Lord of Cinder in American Comics

It was obvious that Martha interrupted the intelligence gathering, and Hill also gave up on her plan to continue gathering information.

This family is no ordinary one. Kassel is a bestselling novelist, he lives across the hall from Ash, and he even has the status of a special advisor in the Bureau of Control.

His mother Martha and daughter Alex are friends of the Fire Keeper, have free access to the Firelink Shrine, and their files appear to be protected by some special agency.

Kassel's current wife, Beckett, is probably the least important person in the family; she's just a New York councilwoman.

Hill looked at the information on his phone and gained a deeper understanding of this company.

Only Hill was anxiously waiting on the scene, while the Kassel family was clearly enjoying the camping trip. They had even set up a barbecue grill and moved the charcoal fire into it.

Just as Kassel and Alex were arguing about what to put on the grill first, the sky inexplicably darkened.

It was as if the clouds in the sky had obscured the sun, and a gentle breeze had begun to move.

However, when Hill looked up, he saw a pair of wings slowly gliding by. The wings were on a body that resembled a lizard, with a slender neck and tail.

That's... a dragon!

Hill stared in shock at the giant creature in the sky. Before he could calm himself down, the dragon descended upon him.

The dragon's arrival did not cause any disturbance in the camp; Kassel even mustered the courage to reach out and touch the dragon's head.

The dragon bared its teeth, but was stopped by the Lothric Knight on its back, and could only reluctantly let Cassel stroke it.

Not content with just touching it, Kassel even started taking photos with his family members and the dragon.

Looking at the unreliable family in front of him, Hill shook his head. It seemed that the Cassel family really was going on vacation.

In order to report to the World Security Council, Hill also straightened his hair and took a photo with the dragon.

The arriving Lothric knights remained silent, allowing Cassel to finish taking photos before instructing him on how to secure himself to the dragon's back.

To accommodate the ordinary people on its back, the dragon takes off somewhat slowly, but once it begins to soar, it instantly reaches its limit.

Hill looked at the sonic boom cloud surrounding the dragon, but he did not feel any discomfort, nor did he feel any airflow affecting him on the dragon's back.

Cassell tried to build a relationship with the Knights of Lothric, but the Knights ruthlessly pushed him away.

Annoyed beyond measure, the knight, in an attempt to avoid Cassel's overly familiar manner, slammed his Lothric Standard Lance into the dragon.

A platinum-gold light enveloped everyone, and when the light dissipated, a unique scene unfolded before their eyes.

The dim sunlight shone on the seemingly endless castle complex, and around the tallest building, a dragon, just like the one Hill and his companions had ridden, circled.

Upon reaching this point, the dragon slowed down slightly to allow them a better view of the scenery below. At the same time, identical dragons and riders appeared on either side, escorting them.

"Alex, take a picture of us!"

Kassel's voice snapped Hill out of his shock. Looking at the Kassel family, Hill realized they were the most relaxed and carefree.

Looking at the endless cluster of castles and the soaring dragons and knights, Hill realized that this might be Lothric.

Hill had given up trying to calculate the sheer size of Lothric during their flight; the dragon had been flying for several tens of minutes without managing to escape the castle complex.

After a long flight, the dragon finally landed on the high wall on the outskirts of Lothric, where someone was already waiting for them.

An old woman sitting on a high chair was looking at the dark yellow sun in the distance, waiting for them.

The old woman spoke slowly: "Oh, I have waited long. My name is Emma, ​​the High Priestess of this city—Lothric. I have something to tell you: If you go to the foot of the high walls, an envoy will guide you through the great city gate. If you are a guest of Lothric, you are free to leave, but remember, do not cross the great city gate without permission to return..."

After the old woman finished speaking, she lowered her head and fell asleep bathed in sunlight.

The flying dragon behind them had already flown away, leaving them all behind.

Looking at Cassel, Hill asked, "Do you have any news? What should we do?"

Kassel was looking through his phone, seemingly sending a message to someone.

Reading the contents of his phone, Cassell said, "Ash said we can stay here, but we're surrounded by Lothric Knights who won't care about our daily lives. However, we can go through the great gates of Lothric to the Undead Settlement, where ordinary people live. He's arranged everything."

Kassel's words made everyone understand where they were going. Hill traveled light, while only Kassel's family carried luggage.

Descending the steps from the high wall, the group arrived at the lower level, where Lothric Knights patrolled back and forth, simply circling around them as if they didn't exist.

Looking at the magnificent and towering building, Kassel pointed to a slow-moving figure and said, "Isn't that High Priestess Emma? How come she's faster than all of us?"

Following Cassel's direction, the group saw that Emma, ​​who had been sleeping on the high wall, was now slowly walking into a room guarded by Lothric knights.

The room was brightly lit, and everyone saw Emma walk slowly, just like before, and then sit down in front of a stone statue on a high chair that was the same as the one on the wall.

Looking at Emma's behavior, Hill felt that the old woman was full of mystery.

To avoid further trouble, Hill said, "Never mind that, let's get out of here. This place is full of tin cans..."

Following the steps down, the group arrived at the foot of the high wall, which was the interior of the city wall and the location of the main city gate.

While on the city wall, one doesn't notice its size, but inside, people realize how enormous it is. The space between just two city gates is large enough to accommodate an entire football field.

Upon arriving at the city gate, it was only slightly ajar, but even that small gap was enough for several people to pass through side by side.

Passing through the gate, there is a newly built wide road that renders structural mechanics useless, stretching into the distance without any support.

At the city gate, an old-fashioned carriage was already waiting. It resembled a luxurious carriage from the Victorian era, with four wooden wheels as tall as a person as its typical feature. But Hill did not see any power source or driver.

Kassel looked at his phone, compared it to the carriage, and saw that there was only one carriage around. Then he led his family up the stairs.

Once everyone was seated, the carriage started on its own, the wooden wheels making a crisp sound on the stone floor, but there was not a single bump inside.

The carriage headed towards an obscure destination, while inside, another dinner party organized by Kassel began, though only Hill sensed something was amiss.

She looked back and saw a huge figure crawling on all fours through the crack of the city gate before it closed the gate.

Chapter 292: The Undead Settlement

Inside the carriage, Hill could feel a constant, slight push against his back, indicating that the carriage was steadily increasing in speed, reaching its maximum. From inside the carriage, the railings of the long bridge outside appeared as one continuous structure. Behind them, Lothric remained majestic, and the road ahead remained difficult to discern.

As the carriage traveled along, Hill felt drowsy looking at the monotonous scenery outside the window, but she forced herself to record everything she saw and heard.

As Hill mentally reviewed everything he had seen, he heard Alex shouting from the front window of the carriage.

"Dad, we're almost there! I can already see the buildings ahead!"

Following Alex's words, Hill looked ahead and indeed saw a series of buildings, their architectural style similar to the high walls of Lothric, as if they were an extension of Lothric itself.

However, the buildings here are somewhat dilapidated. If it weren't for the fact that the cracks in the stones of the buildings have been cleaned so thoroughly, this place would be a complete ruin.

The carriage moved at an astonishing speed, and after Alex issued a warning, it arrived at its destination and stopped within minutes.

"Oh my god! This is spectacular!"

Alex's voice came again; she was looking back at the carriage and admiring it.

Hill turned around, and what she saw left her speechless.

It was a long slope, with a bridge made of piled stones, like a road to heaven, stretching all the way to the majestic Loscrec in the distance.

Hill then realized why he felt the acceleration and the push in his back; the carriage had been going downhill the whole time.

Regaining his composure, Hill carefully observed his surroundings. Like the great gates of Lothric, the area was divided by two large gates.

But the main gate near them was already rotten and wide open, unable to be closed, while inside was an iron gate that could only allow a few people to pass side by side.

There are already two people waiting for them next to the iron gate.

The two men were chatting and laughing, even tossing fireballs in their hands as if discussing something.

But the moment he saw Hill, he acted like a mouse seeing a cat, abandoning his usual nonchalance.

Hill recognized the two as Simmons and Fitz, the genius students from the S.H.I.E.L.D. academy who had joined the Dragon Academy and never returned.

Hill asked, "Simmons, Fitz, were you waiting for us here?"

Upon seeing Hill, Fitz immediately wilted, while only Simmons responded to Hill, saying, "Yes, Director, we'll take you to the settlement from here..."

Seeing Fitz's expression, Simmons nudged him and said, "Fitz, hurry up and open the door!"

"Oh! Okay! I'll go..."

Fitz approached the iron gate, pulled a black lever, and with a mechanical sound, the iron gate slowly rose.

Hill understood Fitz's personality quite well, so she didn't make things difficult for Fitz, but simply had Simmons take her around.

The Undead Settlement, at this moment, looks like a modern town disguised as an old town. Its buildings are old, but its core is very modern, with all kinds of electrical appliances.

As Hill walked through the curved corridor at the entrance, he saw a large crowd gathered outside, performing a ritual around a tree.

Simmons then explained, "That was the mentor presiding over a ritual, originally to commemorate the fall of the sun, by igniting themselves in the process. When we first arrived, they were even using corpses as sacrifices..."

Simmons couldn't help but shudder as he recalled the scenes he had witnessed before.

At that moment, the mentor beside the tree raised the book in her hand and recited a prayer that Hill could not understand. Then she suddenly opened her arms, and flames burst forth from her body, igniting the entire tree.

In this ceremony, the flames were the main focus, but the tree was the true protagonist. After standing and watching for several minutes, Hill did not see any change in the tree.

Hill was about to go forward to take a look when Simmons held him back firmly.

Simmons said, "Chief, don't go there. They're hard to communicate with. They'll just send people to the Road of Sacrifices to become porters... I even saw a woman on the Road of Sacrifices who had been driven crazy by them."

Hill didn't give up and asked, "Then what's with the flames on their bodies? Aren't they afraid of getting burned?"

Simmons curled his lip, as if exposing a scam, and pulled Hill aside to whisper, "That's because they have a secret medicine called the Red Worm Pill. If you take it, for a certain period of time, not only will you be immune to flames, but you can even take a lava bath without any problem..."

Simmons led Hill through the Undead Settlement and, upon reaching the top of the tower, pointed to the distant forest and said, "That's the Path of Sacrifices. Just follow the path, and you'll reach the Forest of Crucifixion, the hunter's territory..."

Hill watched as Simmons explained, then asked, "And what about you? Aren't you a student at Dragon Academy? What are you doing here?"

Simmons explained, "This is because Fitz chose crystal magic in his course selection at Dragon Academy, and he will be permanently studying in the Dragon Academy's Great Library. However, because Fitz designed a brand-new power grid and communication network for the settlement, he obtained permanent residency here."

"I chose Farron magic and will be serving at Farron Keep. Today, I received instructions from Mr. Geralt to guide you..."

Hill frowned slightly. She hadn't heard Geralt mention anything about the Dragon Academy. The arrangement for these students was just like S.H.I.E.L.D.'s education: I train you, and after graduation you will serve S.H.I.E.L.D. for a certain number of years.

However, Hill did not express it. Although Geralt had introduced her to the Hunters, she now had doubts about whether the Hunters could remain neutral.

As Simmons descended the tower, he pushed open a large door, beyond which lay the path of human sacrifice.

Looking at the tree-lined path, Hill asked, "Where are we going now?"

Simmons said, "I can only bring you here. Mr. Geralt will send someone to pick you up later..."

Geralt sent someone? It could only be the hunter apprentice Clint.

A black dot appeared in the sky, and Clint's figure slowly grew larger before landing steadily in front of Hill.

"You still have to throw your big butt over such a short distance! Show-off!"