Bear School Astartes

Although 'abstinence' is not among the five virtues of a knight, if Lann were to hear the Lady's wild remarks, his young heart would undoubtedly skip a beat.

Even though he always knew that the Lady of the Lake was a rather down-to-earth deity, the idea of a Virtue Concept God wanting to sleep with him... was a bit beyond imagination.

Crossing through the dimensional rift, Lann originally thought it would be similar to passing through Triss's portal.

But the reality proved that the young man was still too young.

A feeling like being on a rocking car for an hour gathered in his internal organs, and he felt his esophagus was uncontrollably regurgitating.

Even with Lann's willpower and physique, he swallowed hard several times to suppress the urge to retch.

"Elia, are you okay?"

The little girl had a serious expression, just like her first time going through a portal, wanting to nonchalantly wave her hand.

But faster than her previous portal experience, this time she hadn't even fully raised her hand when her cheeks puffed up like a hamster and then...

"Waaah!!!"

"...Alright, I get it."

Lann raised his eyebrows and went over to pat the little girl's back.

While Elia was vomiting, Lann began to observe the surrounding environment.

As he had heard from the other side of the rift, it was a region full of trees and shrubs.

Judging by the humid air and the faint sound of running water, there should be a small river nearby.

At this time, it was night, with flickering firelight faintly visible in the deep forest.

Those holding torches were shouting Elia's name.

When shouting, their attitude was mostly respectful, fitting Elia's identity as the youngest daughter of a great noble.

But after those people finished shouting, Lann heard quite a few derogatory terms revolving around 'wolf'.

Wolf girl, wolf mutt, and such.

A force against the Stark Clan?

Why would Elia's family allow these people to participate in the search?

Almost instantly, a series of speculations flashed through Lann's mind.

He was no longer just a fresh-faced university student or a demon hunter; his experience investigating Count Steza's slave trading case had already made him grow significantly.

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Elia's reaction to crossing the dimensional rift had gradually calmed down, and it was at this moment that Lann slightly turned his head to look at the shrubs beside him.

Suddenly, the sound of a body rustling through grass and leaves rang out.

A gray-white shadow whistled out, its bloody mouth rushing directly towards Lann's throat!

This shadow was already a size stronger than a regular wild wolf, and its speed and ferocity far surpassed any ordinary wild wolf.

But faced with such a level of attack, having detected it in advance, Lann's expression didn't show the slightest hint of turbulence.

The hand that had been gently patting Elia's back was already extended to the anticipated position.

When the gray-white shadow pounced over, his hand just happened to seize the other's throat.

The physical struggle and lunging force were meaningless to Lann's strong arm muscles.

Without even a moment of stiffness after being hit, Lann directly slammed the gray shadow onto the ground with a "thud" while clutching its neck!

His other hand clenched into a fist, slightly raised, its glove face embedded with spiked studs, was just about to pound down.

"Sir! Wait!"

Elia saw clearly the gray shadow being pinned to the ground by Lann; it was a strong and agile wolf.

A still not fully grown Ice Wolf.

"This is Nymelia! It's my wolf!"

Lann's cat eyes met the wolf's eyes on the ground; even under such pressure, this wolf's eyes showed no hint of submission.

Its hind and front paws continued to claw forcefully at Lann's armor.

There's a stubborn strength there.

Just like Elia.

"The blood in its mouth is human blood, Elia."

Lann could tell by a light whiff, having grown familiar with this scent.

"No! It's not human blood... well, it is human blood, but it's Geoffrey's blood!"

Elia explained anxiously; she was well aware of what Lann's power represented and what Lann's attitude towards 'eating people' was.

If this punch really came down, Nymelia's head would probably become a puddle.

"I hit Geoffrey with a stick, Geoffrey chased me with a sword, and only then did Nymelia bite him! It's not its fault!"

Elia wrapped her hands around Lann's raised-arm, preventing him from striking down.

"Alright, Elia, calm it down; I need to be sure it won't bare its teeth before I let go of my hand."

The Ice Wolf indeed seemed different from ordinary wolves.

When Nymelia struggled under Lann's grip, baring its teeth and growling, but when Elia touched its head, although Lann's restraining move didn't change, it instantly turned as gentle as a domesticated puppy.

It was very intelligent; even well-trained domestic dogs would temporarily ignore their owner's comfort when enraged in crisis.

Lann slowly released the grip on the wolf's neck.

As Elia said, Nymelia neither turned to bite nor bared its teeth again.

Instead, it buried its head into Elia's embrace with a "whimper".

Elia, like a little girl playing with her pet, hugged the wolf's large head.

Lann stood aside, arms crossed, watching.

"That's great, Nymelia! You haven't run far. With Lann here, you don't have to leave me!"

But after the little girl had a moment of affection with the wolf, Lann noticed Elia's expression turned a bit bewildered.

"What's wrong?"

"No, nothing, just..." Elia moved the wolf's large head from side to side, looking closely.

Nymelia occasionally licked its nose, showing no sign of evasion.

"The blood on Nymelia's mouth looks just like the day it bit Geoffrey, but... it still feels damp to the touch? But I've been gone for a long time now?"

Elia clearly remembered the details of the day she hit Geoffrey, as she drove Nymelia away herself to avoid royal retribution.

She knew the royal family couldn't kill her, but they could certainly kill an Ice Wolf.

Memories of parting are always clear, and she remembered very well the shape of the blood on Nymelia's mouth.

"Different time flow?" Lann speculated. "After all, it crossed worlds, so it's very possible the time flow is different."

He then saw Elia looking confusedly at him, clearly not understanding the term.

And just as Lann was about to explain to her, a loud cheer came from the distant forest.

"Aha! We've caught the butcher's son!"

"Quick, quick! Hand him over to the 'Hound', let's go claim the reward!"

This time the voices were loud enough that even Elia could hear them clearly.

She immediately tightened her expression, murmuring, "It's Mika! He's been caught!"