lann had flipped through during his school days, which quite... unreservedly depicted the era’s fondness for good-looking, athletic men?

The biobrains considered that even without this outfit, Lann’s attention might not be less than it was now.

But it hesitated, wondering whether to transmit this part of the content to the host. After all, the scenes, when filtered through the lens of reality, were quite intense.

Lann was oblivious to the biobrain’s dilemma; he was now changing direction, ready to first understand the situation in Kefalonia.

At the very least, he needed to learn about local customs, habits, and taboos, if not gather intel on the One-eyed People who were already on their bad side. Otherwise, stumbling into something offensive wouldn’t be good.

Shortly after leaving the town, Lann happened to encounter an opportunity.

”You seem troubled. What happened?”

Lann tentatively asked a man sitting forlornly on a large rock.

It was a mountain pass, with a cave at the far end. The island was rife with such rugged landscapes.

This man with a face full of disappointment was wearing the attire of a Mediterranean commoner, a linen skirt, a belt, and leather sandals.

Just as Lann expected, someone in his state had no leisure to look at any ’rare object’.

The armor and the person inside it that everyone in the town was gawking at, he only glanced at briefly before lowering his head and sighing again.

”I think I have offended them, offended the gods!”

”Did you do something bad?”

”Bad? I don’t know what I did to upset them...”

Facing Lann’s inquiry, the man appeared helpless and frustrated.

”I used to worship Hermes in this cave, you know, sometimes the gods would descend into the caverns.”

Lann tilted his head, his gaze shifting past the man toward the cave, looking doubtful.

”Gods in the cave... maybe?”

”Don’t doubt it! If you bring offerings in, they will grant your wishes! So many people come here to worship, hoping to exchange something.”

The man defended the gods in the cave passionately, but soon after, he lapsed back into melancholy.

”Though I haven’t exchanged for anything. I’ve already converted all my property into offerings for them. I’m just a poor man!... I must have done something wrong.”

Lann rubbed his chin, unsure how to converse with such a devout believer.

After all, he didn’t personally believe in gods.

However, the man did seem to firm up some kind of resolve after speaking, raising his head to look at Lann.

”You are a mercenary, right? They say mercenaries solve problems for others.”

”Strictly speaking... you could describe my profession that way.”

”Then I want to ask you to solve my problem.”

Lann unfolded one hand from his chest to gesture for the man to continue.

”I want you to go into the cave yourself and listen to the voice of the gods, their teachings. If you can hear them, I’ll give you my last offering! I just want to know if they’re really there!”

”If this is your last insistence, then I will help you take a look.”

Lann agreed, and at the same time, he was curious to understand the manifestation of the Greek gods in a world that clearly had supernatural forces.

”Thank you, mercenary. Be careful when you enter; after all, you are stepping on sacred ground!”