Bear School Astartes

”I think Lady Tishaya looks like she’s about to explode.”

Vizimir heard Veltrest’s whispered murmur beside him.

The old king mumbled something, its meaning unclear, much like when old men clear their throats.

But those familiar with him knew very well that this old king was far more alert than the average elderly man.

For those familiar with war, the situation on the battlefield was determined long before its signs became apparent.

Veltrest and Vizimir had already begun to focus their discussions on post-war affairs even when Lann first alleviated pressure on the siege lines with the ’Embers’.

How many Niflgaard people would survive, where they would be temporarily settled, who would cover their living expenses, to demanding reparations from the Niflgaard Empire, and how to allocate spots for the post-war negotiation team...

The aftermath of the war involved numerous details, and its handling was even more critical than the largest battle itself.

Winning without gaining anything, what sense does that make?

The various sides that expended efforts and funds in the war would be explosive as a result!

Yet all these complex but necessary matters paled in comparison to the position they found themselves in now, along with the implications behind it.

Lann’s role in the war wasn’t entirely clear from the Northern Alliance Army’s perspective.

But as the Niflgaard Army was utterly defeated in the battle, their crucial documents and intelligence were swiftly compiled by the command level.

Under the pointed emphasis from the two king commanders, the elite scribes and officials from various northern nations performed at their utmost capacity.

And their most important, top-priority objective was singular—figuring out what the Demon Hunter had accomplished in the war, and to what extent.

The intelligence gathered from both sides of the war couldn’t fully depict the entire event but was pretty close.

However, this near-complete picture resulted in... these clerks and officials responsible for doc filing and intelligence handling, hesitating notably when presenting their compiled intel to the kings.

Because they felt like they were handing over a novel.

One man wiping out the elite forces of a mixed battalion; leading 60 cavalry to appear in over a dozen collapsing strongholds within an hour; the last sighting at the enemy command center, after which no further orders came from it; everyone witnessed the final phase at Mushroom Mountain...

This situation, not to mention seeing it, they hadn’t even heard of it before!

Both kings had a stronger grasp of the situation than the clerks and officials.

But in their hearts, they were equally numb.

Being fully involved in the command lines against Meno Kuhorn, they felt the depth of the situation, expressing sentiments not unlike Meno Kuhorn’s.

Meno Kuhorn used the new communication system to meticulously take them on, while Lann led a lone force, fiercely hacking through all of Niflgaard’s defenses and fog, directly obliterating the command center!

Indeed...

Vizimir and Veltrest couldn’t help but think upon reviewing the intel.

This record indeed seemed too flamboyant even for a storybook. On stage, it’d be labeled as child’s play and met with rotten eggs.

But... it was true.

Vizimir and Veltrest, as recipients of the battlefield’s most intensive information, found themselves compelled to believe: all these war achievements were real!

A battle involving a total of 110,000 troops on both sides, with an estimated 40,000 casualties, spanning several dozen square kilometers of Upper Sodden—a mega-battle unprecedented in human history in this world—

Had been single-handedly turned around by a Demon Hunter!

Both kings, exchanging glances, felt as though they were in a dream.

One individual influencing... no, deciding the outcome of a war!

Never had they seen such a person, even Alzur in Maribo, unleashing [Alzur’s Double-Cross], summoning massive Saliva Demons, further destroying half the city, and the armies therein fighting over the city.

But that was merely a succession war involving a number no more than twenty to thirty thousand.

And for Veltrest, who had interacted and even had a pleasant conversation with Lann, his feelings were more complex.

Previously, when Lann rushed into the manor, breaking through defenses and killing Duke Steza,

Veltrest had already known this person was a terrifyingly sharp sword.

This Demon Hunter possessed discipline and morality far above average, but if exploited by the cunning, he might become a factor in political struggles, destabilizing governance.

But now... Veltrest, truthfully, wasn’t too worried about that anymore.

Because evidently, with abilities and feats like Lann’s, if someone really managed to exploit him, then his actions wouldn’t merely ’disrupt political rules’, rather...

His every move would pose a threat to a nation’s existential integrity!

They thought it was a dagger capable of stabbing, only to discover it was a sword that could bring down the whole house with a swing!

Just like the Demon Sword the Demon Hunter wielded on the battlefield!

Veltrest shook his head as though waking from a daze.

... It’s like an ancient hero from a myth awakened in modern times... it’s too absurd!

Rumor has it now that many Niflgaard people, upon seeing the black sword and hearing the bell toll, would uncontrollably crouch down with their heads held.

This was one of the survival tactics soldiers discovered amidst the sweep of [Turbulence].

”It’s said that this honorable gentleman is quite close to Airetusa Academy?”

Vizimir, while walking, whispered to Veltrest.

The old man’s particular decayed scent couldn’t be masked even by the battlefield’s stench of blood, but Veltrest had long learned to control his expression, thus everything was usual.

”Yes, old friend. If you haven’t missed the intel I shared with you, you should know of my court advisor, as well as the current Headmistress of Airetusa’s involvement with this gentleman.”

”Ah, an affair, I see. Young minds are never far from the tender skin and, ahem, plump chests of women. It seems this gentleman is no exception, but... according to the latest intel, it seems our former headmistress also has some... you understand?”

Vizimir chuckled, exchanging a knowing look with Veltrest that all men understood.

However, Veltrest did not feel particularly warm inside.

This old geezer is probing just how close my ties with Lann are. He wouldn’t ask again about something already on record unless he’s testing my reaction.

Veltrest didn’t believe for a moment that Vizimir, this old fox, would have missed even a comma when reading the intel regarding the Demon Hunter.