Bear School Astartes-Chapter 844 - 827: Anka Cross

Lann and Cassandra left the room together.

Because they were not Athenians, this reason served as a convincing pretext to leave.

After all, Lann had already made significant contributions to this epidemic with his wisdom and knowledge.

"Every time I think I’ve become a fearless warrior, I always encounter situations that can’t be solved by sheer force alone: epidemics, conspiracies, missing family..."

Cassandra’s Amazon Warrior Boots made a crisp sound as they stepped on the marble steps of Pericles’ Mansion.

"It seems the gods like to remind me that I’m still a mortal in the human world."

Seeing that Cassandra seemed a bit downcast, Lann offered her some comfort.

"We are all mortals; we can only do what mortals can do."

The two of them gazed with mixed feelings out from the courtyard of Pericles’ Mansion towards the sky, where dust clouds covered the sunlight over Athens.

The passionate and exuberant sunlight of the Mediterranean, after passing through a layer of dust, turned into lifeless dim yellow.

The white and graceful marble statues, towering five or six meters high on the streets, also appeared gloomy under the light.

Those marble statues that had been painted looked even more somber and desolate.

"Hey! You can’t hit me, Rong Buqiu! I’ve only learned [Light Body], not how to fight!"

"Oh, sorry meow, I didn’t know!"

On the other side of the courtyard, Phoebe was ’playing chase’ with Rong Buqiu, though their agility in complex terrain surpassed that of actual cats.

In the past year and a half, Phoebe clearly hadn’t slacked off, and her talent remained evident. Even with Rong Buqiu’s light weight and double-jointed legs, it was led around by the nose.

Purely in terms of movement abilities, she was not inferior to the regular ninjas from Iwami Country, who leapt around.

But ultimately, Rong Buqiu was an Elu Cat striving toward the goal of becoming a ’Warrior,’ instinctively using the sheathed longsword to lightly poke Phoebe a few times thanks to its length advantage.

In a real battle, Phoebe would have been considered dead by now.

The melancholy of Cassandra and Lann quickly dissipated thanks to the antics of a person and a cat.

"Alright, it seems I can’t expect to get any information about my mother from Aspasia until Athens stabilizes."

Cassandra exhaled deeply, placing her hands on her hips and sighing to Lann.

"With Pericles on the brink, how can I insist she help me?"

In battle, Cassandra was aggressive and proactive, cunning yet overbearing. But when it came to friends, she still showed empathy.

Cephalonia might have been a backwater, and Marcos, who raised Cassandra, might have been unreliable, but at least the environment didn’t turn her into a typical Spartan: a cold, emotionless, classic militaristic soldier.

"I’ll have to wait for my matters, but you said you were here for my help; do tell."

Lann smiled at Cassandra while they strolled slowly through the mansion. 𝕗𝕣𝐞𝐞𝘄𝐞𝚋𝚗𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗹.𝚌𝕠𝚖

The Demon Hunter reached into his Alchemy Pouch at the back of his waist and pulled out the [Anka Cross], placing it in Cassandra’s hand.

Once the Hawk Trainer took it, the object immediately transformed from its calm state in Lann’s hands, as if suddenly charged with electricity.

The intricate reliefs and intaglios on the cross gradually glowed with a golden light.

Lann’s other hand then retrieved a preserving bottle. Floating within the preservation liquid in the bottle was a nerve bundle like a leaf and a secretion gland.

The first of the three signature surgeries unique to the Primaris Space Marines—the [Holy Chant Gland].

"This is it; do you remember when we defeated Hapalos and those monsters he created?"

Cassandra easily retrieved the memories of that time.

After all, the dark and cold-to-freezing cave, along with those half-human, half-beast monsters within, left a deep impression on the beauty nourished by the Aegean Sea.

It was the first time in her life that she witnessed ’snow.’

"You and Herodotus concluded then that those monsters were transformed by the divine artifacts made by the Egyptian gods."

"Indeed so."

Lann initially didn’t directly reveal his plan, knowing that implanting things into one’s body might seem somewhat heretical to people from Cassandra’s era.

"Try it first to see if you can apply it; I want to know what it’s truly like when used."

Cassandra shrugged indifferently.

It seemed that due to the transmission and infusion of energy, the golden light from the Anka Cross traveled up Cassandra’s arm, ultimately radiating in her eyes.

It was as if she donned a divinity beyond human.

Cassandra, with her eyes full of golden light, looked around, then walked to the side of a column in the mansion.

Around the periphery of the columns at Pericles’ Mansion were knee-high clay pots filled with moist soil and vibrant flower branches.

Typically, a pair of flower branches occupied a pot: one with light purple blossoms paired with another with peach-colored flowers.

Cassandra held the Anka Cross in one hand and raised it toward the flowerpot.

Then a gentle golden light emanated from her raised hand, enveloping the pot.

It lasted only briefly, and after the golden light faded, a peculiar sight appeared within the pot.

Without any trace of fusion, the upper segment of the light purple flower branch naturally merged with the upper segment of the peach flower branch.

Aside from the differing bloom colors, there was no human sign at the junction.

Cassandra lowered her arm, and the golden light on her body and in her eyes instantly retreated to the Anka Cross, transforming her from a state of energetic zeal to panting heavily with hands on knees.

She was surprised at how quickly she became exhausted.

Lann walked to the flowerpot by the column and plucked the two branches that exchanged positions for closer scrutiny at the broken ends.

"Fibers, veins, tracheal passages... all seamlessly integrated, sir."

Mentos assessed this ’ultra-technological surgery’ in Lann’s mind.

"Given Miss Cassandra’s level of knowledge, I presume she doesn’t possess any awareness of these plant organs. What has made everything appear so natural and perfect could only be..."

"Only the Anka Cross itself."

Before Mentos could finish speaking, Lann had already murmured while gazing at the broken end of the branch in his hand.

"An intelligent surgical device from the First Civilization... with such a high level of intelligence!"

Cassandra, like Hapalos, lacked awareness of animal physiology and plant organs, yet the Anka Cross still enabled them to seamlessly connect the body parts they wished to modify or attach.

And this was the key that allowed Lann to proceed with the surgery confidently.