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TWL Chapter 257: Blood, Beasts, and Betrayal
🕑 Added 2024-11-15 02:37:20 +0000 UTCWhile all eyes were focused on King Bran and Lann, only one person looked around uneasily, standing out for her discomfort. That person was the queen, Birna.
Her son looked at his father and Lann beside him with admiration; while she herself carefully looked at the Cintra guards who followed Lann into the venue.
There were rumors circulating among the people of Skellige about the royal family. A brave king, a vain queen and a weak prince.
Her husband is indeed a hero, so Birna married him; but Birna does not admit that she is vain, she just thinks that the people of Skellige are ignorant of etiquette; she does not think her son is cowardly, her son just listens to her especially, which is good.
Her son just needed a chance to prove himself and prove that he is the ideal king. That is why Birna was determined to abolish Skellige's election system and establish a system of succession.
But now her husband is actually going to give up the throne on his own initiative, which she cannot accept.
So all those responsible for this situation, especially those Cintrians, had to disappear. And if necessary, Eist would have to disappear as well.
'Which one of them will be the assassin sent by the fallen druid Artis?' Birna mused silently. If the assassin plans to strike, this is the perfect time, now that all eyes are on the king... or perhaps the assassin is waiting for everyone to get drunk later.
With her left hand crossed over her chest and her right holding a wine cup, Birna approached her son, seeking to be with her guards. Who knows if the unsettling fallen druid might have any inappropriate thoughts; her safety and her child's are the most important things.
'Who could it be?' The queen wondered, as she looked around. 'Is it that guard in plate armor? The woman with the longbow? Or one of the soldiers behind them?'
Lost in her thoughts, Birna noticed a disturbing detail. None of these Cintra soldiers were wearing helmets.
They were few in number and, as they did not cover their faces, they surely knew each other well. They could identify any threat even if they were all fully armed. With their faces exposed, the assassin would not be able to pass unnoticed among them. So the assassin could not be one of the Cintrians.
Birna felt a metallic taste in her mouth. The deep red wine began to taste like blood, and a chill ran down her spine, shaking her from head to toe.
Among the crowd, there were some wearing helmets… and those were the guards of the Tuirseach clan.
The logic was clear. Now, in fact, was the best time for the assassin to act, because everyone's attention was focused on King Bran.
...
"Roar!!"
A bestial roar echoed through the hall, interrupting Bran's introduction and bringing Birna out of her thoughts.
It was an unmistakable sound to any Skelliger: the roar of a wild creature, one that even the best exploring parties avoided facing.
Skellige Giant Bear.
"Roar!!"
The guard behind her let out a roar and then a short gasp followed by a deathly silence.
A metallic smell enveloped Birna. Something the same color as the wine in her glass, but thicker and darker, suddenly covered her, soaking her.
Trembling, she looked down, watching the blood stain her shoes and drip down to soak the skirt of her dress.
Then a huge shadow lunged at her. Birna was paralyzed, caught in a storm of thoughts, unable to react.
"Mother!"
A young and determined voice broke into her ears, and she instantly felt a firm force pushing her out of her immobility.
He was her son, the reason she had been fighting to change Skellige's succession law. Her pride, Svanrige Tuirseach.
But Birna immediately felt the trajectory of her body in the air change abruptly, and an overwhelming force threw her with even greater force.
It was the blow of the bear, which had hit her son.
...
Birna screamed in despair as she saw the giant bear approaching, hugging Svanrige with all her might. "Get away, beast! You're just an animal! How dare you hurt my son?"
"He is the heir of the Tuirseach clan and future king of Skellige! You have no right to touch him! Get out!!"
But reality has shown that royalty means little when faced with the claws and fangs of a beast. Under the weight of the bear's powerful paw, everyone is equal.
Svanrige's left shoulder and part of his back had collapsed horribly, leaving his arm limp. He tried to pull out his dagger with his right hand, as if to push his mother away. However, his arm would not respond, and instead he began to spit blood, a clear sign that he had serious internal injuries.
If he was brought quickly to the Circle of the Druids, he might survive. But the chaos around him showed no signs of stopping; he would not have that chance.
They were in the corner of the hall, and all the other people around them were torn to pieces. The nearest guard was also twenty steps away from them and was also entangled by the giant bear that came out of nowhere.
Curiously, the person closest to Queen Birna was Lugos, who was warming up for the boxing match.
But the madman was worthy of being a madman. Even though he was only wearing light armor at this moment and the dagger on his body had been removed, he actually took out a wine bottle from somewhere and threw it out, hitting the giant bear's head accurately, and at the same time made a loud call to attract the beast's attention.
Unfortunately, this had no effect.
The giant bear was not a creature like the griffin that liked to challenge the strong meaninglessly. Their attacks were more pragmatic. Weak, defenseless prey with sweet blood were their first attack targets.
Without needing to get any closer, the bear raised its paw, ready to tear apart its next victim.
At that moment, an unexpected figure appeared.
The queen and the prince did stay away from all the armored warriors, but they ignored the other participants with swords around them.
Suddenly, a lithe, ash-haired figure leapt onto the battlefield.
With a quick roll, she approached the bear, unsheathing her Swallow rapier as she rose.
With determination, Ciri held her rapier and, remembering her training at Kaer Morhen, dodged the bear's attack with impressive agility, gliding like a swallow in the middle of the storm until she was behind the beast.
She leapt, moving gracefully, her sword flashing for an instant before it plunged into the bear's neck, blood splattering.
With a furious growl, the bear reared up on its hind legs.
There, in its neck, was embedded Ciri's rapier.
Despite the initial success, Ciri frowned in displeasure.
The giant bear's fur was too thick, and its skin was too tough. Even a giant axe could not guarantee a one-shot kill, let alone this rapier that was more ornamental than practical.
She wanted to apply the knowledge of biology she had learned at Kaer Morhen, seeking to insert the sword between the vertebrae to damage its spine. But she overestimated her own strength and underestimated the beast; not only did she not kill it, but her sword got stuck in the bear's neck.
In addition, the dress she was wearing turned out to be a hindrance.
"You were right, Lann." Ciri hissed. "This outfit isn't suitable for fighting monsters. It hinders my every move!"
The sudden wound attracted the bear's attention, and he turned toward her with a roar of anger.
"Roar!!!"
"Run, princess! Don't the people of Cintra know what fear is?!" Shouted Lugos, who was about to go truly mad.
Although he was a scoundrel, the islander's honor was in his blood; he could not bear to see the young princess, the queen, or the wounded prince die before his eyes without doing anything.
On the other hand, the bear, enraged, attacked with terrifying force.
But Ciri was unfazed, she even let out a defiant laugh.
And then, with her hands on her hips and her head held high, she yelled her ultimate move: "Lann!"
In the next instant, a golden light flashed, and a figure stood between Ciri and the bear.
There were no magical signs, nor time to draw a sword. Lann, clad only in light armor, was in the exact place to protect Ciri, and he withstood the giant bear's powerful attack without being affected at all.
