Bear School Astartes

Chapter 839: Chapter 822: Farewell, Phoebe

The silent footsteps moved along the eaves of Pericles’ mansion’s courtyard.

Though Pericles’ mansion, due to his political identity, didn’t match the luxury level his wealth could afford.

It was still considered a rather fine mansion in Athens.

In the open courtyard, colorful pebbles were tightly laid into regular patterns, followed by the application of white sand to fill the seams and absorb water.

The tiles on the house were beautifully orange-red and all neatly stacked together.

Just to maintain the daily dignity of this mansion, Pericles’ household employed quite a few slaves.

And the figure on the eaves, with a pair of leather sandals stepping on it, made no sound at all.

It wasn’t until the figure on the eaves got close to Lann and Cassandra, who were already standing in the courtyard, that it suddenly leaped, with hands outstretched towards them!

The footsteps were silent, and even during the diving motion, there was only a slight rustling of the clothes in the wind.

The positioning of both hands was also just right, aimed at the neck and the back of the head.

To be able to aim the hands at the target during a moving jump requires diligent practice.

And all these combined are enough to instantly disable, or incapacitate two strong men.

Unless one owns a particularly functional divine artifact, it’s basically inescapable.

Because assassinations in the dark always target at the gaps in defenses, aiming for weaknesses.

Success or failure mainly depends on whether the targeted individuals react in time, not much on their defenses.

But now, the two people being ’assassinated’ reacted extraordinarily quickly.

Lann and Cassandra almost simultaneously reached out their hands behind them.

Though the two had a significant height difference, they both aimed for the neck of that figure.

During a diving fall, if the neck is suddenly stopped, the impact and inertia can easily fracture the cervical spine.

However, both reaching back seemed to notice something and simultaneously moved their hands away.

Lann’s hand moved down, and Cassandra’s hand moved up, then...

”Ah ah ah~”

In a panicked cry, Lann grabbed the attacker’s left calf and lifted them up, while Cassandra grabbed the right forearm and pulled.

The attacker was like a prey hanging fixed diagonally on a display stand, dangling into the hands of Lann and Cassandra.

”Before making a move, you must clearly see the gap between the enemy and yourself...”

Lann looked down at the assailant still struggling in his hand, his tone a bit helpless.

”I remember always emphasizing this to you, Phoebe. Always. But you seem to always forget.”

”Of course, she forgets because the good life in Athens has dulled her vigilance and sense of crisis, right?”

Cassandra chimed in from the side, speaking in a teasing tone.

Phoebe, the little girl Cassandra adopted on Kefalonia Island, who later came to Athens with Lann.

Compared to a year and a half ago, Phoebe had changed quite a bit.

She appeared taller, with muscles starting to outline under her skin, and her robust physique showed she was well-nourished.

As for clothing, she now wore a white linen short skirt, with sea-blue shorts underneath. The blue-white color scheme made her very much like a genuine Athenian.

She had brass decorations on her leather belt, and an armlet for decoration on her arm.

In this early civilized era, such embellishments were the privilege of those who had moved beyond daily survival, to consider adornments at leisure.

Yet, the abundant Mediterranean sun, along with her active nature, still left Phoebe’s skin with a healthy tan.

”Hey, Lann! Cassandra!”

The little girl caught by her leg and arm was smiling awkwardly at the two of them.

And she kept twisting around.

”Could you, could you let me down first? There are so many people watching!”

Lann and Cassandra raised their eyebrows and released their grip simultaneously.

With the sound of flapping clothes, Phoebe dropped from mid-air with a smooth somersault, finally landing on her feet.

”Nice skills, Phoebe.”

Cassandra, arms akimbo, joked as she looked at the little girl.

Meanwhile, Phoebe tidied her messy clothing slightly and spoke proudly.

”I haven’t had a single day of idleness; I’m even busier than you were in Cephalonia.”

After speaking, she also crossed her arms and looked at Cassandra.

The two looked at each other, and finally seemed to not hold back.

With a ”pfft,” they both laughed, then walked towards each other, giving each other a big hug.

”Ah~ It’s so nice to see you, Cassandra.”

”I feel the same, Phoebe.”

”Oh, and you too, Lann!”

The Demon Hunter bent down, allowing Phoebe to hug him without wrapping around his waist, jokingly.

”I’m really glad you didn’t forget me while greeting.”

After Lann and Phoebe separated from the hug, the little girl looked earnestly at Lann.

”Was my move just now... really that bad?”

Her expression was a bit apprehensive, as if she worried about disappointing Lann.

But the Demon Hunter shook his head with a smile.

”It’s not your fault. You’ve done really well with the Light Body Breathing Technique and the Sneak Step, I’m quite surprised by your talent. It’s just your reaction speed is still a bit behind us, so it didn’t work.”

Phoebe pouted a bit disappointedly, and seeing this, Lann patted her on the head.

”Don’t be discouraged. Having a lack of basic quality doesn’t mean it’s hopeless; I can teach you some new things later, really useful stuff.”

Saying that, Lann playfully threw a punch in front of Phoebe, and although it was just a playful punch, it stirred up a gust of air.

This is the air hammer technique from Immortal Peak Temple’s martial arts.

Phoebe let out a happy ”aha” and jumped a little.

But then, she patted her cheeks, making her expression deliberately serious.

”Ahem, but you two coming to Athens now must not be just to see me, right?”

Phoebe nodded seriously.

”You must have more significant duties to complete!”

While speaking, the little girl gestured dramatically towards the distant horizon, like performing in an opera.

Clearly implying something.

Lann and Cassandra seemed accustomed to the little girl’s ’superstitious’ antics.

The two of them honestly spoke.

”I found clues about my mom on the Pirate Islands and came over to ask the informed.”

”I’m simply here to ask Cassandra for a favor.”

But Phoebe wasn’t fazed by this and had seemingly completed a self-convincing cycle in her mind.

”It’s okay, that’s how it is.” The little girl nodded confidently.

”The gods always give heroes and demigods small tasks and goals first, ultimately leading to great trials and arduous journeys! It’s definitely like this, I’ve seen it clearly! No one understands better than me, I often go to Parthenon Temple to listen to stories!”