Chapter 340: 340.Gascogne
After Lann followed Henrik through the winding streets and alleys of Yan’an for a long time, along the way the Old Hunter dispatched many beast patients, they arrived at a cemetery built in the backyard of a small chapel.
This small chapel is called Oton Chapel.
Though it is called a ’chapel,’ it is oddly devoid of any statues or symbolic items dedicated to a deity.
It is unknown whether this ’Oton’ is the god worshiped by the Healing Church.
Lann didn’t ask much, nor did he intend to speculate recklessly.
Healing Church, chapel... The city is filled with a strong religious atmosphere.
According to Henrik, the entire city was established by the Healing Church and remains under its management to this day.
No mayor, no city hall, no city guard...
This situation made Lann feel very unfamiliar. He knew the concept of a ’theocratic state,’ but he had never encountered it before.
Not in his homeland world.
In the Magic World, even the most fervent Eternal Flame Faction had to negotiate affairs with secular individuals who held power and strength.
It is a completely different concept from the Healing Church’s rule in Yan’an.
"Henrik, it’s rare for you to be late once."
Among the messily arranged tombstones in the cemetery, a tall man was hefting a long-handled battle axe.
This weapon, suitable for slashing, was brought down just in time to smash a beast patient’s shoulder along with its arm.
Then with a ’crack,’ the long handle contracted, and the axe transformed into a hand axe suitable for one-handed use. The man stepped forward and chopped off the still-struggling beast patient’s head.
The Oton Chapel is situated higher than the cemetery, connected by a staircase four or five meters tall.
Henrik was leading Lann down those steps.
The man handling the beast patient’s corpse paused his actions.
"Henrik, you brought a new friend?"
When Lann walked up to this man, he realized that the man’s eyes were wrapped with a band of gauze, unable to see anything.
"This is Lann, a foreigner I encountered on the road. He was too unfortunate to arrive in Yan’an on this night, so I could only take him along for a while. This is Gascogne."
The first part of the sentence was to introduce Lann to the man, and the latter part was to introduce the man to Lann.
Gascogne’s voice was deep and hoarse, sounding very oppressive. But contrary to the tone, when he spoke, he was someone who conveyed a gentle feeling.
"Sniff—indeed, it’s the scent of a true foreigner." He slightly sniffed, then extended his hand proactively to Lann.
"Just like me back in the day. It must be tough arriving in Yan’an, right? Especially at this time... Don’t worry, you seem skilled enough. As long as you follow us and don’t wander around, the hunt night isn’t that hard to endure."
Gascogne wore a tight-fitting suit jacket for ease of movement, suit pants, and leather shoes on the lower body. The silhouette instantly revealed his robust and competent form.
To block the stench of blood, his outer garment was different from Henrik’s Hunter’s Coat; it was a black robe similar to a doctor’s outfit, with a thick shawl.
A scarf embroidered with gold was around his neck, and the embroidery on the scarf seemed familiar to Lann.
While the two were shaking hands, Mentos accessed the database and provided memory support to Lann.
"Your attire... Gascogne, are you a priest of the Healing Church?"
After Lann spoke, both Henrik and Gascogne paused for a moment, then shook their heads simultaneously.
"I was a priest, once..." Gascogne said with a hint of nostalgia, "But you got it wrong; there isn’t such a role as priest in the Healing Church."
After speaking, he curiously asked Lann why he guessed so.
"Your attire is reminiscent of clerical attire elsewhere, and the pattern on your scarf—I’ve seen plenty of it carved on street corners, door walls, within the short period after arriving in Yan’an—it should be the Healing Church’s emblem?"
Lann explained candidly.
With his eyes covered, Gascogne chuckled: "Yan’an cured my illness, ever since I stayed, I ceased being a priest. As for this scarf? It’s a gift from Viola, she’s a devotee of the Healing Church."
Beside him, Henrik chimed in to clarify relationships for Lann: "Viola is Gascogne’s wife, a local in Yan’an."
"Alright, introductions are over; during hunt night, gentlemen, we have work to do. Let’s set off."
Since joining up with Gascogne, Lann felt Henrik’s mood had noticeably lightened.
This was not a change one would expect from just a ’collaborator.’ Their relationship must be strong.
The Old Hunter adjusted the triangular hat on his head, and Gascogne also donned a round wide-brimmed hat.
In this era, it seems as if not wearing a proper hat was considered ungentlemanly.
Even when Hunters are engaged in the bloody, fierce hunt night, they still wear their hats proudly.
Of course, for ’antiques’ like Lann, who still dressed in armor from a past era, others didn’t have as many expectations.
The trio walked out through the cemetery’s iron gate with a ’creak.’
With his Hunter’s transformation axe adept at breaking through and smashing heads, Gascogne moved at the forefront.
Behind him, Henrik and Lann formed a small triangular formation.
Under normal circumstances, Lann reckoned the two would also be one looking forward and one watching back.
"Lann lacks Hunter’s weaponry and has no experience fighting the beast plague; is it alright?"
Once entering combat mode, Gascogne’s previously gentle tone turned ice-cold and serious.
Henrik assured him.
"Before meeting me, he had snapped a highly beastified patient’s leg and arm with bare hands, pressing the head for answers. Though the behavior is somewhat foolish, his skills are fine."
After explaining to Gascogne, Henrik turned to remind Lann.
"We’re about to start proper work now, Lann. This is different from back then, which was merely rushing ahead, not clearing out beastly scourges."
Lann hadn’t spoken all this while; talking would seem like bragging, introductions from others were more trustworthy.
With Gascogne’s doubts settled, the young man patted the sword scabbard on his waist, revealing a ’rest assured’ smile.
"I’ve roamed quite a bit myself, don’t worry."
So far, Lann had only demonstrated swordsmanship and martial arts in this city.
But if required, he could draw another sword and countless alchemical products.
After augmenting the Alchemy Pouch with space expansion spells, he invested many shiny gold coins to fill this over two cubic meters of space.