Bear School Astartes

Chapter 430. Magic?

The footsteps were incredibly fast, leaving Kohen and Ged unable to spare any attention amidst their heightened alertness.

But the monsters reacted instead.

The water ghosts and sinful ghosts temporarily refrained from attacking each other.

They surrounded Kohen and Ged in a formation, as if monitoring prey.

Meanwhile, those lurking on the outskirts chose to face the heavy footsteps.

They would observe the situation and respond for their tribe.

If they could defeat it, they’d feast; if not, they’d flee.

Simple logic for simple intelligence.

However, the abnormality of those footsteps exceeded the expectations of all present life forms.

The sound of heavy pounding suddenly halted after a fierce thudding!

The monstrous creatures stood dumbfounded, while in the eyes of the two demon hunters, they saw only a shadow in a semi-crouched posture.

Then... the airflow began to flow abnormally!

Just watching felt sharp, as silvery light flashed and disappeared.

The blade slicing through the air was effortlessly smooth, even without creating more whooshing sounds.

It left a conspicuous milky white air line midair.

The two nearest water ghosts hadn’t been touched by the silvery blade, yet suddenly their chests burst open with a gash.

Blood sprayed out as if siphoned by the rapidly flowing air.

Enough to make the demon hunters wonder if it was magic.

Next, the blade of air became even more ’magical’.

In front of the air trace left by the blade, a horizontal, transparent Qi Blade spontaneously condensed!

The high-density air even caused the vaguely shining firelight to refract like a water surface!

Only now did most of the monsters seem to react.

They shrieked for the blood scent of the two dead water ghosts.

But then...

"Shhhh!"

That high-density air, whose refractive index had changed due to density shifts, activated like a mower.

Instantaneously sweeping across in one stroke!

The two demon hunters instinctively felt a cutting sharpness as if their skin were about to be sliced.

Kohen didn’t even think about his sword, instantly releasing his grip to conjure a Quen Rune.

A golden magic barrier appeared.

Yet, the Qi Blade aiming to slice through limbs weakened and dissipated into chaotic airflow before it even touched the barrier.

The scene suddenly fell into eerie silence.

The monsters seemed choked, while the two demon hunters numbly retracted the Quen Rune.

"Splash~"

Fragments of limbs plopped into the swamp, echoing the sound of hitting the water.

The sound started thinly but then resounded widely.

"The effective range of Dragon Flash expanded to five meters..."

Lann released and then gripped the Lady of the Lake’s Sword again, relaxing the wrist muscles in the process.

While softly evaluating his progress, he walked toward Ged and Kohen.

"A splendid technique! Ah, this is tiresome, but it seems I have to keep telling you while by your side."

Regis emerged from the darkness on the other side of the torch, with three bodies lying at his feet.

One was a swamp witch, one a drowned ghost, and the other resembled a monster amplified from a sinful ghost.

It was a strong type among sinful ghosts, a Sinful Ghost Warrior.

These three monsters were either outside Lann’s Dragon Flash range or had already dwindled by the time the Qi Blade reached them, unable to harm them.

Regis checked for flaws and omissions.

In the hands of this higher vampire, all three monsters—capable of slaughtering an entire squad of soldiers—were brutally torn apart at the waist.

Using a ripping technique, he snapped the pliable flesh from the stoutest position at the waist... Regis’s strength must be around ten tons at least.

Two human-like figures dashed out, instantly eliminating a large batch of monsters in an incomprehensible way.

Though Ged didn’t understand, it didn’t stop him from easing his vigilance and tension, and resting his hand on his waist to catch his breath.

"Ah~ Meretelli."

The demon hunter of the Bear School wanted to lie down in the mud to rest, but the torch in his hand prevented complete relaxation.

Compared to Gryphon School’s demon hunters, they seemed to have a much more ’knightly demeanor’.

Even now, Kohen politely nodded at Lann and Regis as they approached.

"Thank you for your rescue, gentlemen. Was that some... magic to manipulate air? I’ve never seen anyone make air so sharp!"

The Gryphon School members are ’Magic Researchers’ among demon hunters, often curious about magical aspects.

"No, it wasn’t magic."

Lann replied, instinctively performing a splendid sword dance with Aron Dite and cleanly sheathing the sword.

"It’s just swordsmanship, a rather unique kind."

"Ah, whatever you say. Swordsmanship? Ha!"

Kohen sealed the bottle of the Cat Eye magic potion and put it back in his bag.

Then he sat heavily in the mud, letting out a relieved breath.

"Judging by the amount of blood, you’ve opened an artery on your waist."

Regis pulled a towel from his shoulder bag, wiped the monster blood from his hands, and then began to inspect Kohen and Ged.

After all, he’s a barber-physician.

"Oh, your blood tastes good, seems like the dirty environment and monster blood haven’t infected you."

The two demon hunters had never seen a doctor describe it this way.

Lann was witnessing Regis practicing medicine for the first time too.

"Can you tell a patient’s health condition from the taste of their blood? By scent alone?"

Lann took Ged’s torch, helping him sit too.

The padded armor was soaked with mud now, but Ged seemed unconcerned.

"Of course, it’s my secret formula, you see. I can even smell mental issues in people, but those are too complicated, I know the ailment is in the mind but simply can’t treat it."

Regis finished bandaging Kohen’s bleeding, checked Ged’s back wound, and then made an ’You understand’ glance at Lann.

The two demon hunters were still bewildered.

In their eyes, Lann, who sliced out an air blade, should be an accomplished wizard in combat.

And Regis didn’t seem far off either.

Yet, in the impression of regular demon hunters, there’s no wizard who’d kindly attend to them mutants.

Let alone crouch down to bandage them.

"Why didn’t you drink the Cat Eye first?"

Only then did the somewhat recovered duo notice Lann’s pendant and his eyes after consuming the magic potion.

"Holding a torch with one hand to enter the tomb... were you trying to limit what two hands can do in battle?"

"Uh, you, are you really a demon hunter! Bear School still?!"

Ged stammered briefly before speaking.

"My God, that truly was swordsmanship! Wow! I’ve never seen such a move, brother!"

Ged seemed far from the Bear School’s cold demeanor, even bearing some dwarf-like warmth... until he met Lann’s odd gaze, reminding him to return to the matter.

"Uh... I’m saving money to upgrade to a set like yours. I simply didn’t prepare Cat Eye."

Saving for gear is indeed a valid money-saving reason.

Lann nodded.

The calm demeanor seemed as if he was the seasoned veteran of Bear School while Ged was a rookie.

Ged’s slightly reserved tone also suggested he probably believed it too.

"What about you, Gryphon? You brought Cat Eye, but why didn’t you drink it immediately? With normal vision, either of you could have wiped out these creatures, rather than ending up in this sorry state."

Kohen from Gryphon School first winced in pain from Regis’s treatment before catching his breath and responding.

"Information, puff, misinformation. Not just the Palace Director thinking there are demon spirits here; we aren’t foolish enough to entirely trust the employer’s description. But I... I surveyed the site and confirmed it was demon spirits. I saw no trace of other monsters at the crime scene! Just thinking we’d only face demon spirits, I didn’t drink Cat Eye, since those demon spirits illuminate themselves."