Chapter 41: The Feast

The empty and infinite earth, the endless desert, and the white moon hanging motionless in the sky.

The moonlight is cold, and the sand dunes reflect layers of hazy pale light, very thin, very... Barren, boundless, farther and more oppressive than the sea, without life, there is nothing left between heaven and earth.

Quite a bad feeling.

Sighing, I shrugged my shoulders and slowly turned around in the direction I came.

Behind is still a sea of white sand, stretching for a distance, the dark and dry forest stands abruptly between heaven and earth, black and white, the two colors make people irritated to see.

I don't know how long it has been, but the moon has been hanging in the sky since I came here, and it is impossible to distinguish between day and night, so naturally I don't know how to calculate the time, and I can only rely on the sleep brought by the biological clock to estimate the passage of time.

I couldn't resist the sleepiness, I fell asleep and woke up three more times, and the sight of opening and closing my eyes was still before going to sleep, which was really frustrating.

…………

Stepping on the soft and soft gravel under his feet, he took a moment to return to his temporary residence at the edge of the forest, and observed the surroundings for a while, making sure that there was no abnormal movement, and then he went into the waist and went into uh~ to find a place to sleep.

A gap between two rocks.

Because I couldn't be sure if it was dangerous or not, I didn't even go into the forest, and I didn't dare to leave this rocky area between the forest and the desert too far.

Unfortunately, the results were not good.

Curled up in a crevice in the rocks, I rested my chin on my knees and sighed meaninglessly.

How so?

If I had known that this would happen, I would not have broken out and used the Hailou stone dagger to poke Admiral Akainu, a cheating father! So what's going on with the bastard? Isn't it magma fruit? Why!

I poked it with a knife, and the next second the whole person fell backwards like falling into the void, and then... Just let me fall in such an inexplicable place!

At that time, the back of my head hit the ground, and when Venus spread out in front of me, staring at the miserable white moon in the sky, I was just... It's a crash, okay!

When I came back to my senses and found myself in a strange place, I got up from the sand dunes and waited in place for a while, but I couldn't return to the original warship for some reason... I had no choice but to move forward in the only direction where I could see the color.

It's this swarthy forest.

After trying to save myself in vain and feeling hungry, I was so surprised that I didn't know how to feel, and I didn't even have the strength to scold the 'thief'.

It's not a hallucination of fainting, fall!

Reluctantly accepting the facts, I... I couldn't think of anything other than to find a corner for myself to hide from.

This place is lifeless, it is not a good place to look, the endless sea of sand, the dark and gloomy forest, no animals, no water, like a dead place.

Where exactly?

…………

After sighing, I carefully reached under the crevice of the rock, my fingers inserted/into the gravel and groped carefully, the fine pieces of quicksand slid through the gaps between my fingers, and the cold feeling...

After a while, his fingers touched a round icy feeling, paused, carefully touched its fruit pedicle, and pinched it off.

I raised my wrist a little higher, looked at the thumb-sized thing the same size as sand in my fingertips, was silent for a while, and finally gritted my teeth and stuffed it into my mouth... Close your eyes, chew, and swallow slowly.

Can't eat the taste, like jelly without seasoning? But at least it can withstand hunger, and a little water doesn't make me die of thirst.

I swallowed the unknown food in my mouth, and once again reached out to the same place...

This thing grows under the gravel and seems to be a plant, who knows~ In short, I was so hungry that I couldn't find food and didn't even have water... You can't pick what you can eat, can you?

Before I found it, I almost gnawed on the bark!

If it weren't for that forest... When I got closer, I found that they were like fossils at all, not to mention digging the bark to absorb the water/fill the hunger by the way, poke the Hailou stone dagger down and collapse a piece, it is not completely carbonized...

it!

Speaking of this, I almost vomit blood! Luckily, before I went crazy, I noticed a few slightly different things in the gravel under the 'roots'... Otherwise, I don't even know what to do.

Where the hell is this?

I thought it was Night Island, but... There is no sea in sight, only cold, dry sand in the air.

There are no traces either.

Supposedly, the island should not be like this, even the desert of the night island is not so devoid of life.

Well~ maybe there is life.

The fruits dug out from under the gravel during this time should be a plant? It's not poisonous, it can be eaten, or maybe it's poisonous? It's just that I'm not dead after eating it.

Hawkers~ Compared to starving to death and dying of thirst, I don't think I can name the fruit, uh~ In short, it's better to gnaw on carbonized bark or sand and eat fruits that may be poisonous, right?

People have to be brave enough to try new things.

I still have important things to do, how can I die here?

…………

The heartburn-like hunger in my stomach subsided, and I stopped digging, and the hand I pulled back touched my lower back... The finger touched the hard object, paused for a few seconds, and then released.

He took a heavy breath, carefully took off his shirt, and untied the strip of cloth tied to his waist...

The strip of cloth is the strap I tore apart from the strap-on of the vest, tied with two stubble made of slightly stronger bark, and sandwiched between the Hailou stone dagger, that is, the only remaining self-defense weapon that fell here.

Put back on your tunics, tie the dagger to your hand with a strap, hold the hilt of the knife, lean your back against the rock, and carefully close your eyes.

Rest... I'm already tired.

Once again, I couldn't find a way back, and in such a dazed world, the existential crisis and the worry about my own bear child were about to crush my spirit, and I felt that I was about to be unable to bear it.

Reason tells me that I must stay awake, but it is a little difficult to actually do it.

That white desert... I can't even accumulate basic survival equipment to get out of it, I can't see the end of it, I can't be sure that I can find people after walking through it, I don't dare to risk it.

In case of dying halfway, in case ...

I want to see Nana alive~

My baby... Is she okay now? Are there any injuries? Do you have... Like Anna, deceived and betrayed?

Just thinking about that possibility, I feel terrible.

My Nana was spoiled by me, I forgot to teach her, there is always malice in this world for no reason, those damn greedy ambitions, if she gets hurt by this...

…………

When I close my eyes, I always see Nana's crying face, and I reach out but I can't reach her.

I have been unstable in my sleep, and the fragmentary dreams are hateful and powerless, and the outstretched hand suddenly falls into the air, hitting something... The pain of reality guided me to open my eyes.

Gray and white rocks again.

A temporary place to see before going to bed.

There was a spot on the back of the hand holding the dagger that hurt a little, thinking that it was a nightmare that hit the stone wall with a knife, and frowned, I cautiously turned my head to look at the exit, where the blocked stone that had been moved before the break was still in its original position.

The neighborhood still seems to be safe.

…………

Untied the strip of cloth tied to his hand, rubbed over and moved the rock, and took a moment to get out of the crack in the rock, holding the knife and looking around.

White sand, cold moon, black forest, rocky middle ground.

Barren as always.

What's next?

Climbing up a rock with my hands and feet, standing on a higher place and looking into the distance, while thinking again, I remembered the thought I had put aside before:

Collect carbonized tree branches and find a way to set them on fire as a wolf smoke for help.

This kind of thinking is very unrealistic, I know very well, firstly, there is no tinder, and secondly... Burning fireworks will not only attract rescuers, but also attract unexpected dangers.

The idea of asking for help had been dispelled several times before, and at this moment... After thinking about it again and so often, I... I seem... I kind of want to ignore it.

After hesitating for a long time, he finally gritted his teeth, and the rational defense line in his mind was crushed by madness.

Okay, okay~ No matter what it incurs, even if it is dangerous, it is better than dying here inexplicably, I can't hold on anymore, there is no water, no food, deserts everywhere.

Even if I don't do anything and just hide here, it won't be long before I die.

He closed his eyes, sighed deeply, turned his gaze back to stare at the forest, and was about to bend down and climb down the rock, but somehow, a faint flash seemed to flash in the corner of his eye... What is it?

Something to do?

Stiffened, I subconsciously clenched the dagger, slowly straightened up, and tilted my head.

…………

The gray rock formations, the high and low undulating lines...

After looking left and right for a long time, my eyes finally stopped, and I saw what I thought was an illusion... Life.

Standing near the edge of the desert, on the edge of a rock, a small figure, wrapped in a cloth? Is it a child?

With a swoop, I slid down the rock, and walked cautiously towards the child, almost helpless for fear of scaring the other person, and of course, more excited.

The little figure stood there, not moving.

Walking more than ten meters away, I stopped and smiled cautiously tentatively, "That, hello?" ”

It was indeed a child, wrapped in a black cloth, looking dusty, standing barefoot on the sand, looking very... How so? It's weird.

A head with a flower head in the ears, strangely wearing a helmet? And the shape of the helmet is also strange, with two buffalo horns on the top, and one is broken, in addition, the helmet extends a goggle-like ornament to cover one of the child's eyes?

I looked at the child quietly for a while, and I didn't know how to continue.

I'm glad to meet someone for the first time these days, and it's a kid, which shows that there are tracks nearby, at least... Don't worry about dying alone in this desert.

But... This kid is so weird~

Uh~ This outfit... What's wrong?

…………

After a long pause, the little grain figure moved, and took a few steps towards me, with a little caution, but just after stepping out of the gloom of the rocks, it stopped.

The pale moonlight shone on the child, and when I saw it clearly, my heart somehow softened.

It looks like a girl in her early teens at most, right? There was a subtle touch of subtle ... It seems to be a timid look that wants to get close and cares about something.。

The little body is wrapped in a cloth, barefoot, and the calves and arms are also bare... Some... Life is unusually hard.

After thinking about it, I squatted down, put the hand holding the weapon in the place where the child could see, and deepened my smile, "I'm not a bad person~ I'm a victim, can you sue me near here..."

"Huh?"

Before he could finish speaking, the child turned and ran away.

I cried out in disappointment, not wanting my back to stop again, and turned around, unable to see clearly from a distance, just lowered my head and didn't know what to think, and didn't move or speak.

After another long time, the child slowly swallowed, and walked towards me step by step, as if he was very hesitant, only a few dozen meters away, walking very slowly.

Seeing her approaching, I sat down and waited patiently, not letting go of the dagger in my hand, but also not clenching it.

I think... The child was not hostile, but she was not too wary when she saw me holding a dagger in my hand... How so? If you're used to fighting, you can probably see that I don't have any force at all, right?

Holding the dagger was just for peace of mind.

We're probably both trying to... Find a balance with each other.

…………

The child stood a meter away, his gaze at the height at which I was sitting.

And because I got closer, I could see her clearly... Sure enough, it's a girl.,Lori about ten years old.,Ear-length hair.,The pupils are strange water-red.,The helmet is printed with flame patterns... One side of the eye covered by the helmet blindfold... The lenses are weirdly jet-black, is the eyesight bad?

Or... That eye can't see?

It's still a child~ The cloth wrapped in a lot of sand and soil, and the little hands and feet are bare, which makes people feel distressed to watch.

At this age, my Nana at least didn't suffer any of these hardships.

Thinking of my own child, out of empathy, my heart softened a little, so my tone was more softened, "Well, I'm Anna, what about you?" ”

She pursed the corners of her lips and didn't speak, with a strange joy in her eyes? After a moment, another careful step, one step, one step, one step... Finally, standing in front of me, reaching out, poking me in the cheek?

The cold touch suddenly pressed on my heart, and I couldn't help but shake, very, very cold...

Seeing that I was trembling, she took a step back in some panic, and I hurriedly continued to smile when I saw this, "I'm Anna, what about you?" ”

"Human—" said the child, with a lovely voice but a very strange content, "why?" ”

"What, why?" I was stunned, not wanting this kid to suddenly reach out and touch my... Chest?!

Feed?!

The force of pressing on the chest is neither light nor heavy, and the child's face is close to it... There was obvious joy in his expression, "There is temperature." ”

Ha? Maintaining a backward posture, my head was full of black lines, and I was embarrassed.

…………

After a long time, I found that the child was vaguely obsessed and refused to take his hand, and there was a tendency to get closer and closer, and after all kinds of helplessness, I opened my mouth to save myself, "That..." As if it was stuck to a piece of ice through the fabric, goosebumps were rising.

And the touch... I haven't been on my chest for more than ten years after breastfeeding, which is really subtle~

And how long are you going to pounce on me, kid? That horn on your helmet will poke me, okay?

With my hands pressed on the ground to maintain my balance, I half-tilted my head and looked at the sky silently, the corners of my mouth twitching violently.

"Lilynette."

The voice of the strange man sounded in the distance, and with the voice, a figure appeared without warning.

My pupils constricted slightly, and I looked at the position where the child had been standing more than ten meters away, and my whole body stiffened.

A man... It's just a child, it's a different story for an adult man.

I froze, and the other party seemed to be stunned, and after a while, the person standing under the shadow of the rock came out, also wrapped in a black cloth, very casual, but walking with a strange aura.

Staring at him intently, and he staring at me as well.

After a while, the person who slowly walked out of the shadows revealed his appearance, dark black hair, slightly curly, slightly messy, a wonderful combination of cold and hard contours and lonely temperament, light gray eyes, slightly slanted at the corners of the eyes, eyes...

The eyes that look down condescendingly, the pupils are desolate and barren, more barren than the desert... There is no popularity.

The man also stood a meter away first, looking at it quietly with lifeless eyes, and for some reason, he was very strange like a child, as if after confirming something, his light gray pupils injected a trace of strange fluctuations.

As if it was... Joy?

Why?

…………

Finally, I sighed in surrender, "That, can you let this kid first...", paused, lowered his eyes and looked at the single horn helmet on his chest, choked, and then continued, "Take your hand away, it's cold~"

The ice cube sticks to the heart like a freezer, and it's like a summer slamming open freezer.

As the words fell, the man looked at me and said lazily, "Lilynette." ”

"Long-winded!" The child raised her head fiercely, and after I raised my head dangerously to avoid the attack of the horns, she finally retracted the action of the fast bus to her body, and slammed... Without borrowing strength, he swept with one kick...

Belch! As I stared at the blockbuster-like scene in front of me with wide eyes, and the back of my head was covered with black lines, I suddenly had a strange feeling.

A child's ability to defy the gravitational pull of the earth... Also, the man's slow swallowing sideways but just right and precise avoidance movements...

What's wrong?!

This one big and one small have a very strange feeling on their bodies.

Or should I say... My eyes were empty, and my heart gradually rose up that had been subconsciously denied... Fact.

…………

The two figures staggered and separated, and then came to a standstill.

The man pressed one hand on the child's head and raised his eyelids, "Do you want to go together?" ”

Where to go? I was stunned for a moment and quickly got up, "Is that okay?" ”

As a result, his eyes lit up, but the person who answered was a child... struggled to raise his head, with a look of obvious disdain, "If you can keep up, you will always follow!" ”

The words were strange, but the eyes were bright in the red eyes, and he pouted and looked unhappy, and then stared at me tightly, like Nana, he obviously wanted to be hard and hard-mouthed.

It's also a bear child~

After thinking about it, I narrowed my eyes and smiled, "Thank you~"

The child snorted, turned his face away, and then squinted out of the corner of his eye.

"I'm Anna." I smiled and said to the little Lori, who might have suddenly become arrogant because of the parents' arrival, "What about you? You're Lilinette, where's your dad? ”

"Cortea. Stark. The man replied lazily, and when he saw me looking at him, he raised his hand and scratched his cheek, paused, and then said, "Lilinette. Kim Jerebuck, she's not my child. ”

Ke Taiya. Stark? Lilynette. Kim Jerebuck? I... I always feel that these two names are very familiar, where have I heard them? What's wrong?!

I was stunned for a long time, maybe I felt that my reaction was wrong, the child's expression changed slightly, and he stared at my eyes quietly, his eyes were shining... For a moment, there was a terrible sensation piercing nerve endings.

Subconsciously feeling that something was wrong, I shook heavily, looked the two people up and down a few more times, and after thinking about it, I slowly walked a few steps forward.

I'm still holding a dagger, and the other party doesn't care, it's strange to say, I look lazy and lazy, I don't care about anything, and I look indescribably lonely.

Walking up to the man, he raised his face and looked at the other party's light gray lifeless eyes, for a long time, he finally couldn't help but stretch out the hand that was not holding the weapon, and under his slightly widened eyes and looked dazed, his hand touched his chest wrapped in fabric...

Hooking his fingers on the fabric, he hesitated for a few seconds and finally gritted his teeth and pulled down a few points.

The terrible reality obscured by the fabric suddenly came into view.

…………

What caught my eye instantly coincided with the fragments of memories that were clamoring in the depths of my mind.

I finally knew something was wrong! The familiarity of the two names, all the strangeness after coming here, all the qiē was wrong at this moment.

The man's neck, close to the collarbone, was a mandible with hideous fangs, white and bone, and if you didn't notice or know it, you would think it was some kind of wild ornament.

Pity... I... I... I know what it is.

Gasping and staggering back, my eyes widened and I felt that there were countless tons of explosives/explosives/explosions in my head in an instant.

Ke Taiya. Stark———— this man, no, the humanoid creature in front of him... He's a broken face?!

This is an imaginary circle?! The point is... Here it is... Another world?

Where's the cheat!!