Bear School Astartes

”You seem quite curious, old pal.”

Lann glanced sideways, noticing Belengar’s gaze irresistibly drifting towards the Kirin under him.

He was already two heads taller than Belengar, and now the Kirin stood much higher than Bopai.

Making the originally tall and muscular Demon Hunter beside him look like a dwarf circus performer riding a pony.

”Can’t help but be curious,” Belengar said straightforwardly.

On a long journey, chatting is necessary to pass the tedious time.

”Bopai’s lineage and frame are already considered quite formidable among warhorses. Where did you find this monster of a size?”

Belengar was certain that no normal horse could grow to this size, wear armor, carry a person weighing over 300 kilograms, and jump directly up from a dirt platform over a meter high.

He had already assumed that this cloth-covered ’horse’ was a beast.

What intrigued him was that he had never heard or seen such a beast.

Due to the high-risk nature of their profession, Demon Hunters naturally have a fondness for fine weapons, armor, and warhorses.

Even though Belengar had been retired for a long time, this fondness persisted.

So he was certain that if such a beast had been discovered by Demon Hunters before, even just out of interest, the Demon Hunters would have documented it.

Lann bent down and lifted the rune-cloth covering the Kirin’s side face.

Thus, the face resembling a feline appeared before Belengar.

The Kirin had been learning quickly lately; it politely turned its head to face Belengar with its front, and even slightly nodded.

Though only a corner of the rune-cloth was lifted, the Kirin’s mane, skin, and muscular contours already left a deep impression in the eyes of the knowledgeable.

”Meretelli... What a horse!”

Belengar exclaimed.

”How did you tame it?”

With a ’whoosh,’ the Kirin suddenly changed its friendly demeanor towards Belengar, snorting and turning its head away.

Lann quickly patted its neck, trying to smooth its fur.

”There’s no taming involved, the Kirin’s intelligence surpasses the average human level, we’re cooperating partners.”

”Wow...,” Belengar licked his lips, looking back at the scorched patch of ground where sparks had splashed out when the Kirin briefly got angry.

”I must be going blind, to have mistaken a ’holy spirit’ for a beast.”

Apart from other skills, Belengar was at least confident in ’knowing the times.’

”The last otherworldly experience I had was quite magical...”

On the road, Lann talked with Belengar about his experiences in the monster world.

Then, to their astonishment, they discovered that the creature Belengar saw that arrived due to the convergence of celestial spheres was likely a male fire dragon.

Hard scales, fiery red body color, flying through the sky with king-like majesty...

”So you’re saying, that dragon which spews fireballs more fierce than wizard magic is truly a naturally born species?”

Belengar’s face looked odd.

”What kind of supernatural world is that?”

”And the normal male fire dragon you encountered is merely a mid-level ecological niche in that world.”

Lann kindly reminded from the Kirin’s back, causing Belengar’s mouth to twitch more severely.

”Alright then, I have some appreciation for your rush in improving the ’Turbid Stream.’”

”Ordinary weapons aren’t meant to deal with that sort of thing.”

The two of them chatted while walking along the muddy and damp path in Velen.

Velen still presented a gloomy and desolate appearance.

Even the lush new leaves on the branches appeared an ominous dark green.

Tall trees pierced the somber sky, and crows or something fluttered about in the forest, mixed with wolf howls and stray dog screams.

Ordinary people wouldn’t survive half a day in the wild of Velen before ending up as chewed-over corpses.

But for two Demon Hunters, this was just another common scene.

They kept a steady pace together.

This speed was primarily dictated by Bopai’s stamina; otherwise, with the Kirin’s speed and endurance, even though Lann was on its back unable to use ’Flash,’ it could race ahead relentlessly.

According to Belengar, Ker Morhan is located northeast of Codwin, in the Blue Mountain, above the Gwernic River. It’s truly: the edge of the civilized world.

It was an abandoned large castle.

The reason for abandonment was the gradual trend of humans forming towns at the time, thus populations gathered towards Codwin’s existing large cities.

With the surrounding human villages no longer providing supplies and the castle no longer needing to provide protection, it gradually fell into disuse.

Then, centuries ago, came the story of Demon Hunters rebuilding this place as the headquarters of the Demon Hunter Order.

Along the way, Lann talked to Belengar about the several worlds he had experienced.

He hadn’t discussed these details with anyone before; Margaret and Tishaya would only worry more hearing these stories.

But fellow Demon Hunter Belengar could listen calmly to these past dangers.

A great confidant.

And Belengar also shared stories about Codwin and Ker Morhan with Lann.

It was somewhat strange that although the young Demon Hunter had crossed worlds multiple times through celestial sphere convergences, he hadn’t visited three of the Northern Kingdoms where he was.

”Henselt is a veritable ’Wild Boar King,’ though his dynasty was crowned with the purity of ’Unicorn’ due to bloodline and legal reasons. Can you believe it? Just because he thought a merchant made too much money in Ad Calais, he raised the exit tax specifically on the day that merchant left town!”

”In my career, I’ve encountered thief-like councilors, beggar-like councilors, princess-like prostitutes, pregnant cow-like princesses, and thief-like kings. But I must say...”

Belengar’s chuckle even made him sway on horseback.

”Such an unrefined king is truly rare in the world.”

Lann was indeed baffled that such a person could become king.

However, the young Demon Hunter looked up at the sky; though it was only around four or five in the afternoon, during summer it should have been a bright dusk.

But above them, dark and heavy clouds were already piled up. Velen’s towering trees swayed in the wind, becoming silhouettes under the clouds.

At the same time, their nostrils were filled with the earthy scent before rain.

”The wind is strong; it’s going to rain soon.”

Lann’s gaze returned from the sky, he brushed the silver hair blown into the side of his mouth by the damp breeze.

”Let’s find an inn and continue chatting.”