Bear School Astartes

Triss’s high fever lasted through the night, followed by a low fever for another day.

Lann has been taking care of her, which is already good news. After all, if a burn of this severity occurs without medical assistance, the initial high fever should last until the person dies.

Lann’s antimicrobial gel effectively shielded the patient from external pathogens.

It can be said that in Mentos’ grading, the ’Human Union Ministry of Education’s middle-level’ biological knowledge was indeed very useful.

Nonetheless, they still had to race against time to reach Airetusa.

Because human skin is the largest organ in the body, when more than half of this organ is burned and fails, countless complications will occur, even without bacterial infection.

Moreover, Lann could feel that his next journey was getting closer.

On the third day after Triss brought Lann from the battlefield to Maribo, although she was still feverish, she was already confident enough to open the portal to Airetusa.

”Uh... You’re sure this portal won’t disappear halfway as we cross, right?”

Lann held Triss’s naked body except for the bandages and licked his lips as he spoke.

”Don’t joke at a time like this; I’m already very exhausted!”

Triss reached out toward the portal, impatiently urging Lann to stop distracting her.

It turned out that Lann’s considerate actions that night were correct.

Triss wasn’t easily knocked down; she just needed support.

She was burned all over her body; according to her own words, she ’looked no better than the Swamp Witch.’

Even though Lann promised several times that Airetusa’s technology would make her look as if nothing happened.

Sudden disfigurement combined with the torment of a high fever from infection made her more vulnerable than usual.

But ultimately, she was still that ”Fearless Merigold.”

After entering a state of low fever, her mood stabilized greatly.

”Let’s go then.”

Lann shrugged and stepped into the portal.

When the nauseating feeling surged from his mind again, Lann’s boots had already touched the land of Gos Velen.

Airetusa Academy has an array that blocks teleportation; the city’s closest landing point is usual.

The people of Gos Velen were as usual, although amazed by the appearance of the portal, they were not panicked, showing a far above average level of magic awareness.

”Need a carriage, sir?”

The carriage driver on the roadside warmly greeted; everyone here knows that mages who can open portals are very wealthy.

However, as he approached, he felt the unusual pressure of Lann’s stature.

”No, sir. Your carriage probably can’t accommodate me, nor can it be faster than me.”

Lann politely bowed with a smile, then ran toward the bridge connecting Airetusa to the city, carrying Triss’s body that felt worse due to spellcasting.

Indeed, as he said, a body that can surpass both endurance and maximum speed over a warhorse is much faster than a tug horse.

Upon reaching the bridge to the academy, the Roaring Bear Head Pendant on Lann’s neck suddenly moved more intensely.

It had been shaking constantly because of its proximity to Triss, and now it was like it wanted to jump off his neck.

”Lann? Is it you? Wait... Triss too!?”

The telepathic voice went straight to his mind.

”Hold on, I’m coming down right away.”

This voice was Margaret, but this poised and self-assured tone was undoubtedly different from the female warlock that Lann was so familiar with.

The academy’s thick and elaborately carved doors creaked open.

Margaret crossed her hands over her abdomen, walking over hurriedly but still maintaining decorum.

Seeing this posture, although Lann hadn’t activated ”psychic vision,” he could be certain—

’Margaret’ was Tishaya.

She slightly lifted her hand, and Triss floated away from Lann’s arms.

The tingling sensation born from magical stimulation disappeared from Triss’s body.

Her instincts made her limbs linger; only when Tishaya completely moved her away from Lann did her fingers leave the Demon Hunter’s neck.

Tishaya waved her hand, and Triss floated behind her as she walked, while Lann walked beside Tishaya.

”The news I got was already shocking enough, but since it’s about you, my endurance level is quite high. But I didn’t expect... Triss is still alive!”

”But the situation isn’t optimistic.”

Lann smoothly kept up with Tishaya’s rhythm; perhaps the two’s pursuit of order and logic in actions and speech made Lann always feel very efficient when with Tishaya.

There was a refreshing feeling of being unbeatable while doing homework.

He concisely introduced Triss’s condition.

”Most of the skin is burned, requiring a skin graft surgery. But fortunately, the time hasn’t been long, so the complications aren’t apparent yet.”

”The burn area is quite large... What about the external pathogen infection?”

”I’ve done antimicrobial treatment, so although she’s still feverish, I can be sure that the pathogenic bacteria are not complex. This won’t be a difficulty in the treatment process.”

”Understood,” Tishaya said, pressing one side of her temple with her finger as if telepathically notifying someone else.

Soon, she turned her head.

”The crystal cultivation is about to begin; skin is the first tissue we completed in our technical development, it is estimated to cultivate enough area for Triss’s surgery in half an hour.”

”Who’s performing the surgery?”

”Matty Sodergren, you haven’t met her yet, but she’s a female warlock specializing in medicine, operating a clinic in Gos Velen, close by. Her involvement in the crystal cultivation project ensures confidence in the technology.”

”You said ’technologically’?”

Tishaya paused her steps and turned to calmly look up at Lann.

”Personality-wise, she’s a stereotypical female warlock—lavish, lecherous, playful. But she’s not bad; if she sees you... hmm, I’m sure she’d immediately fall weak needing to lie in bed, rather than stand beside the surgical table.”

Lann’s lip twitched, making a ’tsk’ sound.

”You mean I need to avoid her?”

Before Tishaya could speak, Triss floating behind spoke angrily out loud.

”Then hurry up, charmer! Don’t let Matty that green pool see you! She’ll eat you alive!”

Lann glanced at Triss behind him: ”Alright, you both are familiar.”

Tishaya’s calm gaze first looked at Triss, then turned to Lann, seeming a bit subtle.

”Actually, I don’t need to be here either; this surgery is urgent but isn’t difficult. Now, sleep, Triss. When you wake up, your body will be as beautiful as before.”

Triss didn’t reject Tishaya’s sleeping spell; thus, even though she had recovered quite a bit of Magic Power, she soon fell asleep.

Philixia Koli, the intern doing miscellaneous tasks in the crystal cultivation project, took over the Floating Spell.

She quietly waved to Lann then led Triss toward the academy’s operating room.

”Come with me.”

Tishaya seemed to have already prepared a schedule, calmly speaking to Lann.

”What you left for Rita to study before you left us apart reached some progress, I think you could use it. After all, you’re about to ’disappear’ again, aren’t you?”

Upon hearing this, Lann raised his eyebrows, a bit surprised yet pleasantly.

”Wait, how do you know I’m supposed to leave?”

Tishaya, with Margaret’s face, yet with her own signature calmness marked by self-assurance and self-pride.

”I said, we discovered something. Though not deeply, but now we can vaguely observe the tides of Chaos Magic Power.”

”At the same time, we finally proved that your ’lady’ wasn’t deceiving or using you. Rita always worried about this.”