Bear School Astartes

Although they didn’t travel with Maria and Lann, Mark and Henrik continued supporting each other as they advanced towards the upper levels of Yan’an.

However, the scene they expected, where "everyone would run towards the higher Church Town," was not what they encountered.

The road to Church Town was eerily quiet.

Flames were burning, buildings were collapsing, and the air was thick with a suffocating smoky smell and... the scent of blood.

"Splash~"

Mark and Henrik were nearly in a daze as they looked down at the ripples in the water caused by their footsteps.

So much water in a city where fires were out of control should have been something to be grateful for, but the problem was... this liquid was blood!

The passage to Church Town was not yet fully repaired, with only a brick road squeezed between the mountain rocks on both sides.

And the massive amount of blood made Mark and Henrik almost mistake it for a puddle.

"What on earth is happening here..."

Beneath his mask, Henrik spoke in a moaning tone, hesitantly and softly.

What on earth happened here?!

Many corpses, most of which were the bodies of Yan’an townsfolk.

They were still wearing their everyday clothes, like overalls and dresses.

But these corpses were already in tatters, with some bearing burn marks.

The destruction on these bodies was so severe that even Henrik and Mark couldn’t tell from the wounds what had killed them, releasing such a flood of blood that accumulated here.

"Those... beasts of disaster!"

Mark muttered with trembling lips.

Besides the beasts spawned by the beastly plague, what else could have created such a bloody and bizarre scene?

Henrik and Mark dared not stay any longer to examine closely.

The night had grown too deep.

They hurried forward, finally hearing faint human voices ahead amid their heightened caution.

The sound of humans.

On this night, even two young hunters would find solace in hearing the voices of many of their kind.

And as they drew nearer and saw clearly who those people were, a sense of relief washed over them.

"Mr. Ludwig!"

Mark spoke first; although he didn’t feel exhausted, he couldn’t help but let out a deep breath.

It was a psychological relief.

Because of one person, the organizer of the Church Hunters, the glorious Ludwig.

This legendary hunter was currently standing with a group of old hunters and his church hunters, each bowing and discussing something.

Previously, Mark had met Maria, who seemed unremarkable.

Because Maria, while quite famous, was largely known for being the apprentice of the [First Hunter] Gremman.

But Ludwig, in his own right, is a legend.

Mark quickly walked towards this group of elite hunters, and Henrik jogged a few steps after him.

But after jogging a couple of steps, Henrik, who was initially following Mark, couldn’t help but pause.

His eyes, caught between his tricorn hat and mask, held a hesitantly suspicious expression as they scanned the legendary and valiantly renowned Ludwig and the hunters he led.

Ludwig’s expression was tired but persistent, giving him an air of a martyr monk from a story.

Henrik only felt that the general appraisal of this heroic hunter wasn’t wrong.

But on the other hand...

What exactly was going on with these hunters?!

Henrik’s heart suddenly tightened, the reason being clear—the malice emanating from many of the old hunters’ eyes, along with the overwhelming scent of blood that made breathing difficult!

Henrik’s steps faltered amid these unsettling signs.

Yet Mark, entirely focused on Ludwig, continued walking closer, unaware of anything amiss.

It’s understandable since it’s hard to gauge how many church hunters entered this brutal profession due to personal reverence for Ludwig.

But the ratio would surely be significant.

"We found a gruesome scene not far ahead, Ludwig!"

Usually calm to the point of being cold, Mark’s voice now carried a very evident emotion.

"Many people died there, the blood has pooled into a pond, it must have been done by some terribly vicious beasts!"

The tone carried... relief? Confidence restored by having a backbone? Joy that this could finally end?

Henrik didn’t know what emotions swirled in Mark at that moment; it was too complex.

But undoubtedly, the organizer of the Church Hunters was unable to respond to Mark’s current mood and intentions.

Ludwig slightly nodded with a tired yet persistent face.

"Yes, I am aware of the situation over there," he said calmly, "but now, Mark. I need you to administer a blood vial to your friend behind you."

If it were a day earlier, when Ludwig called out his name, the expression on Mark’s otherwise calm face would likely have immediately shown excitement and honor.

But now, he felt only astonishment.

"No..." Mark’s expression was puzzled, as if unsure if he’d misheard, "Ludwig, I just said not far ahead, there are dangerous... one or many..."

"Yes, I heard you." Ludwig interrupted Mark and pursed his lips, repeating his words, "But now I demand you to give the Hunter behind you a blood vial injection. Immediately."

Mark looked incredulously at the leader of the Church Hunters to which he belonged.

In the face of the confirmed knowledge that many, many people in the vicinity had been slaughtered by beasts, the illustrious Ludwig merely calmly demanded a Hunter to inject a blood vial in front of him?!

What on earth...

"Blood vials are precious! We don’t have many left on us! And it’s still very dangerous here!"

"Administer the shot." Faced with Mark’s argument, Ludwig simply repeated calmly, "In front of us, you will administer the shot to him."

"Then you can pass through here and proceed upward into Church Town."

Mark stood there dumbfounded, even unconsciously taking a step back.

But Henrik had already caught on.

The mask over his face fluttered slightly; it was his lips slightly moving.

"What if I don’t want to inject a blood vial?"

The young Hunter, whose gaze had moments ago held a lightness brought on by his companions, now bore none of it.

He coolly scanned the renowned Ludwig and the Hunters behind him.

"Then what will you do?"

For a moment, Henrik caught from the corner of his eye the exaggerated, almost inhuman grin spreading from under the brim of those Hunters’ hats.

It seemed they too were eagerly anticipating this question.

With a click, the sound of the Hunter’s Trumpet Gun being loaded reverberated incredibly abruptly in the heavy silence.

Mark’s body trembled at this sound, as if suddenly jolted awake from a spell of hysteria.

Only then did he notice the bloodstains all over these Hunters and Ludwig.

Their trench coats, weapons, and hats were all stained with blood, just like... that blood pool from before!

"Those people before weren’t killed by beasts... it was you who killed them."

Henrik stated plainly, as if making an observation.

At these words, Ludwig abruptly closed his eyes and took a deep and pained breath.

After a moment of silence, Ludwig spoke in a low voice.

"This is not just any beast plague, young man... this is a beast disaster."

"You’ve traveled this far, and you must have noticed the anomalies of tonight; even those who appear perfectly normal could suddenly transform into beasts in the next moment."

"At Church Town, we have taken in many people, used up all our reserves of [Blood Therapy], and ensured that each of them had an injection upon entry. For this reason, only those within Church Town are absolutely safe and pure."

Ludwig’s eyes were full of pain, but he still insisted on holding Henrik’s gaze with those pained eyes.

"Can you understand? For the sake of the assured safety of the residents, we cannot afford to let any potential danger and plague enter Church Town!"

Ludwig revealed a pocket watch in his hand.

He opened it and angled the face towards Henrik.

"The Church’s reserve of [Blood Therapy] has been exhausted. So I can only ask you to inject yourselves here to ensure your purity."

He looked at Mark briefly.

"The clergy of the Church cannot contract the beast plague, so he does not need to be tested. Plus, he is familiar with blood and can identify counterfeit and inferior blood vials from the precious ones produced by the Church."

"Have him give you the injection, in front of us."

"Time is running out. After the Church exhausted all reserves of [Blood Therapy], it also announced the final deadline for road closure."

With that, Ludwig closed the pocket watch’s lid heavily.

"You should be the last group allowed through... if you indeed still have legitimate blood vials."

Henrik and Mark both had rigid expressions at this time.

They didn’t ask what would happen if they didn’t have legitimate blood vials from the Healing Church.

The nearby blood pool had already made the intentions of these Hunters crystal clear.

They were on a combat mission, so they couldn’t surrender their blood vials.

And anyone wanting to enter Church Town who couldn’t prove purity was deemed guilty by suspicion!

Meaning... they would all be killed!

Suddenly, Henrik’s mind flashed to the burning city they had left behind and the corpses they had seen along the way.

Corpses burned by fire, killed by beasts, and... killed by men.

He tightened his grip slightly around the saw cleaver in his hand.

Yet, he was given absolutely no room to act.

Even though his instinctive movement was so subtle that even Mark beside him didn’t notice it.

But Ludwig raised his massive firearm with a click.

"Don’t be rash, young man."

Ludwig pointed the gun’s muzzle precisely at Henrik’s head, blocking every conceivable escape angle.

Despite being the one holding the gun, Ludwig’s face was heavy with pain.

He looked at Henrik, eyes full of near pleading.

"I urge you, don’t do this."

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