Chapter 26 Chapter 26 The Third Wish
The Minotaur were tall, with bull heads, short and sturdy upper limbs, and thick and strong lower limbs. They were good at using cold weapons. In the name of casting, 80% of the weapons and tools in the Holy City were cast by the Minotaur.
The Minotaur who spoke to System 05 was named Kane. He was about two meters tall, sturdy and powerful, with piercing eyes and a handsome appearance. He was the chief guard of this village. This village was called Minotaur Village, and there were about a hundred Minotaur living there.
Kane led System 05 and Federer into the village. The village had few people and the villagers' homes were farther apart from each other. The houses were low, with simple structures, covered in yellow sand, and a desolate atmosphere was overwhelming.
Furnaces and forging platforms, piled high with iron tools, dotted the roadside. The battle with the Kuman had just ended, and the entire village was bustling with activity. They were bringing the wounded for treatment, burying the dead, and discussing how to proceed with the next battle.
Kane found a house for System 05 to live in and had food prepared. The food here was basically some dry and hard black bread and a small glass of water.
"The conflict between us and the Kuman has been going on for two years." Kane sat across from System 05, propped up his legs, and sighed softly, "The reason for all this is that twenty years ago, we allowed the Kuman to settle nearby."
"It's dry and water-scarce here. For dozens of miles around, the only source of water is the well in front of our village. We, the Minotaur people, have lived here for generations, relying on that well for survival. Although we live in poverty and hardship, we help each other and manage to get by."
At this moment, several children ran in from outside, waving swords in their hands and calling out to "Brother Kane." They rushed to him and said in unison, "Did we defeat those Kumans today?"
"I saw their bodies!"
"Brother Kane, when can I fight with you?"
Kane coaxed them for a while, and the children ran out again, so Kane continued, "Twenty years ago, when I was still a child, a group of wandering Kumans came to the village. They asked to settle nearby. There are mineral veins and well water here, which is the best place for them. If they continue to wander, they will die on the road sooner or later."
"The village chief at the time, my uncle, took pity on them and agreed to their request." Kane was silent for a long time before continuing, "We had hoped we could live in peace, but those Kumans became more and more aggressive, constantly encroaching on our territory and even seizing all the well water. My uncle went to argue with them, and they killed him."
"Later, we had frequent battles with the Kumans, just like today. The Kumans have always wanted to break into the village and completely occupy it, taking the wells and resources for themselves. But we absolutely will not allow it. The Minotaur will always protect our homeland."
Kane gripped his sword tightly and looked at System 05 firmly. "Investigator, I hope you can help us. With you here, they will definitely not succeed."
Federer demonstrated his extraordinary strength, and with his participation, the balance of war will be completely tilted.
System 05 shook his head. "Sorry, I'm in a hurry, so I'm afraid I can't help you."
Kane became visibly frustrated and asked, "I haven't asked the investigator where he's going yet. Perhaps I can help."
System 05 said, "We are going to the abandoned castle in the south."
Kane gave a puzzled look, and System 05 explained that they had recently discovered an abandoned castle. This village was only a fortnight's journey away, and they'd likely heard of it. Kane shook his head and said, "Perhaps it's because the recent fighting has been so intense, I haven't heard of the castle. I'm sorry I can't be of any help. I'm busy, so please feel free to wander around the village. Everyone's busy right now, so I'm sorry I can't accommodate you."
After he left, System 05 and Federer packed their luggage and made the beds. The beds here were made of gray-yellow stones, so hard that it hurt to sit on them.
It was almost dark. Aside from the Holy City, no one in this world could go out after dark. System 05 packed up, lay down, and closed his eyes to sleep.
After a while, he couldn't stand it any longer and said, "Can you just go to sleep?"
Federer: "I was sleeping!"
"Then why are you lying next to me?"
"I want to see more of you."
"I notice you're much more energetic at night than during the day," System 05 said. "Are you a nocturnal creature?"
Federer said, "Maybe. I feel freer at night than during the day. What do you think?"
System 05 opened his eyes and found Federer staring at him from above, his dark grey eyes tinged with a faint smile. System 05 stared at him for a moment, then suddenly smiled as well.
"In that case, let's talk."
Federer blinked. "What?"
"Avengers stuff."
Federer, looking half disappointed and half puzzled, said, "I thought you wanted to talk about me, or yourself."
"The most important thing to me right now is the Avengers. This is my mission, and my only goal is to complete it." System 05 said, "We all know that there have been four wars between the Holy City and the Avengers, but many books don't mention it, and I don't remember anyone ever saying where the Avengers came from or why the first war took place."
Federer reflected: "The church didn't teach that."
"Although the Holy City has won every war, it has also paid a heavy price. If the Avengers return, the Holy City will eventually lose. In that case, why not simply eliminate the Avengers completely and prevent them from ever being resurrected?"
Federer sat up and stroked his chin. "Maybe it's because they can't do it, not because they don't want to do it."
It’s not that I don’t want to, but I really can’t.
System 05 stared at a point in the void: "The Holy City is now even more useless than before."
If there has been no war for sixty years, the people of the holy city will think that there will never be war again.
How can we save the Holy City from the Avengers? Should we summon the Worm Queen again? System 05 believes that he can only make a decision after seeing the Avengers with his own eyes. This time, the Avengers awaken from the abandoned castle.
System 05 has completed many tasks like this. Compared with personal wishes, the difficulty is completely different, but it is also full of challenges.
It’s just that before he only needed to provide help to the host, but now he has to do everything by himself.
Now it seems a bit unreasonable that Weber committed suicide so decisively. He was a very successful person in the secular sense, with both parents alive and many friends. Could it be that he had no attachment to this world?
When he woke up the next day, the sun had just risen, but the sky was still dim and lackluster. System 05 felt aches all over. He sat up, then remembered that he had fallen asleep while chatting with Federer the previous night.
Federer wasn't in the room, but breakfast was ready. System 05 washed up quickly. Water was scarce here, so every drop must be cherished. While he was eating breakfast, Federer walked in and said, "I just went out to find a blacksmith to sharpen my sword, but they weren't willing to do it."
System 05 was going to go out with him to buy some supplies. They didn't know when they would encounter a village, and they had run out of some of the consumables they had prepared. Although they had made ample preparations before leaving the Holy City, they had to admit that they had underestimated the scarcity of supplies outside the Holy City.
There is a magic circle of infinite water source in the holy city, and the Kumans and Minotaur are fighting for a well.
The entire village was awake, everyone was busy, and the children were practicing with their weapons. When System 05 walked over, he heard them shouting, "Kill all the Kumans!"
“Kill, kill, kill!”
He also met Kane, who was gathering together for a meeting. Facing the attack of the Kumans, they wanted to build a fort or an iron fence. Besides that, there was another trouble. Because of the war with the Kumans, their weapons production had decreased, and they had not gone out to trade with the Holy City for a long time, so the various supplies in their inventory were becoming less and less.
As expected, System 05 asked the only grocery store in the village, and the owner said that they had run out of everything and could not buy anything.
When Kane saw System 05, he only nodded slightly. However, many children came over curiously and asked, "Are you from the Holy City?"
System 05 said, "Yes."
"The Holy City must be a wonderful place." The children were full of longing for the Holy City, which seemed like a dreamland without illness, hunger, or war. "When I grow up, I must visit the Holy City."
System 05 didn't think the Holy City was a good place, so he didn't say anything. He just patted the child's head and watched them run away.
Not long after, drums were heard outside the village. The other Minotaur people immediately felt as if they were facing a formidable enemy. Kane also ran out with his weapon in hand, cursing, "Don't give up! You ungrateful bastards are here again!"
He led a group of people out in a mighty procession, and the entire village was empty in an instant, with only a few thinner Minotaurs left to guard the children.
System 05 and Federer continued walking forward and discovered that there was actually a separate small house at the back. Two tall and strong Minotaur men were standing outside, holding heavy axes and guarding the door.
"Let me out! Let me out!" A hoarse voice came from inside the house.
"You still have the strength to scream." One of the guards said, "It seems that the strength you exerted last night was not enough. Once your tongue is pulled out, you won't be able to scream anymore."
"Let me out, I'm going to kill you!"
The guard sneered, "Did you hear that? They're here to die again. Shout louder so those Kuman thieves can hear you."
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