Bear School Astartes

”If you’re confessing your love to me, then I accept.”

Cassandra crossed her arms, teasingly looking at the Demon Hunter.

But Lann remained calm. He had become adept at handling these flirtatious women.

”You are beautiful, Cassandra. Maybe in another situation, what you said could happen, but not now.”

”You know why I’m here looking for the One-eyed People. Before dying, he gave me a name. Erpinuo, he was called from the One-eyed camp, the mercenary who tried to kill me. Do you have any idea who this is?”

”Erpinuo?”

Cassandra, initially wanting to throw in a couple more jokes, furrowed her brows instead.

”He was the one who gave me a big deal, like you, he’s only recently arrived in Cephalonia... It makes no sense, you two don’t even have any ties. Why would he want to kill you?”

”Who knows? Maybe it’s some mysterious reason.”

Lann had no desire to speculate here. Wouldn’t it be easier to directly ask the person involved?

”Do you know where he is now? If I have to kill him, I can cover the reward he promised you.”

”It’s not about the reward, we’re sort of friends now, Lann. He wants to kill you, so I won’t work for him.”

Cassandra shook her head, showing a troubled expression.

”What worries me is: someone like him, it’s practically impossible for him not to cover his tracks after a failed mission. I already told you he’s from outside Cephalonia. He would just board a ship and disappear, leaving no trace or wasting time.”

In the fragmented geographical world of Greece, once someone sets sail, finding them is nearly impossible.

The Demon Hunter’s tracking skills could only work up to the island’s ports and docks.

”He entrusted you with a big job.” After a moment of contemplation, Lann cupped his chin and came up with an idea. ”Once you complete the task, he’d have to tell you where to claim the reward, right?”

”I understand what you’re thinking, you want to confront him directly there? But it’s not that simple, he calls himself ’Erpinuo of Kira,’ though I don’t think that’s a reliable title. Fergus is a famous soothsayer—the Pythia is located there, attracting hundreds or thousands of people from all over the Greek World daily to seek prophecies from her.”

Cassandra smiled as she said this.

”Let me think, how about you come with me and finish the task, then we’ll use the proof to find Erpinuo. By then, he definitely won’t evade me.”

Lann thought for a moment before nodding.

If he showed up in Fergus, Erpinuo was bound to avoid him. But if Cassandra went to claim the reward, Erpinuo shouldn’t be too wary, making him easy to find.

”Alright then, I’ll help you finish your task first... Heh, I’m really curious why that guy wants to kill me.”

Seeing Lann agree to join her, Cassandra clearly became more delighted.

She shrugged, causing Icarus to take flight from her shoulder, circling above the sailing Adrestia.

The crew working on the deck occasionally saluted it.

Cassandra unsheathed the curved saber Lann had thrown to her during their recent battle.

”This is a fine blade. It’s infused with top-quality fragments of a Divine Artifact.”

Fragments of a Divine Artifact?

Lann promptly had Mentos open a new document in his mind—this was his first encounter with the local supernatural knowledge since arriving in this world.

But outwardly, the Demon Hunter remained indifferent.

”This is the weapon of the mercenary who wanted to kill me. No, don’t bother returning it, consider it a gift. After all, I might end up killing your employer.”

Cassandra didn’t mind Lann’s joke. After generously thanking him, she reattached the curved saber to the leather strap around her waist.

”Thanks, I won’t be shy about it. This saber can amplify the power of fire. I’ve never seen such quality in Cephalonia, it’s almost on par with my broken spear!”

Her fingers gently traced the edge of the saber at her waist, indicating her fondness for the formidable weapon.

Moreover, the saber’s performance in her hands also showed that it ’liked’ her greatly.

”Can you tell me about this kind of weapon?”

Lann leaned against the wooden rail of the ship, occasionally sprayed with the refreshing mist from the Aegean Sea.

”I’m curious about these things. As a reward, the mercenary actually left behind a decent bow.”

”Of course, no problem! But don’t you have any Divine Artifacts where you’re from?”

”We rely on different things to fight.”

Lann quickly changed the subject.

Cassandra, being straightforward and unpretentious, didn’t dwell on it.

”Divine Artifact fragments are creations of the gods and their fragments. Skilled blacksmiths can utilize them to make marvelous armor and weapons. Only those deemed worthy by the gods can wield them.”

Lann thought of how his supersonic bullet had shattered An You’s armor, but her skin remained intact, only bruised.

He suddenly lifted his head and asked Cassandra.

”So when you assassinate, even though your spear has pierced someone’s skull, you still twist their neck at the end... Are these extra actions to counter the protection of the Divine Artifact?”

”Divine Artifacts make the warriors who use them incredibly powerful.” Cassandra crossed her arms, standing beside Lann.

”You can’t imagine, I once speared someone from behind in their kidney area, with a wound deep enough to fit my entire hand. But that guy turned around and knocked me away, then chased me with a giant axe as if unharmed. I had a hard time dealing with him.”

Cassandra showed a fearless smile.

”Of course, back then, I wasn’t as strong or skilled as I am now. Since then, I’ve made sure to inflict the greatest damage on my first strike when assassinating anyone.”

”A wise decision, you learn well from experience.” Lann praised Cassandra freely.

”But what happened to the spoils from that person you killed? I didn’t see any high-quality armor or anything like that on you.”

Lann recalled their first meeting, where Cassandra wore a simple linen outfit, getting punched in the nose by bandits and tilting her head back to stop the bleeding.

”These Divine Artifacts, while powerful, lose their strength when clashing with other Divine Artifacts.”

Cassandra gestured towards Lann, indicating she wasn’t hiding anything; she wasn’t the type to keep good things tucked away.

”The armor eventually became a heap of tattered leather. That’s why I say this curved saber is excellent; it doesn’t seem to have faced any Divine Artifact yet, hence its strength is intact... Wow, you really took down that female mercenary without using any Divine Artifacts!”

With a swoosh, Cassandra brandished her broken spear with pride, looking at Lann.

”Of course, it still doesn’t compare to my old companion. I suspect that it’s the only spear in the world that won’t lose power in a Divine Artifact duel!”