Chapter 9 "Waiting for the Beast" Bone knife, lying in wait for the thief, Yiru...
In order to catch the bird thief, Lamb came up with a plan beforehand.
Although Ray thought his approach was unwise, he didn't point it out directly so as not to discourage the young people.
Night falls.
Lamb, dressed in dark clothes, arrived at Ray's house.
Candles were a bit pricey, and the Lai family only had a few, so the two of them couldn't bear to light them. They sat around the fireplace and ate roasted sweet potatoes by the firelight.
Neil went to bed early, and Ray gave him a dagger for self-defense and told him to lock his room door.
"Brother, I secretly took a short knife from home. Hehe, just you wait and see."
Lamb's curly hair looked even more vibrant in the firelight. He pulled a knife out of his sleeve and brandished it triumphantly, like a kindergarten child showing off his new toy.
"You snuck out?"
Lamb awkwardly sheathed his dagger.
"No, no, Rhys knows."
"So that means Uncle Hagrid doesn't know."
"Um."
Lamb responded softly, and Ray looked at the big kid with amusement.
"Brother, remember to bring your weapon too, just in case it really is a wild animal."
"OK."
Ray casually picked up a small peeler from the fireplace.
He didn't think he could catch anything tonight; with only a few dozen households, the chances were too low.
"Brother! You need to take this operation seriously; it's our first time working together!"
Lamb said seriously.
"You think I'm not good at fighting?"
Lamb's newly roused spirits instantly deflated.
No, that's not it.
He didn't stop for long before starting to ask Rye again.
"Bro, can you show me your new weapon?"
"What new weapon?"
"The Wolf Fang one."
Ray looked at Lamb suspiciously. He hadn't told anyone about asking Timuch to make something; only Neil knew a little about it. Where did Lamb find out?
"Brother, don't look at me like that."
"Lamblai said in a whining tone."
“Everyone saw you carrying that shiny new pot home that day. When you asked me about the wolf fangs, I knew you must have had some mysterious person turn them into weapons.”
"Yes, it's done."
"elder brother!"
Lamb was so excited that his eyes lit up, and his curly hair practically stood on end.
Lei found it amusing and stopped teasing him, taking a bone knife from the bedroom.
It must be said that Temujin's craftsmanship is indeed excellent.
He sharpened the wolf's fang according to its original shape.
Two handles were made with a dark silver metal base, each with a groove. Holes were left at the bottom for attaching ropes.
The metal outer layer is also wrapped with two pieces of animal hide with a very good feel to prevent chafing.
Lamb stared intently at the curved blade, its surface gleaming with a unique, bone-like sheen.
"Wow, so handsome!"
He examined the bone knife from every angle, turning it over and over again.
"As expected of a weapon made from the bones of a magical beast."
"Alright, stop fooling around. Isn't it almost time? Let's go."
"Why."
Lamb returned the knife to Ray, who casually put it in his pocket.
The weather, which should have been warm, has been disrupted by the continuous plum rains, causing a sharp drop in temperature.
The evening breeze was slightly cool, and Lai couldn't help but shiver.
Wearing too little clothing was a mistake.
"Brother, why don't you go back and put on another piece of clothing? It won't take much time."
After thinking for a moment, Lai went back inside to put on a coat and brought one out for Lamb as well.
After fiddling around for a while, the two of them, holding the small half-burnt candle that Lamb had brought from home, headed towards the house of Lamb's friend George.
It was already late at night, and the surroundings were quiet; most of the villagers had already gone to sleep.
The only sounds on the road were the footsteps of two people walking on the main road and the barking of a dog startled by their footsteps.
After walking for a while, the two arrived at a house.
Lamb imitated three bird calls, the door clicked open, and a dark figure emerged.
"You've finally arrived."
The shadowy figure approached quickly, the candlelight illuminating his silhouette—it was George.
Ray remembered that he was one of the young men who helped cut down trees last time.
"What's the rush? I'm here now, here you go."
Lamb pulled out a sweet potato from somewhere and handed it to him. George took it with a grin and started eating it without any hesitation.
"Hey, don't rush to eat, can't you see there's another person here? Call me 'brother'."
"elder brother!"
George bowed to Rye as he called out. Lamb's tail practically flew up, and he proudly raised his chin at Rye.
See that? Our little brother!
"Is everything ready?"
"Ready."
George finished the sweet potato in a few bites and led Lamb and Ray to a warehouse filled with miscellaneous items. Six red tardigrades were pecking at the millet on the ground inside the fence surrounding the warehouse.
The three men stepped over the fence, hid in the warehouse, and concealed themselves with straw curtains and various odds and ends, leaving only three gaps to monitor the red field birds.
That's right, this is Lamb's idea—a magical continent version of "waiting for the bird to come to the beast."
.
Time passed slowly, and remaining completely still and silent was a true test of one's patience.
The three men took turns keeping watch, and they waited for another two hours.
The red field birds had long since huddled together, heads tilted, asleep. Even Lamb, who had been most concerned about the matter, showed signs of fatigue. Ray was in good spirits, but George was best left unmentioned; he was in a half-asleep, half-awake state.
"Are they coming or not?"
Lamb mumbled softly in a breathy voice.
"Shhh."
Ray stopped Lamb.
"Listen."
Lamb perked up and listened intently to the sounds outside the warehouse.
Rustling, rustling.
There was a faint sound of something being dragged on the ground.
The two looked at each other and saw excitement in each other's eyes.
Lamb lightly kicked George to wake him up and gestured for him to be quiet with his finger.
Swish, swish.
The sound grew louder and louder, like the sensation of skin or hair rubbing against the ground.
A moment later, the wooden fence was opened.
It was too dark at night; I could only see a rough outline, it was all black.
A four-legged beast cautiously approached the red wildebeest. The poor bird was still fast asleep, unaware of the approaching danger.
Lamb gripped the dagger tightly, staring intently at the object.
The wild beast drew closer and closer to the red field bird, and one of the birds seemed to sense it and raised its head. It stood upright and pounced, grabbing one of the unfortunate birds by the neck.
In the blink of an eye, Lamb rushed forward.
The debris scattered made a loud noise, waking all the red field birds and also startling the beast.
The beast grabbed the red wild bird by the neck and started running, with Lamb and Ray chasing desperately behind.
The red rockbirds flapped their wings wildly, and George, in his haste to catch up with the two, tripped and fell flat on his face. It was truly a chaotic scene.
George's family heard the commotion, put on their clothes, held up candlesticks, and opened the door, only to find a mess on the ground and their son running forward with a limp.
"Stop running, we can't catch you."
George stopped outside the courtyard wall, then walked back into the yard with his head drooping.
"What is it?"
"George's father asked."
"I don't know, I didn't see it clearly. I just saw a dark, rather thin shadow."
"Go to sleep, we can pack our things tomorrow."
"OK."
The family returned to the house, but George was still regretting that he hadn't kept up with them.
On the other side.
The wild beast ran extremely fast on all fours, but the red wildebeest it was carrying somewhat slowed its escape.
Seeing the two people behind him getting closer and closer, although he was reluctant to give up what he had already obtained, he still dropped his prey for the sake of his life.
Without the Red Wild Bird's obstruction, it moved even faster. Ray and Lamb struggled to keep up.
"Damn bastard."
Lamb was panting heavily as he ran with difficulty. He had tremendous explosive power, but he wasn't good at long-distance running.
Without uttering a word, Lei adjusted his breathing and increased his speed to continue chasing.
The wild beast ran straight into the woods.
The woods were muddy from the rain, so if they hadn't caught it in the village, it was even less likely they would have found it in the woods.
As they drew closer to the woods, Lei was only a few meters away from it.
"Brother! Grab it quickly!"
Lamb lagged behind, calling out anxiously.
The dark clouds were dissipating, turning into a thin, scattered layer, and the bright moonlight shone evenly through the gaps onto the earth and into the village.
By the moonlight, Ray and Lamb finally saw what the beast looked like.
His skin was dark and wrinkled, his body smooth and covered in mud, except for a piece of animal skin around his groin. He had human-like features, but with the vertical pupils of an animal. His large hands were pressed to the ground.
"ha!"
The wild beast growled at the two men and, taking advantage of their momentary hesitation, quickly disappeared into the forest.
"God! Brother... Brother, can you see this?"
Lamb was panting heavily, his face a mix of surprise, disbelief, and nervousness.
"I saw it."
Lei also took a deep breath to calm himself down.
This thing reminded him of Gollum from the movie he had seen before, The Lord of the Rings.
"Let's go back."
"Um."
After retrieving the red rockbird, the two walked quietly along the road.
Lamb felt a chill run down his spine when he thought of that strange creature.
"Brother, what do you think that is?"
"I don't know."
Lei was also somewhat puzzled.
"Ask Uncle Hagrid tomorrow morning."
"Um."
Ray took Lamb home, and Reese heard the commotion and came out to pick him up.
He could tell they had failed just by looking at Lamb's dejected appearance, so he didn't say anything more.
Do you need me to give you a ride?
"Need not."
Ray shook his head and refused. He wasn't a child who was afraid to walk alone at night.
After saying goodbye, Lai went home.
In the woods, Iru carefully concealed his footprints.
He wasn't in a hurry to go back.
He took a long detour, picked a large bag of mushrooms, and caught some insects before returning to the cave. Before going in, he made a point of washing off the dirt.
"I'm back."
A muffled sentence, mixed with gurgling sounds, came from inside the cave.
“Oh, Iru, my Iru.”
His wife was so thin she was just skin and bones, her huge belly protruding as she looked at him tenderly. His three children were catching ants on the ground to eat.
"I'm sorry, I failed and didn't bring you any fresh meat."
"It's alright, Iru, it's good that you're back."
Iru roasted the grass stalks adorned with insects over a small campfire, and then handed them to his pregnant wife after they were cooked.
The three children stared at the roasted insects, their eyes gleaming with longing, but none of them took the initiative to ask for them.
"Give it to the children."
"No, Mom, you and your unborn siblings need them more."
Their eldest child hurriedly refused, and the two younger ones followed suit, shaking their heads.
Iru patted the heads of the three children one by one and gave each of them a large mushroom. They happily stuffed the mushrooms into their mouths and then played with the grass stalks without a care in the world.
All three are obedient and good children.
The wife made a soup with mushrooms, wild vegetables, and berries.
Yilu looked at the bubbling soup with a worried expression.
He has already revealed his whereabouts. What if the villagers find their hideout?
Damn monsters, damn rainy season, damn Heru.
Merciful God, if you truly exist, please take care of our poor family.
A note from the author:
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I'll definitely run away in the next chapter.
You can guess what it is; it's quite easy.
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