MTL - Astartes of the Bear School

Chapter 899 881. Bridge into the city (3000)

 The bridge entering the city of Lothric is the same width throughout.

It is a stone and brick bridge that can accommodate ten horses walking side by side at the same time.

Start from the gate of Lothric City, end at the gate of the Undead Settlement, and pass by Farlan Fortress in mid-air.

 This bridge can almost be called the most important "highway" in this area.

Hence, Lan can also see that Lothric's protective measures for this bridge are outstanding.

 At every section, the bridge will build a small gatehouse on the bridge deck.

Just like the city gates, if you want to rush straight to Lothric from the bridge with violence, then these small gatehouses will probably directly assume similar responsibilities as the city gates at the appropriate time.

  Separate the invaders in sections and consume their vitality.

From the moment Lan En led Qilin out of the gate of the Undead Settlement, he saw a giant creature on the bridge in the distance.

Even though their bodies were already so weak, they still used iron chains to tie a large shield-like stone turtle shell to their backs.

These people came from the south and wanted to use their own penance to admonish Prince Lothric face to face, hoping that he would devote himself to spreading the fire.

 It was a gray-white creature with the texture of a stone.

According to the Sun Knight, their latest group of people had to cross the bridge half an hour earlier than Lan En.

The ‘others’ here are the ‘Pilgrims’ mentioned by the Sun Knight just now.

The height is about the same as that of a giant slave, but the heaviness is even better.

Lann walked towards Lothrik's direction with the others.

The black cloth wrapped around the body extends to the head, only revealing a dark hole on the face, making it difficult for people to see the face in the hole.

 The most eye-catching thing is the stone turtle shells on their backs.

Suffering unspeakable pain and despair, but still moving forward, maybe this is the original meaning of "Pilgrimage"?

 Use your own pain to show piety, and then keep moving towards the holy place, longing for mercy.

But because their progress was too difficult, even the demon hunters could see that many pilgrims simply fell to the ground after taking a few steps, unable and unable to stand up, and died on the spot.

That turtle shell still looks like a solid guy!

Lan doesn’t understand this kind of thinking, but he won’t interfere.

This caused the pilgrims to stagger and even be unable to stand on their own. Everyone had to hold on to a long crutch with an incense burner hanging on it to move forward.

There were a large number of pilgrims, and they headed towards Lothric long before Lann.

Everyone unconsciously let out gasps and low moans of death.

  A huge and powerful demon-like body, with a pair of small wings that are disproportionate to the body on its back, and in its hand is a giant hammer that seems to be directly polished from stone.

 So Lan En had already entered the advancing group of pilgrims within a few steps.

Is that some kind of local creature, or is it a product of Lothric's magical technology?

Lann didn’t know, but now he just wanted to cross the bridge quickly and safely and reach Lothric. Therefore, he didn't want to offend this fierce-looking bridge guard at all.

 In fact, Lan wasn’t even sure whether these guys were ‘human’.

Their whole bodies were wrapped in entangled black cloth, wrapped around their bodies in circles, and the occasionally exposed calves and arms were as skinny as old branches.

This painful, desperate but extremely persistent progress carries with it a sense of quiet shock and fear.

Walking among them, Lan En could still maintain his expression.

However, Qilin is always startled to avoid the pilgrims on the way forward, and the flannel ball on its back is also nervously looking around and fidgeting.

Both of them are warriors who can calmly deal with dangerous situations in battle, but among a group of pilgrims who look weak to death, this unusually heavy atmosphere can make them feel that something is wrong.

There are whispers of death everywhere, and even the smell of death in the tomb is no stronger than among the crowds of pilgrims.

 The suffering of these people would make even a bystander feel that they would be more comfortable alive than dead.

Lan En held Qilin's hand and subconsciously wanted to pass through this group of people who made them feel uncomfortable.

Seeing others harm yourself is a psychological harm even to bystanders.

Although Lan En's figure was already very prominent among the pilgrims, because he didn't know Lothric's rules, Lan En did not ride on the back of the unicorn to make himself more conspicuous.

 What if people are not allowed to ride horses on the bridge?

 So the witcher just held the Qilin and walked forward quickly.

There are many pilgrims, and there are groups advancing on almost every section of this giant bridge.

 After walking for a while, Lan finally came to the 'bridge guard'.

 This is a living creature, not some magical construct.

When Lan En passed by it, he could detect the creature's breathing and internal muscle activity through his sensitive senses.

Having been standing far away just now, Lan En discovered that this demon-like creature not only felt a bit like a rock, but also had plant root-like things growing out of it, making it difficult to tell what it was.

But one thing is certain: this guy is indeed a well-behaved 'bridge guard'.

Walking around here is just for defensive purposes and poses no threat to pedestrians on the bridge. Lan En walked past this creature. Even if its huge body was not very fast, it could still make a heavy sound.

And every time those strong, recurved legs hit the ground, their footsteps would cause a tremor on the nearby bridge deck.

The solid and thick stone bricks made a slight clanking sound at the joints.

 The huge weight is evident.

This huge and heavy creature mainly paces and guards based on a small gatehouse.

And when Lan followed the bustling pilgrims through the lower door of the small gatehouse, the outline of the majestic city of Lothric in the distance had also been revealed.

 “It seems like there’s nothing unexpected, I’ll be here soon.”

Lan En looked at the huge mountain city in the distance that occupied almost half of the mountain range, and whispered to Qilin and Velvet Ball.

 The more something is missing, the more emphasis is placed on it.

Lan En said, "Nothing unexpected," but in fact, he felt something strange in his heart.

Maybe it was the desperate and stubborn atmosphere of the pilgrims, or maybe it was the heavy footsteps and trembling of the huge creature behind.

 In short, he felt something was wrong, but he couldn't tell what was going on.

 “Hush the fan~”

 Strong winds and the sound of broad wings swaying in the air came from the sky.

Lan En raised his head calmly, and then frowned unconsciously.

 The dragon knights of Lothric are here.

—

Lothric is the kingdom of fire that is at the top of the world. Its sphere of influence extends to every corner of this apocalypse of fire, including the deep church, the undead settlement, and the Fortress of France, which I have only heard of but haven’t been to yet.

 Every place Lann came into contact with and heard about after coming to this world seemed to have traces of Lothric's involvement.

 But this was the first time Lan En saw the direct power of Lothric.

It is rumored that Lothric was originally a kingdom of dragon hunters, which is consistent with the plan of action of the gods to exterminate the ancient dragons at the beginning of the Age of Fire.

 But later, Lothric knights began to fight alongside dragons.

Even Lothrik’s national heraldry sequence has a pattern like the double dragon flag.

How this 180-degree change was caused, Lan En didn't know.

The history of the royal family of Lothric stretches for tens of thousands of years. There are probably very few historians in the world who can figure out the secrets and the whole story of this country's history, let alone Lan En, a foreigner.

But Lan En is certain that the "dragons" that the Lothric knights call "along with dragons" are just a group of descendants, flying dragons, who have inherited the thin bloodline of the ancient dragons.

 The ancient dragons in this world also have a standard multi-limb skeleton with four legs and two wings.

And according to the description of the books in the deep church, they are more like inorganic life like stones, so they can be eternal.

 They lived before the Age of Fire, so they did not have the concept of "soul" that appeared with the first fire.

 The huge flying dragon now has two feet and two wings, and its eyes reveal agility and ferocity.

 This shows that it has thin blood and already has a soul.

At this point in time when even the Age of Fire is about to pass, the creatures of the previous era are already out-and-out legends.

The flying dragon in the sky carries the Knights of Lothric, circling along the bridge in the sky.

At the same time, it seemed that some kind of amplification method was used to shout down.

“There are enough pilgrims entering the city today.”

As always, the knights' voices sounded loud and clear when wearing helmets.

 As for the Lothric knight, this voice naturally carries an unquestionable tone.

“All pilgrims stop and wait for their quota tomorrow.”

  Lothric is at the top of the world, and the knights of Lothric are invincible. This is something they have been accustomed to for thousands of years.

So it’s not surprising even if the bridge is now filled with pilgrims, and these pilgrims look like they will die on the spot the next second.

Lothric knights can still order them in a matter-of-fact tone: wait here for a day and see if you have a share of tomorrow's quota.

 It is enough for you to be grateful for the opportunity to set foot in this holy city that is responsible for the fire-passing ceremony.

The "bloody eclipse" in the sky has been going on for a long time, and no one can tell which day is which.

 The blurred sense of time can give people a deeper despair.

 “Click”.

The flying dragon flew back and forth on the bridge several times and finally landed on a small gatehouse not far from the 'Bridge Guard'.

The flying dragon's claws clasped the observation tower on the gatehouse.

The whole dragon is lying on it, its long neck stretched downward, and its mouth is making a "gurgling" sound from its throat, with flames escaping from the gaps in its teeth.

 (End of this chapter)