Bear School Astartes

"I have a carriage outside." Maria looked Lann up and down, nodded decisively. "We can take the carriage to the small fishing village."

And the Demon Hunter turned directly and walked toward the door.

Maria hurried to catch up but before she finally pushed the door to leave, she turned back to look at the laboratory, her expression complicated, at those patients still tied to the steel hospital beds, nearly motionless.

"Whew~"

She let out a deep breath, then as if she had resolved some determination, slammed the door hard to leave.

After leaving the laboratory, they did not pause or conceal themselves, heading straight for the door downstairs.

Time was tight now, and they both felt there was no need to hide anymore.

Thus in the research hall, many clergy going back and forth stared at them in astonishment.

Maria was supposed to have left, wasn’t she?

The clergy had seen with their own eyes the Female Hunter leave by carriage this morning, but now...

Seeming to recall something, many clergy who had been carrying materials, books, notebooks, walking lightly as if expecting something, stiffened completely at the sight of Maria’s figure.

Although they usually wore expressionless faces, this emotional fluctuation manifesting in their body movements was still too obvious.

So obvious that Lann in front sensed the discord almost instantly.

The clergy were acting strange today.

"Edd." Suddenly, Lann stopped in his tracks, thoughtfully asking Maria, "Did you see where Edd is when you snuck back?"

"What? No, I didn’t..."

The already flustered Maria responded instinctively.

But halfway through, she immediately sensed something was wrong.

She had snuck back, considering to guard against Lann, so it was reasonable not to see Edd.

But Edd often ran around the research hall eagerly helping even since coming here; how could she not have seen Edd when she came back?

Maria felt like she fell into an ice cave for a moment.

Her hairs stood on end all over her body!

She looked around the entire research hall in bewilderment.

Before coming back today, though it was eerie, the research hall’s style wasn’t much different from all of Yan’an.

Though there was a strange medicinal smell and cries of patients, Maria had always felt this was an unavoidable painful process in treating disease.

As long as you endure it, there is hope, more hopeful than those merely waiting for inevitable death from Gray Blood Disease.

To patients of this disease, sometimes feeling pain is a blessing.

But now?

The patients’ cries and screams muffled by the well-insulated walls and doors had transformed into faint, low moans echoing through the empty research hall.

Gazing again now at the entire research hall, Maria felt a chill creeping over her.

What have I... done?!

Among these patients, how many persisted through immense agony because of her encouragement and urging?

Compared to this suffering, death seemed like relief.

If curing was possible, certainly all pain would be worth it, but now...

Telling them ’live on’... was I cursing them instead?!

Renowned for her consistency and precision, the Female Hunter now felt dizzy, lifting her hand to steady her forehead under her tricorne.

Her complexion was now less akin to porcelain white, more to corpse-like pallor.

However, shortly, a large hand stretched out to press down her hand from her forehead.

While pressing Maria’s hand, Lann bypassed her, walking toward a dazed clergy.

Under the dim kerosene lamp light, Lann’s tall frame cast a heavy shadow, enveloping the entire person across.

"Edd, the Blood Saintess busying about here," Lann’s voice deep and gentle, "Where is she now?"

Despite the softness, the voice inexplicably chilled hearts.

"...No." The clergy facing Lann stammered albeit rigidly, "Hunter, y-you just need to do your work. Don’t interfere in research affairs."

Clearly intending to use the research hall’s ’rules’ to deter Lann from meddling.

But since this nightmare’s crucial information was confirmed, why would Lann care for such petty ’rules’ here?

"You just mentioned... ’research affairs’?"

Lann didn’t pick up on the clergy’s words, tilting his head slightly, asking softly.

For reasons unknown, gazing at Lann’s slight head tilt, the clergy’s unease grew.

He opened his mouth, trying to say more.

But it was unnecessary anymore.

"Boom!"

A massive shadow flew out from the wide cape, smashing horizontally onto the opponent’s head!

Lann’s clenched fist was almost as large as a human head.

The dragon scales on the gauntlet shattered his cheekbone, pushing his eyeball out of the socket, and then the jagged edge of the dragon scales tore off nearly half of his facial skin.

Immediately, the clergy who had originally stood before Lann was lifted off the ground and thrown back more than two meters, finally collapsing onto the damp stone floor.

The clergy watching nearby quickly retreated far away, while Lann paid them no mind.

Only the vertical pupils in his eyes contracted intermittently; the Demon Hunter’s senses were now open.

Even when someone walked on the damp stone floor of the research hall, no traces would typically be left.

Yet, those details unseen by ordinary people were unhidden under the Demon Hunter’s hyper senses.

He glanced at the ground twice, immediately recognizing Edd’s footprints which were lighter than those of other people in the research hall.

He directly followed the footprints.

Maria followed behind him, and as they passed by the clergy who had his half-boned face shattered and was still unconsciously clawing the wet ground with his arms.

"Puchi~"

The tip of the Long Blade [Fallen Leaf] stabbed into the clergy’s back and turned ninety degrees amid the sound of flesh being churned, then swiftly withdrew.

This action scared the clergy, prompting them to scatter in panic and run off in different directions.

Meanwhile, the Sumeru descendants guarding the stairway upstairs remained like rigid puppets, merely glancing once before ignoring what was happening.

-----------------

Edd was being tied to a chair by clergy in white robes, making her feel as though she was about to be tortured.

But she knew that was impossible.

"You don’t have to tie me so tightly." Edd said, slightly uncomfortable as she squirmed, to the white-robed clergy tightening the leather restraints.

"I will cooperate with your experiment, and I can endure pain."

"Really?" The white-robed clergy continued his task without any change in expression, "That’s hard to say, Edd. This experiment will be extremely painful."

"But to help those Gray Blood Patients," Edd, despite swallowing nervously, nonetheless regained her confidence, "I can definitely endure!"

"Endure?" Hearing something amusing, the white-robed clergy’s face showed a slight smile.

He spoke softly.

"I’m afraid you can’t endure. Even if your tolerance for pain is good, our experiment aims to exceed the limits of your endurance."

"As long as you can still bear it, I will keep increasing the intensity. Always, always... Hehe."

"Is, is that so?" Hearing this, Edd gave a slightly unsure smile but remained seated in the chair without struggling.

She just tried to calm her nervousness and fear through deep breathing.

Edd’s hands were also tied to the armrests, and the IV needle in her hand was exposed.

In the dim light, the white-robed clergy brought forth a vial of liquid so dull it was hard to discern its color, ready to administer it through the IV into Edd’s body.

"This is blood of Gray Blood Patients."

He explained to Edd with interest.

This made the Blood Saintess purse her lips, as ordinarily clergy wouldn’t speak so cordially to someone not involved in research.

She thought perhaps her enthusiasm finally gained their recognition?

Slightly relaxed, Edd asked softly.

"Will it infect me?"

"Yes, it certainly will." The white-robed clergy said while bending down to connect the IV, "But do not worry, Holy Blood can heal all ailments."

"And your body is full of this Holy Blood...It cannot hurt you...cannot hurt you."

His murmurs echoed in the room, twisting into sinister whispers.

"Yes, yes!" Edd also muttered to encourage herself, "No illness can resist the mighty [Blood Healing]!"

"You need not resist it." But the white-robed clergy wore a cold smile.

Edd didn’t understand but just felt increasingly uneasy due to this smile.

"What do you mean?"

"I say..." The vial with the Gray Blood Patient’s blood was already connected to the IV’s external interface, and the white-robed clergy’s fingers were now poised on the syringe’s plunger!

"You need not resist it, Edd. We need you to nurture it, with the endless Holy Blood within you! Let it take root in your body!"

"Listen to its growth, listen to the transcendental knowledge it reveals during its growth beyond human understanding!"

Saying this, disregarding the unfathomable yet increasingly alarmed Edd, his fingers were about to press the plunger down, injecting this blood into Edd’s body.

But at that moment, noise emerged from outside the laboratory door, growing closer!

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